About Me:

I am a professional Pet Groomer. I have been grooming for 28 years. This Blog is a kind of diary of my work. I wish I had started years ago, writing some of the experiences I have had while grooming. Most days are fun, some can be sad, some can be just down right crazy. If you are a pet owner and come across this blog, I hope it helps you understand how your pet is groomed. If you are a Pet Groomer, I hope you can relate to some of the stories. Maybe even learn a grooming tip or can leave a friendly grooming tip for me. There is always something to learn, no matter how long you have been grooming.

Friday, February 1, 2013

May I Ask Why?......

.....Why, why, why?

Why is it always the dog that is very, very sweet, has a really great coat, is good in the tub, good for the dryer, stands perfectly on the grooming table, gets a fun cut, and is just a all around pleasure to groom....why do they have an owner that is rude, nasty, disrespectful, self obsessed, inconsiderate, and a trouble making lair?!

Sorry. :(

I just had to ask.

I better stop.

Note to self:
Calm down.
You only have to deal with the owner for a few minutes at drop off, and a few minutes at pick up. 
You get to enjoy the sweet little dog the rest of the time.

It just seems to happen often enough that I had to ask.

Happy Grooming, MFF

11 comments:

  1. I'll take that over the clueless non-owner with a crazy dog and vague grooming notes that I had to deal with today.

    Anyway, I gave you a shout-out on my blog post today: http://thewritinggroomer.blogspot.com/2013/02/hand-scissoring.html

    Have a good weekend!
    Jennifer
    The Writing Groomer

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  2. Hello, Lisa!
    I've been reading your blog since last year, i enjoy every post you write. You have such a great sense of humor and i can see how gentle and caring you are with every dog you groom.
    Thank you for sharing your knowledge, it's priceless.
    You are priceless!
    I'm a newbie groomer, i started grooming about year ago.
    Now i'd like to ask you a question. How would you deal with a 6 months old shitzu mix puppy that bites for brushing? Imagine that it's his first grooming experience and owners dont bother themselves brushing him at home. He is not agressive, he is happy and spoiled,
    he just doesnt doesnt like it, and he loses patience and bites harder and harder, even to the blood. Especially with his face. Because you cant put a muzzle on when you brush the beard.
    What would you do?
    I think i was too hard on him. After he bit me breaking the skin, I put him on his back, laying my hands on his body and neck, firmly but not to harm him. I looked in his eyes and talked to him in a very firm voice. He was very scared, im ashamed to admit he peed! But after that he calmed down and let me do everything i wanted. I felt so bad for him, im afraid i did a wrong thing!
    Please tell me what would YOU do?
    Thank you!
    Almira

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    Replies
    1. Hi Almira,
      Wow...I am not sure what to say other than thank you for the compliments. :)
      As for the puppy...I know exactly what that little Shih-tzu was doing. So many Shih-tzu puppies act the same way for their first groomings. It is something that you have to correct right away. There is a very fine line in the way you need to deal with these dogs. God forbid he bit your scissors and cut his tongue or mouth.
      The only thing different that I would have done, is that I would not have put him on his back. I will take a hold of them and firmly, but gently pin them to the table, look them right in the eye, and use a firm but shameful tone in my voice. Telling him 'no' and that what he did was not acceptable, and I will stare at him for a minute to wait for him to calm down and relax. I don't yell, and I try not to make my voice sound mean, just firm. Once he relaxes, I praise, praise, praise. Sorry, it is so hard for me to describe.
      If he peed, it may have been that you were just a little too firm, or because you turned him on his back.
      I do have a video of me trying to scissor a Shih-tzu puppies face. If you would like to check it out you may pick up some things from it.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcPSbodBH3w&list=UUOxjoS17kvWZ3rsdtg5m9EA&index=17

      Don't be too hard on yourself. You are always learning, and the fact that you are trying to figure things out is a really good sign of a good groomer in the making. :)
      I hope that this helped you at least a little.
      Lisa, MFF

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    2. Good evening, Lisa! 
      Thank you so much for your advise. I watched the video about the Groomer's nightmare today (the soundtrack is awesome!). Now i got your idea about how to deal with naughty puppies. It's about kindness, firmness, and a lot of patience at the same time. Next time i will try to follow your instructions. I wonder how had I missed that video before! Also now I'm going to read your posts about grooming puppies. Thanks, thanks, thanks a lot!

