Clipper Problems Continued

Sometimes it takes a little while for the light bulb to go off in your head.

No??

That doesn't happen to you?

Sadly, it does happen to me.

My clippers are proof.

Last night I posted about my clippers.

I used them for two or three days without the drive cap, that disappeared into thin air last week.

I had no problem with them.

I even talked about how they seemed to glide through the hair better without the drive cap.

I understand why the drive cap is there.

I have been keeping the blade drive clean.

Then things changed with my first groom today.

 I had an overgrown, matted Bichon that I was clipping with a #3F blade. 

Everything was going fine.

I had clipped the body and one back leg.

I was working on clipping the front leg when suddenly......

The overgrown hair got twisted all around the blade drive.

Of course this stopped and jammed up the clipper instantly.

Just look at that hunk of hair.

I got as much out with my fingers as I could.

I really did a number on these clippers.

That hair could not have been wrapped any tighter around that blade drive.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!

This happening had never crossed my mind.

It should have.

I have had this happen with my Dermal File when it catches long hair while I am trying to file nails.

  I had to take a small pair of scissors and make a cut in the hair wrapped around the drive.

Then I used my ear pluckers to pull as much hair out as I could.

The ear plucker was a little too big to really get down in the drive and get all of the hair.

So I had to use a really pointy pair of tweezers to get the rest of the hair.

Not too bad.

Probably not as clean as they should be, but at least the blade drive was working again.

Now, here comes the light bulb part.

I took the drive cap off of my other clippers and put it on this clipper.

No more time wasted repairing clippers.

Why didn't I think of that last week?

I don't no. :/

What's that?

Why didn't I just use my other clippers?

BECAUSE (said in a whiny voice)......I like my grey clippers better.

Yes, they are both the same exact clipper....but I still like my grey ones better.

I can't explain it.

It is just like your favorite comb, or brush, or scissors.

Even though you may have two or three of the same tool, one of them just seems to feel better in your hand.

Come on now.

I know I am not the only groomer out there that feels this way.

Right?!

Please tell me that I am right.

I haven't fallen that far off the deep end yet... have I?

Oh, before I finish this post tonight.

I wanted to thank all of the groomers and non-groomers out there that responded to my crying, feeling-bad-for-myself post last week.

All of the comments were so kind and really helped to make me feel better.

There is one comment that I have not posted.

The person who wrote it may have noticed that it has not shown up in the comments.

I want to say to that person that I really appreciate the comment.

I was a little amazed at how much this person defended me.

The reason that I didn't publish her comment was because part of it was directed at my ex-customer.

Even though I appreciated her taking my side, I did not want to rock the boat with this customer just in case she is still reading my blog.

So, please don't be offend that I didn't publish your comment.

Once again I am humbled by all of the wonderfully supportive comments that I received.

Thank you!!

Happy Grooming, MFF

Clipper Problems

I have been having clipper problems lately.

It's driving me crazy!

I am trying to hold out until Groom Expo to buy another pair.

But, they are driving me crazy!!

Oh...sorry...I said that already.

I am talking about my corded clippers.

I have two Andis Ultra Edge (2 speed) clippers.

I like them...really I do.

Up until I had maintenance done on them by my clipper guy they were fine.

I like my blade sharpening guy.

I don't want to go through trying to find another.

It is too much of a headache.

The only problem is, that I didn't have this problem with my clippers before overhauled them.

The clippers run fine.

They hold the blade fine.

So what is the problem?

They heat the blades up very fast.

I mean super fast.

Before I sent them in for maintenance, I could clip an entire small dogs body before the blade started to get warm.

I could clip one whole side of a large dog before the blade started to get warm.

Warm not hot.

I check my blades on my cheek, or the inside of my wrist as I clip to see if it is getting warm.

As soon as my blade starts getting warm, I switch to another blade, or hit it with 'Cool Lube'.

After I had the first clipper cleaned and overhauled, I noticed right away that the blade was getting warmer faster.

I pretty much had it timed out how much I could clip before I started checking the blade for warmth.

Imagine my surprise when I tested the blade on my cheek expecting to be a little warm only to jerk it away from my face because the darn thing was hot!

I thought that it was the blade.

Maybe it was dirty....nope.

Maybe the tension was way too tight....nope.

My daughter would use the same blade on her clipper with no problem.

Very quickly I noticed that this was happening with every blade I used, on that clipper.

I tried to talk to my sharpening guy about it, but I could not get him to understand what I was saying.

He kept thinking that I was talking about the blades not the clipper.

Do you all understand what I am saying?

I am usually pretty good at describing what I am talking about, but he didn't get it.

He is not a stupid guy, and he was not pretending to understand.

When the same thing happened to the next two clippers that I sent out for maintenance (the other one of mine and my daughters clipper), I was positive that it was something that he was doing.

I talked to him again, and this time, after about 10 minutes of trying, I finally got him to understand that I was talking about something being wrong with the clipper not the blades.

