# Directions for the groomer?



## midnight mojo (Oct 7, 2008)

Mojo has his first grooming appt on Saturday and I'm at a loss on what to ask for!

I hear people talk about puppy cuts and teddy bear cuts which both sound like good choices for him (he's 5 months) but I'm not sure what the difference is? To be honest, I'm not really sure what those cuts are at all, they just sound good. 

I know it's just hair and it will grow back, but he's so cute and I'm worried he'll get a horrible cut and look ugly! I've never been to this groomer before so I'm really not comfy just trusting their judgement on what would look good. I thought it might be better if I ask for a cut by name but I'm not sure what I'd be getting if I did that since I don't know what those cuts look like! Would it be considered rude if I took in pictures of dogs in cuts I liked?

I'm not at all familiar with the grooming process, my last dog was a simple "feathers or no feathers?" when it came to grooming! Mostly, I just want him to look cute and have a cut that is low maintainence on the home front (a light comb/brush daily is fine but I don't want to spend more than about 20 minutes or so on it).


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## 2malts4me (Aug 23, 2008)

I don't know what breed your dog is, but I always found the best thing to do is bring pictures of the cut that you want. And make sure you explain to the groomer what you want and what you definitely don't want. 

I always have to remind my groomer to NOT cut their tails, don't shave the tops of their muzzles, and definitely no baboon butt, etc. If I don't she sometimes forgets as that is what she does to most of her grooms.

Once she got the cut down that I wanted I took pictures and brought them to her for the girls' files.

I love my groomer, but understand how busy she can get and forget what I want for the girls.

Good luck and post some post-groom pics!


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

I always find that most people who are not groomers, get their cuts mixed up (name-wise)

It would be better to go over the whole dog by how much length you want taken off. 

Example: 

-I would like his face full, just trimmed and shaped with scissors, please, not too much off. Do not trim his ears. Do not shave the bridge of his nose.

-Please take about half off his body.

-Scissor legs, leave them longer than his body.

-Do not trim his tail.

Just an example. Or,

-I'd like him really short, easy to maintain. Leave about a half inch all over. 

Always mention if you want his ears/tail trimmed or left natural. And specifics, like 2malts said (every groomer will do a butt shave unless you ask them not to)


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## Purplex15 (May 28, 2007)

if your dog is 5 months old and has never been groomed before, then you WILL NOT be getting a haircut. as a rule with groomers, puppies get the bare minimum their first few times. bath, brush, and basic trimming (sanitary eyes, whatever the puppy lets you do). it is EXTREMELY important for the groomer to go slow for the first time, or else it can lead to bad behaviors later on. the best thing for you to do is tell the groomer to just do whatever he needs. if you find a groomer who is willing for the first time in its life, do a full on haircut, then i would run from that groomer. puppies are usually terrible just b/c they dont know what is expected of them. they try and jump out of the tub, they hate the dryer, the hate standing still for more then 3 minutes, they bite brushes, scissors, and clippers. expecting a haircut will no doubt stress your dog out, and take a long time. for his first time, he needs to be trained on what to do, and be in there for no more than1-2 hours. think of it as less of a grooming appointment, and more of a training session. 

im sure whatever groomer your taking your dog to would explain this at the appointment. as far as haircuts in the future go, you really need to let us know what kind of dog you have. in general, teddy bear and puppy cuts are generalized and all groomers do them differently. asking for one or the other will probably get you differing results, and you more than likely wont be happy with it. talk to the groomer about the different blades and lengths, and ask them to do a haircut when they think the pup is ready.

it is best, with puppies, to take them in very frequently so they get used to it. i recommend going in every week or two for different things.start with a bath, the next week, just get a brush out. take the dog in when you are in that part of town so the dog can say hi to the groomers then leave. all of these things will show your dog that the salon is a good place.


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

Ooops I did not see that it was the first groom on a puppy. Purple is right, start very slow.


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## dansamy (May 15, 2007)

Last time, I asked for Ginger's fuzzy stuff to all be cut down. Boy, do I ever regret that! She looks quite goofy atm. She's a doxie/sheltie mix. She looks mostly dach, but she has the double coat of a sheltie. Well, for her last groom, all the long fringes on her butt, belly and ears was bugging me. So I asked for it all to be removed. Now she looks nekkid. I can't blame the groomers. I asked for it. But now, I know better. Next time, I'll just ask the groomer to trim where appropriate.


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## midnight mojo (Oct 7, 2008)

Thanks for the suggestions!

We aren't going off a referral for this groomer as we don't know anyone who has their dogs groomed regularly. When we called the local groomers looking to make an appt, all of them were told this would be his first groom and the only one who commented was one who thought he was 3 months (instead of 3 pounds) and said they don't take puppies that young. I'm definitely not willing to attempt this myself and I've got limited options locally who were all willing to accept him (we just went with the one with the best timeslot for us). I'll be certain to let them know we are fine with an incomplete groom and are more than happy to take multiple trips if that's better for Mojo.