      Now, can I have more of your attention please? I've seen some interesting grooming technique, called Korean style on the Internet.
      Here are some links.

      https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=311132375603254&set=a.310762442306914.67045.100001194834265&type=3&src=https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/421196_311132375603254_1268556599_n.jpg&size=960,751

      https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=322055571177601&set=a.293825684000590.64472.100001194834265&type=3&src=https%3A%2F%2Fsphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net%2Fhphotos-ash4%2F422900_322055571177601_1282441057_n.jpg&size=640%2C444

      The body haircut looks a bit ridiculous to me, but the face looks cute and exotic.  I wonder what do you think of it? I've learnt that you love to try new things :) 
       

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    3. Okay Insomnia,
      You have officially changed my plans for the night. I will be on this groomers page forever looking at all her pictures. I LOVE this kind of grooming!! It is funny that you sent me these links tonight. You will see why tomorrow. lol I wish that I could get my customers to try some of these cuts. Thank you very much for sending these links. :)
      Lisa, MFF

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    4. Yay I'm so happy you like it :) waiting for your new post!

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  3. The nicest dogs always have the rudest owners!

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  4. Hey Lisa,

    It's worse when the dog that barks non-stop, has the very packed and matted undercoat, threatens to bite, keeps jumping around has a b**** for an owner.

    A b**** owner who despite being told of a surcharge to remove the matts at drop-off, still complains of the charge at pick-up. The b**** owner who thinks her dog's coat is not matted because all she can feel is the un-matted top coat on the dog's back. The b**** owner who laughs and says, "I know you guys muzzle my dogs sometimes, but my dog will not bite. He only THREATENS to. But if he bites you, then oops, sorry."

    There is no re-deeeming quality in this dog-owner pair.

    -Ana

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    Replies
    1. Hi Ana,
      Tell me how you really feel about this particular owner. lol I totally understand. Soooo frustrating. This is where that camera really comes in handy to take pictures of the mats as you cut them off. Of course, a customer like that probably would not believe the pictures either. :/
      As for the attitude that she has about her dog biting...time to write up a release form for her to sign BEFORE you groom the dog again, stating that she is aware that her dog THREATENS to bite, and that she will be responsible for all medical bills if her dog bites the groomer. Some people just don't have a clue.
      Now, that is a dog-owner pair that needs to be fired.
      Lisa, MFF

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  5. Hey Lisa,
    I just wanted to say THANK YOU for blogging real-life situations. I started as a groomer's assistant exactly one year ago, and I have been eating up all of the online grooming info I can get. I found your blog a few weeks ago and every night I've enjoyed reading your experiences and tips. I also have to say your photos are A-w-e-s-o-m-e! I am a "visual" person when learning things and seeing so many pictures is so helpful. Soo, anyway, now I have read every single one of your posts and I am going to have to find something else to occupy my time while my hubby watches his sports shows at night. :)

    Btw, my boss has a baby girl who stays with us in the shop all day and I think she will have the same problems as your daughter did being a young groomer. Haha, at 20 months she already says "bow" and "bandana" and says hi/bye to all of our clients.

    Happy grooming!!! Thank you for teaching me a lot of new things.
    ~Kelley

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    Replies
    1. Hi Kelly,
      Thanks for reading my blog. I am glad that it has helped you. I am a very 'visual' learner also, that is why I thought other groomers may like it. I also wanted this blog to be about real world PET grooming. It is not always as easy as the instructional videos show.
      Thanks again for reading my blog. :)
      Lisa, MFF

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