Professional Dog Grooming [or DIY]

[MsP]

Can we talk about dog grooming?... do you have a breed that you get professionally groomed regularly? Are you satisfied? How did you find a good groomer?

I have a pretty high maintenance scottish terrier. Since he's been a puppy I've bathed him, blown him dry, brushed him out once a week-- takes about 1.5hrs. Every 6 or 8 weeks I take him to get clipped. It's $85 each time and I've been to three different groomers in the area and I'm never totally satisfied. One woman is great in taking my feedback in his notes and trying to correct it the next time. But it's always *something* and I feel like I follow him around with scissors days after correcting what I think needs to be corrected.

I am thinking about buying a grooming table, clippers, a real dryer, and trying to do it myself. There is some cost savings but that is ONLY if I can figure it out [and not give up and take him back to the groomer]

Does anyone groom their own dog? I'm nervous.

What made you do it? Were you unhappy? Glad you invested in equipment?

How'd you learn?

 

[JewelFreak]

I share your dissatisfaction w/professional groomers -- the few times I've used them, I haven't been overjoyed either. They do their best, but it gives me the creeps to leave my dogs in hands I don't know well.

Mine are Siberian Huskies, which I've had for over 25 yrs & I groom them myself. Takes time, but it isn't rocket science. At least I know then how they're treated. Drying cages, for instance, are totally banned from my consciousness. Good way to kill a dog if you get distracted & leave it too long.

I imagine you can bathe a Scottie in the sink, no? Most cities also have DIY bathing places which I've used occasionally. I keep a grooming table set up in the guest/junk room & slap the dogs up on it with treats to keep them happy. If yours isn't used to it, try putting him up for a few seconds & slowly stretch it out out time by time -- don't do any grooming at first, just lots of praise & rewards. When he's fairly easy with it, pick up the comb or brush & do a tiny bit, then more, etc.

You can google what sort of combs or brushes work best for your breed. You also need nail clippers (or those Dremel file thingies) & small scissors for the paws -- I discovered mustache scissors work great & stay sharper. Scissors for shaping coat may be similar or bigger, don't know.

DH clips their nails while I hold their feet -- I don't have the courage to do it myself because my hands aren't very steady, but he does a terrific job. Vets & pros are often not very careful about getting the quick, in my experience. Makes the dog really skittish about having his paws messed with.

It's a ton easier to drop the dog off somewhere & pick him up but I kind of like doing it for my dogs & feel much happier being in charge of how it's done.

Good luck & have fun!

--- Laurie

 

[lyra]

We still have the grooming table, dryer, clippers and sheers from when we used to groom our large dog (since deceased) for dog shows. That equipment was a few thousand dollars. It is fine to learn to do it yourself. Have someone teach you. It can be a steep learning curve. We would NEVER do it again however. We don't have dogs that require any grooming now except nails, which we have the vet do after we had a significant bleeder. It takes many hours to groom a dog like yours start to finish. I'd much rather pay someone else to do it. Identify how you want your dog to look, and make sure the groomer is onboard if you decide to go with a groomer.

That being said, a grooming table and professional dryer definitely make the blowdry and brushing out a lot easier on you. I wouldn't bathe once a week though, that isn't great for the dog's coat. There are conditioner type products you can lightly spray on the coat before brushing out--they smell great and help with detangling.

ETA: How we learned: Since our dogs at the time were show dogs, we learned direct from the show breeders and groomers. We started out doing small things then progressed. With our breed it was mostly scissors work which took 3-4 hours. Then there's stripping which is another art, ear hair removal, etc. There are videos as well. Definitely not as easy as it looks. You can seriously injure you dog with the sheers at any time, it happens to pros too.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

I have a professional dryer (K-9 III) and various grooming tools because with newfies, I find myself needing to do touchups between grooming sessions. And with Byron's partial paralysis, it's much easire for both of us if I tackle his grooming myself.

I learned a ton by going to local breed club events where they taught tutorials. That's where I learned the best way to do the basics, like ears and feet. Then a friend from a newf forum created a grooming video for those of us interested and that was really helpful. A lot of what I learned was from trial and error. But newfies are so tough to groom, so the learning curve was steep.

I think I've been to over a dozen groomers in the past 8 years. You're right, there is always something that isn't quite right. I wish I could take the parts that each groomer does well to create a super groomer.

