Puppy or the Groomer?

[jabjab]

I'm a first time dog owner for the past year and ever since having my Schnoodle I've been taking him to this in home salon that was recommended by a friend of a friend. She has always seemed pretty stern which I didn't think was a bad thing as you can't baby a dog or they'll walk all over you.

My dog has lots of energy and the past few times she has mentioned he's been getting better and better and staying still for cuts, except for yesterday. Midway during the cut she calls me and tells me to come pick up my dog and she can't finish him. She told me he cries and moves and won't let her finish the cut.

I came to go pick him up and he has a few patches and various lengths on his body. She didn't charge me anything and said there is no reason to continue if it stresses her and the dog out.

Should I be worried about my dogs behavior or is this strictly a bad groomer ?

[03ozwhip]

honestly, my opinion about most home businesses, be it a dog salon or hair salon etc, is that they can't cut it as a pro in the real world.

people on here will probably disagree, but I've had experiences with both of the above and I don't go anywhere but a solid business now.

try a real dog groomer and see what happens. dogs just don't like to be poked and prodded, it could very well just be his personality, sort of like not liking baths.

edit/disclaimer: of course there are exceptions. my opinions only.

[jabjab]

I have always thought that the home businesses just avoid paying taxes and save money on renting out a facility.

I'm going to try Puppy Paradise on Centre street. If anyone has any other suggestions, please forward them on.

[403ep3]

I find that the home businesses (sometimes) tend to care more about the work they do and the care they have for the dogs. Larger businesses, on the other hand, are more motivated to groom more quickly and therefore causes cuts on my dog..

Find a groomer that your dog likes and you should be ok

[jabjab]

I think I'll ask to stay for the first time he gets a cut at new place I go to. It probably won't take long as he just needs to be finished up.

He looks very silly right now with patches of longer hairs and he seemed really down last night so i moved his kennel upstairs with me

[spike98]

Yup, id say 100% groomer. Dogs are not people so they obviously wont behave like one while getting groomed. A good groomer will understand the dogs personality and needs to get the work done. It took us a few different ones to get one that our dog jives with.

[speedog]

Originally posted by jabjab
I think I'll ask to stay for the first time he gets a cut at new place I go to. It probably won't take long as he just needs to be finished up.

He looks very silly right now with patches of longer hairs and he seemed really down last night so i moved his kennel upstairs with me

You staying in the same room that your dog is being groomed could set up even a worse disaster as your dog's focus most likely will remain on you.

With respect to the previous situation, the groomer could've had an off day and/or your dog could've had an off day. Now that's not necessarily an excuse for a human but it is for a dog. A dog's behaviour is also often very reflective of it's training or lack thereof and what it is allowed to get away with with it's owners - no different then children.

Now I am not saying that you're not training your dog incorrectly or have relaxed the rules with your dog but it could very well be a part of this new problem. Trying out a new place might be best but don't go in expecting a miraculous change as your dog is still quite young and that is a major factor in all of this.

[jabjab]

Yep he is at that 15 month age where he is starting to act out a bit and I am continuing dog classes come June cause I want him to be well behaved at a young age. I did do puppy classes and a few drop ins when I first got him as well.

I have to try a new groomer this week to fix up his hack job and I'll ask the groomer to let me know if any behavior issues they see.

I did find it weird that when he saw the groomer this time he darted the other way and tried to run from her

[JRSC00LUDE]

I say dog. Best to put it down just to be safe.

[03ozwhip]

Originally posted by JRSC00LUDE
I say dog. Best to put it down just to be safe.

LOL. you're fucked.

[JordanEG6]

Sounds like your dog hasn't developed enough trust with you to leave him anywhere, therefor does not trust the handler. Remember that the dog doesn't know why he was left there and why someone else is putting his/her hands on him. And based on your experience with the second handler, seems like he's starting to develop a phobia.

Dogs usually pick up on the energy of other people and their attitude and temperament are often a reflection of the owner or it's handler. It will be difficult to control dogs when you're stressed, frustrated, angry or a Beta. In most cases, behavioral problems are rooted in the home and with the owner. Not saying you're a bad dog owner, but it IS your first time. He's also at a stage where he needs to figure out the pack order in the house hold and might test you a bit at home. How is he at home and how do you treat him?

[jabjab]

Originally posted by JordanEG6
Sounds like your dog hasn't developed enough trust with you to leave him anywhere, therefor does not trust the handler. Remember that the dog doesn't know why he was left there and why someone else is putting his/her hands on him. And based on your experience with the second handler, seems like he's starting to develop a phobia.

Dogs usually pick up on the energy of other people and their attitude and temperament are often a reflection of the owner or it's handler. It will be difficult to control dogs when you're stressed, frustrated, angry or a Beta. In most cases, behavioral problems are rooted in the home and with the owner. Not saying you're a bad dog owner, but it IS your first time. He's also at a stage where he needs to figure out the pack order in the house hold and might test you a bit at home. How is he at home and how do you treat him?

I've left him a doggie daycare a bunch of times and he does very well. Other grooming times he's been good too. I do know that the last month or so he has growled when trying to take a bone away from him. I've been working with him in him letting me take the bone away the past month and its been working.

I now always let him know that I control the food so before giving him water or food I cover it with my hand and let him know when he can continue. Just last week I took him to an off leash dog park and he is starting to come on command when there is a bunch of dogs around him and he doesn't venture too far away from me.

