Creative Grooming..Is it Art or Abuse?

Yesterday was one of those grooming days I thought would never end.

My last dog of the day being the giant Goldendoodle that seems to take me 2 1/2 hours to do just the finish work.

And, that is with him being a really good dog on the table!

When I got home I was dead, drained, numb, you name it.

So, all I did for an hour last night was surf the net a little.

Big mistake!

I ended up going to bed aggravated.

I came across a pet blog that shows all kinds of animals.

The blog is mostly pictures of cute  or strange animals.

One of the posts was a bunch of pictures of Creative grooms.

I had seen all of the dogs before, but I still like looking at them and marvel at the talent of these groomers.

Then I started to read the comments.

Second big mistake!

I knew better.

I knew what I was going to read.

A couple of years ago I had put a flower on my Poodle for a Pet Expo that
I was working.

Most of the people walking through the Expo loved it, and my girl loved the attention.

I did see a few shakes of the head and disapproving looks.

A couple of days later I found out that a friend had put a picture of my girl on her Pet Treats Business Face Book page.

The comments were mixed, but some were down right mean.

Very mean.

My friend was shocked and removed the pictures because she wanted her Business page to be a happy one.

Every once in awhile I will come across Creative Grooming pictures on the internet, and they are always follows by mean, uneducated comments.

People are so quick to judge.

I can be that way sometimes also.

Then I try to catch myself and put myself in that persons place, or try to learn about what they did before I judge.

I only compete in one Creative contest a year at Hershey.

I also only do simple designs.

I like simple.

I have been watching the creative competitions since they started.

I will admit that they have changed over the years.

The art work on these dogs is amazing now.

Some of the creative groomers out there competing today have made it their life's work, and the fact that they are the ones that almost always win proves it.

What I would like any of the everyday pet owners, who may come across this blog, to understand is that coloring your dog with safe non-harmful dyes for a one day Grooming competition is not abuse.

These dogs are so loved by their groomer owners.

They are brushed, bathed, fed, walked, cared for, and loved.

They are the same as everyone else's dog.

They run, play, sleep, and eat, just like every other dog...well almost every other dog.

These creative dogs don't live on the street.

They aren't chained to a tree wondering when their owner may come out and give them some food and water.

They aren't closed up in a small cage breeding litter after litter until they die.

They aren't dropped off at the Shelter because they aren't a cute puppy anymore.

Or because their owner didn't know how to house train them.

Or because their owner just didn't want to be bothered with them anymore.

I would rather see every dog dyed green then see some of the abuse that I, as a groomer, deal with almost every week in my shop.

This is a form of abuse.

To let your pet get so matted that the hair comes off in one solid piece.

 That you pay so little attention to your dog, that a mat is allowed to grow and grow until the hair had literally sliced through the skin.

 It is abuse when you look at your dog everyday and see the painful sore under his eye and you don't bother getting him any help from your Vet.

This does not happen over night, know matter how hard you try to convince me that it did.

It is abuse when you see your cat walking around with massive mats so obviously stuck to it's fur.

This took months to get this way.

No, I don't believe you when you tell me it just happened the other day when the cat walked under your car and got oil on himself.

Oh, by the way, I didn't see any oil.

It is abuse when you are not even sure if what you are looking at is a dog.

Is that his face?

Abuse is when an owner lets their pets nails grow till the dog can barely walk.

Abuse is when you have let your dog get so matted that their bum is almost completely closed up, and they can't go to the bathroom properly.

The next picture is of a poor little dog so abused that it is amazing he is still alive.

The picture is from a news article that I saw.

When I first saw this picture, I could not close my mouth.

I was stunned.

THIS IS ABUSE!!!

Kudos to the groomer that saved this little guy.

I may color my dog once a year, but you better believe that she is always clean.

You can run a comb through her coat and never find a mat.

Her nails are short.

Her ears are clean.

She plays everyday.

She is fed everyday.

She is hugged more times than I can count, everyday.

And, she sleeps in my bed, and has more room then me!

Don't ever accuse me of hurting my girl!

Make sure you know what you are criticizing before you judge.

To my fellow groomers who read my blog...Sorry for the rant.

Kudos to you for helping those abused dogs feel good again!

Happy Grooming, MFF 

Tuesday's Tip 21 Trimming Feet

Every once in a while I seem to have a hard time getting customers to understand what I am asking them, or talking about.

Such as...feet.

I think that sometimes we, as groomers, forget that customers don't always understand the terms we use when we ask how they would like to have their dogs groomed.

For instance, I will ask a poodle owner if they would like their poodle to have 'poodle feet'.

"Yes," the owner will say.

Years ago I would have stopped asking questions right there, but I have learned to ask as many questions as possible to make sure that the owner understands what I am asking.

"So you want the feet shaved short?" I ask.

"Oh no, I don't want you to shave them," the owner will say, shaking their head.

"Would you like them the way they are now only shorter and in proportion to the body?" I ask.

"Yes, yes, that's it," they say, looking relieved that I am not going to shave the feet, and me being relieved that I didn't shave the feet.

