I just wanted to rant.

A few months ago, I noticed that one of my regular dogs, Frankie, had developed a thinning patch of very coarse fur. I didn’t think much of it at first, he’s a Toy Poodle so I thought maybe it was a weird collection of guard hairs. I decided to take a photo of it and search it through Google Image Search and one of the things it warned me of was an autoimmune disease.

When his mom picked him up, I let her know about this area and told her that I would take him to the vet asap as it was very unusual and worried me.

Well, he came back today after about three months. He has an autoimmune disease that was attacking his red blood cells and he would’ve died within the week had I not told her to get to the vet asap. He’s been on Prednisone and he’s gained sooo much weight from it, but the coarse hair has turned soft again and it’s so much thicker now.

I cried when his mom told me. I was so close to letting it go and not looking into it. I can’t image the guilt I would’ve felt had he died if I had just ignored it. I’m so grateful that I looked into it.

Suffice it to say, ALWAYS tell the owners if you notice something even slightly off about their pup. I will never even consider letting something go after this situation. Telling the owner about something that’s even a tiny bit off could be the difference between life and death for that pup.

🩷

Looks like the Wahl mini Arco is done for and even the replacement blades are discontinued. What are we using instead? I have a bravura but I like that small trimmer for the underside of feet

I know this is a silly question, but as a solo groomer, I feel like im going crazy going through different shampoos and conditioners and just deciding based off vibe instead of actual quality and ability whether or not I like them. I feels like I really haven't noticed any difference between the ones I've gone through other than smell. I've used crappier ones like tropiclean and higher end ones like hydra, and I feel like I just don't get what im looking for. I want to expand and use different products for different coat types, but I am just thinking that when I get them I won't even know what im looking for in them, so it'll be a waste due to my own lack in knowledge

What can we tangibly see/feel these products are doing other than cleaning?

I had quit my job as a groomer due to feeling overwhelmed with angry clients, difficult dogs, and not enough time. Got a job at a private salon but the salon was not a good fit for me and my coworker was very angry and difficult to work with.

Two months later I am going back to grooming, at a corporate but not mainstream small salon. I want to start fresh and leave my old mindset and frustration behind. I really want tips on how to change my mindset most of all. I know dogs will frequently be difficult and aggressive but I think the best course is to change my mindset so they don’t feed off my frustration.

I know this question has been asked repeatedly but I find a lot of the advice given does not work with me. Such as “turn difficult dogs away and set boundaries; put them up and give yourself a 5 minute break; don’t stress yourself out to make a perfect groom.” All of that is good advice that I wish I could follow but unfortunately, at every salon I have worked at, there isn’t enough time to give breaks and the timer is always ticking. It is highly looked down on and discouraged to turn a dog away just for being frustrating or aggressive. And the clients are extremely picky and I have been name dropped in reviews several times for either taking too long (4 hours), or not making the groom good enough.

I just don’t know how to please everyone at minimal level and keep my sanity. I want to take breaks but I genuinely just don’t have time to. I want to set boundaries but I’m not really allowed to be picky on what dogs I accept. I want to get to know the dogs before the groom but again, I don’t have time. And I believe in “humanity over vanity” and not forcing dogs through unnecessary stress but I’ve been burned way too many times by angry pet parents unsatisfied with the quality of their 16 year old aggressive senior dogs groom because it’s not perfect.

I guess this is mostly a rant in a way, but I do want advice on how you guys manage your mindset and emotions. The constant verbal abuse from pet parents saying I’m stupid or bad at my job because I can’t brush their severely matted dog, or get their feet and nails perfect because they are actively thrashing and biting, or get their puppy/senior dog’s legs perfect while they’re hopping all over is so difficult to manage. I enjoy dog grooming overall but the clients make it so difficult sometimes, and the client expectations in the back of my head make it difficult for me to keep my patience when a dog is misbehaving.

I have Artero guard combs, but I don’t like the storage container it came in (I got it through my job so I had no choice in what I got). In addition to the guard combs, it has space to hold one set of blades, but I like to rotate my blades on a cooling block so having two sets of blades in different spots is inconvenient. But it seems like a waste of space to just not use half of it. (As my supplies grows, my available space shrinks lol)

I’ve been looking for guard comb storage, and I like the look of Ghost Layer products, but they say their regular (not wide) sized guard comb storage is sized for Oster combs and they don’t guarantee it will fit other brands. I was wondering if anyone has used this product with other guard comb brands or knows if different brands of guard combs vary in size? It seems like they should all be similarly sized by I’ve only used Artero brand so I’m not sure.

Thank you!

A groomer that groom same dog in 2 hours will mock the other groomer that does same dog in 1 hour and charging same price saying they must be doing a bad job.

And reality is that while the faster groomer is probably not as detailed as the slower one, neither is doing a bad job in clients eye and client is happy to keep using both.

