Why is it so hard to find a decent dog groomer?

[dirty ethel rackham]

Our labradoodle doesn't need that much grooming because he has the shaggy coat that does shed somewhat. But, there are areas that do grow and need trimming, such as the fur between the pads on his feet, the "sanitary areas", his "visor" (eyebrows), his beard, and inside his ears. So, we figure he only needs trims every 6 months or so.

 

The first time we took him to the groomer was about a month after we got him. We were going to be on the shelter's cable access TV show and we wanted to spiff him up for his TV appearance. A friend of mine works as a groomer so I took him to her salon. Well, they kept him for 4 hours despite needing such a small trim. The trimmed the sanitary area so tight that he was licking himself constantly. His paws were uncomfortable and they used that icky dog cologne on him, which made all of us gag. He was such a pain in the rear after this that we were wary of taking him back.

 

We got a recommendation for another groomer. I called and talked with them. They said they knew exactly what kind of fur he had and knew what to do. They told me that he would only be there for 2 hours or so. I brought him in yesterday and talked with the groomer about what I wanted done (and what we didn't want done - no cologne.) So, I went to pick him up. The only thing they said to me was that he may have an ear infection - no further explanation. When they brought him out, I didn't recognize him. Instead of "trimming" the visor, they CUT IT OFF. They completely cut off his beard. He doesn't look like a labradoodle anymore, he looks like a retriever. His "surfer dude" cafe au lait coloring is gone. While he is still adorable, he doesn't look like himself. The neighbors are asking me if we got another dog. I am so disappointed. My daughter is showing him for 4H in 2 months so I hope enough grows back by then. Clearly, they do not know what labradoodles are supposed to look like. All it would have taken was 15 minutes of internet searching.

 

I am so frustrated - two highly recommended groomers screwed up. I guess I need to invest in some clippers and learn how to do this myself. I am leery of the sanitary trim. The groomers say he is a perfect gentleman for them, but he is not fond of me coming near him with scissors nor the Dremmel for his nails. Nor am I excited about learning to pull the ear hair.

[Laura Corin]

I trim my labradoodle myself. She's pretty laid back - I haven't found it hard. I tend to do it in two stages. First I brush her to get the tangles out. While I'm doing that (she's small, so she sits on my lap) I do a preliminary trim around ear edges, paws and belly using baby nail scissors. The next day, I wash her, blow dry her, use the baby scissors to cut around her head and her backside, then clip her.

 

About ears and nails. FWIW, I don't tweezer ear hairs. Instead, I cut the hair short that comes from the ear canal, and put ear drops in. I then massage her ears to get the drops to soak in and loosen any wax. Since I stopped taking her to the groomer and started using drops regularly (a couple of times a month, probably) she's not had any ear infections. Nails? Her's don't normally need trimming. I take her for lots of walks on hard surfaces and they usually wear down naturally. I keep an eye on them and the vet checks them (and her ears) once a year.

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

[jrn]

Frustrating. Take a picture of him when he gets to your ideal look. Then when it is time for grooming again give the picture to the groomer. Maybe that will help.

[dirty ethel rackham]

We still have to trim his nails despite walking him 5 miles a day in suburbia (side walks, streets.) If we don't, he clicks all over our hardwood floors that I hope to refinish this summer.

 

I think our dog has had a low level ear infection since we got him. I clean his ears every 3 weeks even though we hate doing it as it is a 3 person job just to get the drops in his ears. Last time, he crammed his 65 lb body in the kneehole of the desk to try to get away from us. The vet made comments about us not cleaning his ears often enough, despite having done them 2 weeks before he went in for his last check up. He didn't believe me. But he doesn't think the dog has ear infections. When we picked him up from the groomer, one ear looked clean, but the other had more gunk in it. They said they cleaned it, but it looked like they had put more ear cleaner in after they had worked on it and more gunk was working its way out. His ears seem sensitive right now so I will wait another day before trying to clean that ear out again. I will have to talk to the vet about this AGAIN.

