Things You'll Need:
- Phone book
- Client References
- Groomer References
- Patience
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Step 1
CHOOSING YOUR SALON: Many people have great experiences at large, corporate groom shops, and I hope I do not offend any of those customers with this next paragraph... In my personal opinion, I would not take my pet there. Instead, I would find a small, privately owned grooming salon. Corporate stores are like the Walmarts or McDonalds of pet grooming. They offer cheaply done work, tend to focus on quantity rather than quality, and since clients to them are just a number, over-booking becomes common, sometimes more than they have space for, and this chaotic environment leads to a very stressful experience for pets. Corporations also go through employees like laundry, so there is hardly ever someone working there who really knows what they are doing. Most of the bathers begin work there with no experience with animals whatsoever and probably have no idea what a lot of the breeds are. The groomers have usually just returned from a training academy and are only practicing, because once they do get the hang of their grooming skills, they often leave the corporation to work in a small groom shop where clients get much more personal attention. If you do decide to use a corporate salon, ask for the grooming manager or someone who has been working for them for at least a year to service your pet.
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Step 2
MAKING YOUR APPOINTMENT: The information they take when you schedule your pet's appointment is generally limited to "just a bath" or "bath and haircut". Of course these services include much more than that, but it just gives the groomers and idea of how to schedule their day. Haircut specifics usually are discussed at check-in. If you have a tendency to forget your appointments and need a reminder call, please ask for one, **Do not expect them to automatically do this.
VACCINES: Groom shops differ in what vaccine information they will require to see prior to grooming. Most shops want to see proof that your dog is up to date on Rabies vaccine, Distemper/Parvo vaccine, as well as the Bordetella/Kennel Cough vaccine, one which you probably have to ask your vet for since they do not usually give it automatically. Personally I recommend having all of them updated as a precaution, whether or not your groomer requires it. -
Step 3
SERVICES: Automatically your groomer should be clipping nails, cleaning ears, and expressing glands as needed. For haircuts, make sure you explain to the groomer exactly what you want done. Some groom shops will do just the standard breed cut, or just whatever they think will look good on your pet, but we are also not psychics or magicians A good groomer should be listening to what you want and maybe even writing down the details. This is your pet, if you want it to look a certain way (within reason of course) regardless of what "other people" say that type of dog "is supposed to" look like, your groomer will be happy to serve you. She/he will also discuss with you what can or cannot be done; for example, an extremely matted pet may not be able to be brushed out no matter how much time you give them, so do not be surprised if all they can do for your pet is to shave it down. De-matting is also very uncomfortable for pets.
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Step 4
PRICE: This should be discussed before you leave and before the groomer begins working on your pet so that there are no surprises to you when you come back to pick up. Things like matts, complicated cut styles, condition of your pet, and extra services such as flea dips or nail polish, all may effect the price of the service. Difficult behavior of your pet may also increase the price but that isn't found out until after the groom begins.
HOW LONG: Expect to leave your pet there for at least an hour, but it could take as much as up to 4 hours before your pet is ready to be picked up. Every salon is different in how busy they are, how they handle over-booking, walk-in appointments, express or start-to-finish services, etc. If you need your pet done within a short time frame, this needs to be arranged in advance. Do try to allow your groomer all the time s/he needs to do a good job on your pet, trust that they know what they are doing and are trying their best to get them home as soon as they can. If this presents a problem with you, or if you have a very old pet, perhaps a mobile groomer (one that comes to your house in a fully equipped grooming van) may be the best option for you.
Comments
BrendaRobinson said
on 9/16/2009 This article is very accurate - I hope people follow your guidelines. I can only add that if you walk in to a small shop and it feels wrong (maybe it's filthy, maybe the staff seems snobby) then walk out. You can always ask someone you see with a nicely groomed dog, what shop they like. Nice job on this article!
Sharong42 said
on 9/18/2008 become too extreme, your pup has no where to run and hide. Her puppies temperature was way above normal when they attempted to run it to the vet that worked in this large store. Her puppy basically cooked from the inside out! Be careful out there, and it is so much smarter to take you pup to a place where she or he gets individual attention.
I luckily am a person who grooms here in Arizona out of my home, I also board your family pet here. Visit my site at www.sharonsyorkiepuppies.com, check out "SERVICES" for all your grooming and boarding needs.
Blessings,
Sharon
www.sharonsyorkiepuppies.com
Sharong42 said
on 9/18/2008 I do like what you had to say. I had clients who had death experiences from taking their dogs to "large" chain grooming places. Without specifically naming who they are, these people were devestated by their loss. Reader's digest version to one client in particular...she took her yorkie (one of my babies she adopted from me) to this large chain store. Hence they are very busy, and the animals come in like herding sheep or running through Mcd's for a burger. They placed 3 dogs in a cage, a cage that had one of those hairdryers that snap on in front. When they are in a hurry or behind, they place a few animals in there to dry. Hence, there were 3 in the cage that day being dried, when the groomer returned for the animals, her puppy died due to the groomer not checking the temperature on the blow dryers. These cages and blow dryers act as a furnace or an oven and when the temperatures becom
Sharong42 said
on 9/18/2008 I do like what you had to say. I had clients who had death experiences from taking their dogs to "large" chain grooming places. Without specifically naming who they are, these people were devestated by their loss. Reader's digest version to one client in particular...she took her yorkie (one of my babies she adopted from me) to this large chain store. Hence they are very busy, and the animals come in like herding sheep or running through Mcd's for a burger. They placed 3 dogs in a cage, a cage that had one of those hairdryers that snap on in front. When they are in a hurry or behind, they place a few animals in there to dry. Hence, there were 3 in the cage that day being dried, when the groomer returned for the animals, her puppy died due to the groomer not checking the temperature on the blow dryers. These cages and blow dryers act as a furnace or an oven and when the temperatures becom