I am a lurker on this site and have been for some time, I have joined before but to be honest (no offence to anyone who uses this site) I dont really have a desire to write on here regularly and as I know several people on here personally I have decided to remain hidden, hope no one minds,

I recently read a post by a guest stating that they are a dog groomer and are fed up with people not brushing their dogs, it seemed to me that half the people (people who worked with dogs proffessionally in the grooming trade) totally sympathised with her, whilst others (who to the best of my limited knowledge) do not groom dogs for a living and IMHO must have never set foot in a busy grooming salon, these are the people who seemed to have no sympathy for the poor lady (or man) who day after day after day gets to see matted, neglected dogs, poor 17 year old WHWT's who are totally matted to the skin and who need clipping off, their skin so sore thgey cant stop scratching, it makes me SO angry!

I am a qualified dog groomer with 25 years of experience, I have also worked in a rescue kennels and voulenteer at one at the weekends, I have been doing this for 10years and have only ever once seen a dog more neglected than the ones in my salon (for the record this dog was a 12year old stray GSD girl who had worms, fleas, no weight, had never been cuddled in her life etc).

I hope no one minds but to open all your minds I will explain what we have to put up with;

Westies, Cav's (infact spaniels on any shape or form), Beardies, TT's, Shih Tzu's Lashas, Collies of any type, GSD's, Newf's, PYMD's, Poodles etc are the worst dogs we have come in, added to that all of your longer haired dogs,

At least once a day I have a new client sometimes its a pup who has been looked after but often its a 5+ year old dog who has only once or twice been groomed in its life, they have no idea how to stand on a table or an a bath, dont know what its like having their nails done or feet trimmed (often these dogs are in immence pain and cant walk), and more often than not these dogs are nightmares but we ont get angry with the dogs we get angry with the owners because WHY SHOULD WE HURT THESE DOGS BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE TOO GODDAM LAZY TO CARE FOR THEIR OWN BABY!

I have seen dogs of all ages, shapes, sizes in a terribles state, bums covered in poo, eye goo matted to their faces, covered in fleas, mud and dirt, dew claws in pads, rotten teeth, sores, warts and often cancerous lumps that have gone undetected under the skin.

I could go on and on but to be honest whats the point? How many of you complain about clipped of dogs? Clipped Terriers or tatty looking dogs and blame the groomer?> Maybe people should open their eyes and blame the owner because for every bad groomer their is 10000's of bad owners!

Yes dogs do roll on the floor and get muddy after walks but you feed them and walk them and cuddle them dont you? So why not brush them and wash them whenever they need it rather than keep the coat tangled and cause pain brushing it out?

For the record I own 2 beardies, 1 poodle, a dobe, a newf and a westie (all recues) so I know how bloody hard it is...but I do it BECAUSE MY DOGS COME FIRST not that tv programme or that cup of coffee my dogs!!!!!!!

Thank you for reading this and just for the record everyone of my clients gets a leaflet about grooming, I sell all types of equipment and offer grooming lessons.......guess what? Education dont always work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i go to suesanne in brighton dogroom she does a beautiful job would love to learn how to groom my own yorkies and do them at home  myself its not as easy as it looks esp the clipping  bought a video  canine coat care by joe magri (rozamie) for yorkies, do brush my dog though several times a day cannot clip nails another thing i would be scared to do is pluck the ears i went to the groomers on wednesday and all the dogs waiting did not look like you decribed but i expect they must get them like that sometimes

I've never blamed the groomer for clipping dogs, but I do blame the owner who ends up taking them to groomers because they've left them in such a state that they need to be clipped off.

Let's face it though there are groomers out there who see a Yorkie etc. and just clip them off even if they have a good clean, tidy coat.  Though on the other end of the scale I have a breed which should be clipped off totally and a lot of groomers don't like to do it because they would rather have them looking like a Poodle, which in no way they should!!

I think you all do a great job and I can just imagine what you ahve to put up with.

Hi Guest

Most of us know other people on the site personally - mostly though the site or showing so that should not be a deterrant to using a registered name.  There are benefits to using an ID on this site as people get to know you and to a certain extent learn whether you know what you are talking about and whether to take any notice of you :)

Now back to your subject - grooming.  My breed needs minimal brushing as it does not get tangled and a regular going over with a rubber glove or brush and chamois leather is normally sufficient to keep them looking nice.  My gripe with Dobes however is TOENAILS!  Pet owners rarely seem to trim them and they do need to be kept very short to prevent pain in walking.  Dobes have feet that are described as catlike and the toenails should NOT touch the floor when standing.  If they are allowed to grow this long they push the foot back so the dog starts to walk on the back of its foot instead of the front pads.

This is something I always demonstrate to new owners but they just don't seem to think it is necessary :-(

Just done an afternoon's Collie grooming. Cleaned ears, trimmed feet, nails as needed.  About to tackle the Affie now so no Sunday dinner tonight. :)  My concience is clear now. :D

I have a boarding cattery and grooming is all part of the service.  I will spend hours grooming out a long haired cat so I can send it home knot free.  I'll show the owner's how to groom when they collect.  I've even given them my combs when they show me the baby brush that they normally use   Then next time the cat comes in it's full of knots again.  So now it's only part of the service for long haired cats that are used to being groomed and arrive in good condition.  Otherwise there is an extra charge for grooming.

Sally

The sad fact is that people seem to think if they take their dog to a groomer they do not need to do anything in between. I show potential puppy owners how to comb properly, how to pluck ears etc, but unfortunately because the new puppy doesnt "like it" from day one, these things tend to be left. It seems to be a sad fact of life that although people like the look of a well groomed dog, they do not put in the time time and commitment. There is nothing worse than a long coated dog clipped to resemble a short coated one because owners will not spend the time grooming, and if done regularly and properly it is not too much time to spend.

Well said!!!!!!