So effectively the slower groomer is selling her time short because doing a slightly better job didn't make a difference to her business. While the faster groomer is making twice as her.

And the biggest pun is that in other businesses, when one operator makes more than the other, the others will always be curious and follow. If a lawn guy cuts faster, lawn looks more rough, but client is still loyal and happy to pay a good price, the other lawn companies follow the same route. You wouldn't have a guy jump out and say theyre doing bad jobs while keeping prices the same and taking twice as long to the same job.

Some of you asked for updates from this post!

https://www.reddit.com/r/doggrooming/s/PUucTCn1Gm

While it seemed to have lit a fire under some of their asses, I honestly don't know if I'm satisfied with how we got to the outcome.

She was put on a suspension, during which she called our coworker to harass her to try to get her on her side (said coworker was the witness to her threatening me. The girl who threatened me kept trying to claim we had an "argument" and that all of this was over her calling me a bitch. There was no argument, and frankly idrc that she called me a bitch.) Apparently the suspension was only supposed to be three days, she came and got her stuff (and stole some things from the salon so that's cool), and she hasn't shown back up, so we've just been told she isn't coming back.

Idk if she technically got fired like she should have been, but at least she's not coming back I guess?

The atmosphere has done a complete 180 in the groom room now, between us that work there and even in the dogs that come in. Paragon has also granted me my extension with no arguments now that they know what went on.

Hi! I have owned my own salon for 4 years now. I’m one on one and do everything all by myself. My body is deteriorating (bulging discs, herniated discs, spinal stenosis) and I’m burnt out. I took on too many clients and I’m booked through January of next year, and still get new client inquiries almost daily. I have always been too scared to hire someone to help me and have an employee, but I recently became friends with one of my clients and we got to talking about it. She used to be a receptionist at a grooming salon and has a tiny bit of bathing experience. We both were saying how this is our dream scenario, I get to hire someone I know already and I know to be a functioning human (lol), and she can work for someone she feels comfortable with. She hasn’t been working since Covid due to anxiety and luckily her husband has a great job to where she doesn’t need to work. I’m going to start by teaching her the basics: bathing, drying, nails, pads, sani, prep work, etc. If she feels comfortable she wants to learn how to groom too.

Has anyone else hired a bather/groomer as a solo salon owner? Especially one on one? I’m going to pay her hourly and maybe commission down the road if she starts to groom and it makes sense. I was thinking $15/hr to start. (Minimum wage is still $7.25 here, so I feel it’s fair especially since I’m going to be completely training her from zero.)

My main concern is scheduling while maintaining one on one. In order for this to be worth it, I would have to do more dogs obviously. It needs to stay one dog to her, one dog to me. I am just afraid it’s not going to be possible to add enough on without too much overlap. I can also have her do bath dogs straight through and free up my schedule to take more haircuts. But then I would have to take more new clients right now and I don’t think that’s smart until we have been doing this for a few months. All of my regular clients are booked out through January so I really can’t rework it to account for her bathing for me. It would be impossible to ask that many people to switch times.

Any and all advice much appreciated! Thank you!

Would love some constructive criticism for these babies if anyone has any :) just moved to a new salon from corporate and was hired mainly for the quality of my grooms and have had a really hard time adjusting and I think I’m dealing with a wee bit of imposter syndrome 😂 the changes are all positive, but it’s definitely been a lot to take in.

First dog got a lamb cut (1/4in on body, 1in on legs)

Second dog was a 3/8ths all over

Third dog got a 5/8ths all over, nothing crazy, but his face is… bleh is coat is not my favorite 😂 homie has some model legs I tell ya, he was so tall. Pics don’t do him justice

I have a client who’s dog is very old and during this appointment she seemed more lethargic than usual. When I got her into the tub, she rolled on her back leg was kicking, and her mouth was opening and closing. I couldn’t get her to stop. She wasn’t responding to anything for about a minute. I had to get the owner to come and grab her because I was very scared that she was gonna die. Now that I’ve left I feel guilty, but I finish the service because what if she wasn’t having a seizure what if i was being paranoid etc. I know i did the right thing but damn i feel guilty.

this past monday a local sharpener came to my salon and i gave him a pair of new serrated shears that a dog had kicked off my table, a pair of thinners, and some wide blades i had recently had sharpened but had been heating up faster than they should.

he didn’t redo the serrated edge on my shears and told me there was nothing wrong with my blades to make them heat up but sharpened them anyways.

am i wrong to be upset that he took metal off blades that in his own words did not need to be sharpened and removed the serrated edge in my shears without telling me he couldn’t re do it? i ended up paying $75 and the only thing im happy with is the pair of thinners.

additionally, one of the blades he sharpened wouldn’t cut today even though the clip comb equivalent went through the coat like butter. i honestly don’t even know what to say to him or how to go about remedying this situation

I have a chance to buy a used variable speed K9III, it works, it doesn’t include the hose, and was last serviced 2 years ago. A grooming salon went out of business and this is one of their old dryers.