He could not find anything wrong. :/

The clippers are getting worse.

I can barley get one side of the body of a small dog clipped before I have to change out the blade.

It is amazing how much this can slow you down.

I am a fanatic about hot blades.

I can honestly say that I have not ever clipper burned a dog.

I have had dogs have clipper irritation, but not burn.

Clipper burn and clipper irritation are two different things.

Clipper burn is from using hot blades, and the dogs skin is actually burned.

Clipper irritation is when the skin has become irritated by having the hair cut very short and the dog itches that area.

Similar to when a mans skin becomes irritated after shaving.

I have been using a Andis Ultra Edge for a long time now and other than this problem I like it, but I think that I am going to check out some other clippers at Groom Expo.

I am worried that a new pair of Andis clippers will do the same thing when I have maintenance on them.

I am going to take my clippers to Hershey and talk to the Andis people about them in person.

Maybe someone else can help me with them, and I won't have to buy another pair yet.

Oh, one other thing.

You know that little cover below the blade that you can take off to clean out the blade drive?

It has been popping off every once in a while ever since the maintenance.

The other day it popped off again.

I was in the middle of clipping a dog.

I looked down and didn't see it right away.

I could not take my hands off the dog that I was grooming at the time, so I waited until I was finished the dog to pick it up and put it back on the clipper.

Only when I went to look for it, it was gone.

Disappeared!

Vanished!

I could not find that darn thing anywhere on the floor.

I mean, even if it bounced it didn't really have anywhere to go or hind under.

It disappeared into thin air.

Maybe something is telling me to get a new clipper.

They do sell new parts.

They are called drive caps.

They only cost about $4.

For right now I am using the clipper without the drive cap.

And you know what?

Your going to think I am crazy.

Oh, that's right... you already know that I am crazy. ;)

I think that the clipper rides through the hair better without the drive cap.

Hair doesn't get caught between the drive cap and blade.

I am not just imagining this.

I clipped the  same dog with my clipper that still has the drive cap on it, and then switched to my poor crippled clipper, and it went through the hair better.

It was not a major difference, but the difference was there.

Really!

Okay, okay..it's my imagination.

But, the blades heating up too fast is defiantly not my imagination.

You know what?

Now that I write this post, I am determined to talk to someone from Andis and find out what happened to my clippers.

I just hope that I don't have to spend forever trying to explain what the problem is. :/

Happy Grooming, MFF

A Poodle Makeover

This was my makeover challenge today.

It was this Poodles first time at our shop.

When I walked into the lobby to get him, you would think that he was going to eat me alive.

He took one look at me and started barking.

I said Hi to him and reached down to let him sniff my hand and he high tailed it behind his owners legs...still barking. :)

I took his leash from his owner, turned him around so that his head was away from me and his butt was facing me.

I slowly brought my hand around his side to under his belly while holding his head away from me, just in case he tried to fear bite.

He stiffened up as soon as I touched him, but I talked to him as I picked him up telling him that he was okay.

As soon as I had him against my body, he relaxed considerably, even though he was still shaking a little.

 I will say that the second I saw him my first thought was; 'Oh please let this owner not be in denial about her dog being  matted.'

The owner was very nice.

She knew he was matted.

She had been sick and unable to groom her dog.

The family had also been bathing the dog.

His owner told me to do whatever I needed to to get him looking good again.

Hmmm, I think that that is a groomers simple pleasure...an owner that tells you to do whatever you have to to help their dog look and feel better. :)

Anyway, what blade do you think that I had to use on this matted little guy?

He was very matted around his shoulders, neck, chest, and hips.

A little matted everywhere else.

 I put him straight in the tub.

I washed and creme rinsed him well.

Then I HVed some of the mats out, and the rest of the large mats away from the skin.

He didn't want any part of the HV used on his head.

So I dried his head and face with the hand dryer.

Then I fluffed up the rest of his body.

I wasn't worried about trying to get the mats out.

I fluffed up the rest of coat.

What blade do you think that I can get through him now?

I was able to get a #3F blade safely through his coat.

That little, scared, barking dog from the lobby turned out to be a really sweet little dog.

We were in the home stretch when he decided that he needed a little nap.

I didn't mind.

It makes you feel good when you can take a dog from being so scared, to this relaxed, just in the short time that you groom them.

He napped for all of 20 seconds, until something out the window caught his attention.

Then I finished him.

The makeover was complete.

There was a handsome looking little guy hiding under all of that curly, matted hair. :)

Look at that grin.

He is actually grinning.

This is why I love what I do!!!

Happy Grooming, MFF

What Would You Do?..With This Face

Everyday groomers have to listen hard, to pet owners, to understand how they want us to groom their dogs.

Some owners are very specific and easy to understand exactly what they want.

Some owners kind of beat around the bush and the groomer has to ask a lot of questions to find out exactly how they want their dog groomed.

Some owners have absolutely no idea what they want and leave it up to the groomer.

