But, that's not the point of this blog. The point of this blog is to describe what you should be looking for in a grooming salon, and how to pick a great one. I'll end this blog with a little bit of grooming salon etiquette, things I've noticed that a lot of people don't seem to know. So, here we go!
The Doofy Dog Blog Presents:
10 Things To Look For In A Grooming Salon
10) Call ahead to ask if you can see the salon before booking an appointment. If the staff is shady about giving tours, find a new salon, they shouldn't have anything to hide, and therefore, a tour of their facilities shouldn't be a big deal.
9) The salon should be clean, expect it to be humid, and if you come during a busy hour you may see some hair on the floor, this is fine. What you should NOT see is a ton of hair on the floor that couldn't possibly belong to one dog. The groomers should be cleaning up hair, toenails, cotton balls, etc after every dog is finished, there's no reason to leave it all just laying around. That's a great way to spread fleas and ticks.
8) Your groomer should be willing to walk you through the process. If you ask how it works, they should be willing to tell you their procedure. "If the dog is matted, first we preclip to get the matting off. Then the dog goes to the bath and is bathed and blow dried, after all that, they may go to a crate to finish drying and wait their turn for grooming. Once their turn is up, we will finish the clipping, scissoring, ear cleaning / plucking, and nail trimming." If you get an answer that's run of the mill such as "We're just like every other grooming salon..." walk away.
7) If your dog is matted and your groomer says anything other than "We'll have to shave him." Run away. Brushing out a matted dog is painful for the dog, stressful for both dog and groomer and can cause skin damage. If your dog is matted, he needs to be shaved. Your groomer should also explain the risks to you - hematomas (blood filled blisters beneath the skin) clipper burn, and a small amount of scraping are normal for a dog who is matted like the one in the picture.
6) Ask your groomer for pictures of their work. I have a scrapbook that I keep all of my favorite before and afters in, including my personal dogs' before and afters.
5) Ask your groomer what happens in case of an emergency - what vet the animal will be taken to, if there is a fire protocol, tornado protocol etc. Find out if they have insurance to cover boo boos or if it will fall to you to take care of - if it falls to you, walk away.
4) The staff should be friendly, confident in their work, and handle the dogs professionally. If you have any inkling that your groomer may have hit, choked, or hurt your dog in any way, find a new groomer and alert the appropriate authorities.
3) Ask about aggressive dog protocol - what they do with dogs who are aggressive in any way, weather that be dog aggressive, human aggressive, or kennel aggressive. Many groomers will not handle dogs like this, but if they do, they should be able to tell you exactly how they handle it.
2) Watch the groomers who are working as you come in. Do they walk away from the table without someone else standing with the dog they're working on? If they don't get someone else to watch the dog on the table, or put it in a crate before they walk away, DO NOT LEAVE YOUR DOG THERE. Broken legs, hanged dogs, broken backs, and worse have happened in the grooming salon from dogs being left on the table unsupervised. This is NOT acceptable.
1) When all is said and done, your dog should come out healthy and happy with a great looking groom. If not, try another groomer.
Annnnnd just a few etiquette tips for when YOU visit the salon:
5) Don't expect to get in as a walk in client, and if you so choose to try, don't get mad when your groomer can't get you in. You should be planning appointments, not calling / walking in at the last second begging to get Fifi groomed. Most times it doesn't work like that.
4) Don't expect miracles. If you bring in a matted Maltese that you haven't brushed in six months and tell me you want your dog's hair left long, its going to be all I can do not to laugh at you. Be realistic. I can't undo in the (MAYBE) four hours I have with your dog what you did (or didn't do, depending on how you look at it) by not brushing your dog for six months.
3) If you know your dog bites, let us know. Its not cool to let us find out for ourselves, especially if he's out for blood.
2) If your dog makes a mess in the salon while you're still there, at least OFFER to clean it up! Don't just stand there like "Uh, duh". If you physically can't clean it up, at least let us know so we can get it taken care of before someone else steps in it!
1) TIP YOUR GROOMER. We get bitten, pee'd on, crapped on, puked on, humped, scratched, growled at and snapped at on a regular basis. We take the time it takes with your dog, weather she's a perfect angel or the devil himself, to make sure your dog looks fantastic. We provide a service, just like your hairstylist, paperboy, server at whatever restaurant you love, tattoo artist, we all serve you. If we did a fantastic job, the highest praise is to hear you say "Oh, no. I don't need cash back, Thank you!"
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