Oh, and I just reached out to a groomer a couple of weeks ago who offered to have me watch him so that I could learn. I thought that was really sweet. So breed clubs, breed forums and groomers are my recommendation.

 

[MsP]

That being said, a grooming table and professional dryer definitely make the blowdry and brushing out a lot easier on you. I wouldn't bathe once a week though, that isn't great for the dog's coat. There are conditioner type products you can lightly spray on the coat before brushing out--they smell great and help with detangling.

ETA: How we learned: Since our dogs at the time were show dogs, we learned direct from the show breeders and groomers. We started out doing small things then progressed. With our breed it was mostly scissors work which took 3-4 hours. Then there's stripping which is another art, ear hair removal, etc. There are videos as well. Definitely not as easy as it looks. You can seriously injure you dog with the sheers at any time, it happens to pros too.

I have a table of the right height that I use... and I agree the dryer. When I say bathe, I mean I rinse him in tepid water, towel dry him, let him race around the house for a bit, and then finish with brushing/drying. He hasn't had any issues with dry skin and to be honest I'm not sure how I could NOT bathe him relatively frequently. He's a terrier who does terrier things. The water is disgusting and murky each week indicating that there is literally dirt on him. I already do his nails and have the dremel, and do ear cleaning myself.

My local breed association has stripping workshops as that is what they encourage. Maybe I should look into that.... I know his coat is still in good enough shape to strip because the groomer is always asking "are you suuuuuure you want to clip??"

I'm just frustrated. I just picked him up the other day and he looks... bad. I mean, to the casual observer he looks GREAT but to me, there are little things that are just off.

 

[MsP]

I have a professional dryer (K-9 III) and various grooming tools because with newfies, I find myself needing to do touchups between grooming sessions. And with Byron's partial paralysis, it's much easire for both of us if I tackle his grooming myself.

I learned a ton by going to local breed club events where they taught tutorials. That's where I learned the best way to do the basics, like ears and feet. Then a friend from a newf forum created a grooming video for those of us interested and that was really helpful. A lot of what I learned was from trial and error. But newfies are so tough to groom, so the learning curve was steep.

I think I've been to over a dozen groomers in the past 8 years. You're right, there is always something that isn't quite right. I wish I could take the parts that each groomer does well to create a super groomer.

Oh, and I just reached out to a groomer a couple of weeks ago who offered to have me watch him so that I could learn. I thought that was really sweet. So breed clubs, breed forums and groomers are my recommendation.

Wowow. That dryer is $$$. I found some for in the $150 range that seem to get good reviews. Obviously my dog is much smaller so I need much less in dryer power than you do. Yours would probably blow my dog off the table. haha.

As I said above, my breed club does do workshops but not on clipping--but on stripping.

I've pretty much stuck to this one groomer who is wonderful-- sweet-- interested in getting it right. It's just that there is always something that's off.

 

[kenny]

Taking your dog to a pro groomer is the way to go if you want speed, no hassle, no clean up and if you are particular about getting the "right" style of cut for a certain breed.

I do it myself, mostly to save money, and I think it is less stress for our doggies than bringing them to a strange place to be handled by a stranger.
I can go slowly and cuddle and talk to them.

Unfortunately to "save" money I bought clippers that cost under $30.
They simply wouldn't cut the thick hair.
So I "splurged" and bought some $50 ones.
Slightly better but I had to move VVVVVVEEEEERRRRRYYYYY slowly for them to cut at all and they kept getting clogged with hair.

Finally I bought Oster Turbo A5 and couldn't be happier.
I felt I didn't need the 2-speed model and I'm happy with the 1-speed Turbo A5.
They cut through even the undercoat fast like a warm knife cutting through warm butter.
Astonishing difference!!!

Oster's website lists them for $279 but they are all over the web for around $110.
Petsmart has them for around $200.
http://www.osterpro.com/Product.aspx?id=vet&cid=929&pid=6380

You may want to also get an extra blade.

The blades do get pretty hot after a while so if you have a large dog or your dog has a dense coat so you may want to take breaks or swap the blade with your spare or buy the cooling product that Oster sells.

