Untrustworthy Groomers!

I read this horrible news regarding a dog that went missing after being dropped in the groomers.

According to the story (prior to this one), the woman dropped her dog to the Groomers and she got the dog back with a bruise on the dog's tummy. The owner of the groomers said it was just a rash but the vet said it wasn't.

After a couple of months later, another dog goes missing in the same groomers in Union City.

Check the news here

What happens if we can no longer trust the people who's supposed to take care of our dogs?

What is with these so called dog groomers. Seriously, I have never used one before and after hearing these horror stories I might never use one. I think the best advice to any any dog owner or even pet owner such as myself is before going to any groomer do research on their reputation on the Internet. Another thing to keep in mind don't take for granted if their aren't reviews on them found on the Internet that this means they can be trusted. It doesn't, it only means they have a zero reputation for whatever given reason. Find reviews, and find out who has a glowing reputation before trusting them with your beloved Canine.

Haopee, these stories are awful! A dog goes missing and one is bruised up after grooming? How does this happen?

I remember in the 1990s Petsmart had a bad reputation for grooming. There was a widely publicized story of a cat that had it's front teeth knocked out when they tried to put a leash on it (one of those type they use at the vets). I think they've improved things since then.

I remember taking Sierra to our local store for baths for her first 6 months. My arthritis made it difficult to get her in and out of the tub. It seemed easier to pay them $15 to bath her every few weeks. The employees were all in the 17-21 range and were not well trained. They couldn't take instructions, either.

My dog hated having her nails trimmed. She would bite me when I attempted it. So, I had specific instructions in her file not to attempt her nails. When I came in to pick her up, she was trapped under a table with an employee on top of her trying to trim her nails. I was furious! The answer I got back was the package includes nail trimming and they are required to provide it.

I found another groomer for her baths. It took her two years to get Sierra to trust her to trim her nails. She had to muzzle her just to get close. The previous groomers only made things worse and traumatized her further.

Now, that doesn't compare to losing someone's dog during grooming. I cannot imagine how that even happens.

My dog had a really bad experience with his last groomers. I'm not too sure what happened exactly, but they burned him. He went in for a hair cut and came back with a huge open wound on his neck. The groomers tried to cover it up by cutting the hair differently in that area, but I noticed it. I asked what it was and they told me that it was probably a slip up and that I shouldn't worry about it. Not even a month after, the area had become infected and I had to go to the vets to get a lotion to put on it. I don't trust groomers too much, but unfortunately, I cannot cut his hair myself.

This is why I choose to groom my poodle myself. Well, that and it saves a lot of money in the long run. I've taken Gigi one to PetSmart to be groomed. For even the low price of $35, they did a just okay job. But I noticed that when we got home Gigi had a red dot on the white part of one of her eyes, like a blood vessel popped. She didn't have that before taking her in. It may have been just some irritating shampoo getting into her eyes, but it could have been something else. The last time I took her into another salon, they clipped her topknot way too low and flat over her eyes. I was a bit upset with that because I specifically asked them not to take too much off her topknot.

Like the saying goes: If you want something done right, do it yourself. It took me a while to learn to groom Gigi properly and it is time consuming, but at least she gets groomed like I like her to, and I don't have to worry about what is and isn't being done to her in a salon.

(10-06-2012, 01:00 PM)TreeClimber Wrote: Haopee, these stories are awful! A dog goes missing and one is bruised up after grooming? How does this happen?

I remember in the 1990s Petsmart had a bad reputation for grooming. There was a widely publicized story of a cat that had it's front teeth knocked out when they tried to put a leash on it (one of those type they use at the vets). I think they've improved things since then.

I remember taking Sierra to our local store for baths for her first 6 months. My arthritis made it difficult to get her in and out of the tub. It seemed easier to pay them $15 to bath her every few weeks. The employees were all in the 17-21 range and were not well trained. They couldn't take instructions, either.

My dog hated having her nails trimmed. She would bite me when I attempted it. So, I had specific instructions in her file not to attempt her nails. When I came in to pick her up, she was trapped under a table with an employee on top of her trying to trim her nails. I was furious! The answer I got back was the package includes nail trimming and they are required to provide it.

I found another groomer for her baths. It took her two years to get Sierra to trust her to trim her nails. She had to muzzle her just to get close. The previous groomers only made things worse and traumatized her further.

Now, that doesn't compare to losing someone's dog during grooming. I cannot imagine how that even happens.