Now that I think about it, on Sunday at the off leash park this one dog was playing with my dog (bigger dog) and he appeared like he was trying to bite his neck but it appeared playful but he kept doing it so I picked up my dog and told the owners to get their dog under control. I wonder if that effected him as he was kinda down for the rest of the day after that.

[Brent.ff]

Was your dog yelping or anything?

[JordanEG6]

Originally posted by jabjab


I've left him a doggie daycare a bunch of times and he does very well. Other grooming times he's been good too. I do know that the last month or so he has growled when trying to take a bone away from him. I've been working with him in him letting me take the bone away the past month and its been working.

I now always let him know that I control the food so before giving him water or food I cover it with my hand and let him know when he can continue. Just last week I took him to an off leash dog park and he is starting to come on command when there is a bunch of dogs around him and he doesn't venture too far away from me.

Now that I think about it, on Sunday at the off leash park this one dog was playing with my dog (bigger dog) and he appeared like he was trying to bite his neck but it appeared playful but he kept doing it so I picked up my dog and told the owners to get their dog under control. I wonder if that effected him as he was kinda down for the rest of the day after that.

I think if you keep it consistent and show him whose boss, he'll probably stop fixating and being protective of his bone. As long as you confidently set consistent and firm house rules, the dog will eventually come around to respecting and trusting you to it's full extent, where he trusts you to leave him in places. Dogs prefer a leader in the house hold, it keeps him happy and content and makes his life easier. He just has to have full confidence in you to know he's safe. Any indication of a weakness or poor confidence from the owner and the dog usually gets anxious, stressed and begins to act out to try and fill that alpha role (object obsession, chewing, digging, hyper activity, crying/howling, aggression towards other dogs etc.)

At home, practice using positive reinforcement (treats and praise) to get him to sit still on command, so he knows how to act desirably around you. Then try it with other people present to have him focus on you. So in regards to the groomer, you can apply the same method to try and make it an enjoyable experience for him. Stay with him and the groomer until he knows everything is okay. After a few visits, you can ween off the treats, and eventually just leave him there. It's takes time, you'll get there.

[jabjab]

My dog was not yelping but the other dog started to growl and become rougher. My dog was going away from it and the other one kept approaching him so I stopped I felt a need to stop it

[Brent.ff]

Sounds like you're making a bit of a wuss who won't know how to deal with a bit of stress, as well as a bit of a dick if you told the other owners to 'get their dog under control' when all it was doing was playing. All good to separate your dog if it's needed, or walking away from the situation, but getting mad at the other owners is a bit much. Not to be critical, but it Sure sounds like you're building your way into a dog with separation anxiety who's going to be confused on wtf to do when you're not around. Do you ignore your dog when you get home, or make a big fuss about leaving/arriving? Is it allowed on the couch/bed/etc?

[Kari_310]

I have had very good experiences with doggy daycare (chasing tails), I prefer it since the prices are usually on par and you spend an extra $20 for the full day of day care so you don't have to drop them off and pick them up a couple of hours later. That way I can get him groomed during the week and it not affect my weekend.

They will usually groom him in the afternoon too so after the whole morning of playing he's super tired and doesn't fight the hair cut at all.

[jabjab]

Originally posted by Brent.ff
Sounds like you're making a bit of a wuss who won't know how to deal with a bit of stress, as well as a bit of a dick if you told the other owners to 'get their dog under control' when all it was doing was playing. All good to separate your dog if it's needed, or walking away from the situation, but getting mad at the other owners is a bit much. Not to be critical, but it Sure sounds like you're building your way into a dog with separation anxiety who's going to be confused on wtf to do when you're not around. Do you ignore your dog when you get home, or make a big fuss about leaving/arriving? Is it allowed on the couch/bed/etc?

I let them play but once the other dog started going for his neck and growling then that is an issue. The dog was a lot larger and the owners were calling their dog to come with no success.

I purposely ignore him until he calms down when I get home and when I leave I say "guard the house" and he usually doesn't make a fuss. He does just up on the coach but when I tell him "off" he jumps off. This is one thing I'm trying to get a better hold of. When he gets excited and does circles he jumps on and off the coach.

[Kari_310]

Originally posted by jabjab


I let them play but once the other dog started going for his neck and growling then that is an issue. The dog was a lot larger and the owners were calling their dog to come with no success.

I purposely ignore him until he calms down when I get home and when I leave I say "guard the house" and he usually doesn't make a fuss. He does just up on the coach but when I tell him "off" he jumps off. This is one thing I'm trying to get a better hold of. When he gets excited and does circles he jumps on and off the coach.

I think there are always those random situations that picking them up is needed and as long as you're not picking them up all the time it should be fine. You'll notice that when owners constantly pick up their dogs it turns into small dog syndrome where they will assume you will save them every time and actually bark/attack more because of that.

[jabjab]

Originally posted by Kari_310


I think there are always those random situations that picking them up is needed and as long as you're not picking them up all the time it should be fine. You'll notice that when owners constantly pick up their dogs it turns into small dog syndrome where they will assume you will save them every time and actually bark/attack more because of that.

This was probably the only time I picked him up except from an early morning coyote incident. The dogs owners weren't doing anything and my dog kept going towards me where he usually wanders staying a good visible distance from me.

I will be getting his horrendous haircut fixed at this place:

http://www.puppyparadisegrooming.ca/