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Now, why is it people don’t get the fact that their dog needs groomed? Oh the excuses I hear – he doesn’t need it, he’s only an old farm dog, he never comes inside, etc, etc.

Regular grooming is an important part in your dogs general health and any good groomer (Read How To… find a groomer) will get to know your dog when it visits on a regular basis and can point out anything untoward to you. Sure saves trips to the vet too as prevention is better than the cure!

You know yourself that with regular maintenance on your car you can avoid those costly bills that come out of left field when you least expect it, well regular maintenance for your dog is the same thing!

Grooming at home in between professional grooms will help get rid of excess undercoat, dead hair and help stimulate the skin. This will also reduce unwanted mats and also act as a bonding session for you and your dog. Imagine if you had to walk around for months at a time with mats under your armpits? Ouch – well your dog would tell you this if he could! Yet the amount of matted armpits I see on a new client (dog that is!) would make you cringe. Worse than that, boys, imagine if your little friend was matted solid and you constantly peed on yourself?! Horrible thought – so why do we let our dogs get into such deprived states?

Surely, when considering a new puppy, shouldn’t the cost of grooming the desired breed come into play? Yes, it should, but all too often it’s the main thing that’s left out. Groomers know how physically demanding their job is but are constantly price shopped as their profession simply isn’t recognised as that important.

I often hear, “we get him shaved down every summer and that’s about it”. Again, this is nothing short of neglect if you want to really look at it. Also, a ‘shave down’ is not a groom. If it’s a shave down your dog needs, that is a neglected coat and the trauma you’re putting your dog through only grooming him once a year will probably stress him so much he’ll sleep for days after he comes home. Another thing worth mentioning is that to simply shave him down in the summer is opening him up for trouble. A dogs coat acts as insulation in the winter and as air conditioning in the summer. With no coat he will be susceptible to sunburn and heat stroke. If he gets too hot, make sure the inside of his ears are clipped and his feet are cleaned out of hair, you can also clip the belly so that he can lie down somewhere cool and benefit from that without jeopardising his top protective coat. That and don’t leave him outside with no shade or cool water.

One thing people don’t think about is that indoor dogs need groomed more often and that’s down to how we live. The amount of ‘stuff’ in our homes and atmospheres is really detrimental to your dog. Think of all the household cleaners and chemicals in them. Bleach actually burns the pads for example. Dust mites, laundry detergent and central heating can all affect your dogs skin and coat. Regular grooming can help alleviate these issues and maintain a comfortable trim so your dog can deal with the climate changes alone more easily. Your groomer will alert you to skin problems, hot spots, flea bite dermatitis and allergies from household cleaners which I believe can attribute a lot to the staining around feet which is caused by licking due to something aggravating them perhaps.

Your groomer can help remove old unwanted hair, undercoat and dead skin and this can help reduce the dust bunnies all over the house! If shedding hair stays in, it can cause itchiness, dandruff and hot spots because the skin cannot breathe. Also, a properly certified groomer will know how to deal with individual coats as not all should be clipped either. Pomeranians’ coats can go into shock if clipped to short and may never grow back properly again (a condition known as folliculitis). A terriers coat will be destroyed if clipped and the preferred grooming visit should be for a mixture of hand stripping and carding. Some people think that if they clip their lab it will reduce the shedding – WRONG! Clipping a lab will actually increase the shedding!

Groomers are also educated on using the appropriate type of shampoo to suit your dogs coat type and or skin condition. At Dogs of Pride you can purchase healthier shampoos that contain no DEA’s, sulphates, propylene glycol or petroleum based ingredients.
A healthy coat should be glossy and pliable, without excessive oiliness or dandruff – your groomer will help you keep it that way.

So all in all, you should groom your dog… period!
Set your best friend up on their regular schedule and have a happier healthier pet. What could be better?

You wouldn’t let anyone other than a registered vet operate on your dog so why let anyone other than a certified groomer give your dog a haircut? Also, beware, I have found since advertising myself as a certified groomer, everyone in the area has added this word to their advertising too!  Ask if they are members of a professional organisation – if they consider themselves professional, they should be.

Granted some world class groomers were self taught but even they are recognising the need for standardisation in the industry since new grooming salons started sprouting up all over the place. They themselves are now pursuing proper accreditation. The groomers that care about their profession are standing up to be counted as others entering the industry can be simply trying to jump on the bandwagon in a fast growing industry without the training, knowledge or care needed to look after your dog.