Saturday I had a woman in that could not understand what I was asking her about the dogs feet, no matter how I put it.

This is where pictures come in really handy.

Like showing them what a shaved foot looks like.

 Showing them what the foot looks like when it is not shaved.

You can also show them a fuzzy poodle foot that is clipped but not 'shaved'.

Show them what a Golden's feet look like when they are trimmed up.

These pictures could also be used for similar dogs such as Spaniel's, Sheltie's, Collie's, ect.

Little Pom feet that could also be used to show small dogs feet trimmed up.

Such as Peke's, and Long Haired Chihuahua's.

Show what Cocker feet will look like when scissored up.

Show them what feet scissored up tight look like.

Use the pictures to ask questions.

Like; "Would you like them to look like this, or longer, or shorter?"

When new owners with puppies come in, show them a picture of a puppies feet trimmed and rounded off.

Show Yorkie owners what their dogs feet will look like depending on the cut they want.

 When you have an owner that likes to keep everything long and natural, show them what the feet will look like if they let you trim them up a little.

Show them a before and after of what the feet will look like with a Puppy Cut.

Correction-->

Please ignore the Before and After labels under the feet in the picture to the right.

Obviously, they should be the other way around.  :o

A picture also helps to show an owner what you mean when you say;

'I'll clean out the pads'.

'I'll shave the pads of the feet.'

'I'll clip the pads of the feet.'

You can also show them how much hair grows in the pads, how it can mat, how it can make them slip on a floor, how it keeps them from sweating through their pads.

A picture can save a lot of confusion when trying to figure out what a owner really wants done on their dog.

Like the owner who came in and said;

"Clip him as close as you can get him!"

But, they really wanted this cut!

They have know idea just how close we can clip them.

So take pictures of your grooms, and get a binder.

Keep that binder up under your counter so that you can reach for it when needed.

Or you can make a book of all of your grooms.

Go to Winkflash.

Sign up and follow the directions to make your own book, showing your work.

You can take as long as you need.

It will save your work.

I got my book all ready to go, and then waited for the books to go on sale.

( It took me over a month)

I was able to get two books for the price of one.

Anything that will make our lives easier as groomers is worth doing.  :)

Happy Grooming, MFF

Survived Saturday...I Think

It all started at around 7 am Saturday morning.

I am going through my normal morning routine, getting ready to leave for work.

I was standing at the kitchen stove talking to my daughter when the most blood curdling scream ripped through the house.

It was my 11 year old son.

I had never heard him scream like that.

It rivaled any horror movie scream you have ever heard.

Steven King would be proud.

It instantly added at least a 1000 gray hairs to my head.

As the second, just as heart stopping, scream ripped through the air again, my daughter was racing down the hall with me hot on her heels.

In the 2 seconds it took to get down our hallway, I had already envisioned my son laying on the floor with his arm missing.

Then, just as quickly, I pictured my son standing over his little Pomeranian's dead body.

(She has been having seizures lately)

I have a very morbid imagination.

My daughter got to the bathroom door and pushed it open to find my son backed against the wall, between the toilet and the tub, pointing at the floor in front of her.

I got there just as my son came flying out of the bathroom at a rate of speed I have never seen him move before.

He flew past me, down the hall, to the living room.

"Ben! What's wrong?!" I tried to ask.

I looked back at my daughter to find her looking at the floor with a smerky smile on her face.

I came up beside my daughter to see what could have possibly made that heart stopping sound come out of my sons mouth.

This is the monster that caused my son to scream better then any women I have ever heard.

This half dollar size wood spider had made him run for his life.

The pit falls of living in the woods.

This spider took 10 years off of my life.

I thought my child was dying.

My son a had taken his shoes with him into the bathroom to put them on.

When he slipped his foot into one of his shoe, he felt something in there.

He took the shoe back off and lifted it to his face to see what was inside.

Just as he got the shoe to his face, our little spidey friend decided to walk out of the shoe.

First scream.

The shoe went flying.

The spider fell to the floor.

He started to climb up my son's leg.

Second scream.

My son wore a different pair of shoes to work.

I took 2 Aspirin.

I also told him that I was going to get him a job in the movies, so that he can take care of me in my old age.

If he keeps doing this to me, I'll be old before you know it.

On to work.

All of the appointments showed up.

It was a typical busy Saturday.

Because I didn't think grooming all day was enough work, I stayed after work to do some spring cleaning and repairs.

My daughter needed a new back board for her table.

She has an old shoulder injury, and the backboard keeps dogs up close to her so that she does not have to constantly reach across the table to them.

Her old one has seen better days.

We defiantly got our moneys worth out of it.

Our drying room also needed a new one.

This was the old one from my table last year.

My home made tub grate or board, was desperately overdue to be changed.

I like our drying table, but it is too deep.

The dogs like to press against the back wall causing you to have to stretch to reach them, in turn killing your back.

The back board brings them closer.

Depending on the size of the dog you are drying, we can move the backboard forward and back, giving just the amount of room you need.

 I made this back board stronger then my first ones.

This one will stand up to the large dogs that like to lean on the back of it.

My daughter also has her new backboard.