 

[kenny]

I thought I'd add that Oster has a huge assortment of blades.
I just bought two size 10s and am happy, because I'm not fussy about this.
(Notice the size 10 is indicated for the most applications.)

For your dogs, their "styling" and you may want other blades.

 

[VapidLapid]

my dog is drip-dry

 

[lyra]

my dog is drip-dry

LOL! After 20+ years of dogs needing lots of grooming, we have also gone the drip dry route. And small, we downsized to chihuahuas.

 

[soocool]

I have a mini schnauzer ~ 15 pounds. I take him to a professional groomer, the same one for abut 5 years. She has been in the business for over 20 years. No sign on her business or advertising. Word of mouth. She clips my dog perfectly each time. Plus I do not want my dog's ears plucked and she is careful to trim insidde. The cost is $50.00 every 6 weeks.

Once we had to cancel an appointment because he had tummy trouble and when we came in when he was better, she had a toy just for my boy. I love this place!

 

[MsP]

I have a mini schnauzer ~ 15 pounds. I take him to a professional groomer, the same one for abut 5 years. She has been in the business for over 20 years. No sign on her business or advertising. Word of mouth. She clips my dog perfectly each time. Plus I do not want my dog's ears plucked and she is careful to trim insidde. The cost is $50.00 every 6 weeks.

Once we had to cancel an appointment because he had tummy trouble and when we came in when he was better, she had a toy just for my boy. I love this place!

This is kind of similar to how I am with the groomer I've settled in with-- I got her name from a woman on the show circuit because this groomer does lots of their dogs and frequently travels to shows to work. She does terriers primarily but no scotties.

She too is quite accommodating despite having a bustling clientele and really tries to get to know her customers. Perhaps I just need to be more honest with how I want things done-- bring in photos, examples, etc. I'm afraid it's going to come off as I don't trust her or am not happy with what she's been doing the past 2 years.

sigh

 

[erinl]

I have a nearly 6 year old yorkie. I found a groomer I like when she was a puppy through a yorkie forum. Is there a forum such as that for your breed? My groomer is about the most reasonable I have found, her cuts hold up, and I trust her with my dog. The only downside is that she is pretty busy and I have to book pretty far in advance. Because of time issues, I have tried groomers all over town, but never have found anyone else.

If you happen to live in Chicago I have the person for you!

 

[omc111]

If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, I have a fabulous groomer for you! She's probably the best terrier groomer I've ever seen. I've just stopped showing Soft Coated Wheaten terriers and she always groomed mine for show--I think grooming Wheatens is an art form I'll never be good at. Over the years, I've spent thousands on tables, dryers, combs, shampoo, conditioner, sprays, etc but I don't have an eye for grooming and unfortunately in the show ring, unless the dog is well groomed, no blue ribbons.

I cut some of my house dogs because of the cost of professional grooming. It's always at least $65 and they charge by the minute to demat a dog. I also agree with Kenny, I don't like the stress on the dog.

Stripping is so hard on your hands. If it was me, I think I would keep working with your groomer. Cutting your own dog isn't so easy. I've seen some pet Scotties who look cute without being stripped. To me, if your groomer can capture the dog's expression by the way they cut the head, the body, as long as it's neat, can be really short. My house Wheatens are all short but with properly cut Wheaten faces.

I think I rambled...sorry 'bout that.

 

[audball]

I've thought about doing it myself to save money in the long run as well, but I just know I wouldn't have the patience for it. I haven't had a dog in about a year now, but when I had Molly, I had to find a groomer (she is a 13 lb miniature schnauzer). By sheer luck, I got an appointment with the most amazing groomer at our local Petsmart. She has such a passion for grooming and is really kind and gentle. She also did a beautiful job every time. I'm in the middle of adopting another mini and just found out she transferred to another store over an hour from where I live! I'm soooo disappointed. I'm going to have to shop around and try and find a new one. There is an amazing new pet store in my area, small, only the one store, and I checked their grooming prices there and they were a tad lower. I think I may give them a shot.

Others have made good recs. It sounds like your lady is trying. I suggest trying to show her each time what you want. The fact that she cares enough to make notes and try and do better the next time is promising.

OR look up the local Scottie club and see if you can some other recs to try. $85 seems a bit high for a dog the size of a Scottie, but maybe it's just higher where you are. My bill is always at or under $50 for a miniature schnauzer.

