msminnamouse

I do my own grooming now even I don't really know how to, I don't particularly like it, I suck at it, I don't have the energy for it, it takes forever and it stresses both me and Ginger out.

I have no choice. I don't trust groomers anymore. Does anyone else have this problem?

I've seen so many horrible things and heard horrible things and I ask questions on professional grooming forums and I frequently hear things that I don't like.

"Dogs don't like being groomed because they're spoiled brats and I'm not going to let them "win"."

"I alpha roll and hand bite those dogs that give me trouble when I'm grooming because they're trying to dominate me and they need to learn who's the alpha dog. Cesar Millan is a dog god, I don't care what all those veterinary behaviorists and their research says. They're just jealous/stupid/don't know what they're talking about/think dogs are humans/etc.."

"I hold them down until they give up and stop fighting the grooming."

"I don't care if the dog is scared, I'm going to get this grooming done whether the dog likes it or not."

"A little spanking never hurt a dog."

"I grab the dog's ears/beard/etc. to get them to stand still."

And I've actually seen horrible things too when I used to work for a groomer.

YES, I am aware that grooming can be tough, especially when you get terrified dogs and dogs that owners never bothered to condition to being groomed and owners who don't brush in between groomings but that's no excuse to mistreat animals and now I don't trust any groomers. I KNOW there are still kind ones out there but the other groomers have spoiled my trust in any of you. I'm sorry.

So I'm stuck doing my own grooming.

Does anyone else no longer trust groomers?

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liljaker

I love mine to bits........she groomed Jake for 14 years and now Sunny. Guess I lucked out! She is a Scottish Gem!

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Lilah+Jasper

I love love love my groomer. I trust her way more than I do my own feeble and woefully lacking attempts at grooming. My poodles love her and get happy to spend time with Jana. I really think that there are a lot of trustworthy and capable groomers - it just takes time to find the right one. There are a few bad apples in every profession so I wouldn't lump them all together as untrustworthy...

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My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kind,
So flew'd, so sanded; and their heads are hung
With ears that sweep away the morning dew;
--William Shakespeare, A MidsSummer Night's Dream

Onyx11

I love my groomer!!!! She has a spoo herself and takes such good care of all my dogs! My little poodle mix dislikes everyone but gets so excited to see her.

schnauzerpoodle

Well, when people talk they tend to talk about the negatives.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my groomer. He's retired and I am so sad that I have to look for another one for my boy. He's always so kind and gentle. He scheduled extra time for the first few times I brought my pup in. He showed me how to do stuff (anal glands, nails, ears, fluff, FFT, etc.) "so that I could bond with my dog at home and save some money." Yes, that's his exact quote! He gave discounts to well-brushed dogs to encourage owners to brush their dogs at home regularly.

Has he ever given Nickel a bad haircut? Yes. Has he cut into his quick? Yes. BUT I can see a lot more GOOD in him than bad. And I'm pretty sure it was my boy who wasn't behaving when all those happened.

I hope you will find someone that you can trust. I know it's hard. I screen groomers and doggie daycare more than I screen my own dentist and OBGYN.

Ginagbaby1

I also love Casper's groomer. He doesn't exactly love the grooming process but he loves going to see Barb and "the girls". We go to a small family run shop. The owner has 5 dogs herself, one of which is a beautiful red spoo. I think that there are great groomers out there who genuinely care/like dogs but it sometimes takes time to find the right one.

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mom24doggies

All I can say is this: what grooming forums are you on?!? The one I am a member of (it's a very popular, busy one) is great; I've never seen anyone talk about the cr*p you mentioned as "good advice". Yes, there are bad groomers out there, just like there are bad doctors, dentists, and lawyers. MOST honestly do care for dogs though and would never use any abusive method. I'm sorry that you've had bad experiences and don't trust us anymore. All I can say is that if you do decide to try again, do lots and lots of thorough research. Ask around at vets to see if they are treating a lot of any particular groomer's clients for injuries, (and avoid those groomers! An occasional injury is going to happen, but they shouldn't be a regular occurrence.) ask your dog-owning friends for recommendations, check with local pet stores, etc. Also, relax when you drop your baby off! If you are confident, he will be confident and will therefore behave much better.

Also do keep in mind that just because you see a dog (or someone else tells you that they saw) screaming and struggling doesn't mean the groomer has done anything wrong. Ask any good groomer and they will tell you that some dogs scream if you so much as look at them, and forget trying to trim their feet or faces! It's like trying to wrastle an alligator. Someone holding onto a dog's beard is a normal occurrence...however, they shouldn't be trying to subdue a dog by holding a beard or ears...I (and most other groomers I know of) hold a piece of beard (or the muzzle, if they do not have facial hair) gently to steady the dog and keep them from whipping their head around suddenly when they hear or see something. It's much safer for the dog that way. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, non-groomers often do not understand what they see in a grooming salon. I'm not saying you haven't seen abuse...I know quite well that it exists, I've worked with people that were just like you described. But I refuse to believe that I'm the only kind groomer out there...in fact, I know I'm not.

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

Fluffyspoos

Wow, really?

That's like the person that commented on my video of shaving Vienna's face and saying I'm cruel and she's terrified.

Ignorance blows my mind. Thread fail.

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liljaker

I'd be curious what kind of groomer(s) would make the kinds of comments you have listed, or even advocate them????? Hmm, in the almost 30 years of poodle ownership, never had that problem. My current groomer, however, used to work with the guy who groom's Oprah's dogs in Chicago, I think his name is Billy. Anyway, I took Jake to them. I remember one time when he was a pup and I stood outside across the street before I picked him up, and watched. Through the window they were the kindest, sweetest and most gentle groomers. I mentioned it when I came in and they DID comment, that they have "seen it all" and if they were not groomers and had to take their dog to a groomer knowing what they do now, they definitely WOULD check references and be sure first since they, too, alluded to some questionable things.....but I have never encountered anything like referred to above.

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Fluffyspoos

I just fired a client like that. It's very difficult to groom a dog who's owner has very obvious trust issues. What a relief for me that she went elsewhere.

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