Cin3dee

My puppy is not going to be done with all her shots for a while. Shes not getting her second set for 3 weeks. Im pretty sure she is going to be in desperate need for a trimming. Im nervous about taking her into a grooming shop where dogs are in and out of there though. Should I just try to keep her face trimmed up with scizzors until shes had all 3 sets of shots??
I trimmed around her eyes a bit already while she was sleeping but she is a fluff ball.

schnauzerpoodle

Ah, I remember those days. I wouldn't take a puppy to a groomer before he's got all his shots UNLESS the groomer is very strict about the vaccination policy, i.e. checking everyone's vaccination record.

Indiana

Yeah, it's tough until they're vaccinated but I wouldn't take a puppy to a groomer until fully vaccinated. I've never seen a groomer or a daycare actually carefully examine my dogs' documents that carefully--they just seem to give them a glance...one obedience training centre did and I thought, now THAT's what they all should be doing!

mom24doggies

The problem with waiting is that by the time Puppy has all her vaccinations, she is already 4 mo. That's too long to wait to start good grooming habits. By then, they are really bad....big and brave enough to put up a fight, small enough to be easily frightened and injured. There are ways to get around that though. First option would be to do an in and out service. You bring Puppy in, groomer grooms her right there while you wait. No bath, usually just a fft, brushing, and maybe a tidy up of any straggly areas. Also nail trimming. They can sanitize the table before use, don't put her on the floor, etc. It takes 20-30 mins, maybe less. Your other option is to do it yourself...get some clippers, brush, etc. and start training! Not doing anything is not an option if you want your dog to at least tolerate if not enjoy grooming. Not to mention your groomer will hate you for waiting! I know I am not thrilled when someone says "so and so is coming in, she's 4 months (or 5, 6, 7 months!) old and never been groomed". I know I'm going to fight for every snip I get, and there might be some screeching and flailing involved on the baby's part. So at the very least, start working with her yourself. Even if you just get a brush, comb, and nail clippers and start there it's better than nothing. Get her used to having her feet, legs, and face touched and held. Desensitize her to objects being around her face. Handle her in every way you can think of....I probably look like a crazy person with my puppies since I hold them in all sorts of weird positions and touch/hold them all over. But it works. They learn that I won't hurt them, and that they can safely allow me to touch any part of their body. To date, none of my dogs are really bad about anything....they each have their "issues", but nothing I can't handle. Trev occasionally pulls away for his face, Raven is a little touchy on his feet, Dusty is a bit touchy on his feet, and Baloo is a baby who is still learning that being bad doesn't pay lol. But overall they are very good for grooming, not to mention they are completely desensitized to being touched.

Good luck!

__________________

"Love is the emotion that a woman feels always for a poodle dog and sometimes for a man." ~George Jean Nathan

Cin3dee

That really makes sense to me. Ive been brushing her, clipping with scizzors a bit everyday and playing with her paws. Also brushing her teeth a little

N2Mischief

Misha is 12 1/2 weeks old and she has had her face/feet/ and tail groomed 6 times and all over body once. She has been professionally bathed and blow dried 3 times. The last time we took her in (4 days ago or so) she kind of snapped at the groomer when she was doing her face. A stern "ah ah ah" from the groomer and she stopped. The rest of the time she was awesome. I love that she is getting used to it young.

I do the in and out thing. I bring her in just as the groomer is finishing the last dog of the day. She is not put down. The groomer takes her from my hands and holds her to do her. Then she is bathed and blow dried on a clean towel on top of a sanitized table. Then the finishing scissoring and she is handed back to me. Maybe a 30 minute process and off we go.

I did have the vet tell me to not bring her in as she could get kennel cough because it is air born. Since there is usually only one dog there if any when I come in I decided to chance it, but again I am very careful!

I figure she is a poodle, she better get used to grooming! She will be having it done the rest of her life.

schnauzerpoodle

You have been doing all the right things! If you have a clipper, you can bring it close to her body and face so that she can get used to the vibration and sound. A phone on vibrate will help too.

Or, you can try getting a mobile groomer to go to your place.

outwest

My groomer had me take my puppy in as soon as I got him. I held him in my arms while she shaved his face and clipped his feet a bit- all of 10-15 minutes. I bathed him at home. He was never set down anywhere. I did that every week or two until he had all his shots. Also, she requires all the dogs to have their shots there. I never had an issue with illness, but I also didn't set him down the first few times. She said it was really important to shave him right from the start. He also got mouthy the first couple times and it took very little to stop him from doing it again.

Harrymummy

That's interesting. My day care centre insisted on a photocopy of vaccine book upon registration...then Harry had to pass an obedience test. He just passed as was really young at the time


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