r/grooming

I recently started at a smaller salon as a bather/grooming apprentice. So far my boss says I’m doing great with bathing and doing nails but outside of work hours I’m supposed to be doing online courses to learn grooming.

One of the reasons I wanted to get into dog grooming was because I’m very bad at school (because of adhd and learning disorders) and wanted something I can learn doing hands on work.

Before I can start doing grooming other than baths/nails, my job has me doing pretty thorough online courses and I’m kind of struggling. This includes taking lots of notes, writing essays, and taking short quizzes.

How important is online learning for groomers? Is being bad at this a sign grooming might not be right for me or do I just need to get through it?

This feels kind of like a dumb question but I'm a baby groomer, I started working at a pet store's salon about 2 months ago now (but have been bathing dogs for longer) I've tried milkbones (not super surprising none of the dogs wanted them) and Merrick's little star shaped treats but none of the dogs will take them either! So I was wondering what kind of treats work the best or that you've had the most success in dogs liking. Any recommendations are helpful :)

I would like to monitor the size and shape of two cysts on my dog's back. To do this, I'm planning to shave the fur off around the cysts. I'd then like to use some sort of dog safe pen/chalk/marker, to mark the outline of the cyst, then take a photo of it with a ruler.

I saw OPAWZ has dog safe dye pens. Has anyone used these? Will these work on dog skin rather than fur? Or is there a better option that I should look into?

Additional info:

My dog is a light apricot color with light skin (cockapoo), so dyes should show up okay on him.

I'm not a pro groomer, but I do all my dog's grooming myself, so I can easily clip this area.

The cyst is the same color as my dog's skin, so that's why I need something to outline the edges for the photos/records.

Ideally, whatever dye/pen I use would wash off quickly, since I'd prefer not to have these outlines stick around, but it's not a deal breaker. I'll probably try to use a more neutral color in case the dye sticks around for awhile.

My dog's vet has already done fine needle aspiration of both cysts a year or so ago when they first showed up and determined there aren't any current concerns about them. One of the cysts seems to have grown a bit since then, so the vet did another fine needle aspiration and again determined that it's normal (confirmed by sending out to pathology), but I'm an anxious pet parent, so I'd like to have a more quantitative way of monitoring them.

Thank you!

Edit: I'd also prefer something that can be applied with a decent amount of precision, since the cysts are fairly small (around 0.5 in diameter).

Every time I bring out the brush or start bath time, my pet suddenly disappears like a ninja.

Does anyone else’s pet act like grooming is the worst thing ever? Any tips to make pet grooming easier or less dramatic?

Hello, all.

I'm really going to try to word this in a "drama-free" way, which means keeping my point concise and to the facts. I will probably fail. Forgive me.

So, overall the problem I have is a new groomer (about a year into grooming), consistently over-booking their own schedule to make as much money as possible, but as a consequence their dogs will sometimes go home unfinished.

Just today, they sent a doodle home with partially shaved legs because they simply ran out of time to finish him. They are late to finish 90% of their groom dogs (by upwards of an hour most times), and take more dogs on their schedule than I do, and I've been grooming several years longer than them. A few weeks from now, they are doing a giant schnauzer groom in the mid-morning, followed by FIVE LARGE bath dogs within a 2-hour space in the early afternoon. Maybe some power groomers out there would disagree with me but I would have a heart attack if I saw that on my schedule.

I've tried to tell them multiple times to slow down. Not only for themselves, as they take breaks approximately never, but because of what this behavior does to the rest of us. If they are busy for 100% of their day, the rest of us have to take a larger share of the burden of phone calls and appointments and cleaning. I've washed and dried dogs for her multiple times (which I don't mind doing on occasion, but I really shouldn't have to just to help them keep their head above water). I've asked the lead and the manager to talk to them about it multiple times, but there has been no change in behavior or attitude.