She wanted to keep one side open for scissoring, because she likes to stand at the end of her table.

I removed  the old board on top of the tub grate.

I use PVC pipes for the base.

It is 20x40 inches.

The new board is a thick piece of ply wood.

20x40x1/2 inches.

I spray paint the board to help keep it from soaking up water and to last as long as possible.

The last board lasted a little more than a year.

The paint I used on it did not stand up for as long as I thought that it would.

This time I am trying an Epoxy paint.

After the paint dries, I line it up with the base.

I use wood screws to attach it.

They go through the wood and hold in the PVC pipe nicely.

It fits in my full size bathtub very nicely.

It lifts the dogs about 3-4 inched off of the bottom of the tub.

I can also stand any size dog on it.

It is very sturdy.

I place a tub mat or exercise mat on the top for the  dogs to stand on.

I also decided to get creative and try to make a backboard for the tub.

This backboard was to go on top of the tub board and help bring the dogs closer while bathing.

You know those dogs.

The ones who like to smash themselves to the back wall while you stretch your body to reach them.

All the while begging them to come over closer to you.

I wanted to make this backboard stand up to all of that water we use everyday.

I got the bright idea to cover the wood in sheet metal.

Not one of my best ideas.

I was going to blog a step by step of how I did this, but I discovered about 10 minutes into making it, that sheet metal and I do not mix.

The stuff is dangerous for home improvement want-to-be's.

My first 3 cuts came while trying to shape the metal to the wood.

My final and most serious cut came when I was finished.

I was all done.

I stupidly decided to run my hand over what I had just finished, like running your hand over a piece of clothe to smooth it out.

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

It was like slicing through butter with a hot knife.

Ouch!

It took an hour and a half to stop bleeding.

I got it done.

It is not pretty, but I can't wait to see if it does what I want.

I used Silicone gel to close off all of the sharp seams, and keep water out.

It will sit on the top of the tub board and be used for most sized dogs.

It will keep the dogs from plastering themselves to the back of the tub.

It can be moved back and forth as needed.

If you would like to make one of these backboards, I gave instructions in my post, My New Back Board

Well, I survived Saturday.

My finger hurts.

But, I can't wait to use the new backboards.

Happy Grooming, MFF

So Frustrated

No Shows, last minute Cancellations and Reschedules..

What could be more frustrating?

I can think of one thing...customers, who also do business by appointment, no showing and rescheduling at the last minute.

That really bothers me.

They should know better.  :/

Yesterday I had one customer call to cancel her four dogs, because she was sick, and her daughter was out of town, and she didn't have anyone to bring them.

This was a very long time, every five week customer who rarely ever cancels on me.

But four dogs!

Bye, bye 169 beans.  :(

Then a first time groom customer (has used the Self-Serve a few times) No Showed.

No answer when called.

No call back after we left a message.

Bye, bye 65-70 beans.

Total lost for one day?  @ 239 beans.

Now for today.

8am appointment for a Standard Poodle, regular, long time customer.

8:20 called to see where they were.

Husband out of town, wife could not get dog in the car.

????

The dog is a very nice, 3 year old Standard, capable of jumping into the car all by herself.

68 beans lost.

Okay, you can close your mouth now.

I know I don't charge enough for Standard Poodles.

It's a long time customer with their second St. Poodle, and I am slowly moving up their price. 

My daughter reminds me every time they come in that I am not charging enough.  :/

Anyway, about 20 minutes later, another call from a regular customer.

They couldn't keep their appointment for, 9am, for their Shih-Tzu, owner very sick.

Another 45 beans lost.

An hour later, the noon appointment calls to ask to come in another day.

My husband rescheduled her.

He was too disgusted at this point to even ask why she could not come in.

Bye, bye 45 beans.

Last but not least.

A long time customer No Shows with her Cocker.

Not the first time.

She will be calling to say sorry, and how soon can you get him in?

50 beans gone.

Total lost today...

208 beans

Total lost for 2 days.

It's a record for me.

Nine dogs and 447 beans lost.  :((((((

My daughter wants me to start charging people for missed appointments.

I just can't seem to do it.

Even though it upsets me when customers don't show or cancel, I just can't bring myself to ask for money when a service was not given.

My daughter says that if I don't want to charge the full groom price then set a no show and cancellation fee.

Oh, how I hate that word...FEE.

Now a days, everyone charges fees.

I hate fees.

But, I also hate people who No Show and Cancel on me at the last minute.

About 3 years ago we noticed more and more people forgetting their appointments.

So, two years ago, after 25 years of grooming, we started calling customers the day before to remind them of their appointments for the first time.

We hoped that this would decrease the number of missed appointments.

Did it work?

Maybe a little, but we lost over 8000 beans last year to missed appointments.

I don't want to charge fees.

I just want my customers to respect my time and show up for their appointments.

Don't they understand that grooming isn't a hobby for me, it is my livelihood.

I have bills to pay too.

Short of going to their homes and picking up the dogs myself, I don't know what more I can do.

Still frustrated.

Sorry for the vent.

Happy Grooming, MFF  (I really am happy when I am grooming)