It's good to know that taking in pics is acceptable as it will make it much easier to show what I do and don't like!


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## myminpins (Dec 20, 2008)

Don't forget before shots!!


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

I disagree with Purplex about every puppy not being acceptable of a full haircut on the first groom. I have done many, many first groom full haircuts on puppies, that were just fine for the entire process. And I have done baths on first time puppies that were absolutely squirrely. I think it depends on the individual pup. I tell owners looking for a full cut on a pup that I will see how it goes, and it may happen, and it may not, and why that would be. They are always understanding, but its rare that I have a pup that isn't wonderful the first time. 

There are very few REAL names for trims, and none really for pet trims. For instance, a true "Puppy Cut" is NOT what most pet owners(or groomers) call it..its is a Poodle show trim, with TONS of coat. The other cuts are breed specific generally..an Airedale trim, schnauzer trim, golden trim, etc..Any cut that is not a breed specific trim (and even many of those) are open to each individual's interpretation. What one groomer may call a "teddy" is not what the next calls it. Same with puppy cut, etc. Like Groovy said, ask for specific lengths, in specific areas when you go in. That way there is no interpretation to be misconstrued. I have clients tell me to go "short, but not too short." Well, short to me may be ALOT more than short to them, and I make them show me with fingers how short they want to go..LOL I love when clients bring in a photo of a dog!


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## Purplex15 (May 28, 2007)

I didnt mean EVERY dog graco, i said generally. Every shop I have worked at has had the same policy on puppies, they get what they will let us finish done. Yes, there are many pups who are good their first time, and a haircut can be accomplished. however, that shouldnt be an expectation. i didnt want the op to go into a salon, ask for a haircut b/c she didnt know that it may not happen, have the groomer not say anything and then force the dog into a haircut it may not be ready for, thus leading to bad behaviors in the future. now the op can just say, do whatever she will let you do, if shes good, go with the haircut, if shes a little resistant, then i dont mind that she gets the bare minimum. what you do is exactly what the groomers i have known have done, tell them it may not happen, we will see how it goes. 

since the op isnt going to an unknown groomer, it is highly possible for her to ask for a haircut, the groomer to just say ok, and give a haircut no matter what the pup does. i dont think the op would have wanted that to happen.


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## Graco22 (Jul 16, 2007)

Purplex15 said:


> if you find a groomer who is willing for the first time in its life, do a full on haircut, then i would run from that groomer.



I apologize Purplex, I misunderstood this portion of your post. I understand what you mean now, I just didn't want the OP to think that if a groomer was willing to do a full haircut, that she should run from the groomer. Many pups are very good for their first groomings, as we have already posted.


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## yatesie (Jan 11, 2009)

the groomers in petsmart define a puppy trim as bathing them, trimming up the ears, cutting the nails, shaping up the head and loose ends, and then cleaning in the ears.

be specific as you want. i would think any groomer would adhere to whatever it is you want done to your dog. when i get my dogs groomed i try to be as specific as if i were getting my own hair cut.


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

yatesie said:


> the groomers in petsmart define a puppy trim as bathing them, trimming up the ears, cutting the nails, shaping up the head and loose ends, and then cleaning in the ears.
> 
> be specific as you want. i would think any groomer would adhere to whatever it is you want done to your dog. when i get my dogs groomed i try to be as specific as if i were getting my own hair cut.


I'm not sure which Petsmart you are referring but that is way, way off. The nail trim and ear cleaning has absolutely nothing to do with a puppy cut. A puppy cut is a style of trim.

Ohh...I think you might mean their "puppy package"... nevermind.


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## yatesie (Jan 11, 2009)

GroovyGroomer777 said:


> I'm not sure which Petsmart you are referring but that is way, way off. The nail trim and ear cleaning has absolutely nothing to do with a puppy cut. A puppy cut is a style of trim.
> 
> Ohh...I think you might mean their "puppy package"... nevermind.




haha yeah. sorry. im dumb. 
all of the grooming done at petsmart is done as a package unless specified. with every cut done they bathe, cut the nails, clean the ears, and express the anal glands.


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## Love's_Sophie (Sep 23, 2007)

yatesie said:


> haha yeah. sorry. im dumb.
> all of the grooming done at petsmart is done as a package unless specified. with every cut done they bathe, cut the nails, clean the ears, and express the anal glands.



Not every dog needs his anal glands expressed with each groom; so that is definitely not something that I would want as a standard for a grooming...one can actually cause further anal gland problems by expressing them when they aren't really in need of it...


To the OP...what I would do with Mojo is tell them that you would like them to attempt to take 'such and such length off', but if he is squirrly to not push him too much and just do a bath, brush out, and light trim up (neatening head, and rounding feet, sanitary clip, etc). 

Alot of my puppy clients are fabulous, even with their first clipping; that is if they come in when they are young like yours...it's the older puppies that are often squirrly and nervous...I really like when an owner starts their dog young, rather than waiting for the coat to be dragging on the ground!


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