Sometimes, dogs come in to be groomed and make strange mouth movements, repeatedly licking their lips, shaking their heads, or smacking their mouths in an unusual way. Experienced stylists know to take a peek to see if the dog is bothered by fur growing over its lips and getting into its mouth.
An adorable Pug came to see you for grooming. She snorts and wiggles, and you pop her into the bathtub and get to work. Like most smooth-coated breeds, it can feel like grooming this breed is a walk in the park. But wait! There's more to it than a simple wash and dry.
Cavalier King Charles Spaniels are popular pets and generally delightful to groom. Show dogs are not supposed to be trimmed at all except for the hair that grows between the pads on the underside of the foot, but many pet owners request shorter, more practical trims
We are fortunate to be grooming pets in an era where we have a gracious plenty of products to choose from when it comes to getting pets clean. This was not always the case, and many seasoned groomers remember the days when we had to resort to using products designed for use on humans or even household cleansers to wash pets. For the most part, it seems that groomers have embraced the wide range of shampoos designed and manufactured specifically for animals, but there seems to be one niggling little holdover. Dish soap.
Nico is a toy poodle, and I have groomed him every five weeks since he was a puppy. He is now a doddering old man, nearly blind from cataracts, riddled with arthritis, and missing most of his teeth.
I don't know many shops or mobile groomers who don't use a shop or "wet/dry" vacuum regularly. These wonderful tools are endlessly helpful for sucking up all that fur that hits the ground as we work, nabbing cobwebs, cleaning the filters in our dryers, heating systems, fans, and more. But let's be honest, they tend to get smelly.
Dogs and people seem to agree on many things. We both like some of the same tasty treats, enjoy walks, and think a good snuggle is fun. Do you know what dogs and people don’t seem to agree on? The topic of what smells good. I’ve had a dog roll exuberantly in a decomposing animal and seem overjoyed to smell of corpse.
Silicone is an ingredient found in many pet care products that is wildly effective and useful but is often misunderstood. Some brands advertise that they contain "no silicone" as if that were a bonus. Rumor has it that silicone builds up on hair and damages it by causing yellowing andbreakage. This may have been true of early silicone-based products, but times have changed. Grooming educator Barbara Bird has written extensively on the subject (see references below for more information) and often talks about the usefulness of silicone on the award-winning GroomPod podcast she hosts with Suzy Scott.
The most asked question of all time and throughout the universe is…what shampoo should I use? It can be so frustrating to have such a selection of choice in the pet grooming product market. Choosing a shampoo product that is safe, has a comprehensive ingredient list, smells nice, or doesn’t have a scent, that actually does what you need it to do, can make us confused and downright defeated. Let’s address this on a purely therapeutic level to gain some understanding on why we need the different products in the first place.
When I was training to be a pet groomer, my mentor used to tell me, "You don't have to be the best groomer in the world. If you send home clean dogs that are tangle-free, have a cute face, and a tidy potty area, your customers will be happy." While I strive always to do my best, I realize there is some truth to my mentor's words.