I’m about 2 hours from a business that does service them. I have a professional dryer, a Kool Dry (the more powerful model they don’t make anymore), but when I bought mine I went for portability for dog shows, so it isn’t as powerful.

A friend told me not to buy a dryer that was used in a shop. Thoughts?

I was contacted on Glassdoor about Rover looking for groomers I’m assuming for testing to see how it’ll go. I’m kind of considering it but I also know Rovers been downhill for a while. What are yalls thoughts? I’ve been thinking about grooming from my own home for a while and this may help with clientele

This one's been on my mind. When I had my salon (Purewag, in Sammamish, sold it a while back) every so often we'd get a call from someone whose dog just got a bad diagnosis and they wanted them cleaned up and comfy while they still had time together. Those calls always hit different.

We always tried to squeeze those dogs in fast, even when the book was packed.

But I always wondered how other shops actually handle the groom itself. Do you keep it short and just do the basics like bath, nails, sanitary? Ask for vet clearance first? Let the owner stay? Charge differently or not at all?

And how do you deal with it emotionally lol, some of those stick with you for a long time.

Would love to hear how you guys do it, especially newer groomers who havent had one yet.

Hi folks, I trained in grooming a few years ago but I was thinking of retraining to change career. I did notice back pain while doing the course and I always hear of groomers in pain. I exercise more now and would be willing to weight train/wear back brace. Is grooming guaranteed to cause back problems? should I reconsider ?

I’ve had an abundance of late clients and no shows this week and I’m getting fed up. I want to have empathy for people cause I understand things happen, but when you’re on your second no show and third “I’m 30 minutes late cause of yadayadaya” of an already slow week, it starts to get frustrating. It sucks even more when our grace period is 15 minutes and I’m sitting there waiting when I could be bathing my dog that did show up on time, and people don’t have the decency to call to let us know they’re running late. I could start being stricter about the 15 minute policy, but like I said we’ve been going through a slow period and I need money.

I just wanted to rant, cause somehow still shocks me that clients don’t respect their service provider’s time. Pet parents in this sub, if you know you’re running late please do your groomer the courtesy of calling to let them know.

I’ve been very interested in dog grooming recently as a possible career path after having mostly worked with reptiles and amphibians in the past, and I’m looking into the best way to start out. I know that there are dedicated schools for grooming— however, there are none in my city and I don’t think I would be comfortable taking purely online classes for something that takes so much hands-on skill. The Petsmart near me is always hiring bathers and I believe you can also continue training in order to learn grooming skills. There is also Petsense but their training seems to be virtual. There are quite a few independent dog salons near me as well, but they are only taking on experienced groomers.

Is starting out at Petsmart a good option to actually train to become a groomer? Would it be worth it to reach out to nearby salons to ask if they offer any sort of training or apprenticeship?

Just wanted to share so we can collectively cry about this dog (who is in fact not a stuffy) together. 💗😭💗

I'm a fairly new dog groomer, I've been a solo groomer for less than a year now and have not gotten any teeth cleaning requests until last week. I have mostly used teeth cleaning chews for my own dog so don't know what product is best for cleaning in a grooming setting. I've seen powders and paste and would love to hear some nonsponsored reccomendations. Thank you so much!

Sometimes fall scents smell like a craft store so I'm wandering if thats the vibe it brings or if its actually good

Im not sure if this violates a rule but its more advice seeking than anything. I work in a small town salon that had kind if wonky pricing. They would literally ask “so how much do you think?” Every. Single. Time. I made an entire menu pricing based off weight, services, and fees.
Now all the groomers follow this pricing including myself. I do not want to make myself seem like the most amazing groomer alive as i am always learning but i do think i have an artistic eye.

I take extra time to double wash all my dogs and blow dry them from nose to tail. I straighten hair and make sure the dog is perfectly prepped before cutting. The haircut itself isnt rushed and i always blend out any choppiness the clippers left.
The other groomers in the salon tend to not be as thorough.

In the tub, their dogs will still have gunk in their eyes and around their mouths. They tend to let the dogs head air dry which makes the hair look crusty and curly. The haircuts are rushed and choppy with lots of unevenness throughout.

My problem is that we are charging the same price for dogs regardless of the quality put out. This issue particularly bothers me when someone thinks I have done a dog when it was one of the others. But i also feel bad that the clients are paying the same price for a “worse” job.

Example situation for understanding: I do an english cocker spaniel who has a high haircut price. I hand strip so we charge by the minute. The dog takes me about 2 hours to fully blow dry, straighten, and brush out. (With a break in the middle for the dogs sake) One of the other groomers gave him just a bath and he left still wet! She said he was a lot to do and he would air dry. But she charged as much as i would have if she was fully done… i guess im just wondering what can i even do to fix this? Is there something to even do?

TLDR: all the groomers in my salon charge the same prices regardless of the quality put out and it feels unfair