 

He is a big dog (think counter-surfing without even lifting his front paws.) While he is a gentle giant, he is very strong and when he doesn't want to do something (like get his ears cleaned or his nails trimmed), it is hard work. I am so afraid of cutting him if I take over the trims.

[Mom22ns]

I think it would be because the dog is a mixed breed, not a breed, so there is really no standard. I have a dog that came from the pound that my vet thinks is a labradoodle. She has the hair of a standard poodle, completely. We groom her like a standard poodle. Everyone who has ever groomed her automatically cut her hair like a standard, because that is what her hair is like. It is hard to say what a labradoodle should look like. I googled to see what you thought yours should look like and couldn't figure it out (and that is from someone who has one!). Find a picture of what you want your dog to look like. Yours with the right haircut or one from the web and take it with you. You really can't expect groomers to know this since there is not labradoodle standard.

[*Jen*]

Have you thought about using a mobile groomer so you can watch them trim him so they don't trim him wrong. Then after that they will have a better idea of what you want.

 

Also with the constant ear problems you may want to switch his diet. I had a dog that showed it's food allergies in the form of a constant gunky ear. Once we switched her food to a turkey and sweet potato food her ear cleared up.

[Mom22ns]

 

I think our dog has had a low level ear infection since we got him. I clean his ears every 3 weeks even though we hate doing it as it is a 3 person job just to get the drops in his ears. Last time, he crammed his 65 lb body in the kneehole of the desk to try to get away from us. The vet made comments about us not cleaning his ears often enough, despite having done them 2 weeks before he went in for his last check up. He didn't believe me. But he doesn't think the dog has ear infections. When we picked him up from the groomer, one ear looked clean, but the other had more gunk in it. They said they cleaned it, but it looked like they had put more ear cleaner in after they had worked on it and more gunk was working its way out. His ears seem sensitive right now so I will wait another day before trying to clean that ear out again. I will have to talk to the vet about this AGAIN.

 

Mine had this issue too. The best thing I ever did was STOP cleaning her ears. Putting fluid in those ears makes them worse! I remove the hair when it gets really bad, I mean REALLY bad, then clean them with a q-tip, and put in one squirt of the antibiotic the vet gives for ear infections. She hasn't had an ear infection in over two years after having them constantly for the first 3 years we had her. Sometimes, less is more.

 

Oh, and my vet kept telling me how dirty her ears were too. Making them cleaner was not the answer.

[melissad2]

I've had lots of trouble with dog groomers too! Been to nearly everyone in town! Finally started taking my shih-tzu to Petsmart and I am pleased with them even though they cost twice as much, my dog doesn't come out looking like she tangoed with the weed eater!

[Jennifer3141]

I have no idea why/how there are so many bad groomers out there. I simply bought my own clippers.

 

I had issues with the groomer cutting my eldest dog's nails too short every darn time. :(

 

Then we had one mobile groomer show up drunk. That was good for a chuckle!

 

I highly recommend the Oyster double A5.

[kitten18]

 

I think our dog has had a low level ear infection since we got him. I clean his ears every 3 weeks even though we hate doing it as it is a 3 person job just to get the drops in his ears. Last time, he crammed his 65 lb body in the kneehole of the desk to try to get away from us. The vet made comments about us not cleaning his ears often enough, despite having done them 2 weeks before he went in for his last check up. He didn't believe me. But he doesn't think the dog has ear infections. When we picked him up from the groomer, one ear looked clean, but the other had more gunk in it. They said they cleaned it, but it looked like they had put more ear cleaner in after they had worked on it and more gunk was working its way out. His ears seem sensitive right now so I will wait another day before trying to clean that ear out again. I will have to talk to the vet about this AGAIN.

 

IME some dogs just have gunky ears, especially when they're young. Our first Golden (Retriever) had really gunky ears until he was about 3 years old. Our current Golden has never really had dirty ears, I've only cleaned them a few times in 3.5 years.

 

Groomers, ugh. I used to take our old Golden every once in awhile. I would tell them to bathe him and trim the hair on his paws. One day I went to pick him up and they had SHAVED him.:eek::svengo::crying: I cried on the way home. He had a beautiful, silky coat. It was never quite the same after that.:glare: