Anyone have any grooming places they would recommend in the huddersfield area ? 
rosie is 5 1/2 months  , her fur has got quite long now, ive never taken a dog to one b4, any advice what questions to ask etc ??
  rosie is a westie

Have a look at the Westies in your area when you are out walking.  Some will look like shaved sausages with matchsticks for legs, and others will have a chrysanthamum head and an inverted carrot tail, shaped legs and body coat at least an inch long.  Their body coat and legs will be blended to look like a Westie - not a hovercraft!!  When you find the right 'look', ask the owners where they go!!

val, your not in my area are u ?? i dont want rosie looking like a veg of any kind ...lol....

Love it!!  But Westies are SUPPOSED to have a chrysanthamum head and an inverted carrot tail!!!

Hi there,

if you give me your e-mail address via the private message button I can give you a few names & numbers of people around your area who show westies but trim for others.

hi blue , ive pm u with my e.mail

Val you've had me laughing for ages but your description of westie cuts is fantastic!
My westie has had a variety of cuts "The Hovercraft" he's also had "turkey legs" where the coat was cut correctly but the legs are cropped to within an inch of their lives. I've also had "foxes Tails" and more recently "boots" where the fur on the legs is left that long it looks like they are wearing yeti boots. My Mums Westie once had a "Go faster Stripe" where the groomer had literally shaved a strip off straight down his back and left the rest long, her westie has also had a "Long Flat Face".

Oh heaven help us!!  The mind boggles!! 
I think the reason that I'm so busy is because I DO trim to the breed standard and owners travel for miles.  I understand that some owners don't care what their dog looks like and just want them to be comfortable, but I was taught that they can be comfortable AND look like the breed that they should!  I was also taught that only God can perform miracles and He doesn't trim dogs, so I can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, but I was also taught that part of my job is to enhance the dog's good points and disguise the bad ones, and nobody can do that by shaving any dog!!
One of the problems is that anyone can buy a pair of clippers and put an advert in the paper, and the average owner will be none the wiser.  But those "groomers" rarely get a second chance and soon go out of business, whereas I'm now going to retire after 16 years and not advertising after the first 2 months!!
I hope that both you and your Mother have now found a groomer who knows what a Westie should look like!!

Val

Must say the few Westies round here all look good but I wish you could see the poor Bichon that walks in the same park as me.  Mine go to the groomers for a bath and tidy fortnightly and have a clip every six weeks and both could put give the Bichons on my Bichon calendar a run for the money but there are a few round here that could be anything but a Bichon!  No head, no legs and a piece of string for a tale.  Feel very sorry for it.

Bless!!  I think a lot of the problem Andi, is that many groomers don't even know what these breeds SHOULD look like!  When I go to Champ Shows, I not only watch my breed, but others breeds as well, so at least I have an idea what I'm aiming for!!   :D   I'll often on another group day JUST to watch the other breeds.  I know other groomers who never look at another breed apart from their own, and other "groomers" who've never been to a dog show (or Discover Dogs etc) and trim from a book!
A bichon coat is even more difficult to handle than a poodle, but with education, education, education (oh golly, who do I sound like??!!) interested owners can be helped to keep their bichon well groomed and comfortable. 
A professional groomer is responsible for trimming and thorough grooming of a dog's coat, the owner is responsible for daily, routine maintenance!!

Our groomer is excellent and showed me exactly what to do when I first took my eldest.  And she can always tell if we've lapsed at all and I rightly get told off although that doesn't happen often.  We have taken our youngest there since she had her second jabs just for a bath to get used to it cos she's only 8 months old so has only had one proper clip but like I say their coats are gleaming and they have the best heads and legs.  And for the few minutes a day and the few pounds a fortnight there's no excuse not to!

But you should hear what some owners want us poor groomers to do!  For instance a westie owner who wanted a "proper terrier trim" I asked, you mean a proper westie trim?  "No, no, I have read the books, it says terriers should have a beard and eyebrows!"  so, I did it her way, after all he was their dog!  Then, the Am. Cocker owners who loved the fluffy looking face, but wanted the rest of the body clipped right off including the legs! And then the blue roan cocker, clip off the face and body, but leave the ears and leg hair untrimmed!  Wish I had kept a photo file.  And each time one of these special requests  leaves my place I cring inwardly in case anyone asks where they got the dog groomed!
bye
Gwen 

That's exactly why I won't do it Gwen!!  Every dog that leaves my parlour is my walking advertisment!!  Mostly the only new clients that I take on these days come by recommendation so the owners know the way that I work.  But otherwise, before I offer the first appointment, I question when the dog was last trimmed and where and what are the owners looking for.  I explain the way that I work and gladly offer the local "sheep shearer's" phone number if they're not happy with what I say!
I was taught 'whatever you do is what you'll get more of!' so if I was to do once a year matted clip offs, then those owners would tell their friends "go to Val, she'll clip off all that matted coat for a fiver" and I'd get more!  I choose to only trim dogs who's owners want them looking nice, are prepared to groom them and bring them in every 8 weeks.  They then tell their friends "Go to Val.  She'll give you a hard time if your dog is knotty, but she'll descale teeth, cut nails, give you a full MOT and you'll dog will come out looking like the right breed!!"  It's worked very well for me for the past 16 years!!

Brilliant Andi!  Sounds like you're a good owner and you've got a good groomer too!  They are about!