Becoming a master groomer is a lot different from days gone by where (apparently) you could pay $50 and call yourself a master groomer! Don’t ask me to whom the $50 was paid, I have no idea!
Nowadays there’s a lot more involved, written exams cover the breed standards, health care, diseases, anatomy, grooming procedures, safety in the salon, salon design and environmental issues. Practical exams – usually five – are taken on different dogs and only after passing all these and obtaining a pre set mark can you then sit your masters exam. In the U.K. it’s even more difficult, with much higher standards.

So, taking all this into consideration, wouldn’t you rather get the quality you’re being charged for as there is really little difference between prices in salons?

If you’re out and about, notice people walking their dogs. A groomer’s best business card is the one at the end of that leash! Ask people where they got their dog groomed and whether they would recommend them and why. Notice the dog itself – is the groom appropriate for the breed? Maybe you’ll ask the owner where they went just so you stay away from there!

Once you have a few names, you may want to do a bit more homework just to be reassured that you’re going to the right place as most don’t let the owner stay so they really have no idea how their dog’s experience is. Here’s a few very important questions to get you going;

Who were you certified by?
If the answer to this is an online course or by mom and pops grooming shop, they really threw their money away! A proper groomer should be certified by no-one else than a certified master groomer, this can be via IPG (www.ipgcmg.org) or if in the UK (as I was) via City and Guilds/Pet Care Trust. We’re currently working toward our master groomer status both under IPG and the Pet Care Trust.

How many dogs did you handle on your course?
If the so called groomer has learnt via an on line course, the chances are, they’ve not handled many! Recently I have met five new groomers who certified using an on line course and don’t even own their own dog! Granted they’ll know their theory out the ying yang but may not even be able to identify it if on the table in front of them!

Who did you apprentice under?
In all fairness if a groomer has been certified via one of the certified groomers mentioned above, they will have the basic skills to go it alone once successfully completed. However, depending on the individual they may want some further training to finely tune their new skills and to build confidence. This is not entirely necessary but will give you a better rounded groomer with years on anyone else.

Where will my dog be when he’s not being groomed?
This is an important one. It would seem that it is considered the thing that grooming salons are advertising cage free facilities in Nova Scotia, however this should not be so. When your dog is not on the table in a cage free facility, then where exactly is he? Consider this, even you may feel you don’t like cages/kennels this should be the option offered for safety and less stress on your dog. If he’s tied to the wall or running loose in the grooming room – this is a huge safety risk for your dog, other dogs and the groomers themselves. If he’s running around the shop he may also encounter less friendly visitors and… the stories I’ve heard are horrendous. The basic rule of grooming is NEVER leave a dog unattended on the table, yet dogs still suffer injuries because this is still happening. As a member of the Pet Care Trust, it is a part of their charter that you must provide suitable accommodation for dogs when they are not being groomed ‘such as crates or holding areas’.
I have witnessed grooming rooms where the dogs have been kept on the table the whole visit and never had a break. The amount of stressed out animals I saw was nothing short of disgusting. With all due respect unless you have studied animal behaviour or been trained properly, you maybe wouldn’t recognise the signs of stress, but as a groomer, shouldn’t they know the difference? I think so too.

How much do you charge?
Now this should be the last question you should ask rather than the first (often all I get!). The answer cannot be taken as gospel either as any professional shops will base the price quoted on a MAT FREE coat. Things that also affect price are, age, temperament, condition of coat, behaviour on the table. Most groomers should give you a basic price based on the breed but inform you that that can change once they see the dog. A groomer should be able to tell you when you drop your dog off how much it will be but prepare for extras if some bad behaviour occurs or some parasites like fleas or lice are discovered where the dog will need a special or extra bath. They should also inform you on pick up as to whether they have discovered any skin issues or if there were any problems (bites when doing nails, doesn’t like the dryer, that sort of thing).

Yes, it is a good idea to tell whoever you decide on whether or not your dog has had a bad experience before and if he’s likely to bite! Trust me, a groomer will thank you for a heads up on this!

Depending on the breed, your groomer should also take some time to educate you on regular coat maintenance. As a general rule any dog with a continuously growing coat (Shih Tzu, Lhasa, Schnauzer etc.) should be on a regular grooming schedule of every 6-8 weeks. Have a non-shedding variety? These breeds need to be on a 4-6 week routine as, although they don’t shed, any dead hair just gets caught up in the living hair and needs more regular maintenance including brushing at home between grooms.

Also read our article on “Why groom your dog”.