Dear Grumbles: You provided part of the answer in your question. The groomer is a professional. Groomers learn the tricks of the trade through apprenticeships with seasoned experts or through grooming schools that offer certification courses. And if you want to open a dog grooming shop in the State of Connecticut you must get a license.

Proper Brushing

According to Jaclyn Krikorian, owner of The Grooming Spot in Newtown, Connecticut, there are several areas that owners have trouble with grooming at home.

“Many owners, for example, don’t understand about ‘mats’ in a coat. Some people will just brush the tops of the mats and are not getting the knots out,” Krikorian said. Brushing mats (those big clumps found primarily on long-coated and fine-haired breeds) is a learned technique. Other owners don’t go deep enough to investigate their dog’s coat. Krikorian said she finds all sort of things in coats from sticks to ticks.

Problems often encountered at home include bad behavior and lack of equipment.

“I’ve had owners say, ‘he can’t sit still at home’ or ‘he hates to be brushed’ and then when they come here I put the dog on a table which helps him stay still and behave,” Krikorian explained. “Some owners bathe their dogs at home, but don’t dry them and then the dogs rub all over the carpet when they are wet and creates more knots than before they were washed.”

Scissoring Coats and Clipping Nails

Owners have the most trouble with clippers and scissors. Sometimes they cut their animals skin or make holes in the coat simply because they thought it would be easier than reality proved, Krikorian explained. Another problem area involves nail clipping. Some people are afraid to do it because they don’t know the proper way to clip a nail.

Professional groomers have vast experience from doing many different breeds of dogs on a daily basis and as they say “practice makes perfect”. I would suggest that unless you want to invest in some simple equipment like a grooming table and a dryer and learn proper brushing and cutting techniques for your breed, then I would stay with the professional groomer. It would be beneficial to you and your dog and aid in the bonding process if you learned the best way to brush your dog at home.

Doing maintenance on his coat between salon visits will make you, the dog and the groomer happier, in fact, Krikorian encourages it. If you are willing, you might want to add nail trimming to your repertoire of at-home grooming skills. Contact the breeder of your dog or his groomer to learn the proper techniques for your breed.     

Lisa’s Pick of the Litter

Tiffin Shewmake, author of Canine Courage: The Heroism of Dogs announces the Doghero.com First Annual Dog Story Contest, “To celebrate dog stories and the human-dog bond.” Shewmake advises would-be dog writers to, “Get out your pen and tell us your favorite dog story!”

The contest is for non-fiction stories of dog heroes, favorite dogs, and interesting or funny dog stories. The winner will receive $100 and a Canine Courage T-Shirt, second place will receive $50 and a Canine Courage T-Shirt, and third place will receive $25 and a flying disk.  Fourth and fifth places will receive a flying disk.  Winning stories will be posted on doghero.com and all stories will also be considered for publication in an anthology of dog stories, according to the website.

 Entry deadline is June 1, 2004. For additional information contact: Tiffin Shewmake at shewmake@doghero.com, or visit www.doghero.com.

Even if you don’t enter the contest, do check out the website, especially the dog resource section at: http://www.doghero.com/doglinks.htm; it has some great links.

 

 

Lisa Peterson, a breeder and exhibitor of Norwegian Elkhounds, is a Delegate to the American Kennel Club. Ask Lisa questions at ask@lisa-peterson.com or Dogma Publishing, P.O. Box 307, Newtown, CT 06470.