Some owners leave clues on the dog as to how they want their dog groomed.

Then there are husbands.

I am going to use husbands as an example because 90% of the time, when I ask how they want the dog groomed, the husband will say; "didn't my wife tell you when she made the appointment," or "I don't know, you can call my wife."

I have no problem with calling the wife.

Most of the time the wives seem to be the ones to decided how the dogs should be groomed.

The problem comes when I can't get a hold of the wife to ask about the groom.

Sometimes I don't have to track down a wife.

Some wives call before their husbands even walk in the door.

Some wives have it timed out to call just as the husband walks in the door.

Some wives call after the husband has dropped off the dog just to check and make sure that their husbands brought the dog.

Some husbands come with notes.

The other day one of the husbands came in with a note.

This was the third time for grooming this dog.

The first time the wife brought the dog in.

The second time the husband brought the dog in and did not know what his wife wanted.

We could not get a hold of her, and she did not return our message, so I groomed the dog the same as the first time that I groomed it.

This time her husband brought a note.

The note was very short, and basically said to groom the dog the same as I did before.

But, I owner had also left me a clue on her dog.

I am sure that you are wondering what the heck I mean by 'a clue'.

This clue was actually on the dogs face.

The owner had done some scissoring of her own.

My interpretation of the clue...take the face shorter.

My grooming notes said that the owner liked the face short, but I guess that I was not taking it short enough.

How was I going to even this out without taking the face too short.

 One side was shorter then the other.

 The owner also does not want Westie ears.

She likes them to be short, but fuzzy.

Would you interpret the clue the same way that I did?

What would you do to fix it?

Clip it or scissor it?

I choose to scissor the face.

First I started with the ears.

I brushed the hair out to the sides and folded the the ear leather in half.

Then I scissored the outside of the ear leaving about a 1/4 inch of hair around the ear.

 I started scissoring the side of the face that was the shortest and had the most scissor chops in it.

I used the short areas that the owner had cut out as a guide to how short I would scissor the face.

I had to go fairly short in order to even out the hair.

Then I matched the other side up.

I hope that I took the face short enough for the owner this time.

I hope that I read her clue right.

That all the scissoring that she had done on the face meant that she wanted the face shorter than I had been taking it.

Either way, I had to scissor the face this short in order to even it out.

Actually, I think that she looks really cute with the short face.

It matches the short cut on her body. :)

Happy Grooming, MFF

Sick to My Stomach...Literally!

I had a post already planned for tonight.

I actually started it last night, but because of the three separate thunder storms with tornado warnings attached to them, that went through our area last night, I had to turn off my computer for the night.

I won't be posting it tonight either.

I am sick. 

I am sick in my heart.

I am physically sick to my stomach right now.

I have a lump in my throat that makes me feel like I want to throw up.

I constantly feel like I want to cry....

I lost a very good customer today.

I lost two dogs that I really care about.

I lost them because I write this blog and I have offend one of my customers.

I did not write the post to offend anyone.

I am not a mean spirited person.

I know that I rant about some of my customers on this blog.

It is my way to release some of my frustration for a job that can be thankless sometimes.

I do not use my customers names when I blog.

I even change the sex of the dog sometimes that I am talking about in my post.

Of course I do use pictures.

I have read and re-read the post that upset this customer.

I have tried to read it from her point of view.

The post was about comparing two dogs of the same breed and how different the amount of work they are.

Offending this customer was the farthest thing from my mind when I wrote that post.

I really like both of her dogs, and I like the customer too.

I feel so sick that this happened.

Yes, one of the dogs is very large and a lot of work, but it did not mean that I did not like working on it.

I apologized and tried to explain why I write about the dogs that I groom.

She seemed to understand.

She still very nicely told me that she feels that she should find another groomer. 

She felt that I was unprofessional.

I can't express how much that hurt.

I always try to be very professional.

I work really hard to please all of my customers everyday.

I do the best groom that I can on every dog that I groom.

I care for every dog as though it were my own.

I am sad that one post on a blog wiped out 6 years of service just like that.

No one has groomed either one of her dogs but me, not even my daughter.

They were to always be booked  only on me.

I know everything that they like and don't like.

I know everything that their owner likes.

It is always hard to lose a long time customer when they move away, or the dog passes away, but this is devastating.

I really care about those dogs.

I guess that I am being unprofessional again.

I guess that I should not be writing about this.

Only people that know me know how much this is killing me.

 

I am thinking about deleting the post that offended my customer.

I started this blog with the intention of blogging about grooming and helping other groomers out there by showing the way that I groom.

Most of my posts are just that, examples of grooming.

Of course, customer relations is also a very big part of our job.

I will continue to blog, but I will try very hard to stay just with the grooming aspect of it.

The post that offended my customer was just about grooming, but I guess that I should not have used her dog as an example.

I will be much more careful from now on.

I have paid a very large price for being too open in the way that I write on this blog.

This is a lesson that I won't soon forget.

I am in tears, MFF