Additionally, though I think this is common with newer groomers. they are terrified to take the faces of their dogs too short, but then end up leaving them way too long. I couldn't even count at this point how many customer complaints we have had, or how many dogs have come in for a touch-up immediately after their appointment. Again, this topic has been addressed multiple times with no changes.

I genuinely don't know what to do. How do you work with someone who doesn't listen? I understand "do less dogs" isn't always simple when people have bills to pay, but I worry they won't be able to grow at all as a groomer if they don't give themselves the time to ever put full-effort into a dog. I don't know what to say to them that won't feel like beating a dead horse. And I have to be the one to do it, because I swear our manager hasn't even bothered speaking with them even though I've asked (again, multiple times), and our lead is going on maternity leave soon and won't be there to, y'know, lead.

Any advice at all would be appreciated.

I’d like to be able to keep both together. I have multiple vendors in the store and need to be able to run reports by product categories. We currently use groomore but I’m not a fan of the retail side. What are you using to do both grooming and retail?

I have a disability that affects standing for long periods of time.The groomer who is training me doesn't mind and it's actually improved my work and time as I'm not in a much pain, and I move the stool, table, and dog Im working on accordingly, but I just cant help the voice in the back of my head saying that I should be standing, but it's just not feasible for me long term. Does anyone else sit down while they work? I think that'll make me feel better that I'm not alone.

I have some strong signs that I have carpel tunnel and I have been grooming for two years and working with my hands for most of my life. I don’t have insurance yet to go see a doctor, but I’m scared of the diagnosis.

Do I, or should I give up on dog grooming?

I really love what I do and I’m trying to do all the things to help but it’s just a gnawing thought in the back of my mind every time I feel a tingle or pain in my wrists.

Does anyone have experience with Phillips Oneblade Black Limited Edition QP 1424/65?

If so, how does it compare to regular Oneblade or Oneblade 360, is it as powerful or less powerful?

We took our dog to a groomer for de-shedding and a haircut. The groomer did a large and time-consuming job with the de-shedding.

However, the dog was returned with bleeding paws - there was blood even in the car, on my clothes and belongings.
The groomer cut 6 nails so short that she damaged the blood vessels.

When the groomer handed the dog back, she did not warn about the injuries. The dog was under a lot of stress, very nervous, and immediately ran to the car. I noticed that three paws were covered in blood only after I picked him up in the car.

I messaged the groomer and sent photos of the bleeding paws and nails. Her response: "It’s nothing serious. The nails just hadn’t been trimmed in a while, so the quicks grew long. I applied some special glue."

His nails were trimmed about six months ago, and nothing like this happened before. Now they are cut significantly shorter than usual, and on 6 nails you can see red blood vessels at the cut. I can add photos in the comments.

https://preview.redd.it/wmbr55itslwg1.png?width=888&format=png&auto=webp&s=3d1a007f8a5ba40b7bf86655d93b2d9101ad3e67

What do you think about this situation?

We took our dog to a groomer for de-shedding and a haircut. The groomer did a large and time-consuming job with the de-shedding.

However, the dog was returned with bleeding paws — there was blood even in the car, on my clothes and belongings.
The groomer cut 6 nails so short that she damaged the blood vessels.

When the groomer handed the dog back, she did not warn about the injuries. The dog was under a lot of stress, very nervous, and immediately ran to the car. I noticed that three paws were covered in blood only after I picked him up in the car.

I messaged the groomer and sent photos of the bleeding paws and nails. Her response: “It’s nothing serious. The nails just hadn’t been trimmed in a while, so the quicks grew long. I applied some special glue.”

His nails were trimmed about six months ago, and nothing like this happened before. Now they are cut significantly shorter than usual, and on 6 nails you can see red blood vessels at the cut. I can add photos in the comments.

https://preview.redd.it/t6you6pdslwg1.png?width=888&format=png&auto=webp&s=10d80ff17e02644188b791c6ed7972f653856a71

What do you think about this situation?