That's awful. And to think that they still had the nerve to reason out their package. The owner left specific instructions. You're supposed to listen to it and not have it your own way. These are beings they are handling- our loved ones, our pets, even our babies. If they can't do that, then they shouldn't work in this kind of job at all.

(10-16-2012, 04:33 AM)sandooch Wrote: This is why I choose to groom my poodle myself. Well, that and it saves a lot of money in the long run. I've taken Gigi one to PetSmart to be groomed. For even the low price of $35, they did a just okay job. But I noticed that when we got home Gigi had a red dot on the white part of one of her eyes, like a blood vessel popped. She didn't have that before taking her in. It may have been just some irritating shampoo getting into her eyes, but it could have been something else. The last time I took her into another salon, they clipped her topknot way too low and flat over her eyes. I was a bit upset with that because I specifically asked them not to take too much off her topknot.

Like the saying goes: If you want something done right, do it yourself. It took me a while to learn to groom Gigi properly and it is time consuming, but at least she gets groomed like I like her to, and I don't have to worry about what is and isn't being done to her in a salon.

I totally agree with you on this one. At the moment, I am also trying to save some money to invest on a good pair of clippers. Hopefully, I get to buy one of those Wahl clippers that are so expensive. They're silent and especially great for cutting pet fur (the one specially made for pets)

Grooming here only costs about $10-$12, but that's as much as I'm currently earning on a daily basis so it should be no surprise that I would rather do it myself. I have been lucky with my groomers. They are part of the clinic I bring my pet to but I would love to be able to do it myself eventually.

She had a red dot on her eye? It could also have been an abrasion. Anyway, I think it's really important to find someone you can trust and rely on.

By the way, I have also seen dogs that have turned red probably because they didn't like the shampoo or the blower was too hot.

You have to be very careful to check your dog after you take it to a groomer. My friend went to this pet groomer who did the work out of her home. Which I'm sure is usually fine, but this woman was not careful. While inspecting the dog, she realized there was a huge cut on her. Her fur was matted and bloody. She took the dog back to the salon and you could tell the woman had no idea what she did. I'm not saying it was her fault but you really need to examine the dog, especially soon after so you can bring it to the groomer's attention.

(10-26-2012, 12:35 AM)megsy23 Wrote: You have to be very careful to check your dog after you take it to a groomer. My friend went to this pet groomer who did the work out of her home. Which I'm sure is usually fine, but this woman was not careful. While inspecting the dog, she realized there was a huge cut on her. Her fur was matted and bloody. She took the dog back to the salon and you could tell the woman had no idea what she did. I'm not saying it was her fault but you really need to examine the dog, especially soon after so you can bring it to the groomer's attention.

Oh my gosh, that's just awful. The dog had a huge cut? What the hell did the groomer do to the dog?

It was definitely the groomer's fault. Ignorance and lack of training is one of the top reasons why dogs get hurt or get lost. People entrust their pets to these groomers which is why groomers should be regulated.

A bruise is unacceptable but to have a dog gone after being sent to the groomers is absolutely criminal. It is high time that pet groomers should be controlled by proper vetting and licensing. In the meantime, all pet owners must re-evaluate their groomers. In the worst case scenario, we have to learn how to groom our pets ourselves to avoid such accidents.

I have a friend who is a dog groomer. She does not mind if the customer stays with their dog. In fact, as long as the dog owner stays out of the way, she would prefer that the owner stays for the first visit. It helps to calm the dog and helps her to get to know the owner better. Also, it helps to build trust, and she wants to be known for her trusting and caring reputation.

I have always had short-haired dogs, so don't need a groomer. I have done my own dog's nails. Saves money and I know that my dogs are in good hands.

That's so scary. We got a dog from a rescue and purposely looked for one that wouldn't require grooming that we couldn't do ourselves. I do bring him somewhere to get his nails trimmed, but I stand there while she does it. I suppose there's those people out there who think that it will be "fun" to groom dogs, but don't have the patience or experience to do it. I work in the special needs field and I see people like this all the time. They think it will be "fun" to take care of the special needs population, but they have no idea how much patience it takes. I guess grooming is like everything else. Check into references and everything you can find before using their services.

I don't use a groomer, and I've heard these types of stories before. I've heard good and bad stories about Petsmart's groomers. I wouldn't rule out using one, but it's just something that requires care and research. You wouldn't let just anybody watch your child, so why trust just anybody with your animal?

I would really look into the person before allowing them to be my dogs groomer. If I knew that this persons was an animal lover, and would take good care of my pups, then I wouldn't have a problem. But, they would have to prove it to me first.