 

[woofmama]

I own a professional grooming shop/self-serve dog spa/natural pet food store.

Left a high paying sales career in 2003 and went to grooming school after becoming involved in the dog show world. I have Giant Schnauzers and a Standard Poodle. I haven't shown in a few years but did learn hand stripping during my years of showing. At my shop we primarily do pet style cuts, the average customer doesn't like the upkeep of show cuts. I do not personally groom, except my own dogs. I employ two groomers.

So on to your question: should you groom your own dog? Yes, if you would like, just bear in mind it is hard and dirty work.

I second the advice to contact a local breed club and ask for a recommendation. They may be able to refer you to a groomer who specializes in your breed. The head on a scotty is 90% of the battle to get the correct look, the body pattern isn't that difficult.

Invest in this book for perfect step by step instructions: Notes From The Grooming Table by Melissa Verplank. She is a top industry expert and runs one of the best schools in the country. Here's the link http://shop.melissaverplank.com/product.sc?productId=6

Jody Murphy is another top industry expert and has an outstanding DVD collection. There is a scotty dvd available.
Here's the link to her site: http://www.jodimurphy.net/products_package.htm

Quality grooming is much harder than people think. If you like the groomer you currently use but want a few tweeks be honest with her.
We never get offended by requests at my salon and do a mini consultation at each drop off, even with regular clients.

Best of luck & happy grooming

 

[Enerchi]

I used to groom them when we had our schnauzers - had decent clippers and a variety of blades as well as good professional pair of scissors. They were small enough to handle. Now we have an airedale (he's 10 and we've had him since 8 weeks) and I tried initially... but then found he's really too big and I'm too slow so it wasn't the best plan for either of us.

We have 3 groomers we rotate around with, but really like the owner the best in 1, so we tend to frequent her the most. I pay in the range of $65 - $80 (depending on which shop has an opening when I'm booking) and to me, its worth it. He always comes back looking great from any of them, but the store we like the best - has a nice smelling shampoo they use, so that's usually where the 'swing vote' goes to!

I'd rather pay to have it done properly than get frustrated trying to do it myself. I also think - they feel better knowing they are in confident hands/clippers, and not getting annoyed with how long mom is taking!

 

[MsP]

LOL! After 20+ years of dogs needing lots of grooming, we have also gone the drip dry route. And small, we downsized to chihuahuas.

Haha... there is a chihuahua running around here too and oh my I can't stand the shedding. Maybe for the next dog I need to look into a non-shedding, non-grooming breed. Doubt these exist. Hairless breeds don't count because they still have skincare.

In seriousness, I don't mind having to groom but I think maybe I'm just too vain in being so concerned about how my dog "looks"

 

[MsP]

$85 seems a bit high for a dog the size of a Scottie, but maybe it's just higher where you are. My bill is always at or under $50 for a miniature schnauzer.

The groomers around here are pretty reasonable-- like $40 or $50 for a normal clip/bath/nails. However, breed specific cuts are on a per-dog basis from what I've found. $65-80 seems about normal for this.

Also, the actual service is $70 and then I usually tip 20% = $85.

Do most people tip for grooming?? I just took it like a human hair cut service thus the tipping.

 

[MsP]

I own a professional grooming shop/self-serve dog spa/natural pet food store.

Left a high paying sales career in 2003 and went to grooming school after becoming involved in the dog show world. I have Giant Schnauzers and a Standard Poodle. I haven't shown in a few years but did learn hand stripping during my years of showing. At my shop we primarily do pet style cuts, the average customer doesn't like the upkeep of show cuts. I do not personally groom, except my own dogs. I employ two groomers.

So on to your question: should you groom your own dog? Yes, if you would like, just bear in mind it is hard and dirty work.

I second the advice to contact a local breed club and ask for a recommendation. They may be able to refer you to a groomer who specializes in your breed. The head on a scotty is 90% of the battle to get the correct look, the body pattern isn't that difficult.

