Groomer Blues
You can end the dog groomer blues by learning how to bath your dog yourself. Ask you vet about nail clipping and ear protection while bathing during your first vet visit. Some vets offer nail clipping, ear cleaning, tooth brushing and even baths. Nothing fancy just a good wash up. If you are insecure and don’t trust groomers- your veterinarian is the answer to the best pet hygiene basics.
It’s going on a month and Smoke hasn’t been lathered up in a real bath yet. I’ve been sponging him down (like a nursing home patient) with a bucket full of warm water every two weeks on the deck. I wanted him to get use to me before tossing him into the bathtub.
When Smoke joined our family, his coat was a mess of flaky dry skin. The vet said not to worry- the missing patches of fur would fill in. Smokes’ sores on his butt were from sitting in feces and urine- I didn’t want to further irritate his skin by using soap.
Now that his skin and sores are looking healed and he understands that I am the pack leader, I think that he could stand to suds up with a mild soap added to the water.
Ruby and Butter get groomed professionally about every other month at http://www.barkinglotinc.com . In between times I wash them myself. We live off of Douglas Park, my dogs love to pounce in the bush and on the bank of the pond. Once a month I apply Frontline http://www.frontline.com to control the fleas and ticks. I’ve been infested with fleas before using Frontline but never since. That stuff is magic. Flea collars don’t seem to work on my park fleas!
Ruby gets long lashes around her eyes causing eye irritation. Her butt needs shaving. I could muzzle her and go for it. Ruby doesn’t like it when I mess around back ‘there’. I’m not the type of person to wipe my dogs’ hinny with baby wipes every time she poops anyway. Baby wipes are an option for those of you who have the proper attitude.
The groomers at the Barking Lot are fantastic. However it gets expensive keeping up grooming with 3 dogs. If I want clean dogs- I have to give baths at home in the bathtub or on the deck in between visits.
The best advice that I can give is to Read everything on Pet Grooming that you can find. When you are at Dog Parks ask other owners for demo on nail clipping etc. Be pro active don’t be afraid to ask others questions. Not everything you hear will be good advice but you can always go back and confirm the information with your vet! If you are lucky enough to find a great groomer, give them a nice tip.
Generally a handsome service tip ($5) awards you a couple of answers to a couple of questions.
Go ahead Geek out on Dogs- it’s okay.