Invest in this book for perfect step by step instructions: Notes From The Grooming Table by Melissa Verplank. She is a top industry expert and runs one of the best schools in the country. Here's the link http://shop.melissaverplank.com/product.sc?productId=6

Jody Murphy is another top industry expert and has an outstanding DVD collection. There is a scotty dvd available.
Here's the link to her site: http://www.jodimurphy.net/products_package.htm

Quality grooming is much harder than people think. If you like the groomer you currently use but want a few tweeks be honest with her.
We never get offended by requests at my salon and do a mini consultation at each drop off, even with regular clients.

Best of luck & happy grooming

Thanks for the input!! Giant Schnauzers are so beautiful-- there is a man with two of them at the obedience academy we go to.

I think the fact is, I *might* like to get into grooming NOT so much because of the cost-savings (which I realize isn't probably much) but so I can get what I want in terms of look.

You are totally correct about the head. I seem to get a slightly different head each time I pick him up-- this alone is bothersome. I keep him with a full skirt instead of the normal shorter/puppystyle that most people do with their scotties. I trim that, and trim the hair on his paws between grooms.

 

[soocool]

I own a professional grooming shop/self-serve dog spa/natural pet food store.

Left a high paying sales career in 2003 and went to grooming school after becoming involved in the dog show world. I have Giant Schnauzers and a Standard Poodle. I haven't shown in a few years but did learn hand stripping during my years of showing. At my shop we primarily do pet style cuts, the average customer doesn't like the upkeep of show cuts. I do not personally groom, except my own dogs. I employ two groomers.

So on to your question: should you groom your own dog? Yes, if you would like, just bear in mind it is hard and dirty work.

I second the advice to contact a local breed club and ask for a recommendation. They may be able to refer you to a groomer who specializes in your breed. The head on a scotty is 90% of the battle to get the correct look, the body pattern isn't that difficult.

Invest in this book for perfect step by step instructions: Notes From The Grooming Table by Melissa Verplank. She is a top industry expert and runs one of the best schools in the country. Here's the link http://shop.melissaverplank.com/product.sc?productId=6

Jody Murphy is another top industry expert and has an outstanding DVD collection. There is a scotty dvd available.
Here's the link to her site: http://www.jodimurphy.net/products_package.htm

Quality grooming is much harder than people think. If you like the groomer you currently use but want a few tweeks be honest with her.
We never get offended by requests at my salon and do a mini consultation at each drop off, even with regular clients.

Best of luck & happy grooming

Thanks for the input!! Giant Schnauzers are so beautiful-- there is a man with two of them at the obedience academy we go to.

I think the fact is, I *might* like to get into grooming NOT so much because of the cost-savings (which I realize isn't probably much) but so I can get what I want in terms of look.

You are totally correct about the head. I seem to get a slightly different head each time I pick him up-- this alone is bothersome. I keep him with a full skirt instead of the normal shorter/puppystyle that most people do with their scotties. I trim that, and trim the hair on his paws between grooms.

I tip, because my groomer does "extras" for my dog. She takes him out for a walk because he will never do his business in the crate. He lets her know when he needs to go out. I don't get my dog stripped which is what they usually do for schnauzers that are show dogs. He gets a regular clipping to make sure his genitals are not matted and I don't like a long beard on mine. In fact he doesn't look exactlt like a schnauzer when he is grommed and that is how I like it. Doing it myself, there is no way I am expressing the anal glands!

 

[lyra]

LOL! After 20+ years of dogs needing lots of grooming, we have also gone the drip dry route. And small, we downsized to chihuahuas.

Haha... there is a chihuahua running around here too and oh my I can't stand the shedding. Maybe for the next dog I need to look into a non-shedding, non-grooming breed. Doubt these exist. Hairless breeds don't count because they still have skincare.

In seriousness, I don't mind having to groom but I think maybe I'm just too vain in being so concerned about how my dog "looks"

We're lucky because one of our chihuahuas doesn't really shed at all. He's black/tan with very short fine hair. The other is tan but has lots of hair and she does shed. Regular bathing helps. I love the chihuahuas, so I'll put up with the bit of hair because we've never had a breed that didn't shed at least a little.

 

[hoover]

I can only trim my dog's nails.... He's too squirmy for us to clip him on our own (he doesn't even like it when I brush him).

We bought the clippers and everything to try ourselves, but he ended up looking like a home-cut puppy. We had to take him into the groomer to shave him down to make him look somewhat respectable again. Now we just pay a groomer to shave him down when his fur gets too long.