I don't like dogs today

[wolf_Q]

Sorry, I need to vent! lol. As much as I love them, dogs really are not on my good side tonight. Neither are people!

First off...when I get to work, the morning groomer was finishing up her dogs. I watched her finish the last two, and the dogs were fine, she was fine, and she was even commenting on how cute one of them was. It was a pomeranian and a poodle (same owner).

Yeah, anyway, I called on them, and the dogs were in the kennel for at least 30-45 minutes before the lady came to pick them up. The dogs acted perfectly fine, they both walked from the kennel to the gate on our WHITE floor. She picked them up, and carried them both to the cash register to pay.

About 1 1/2 hours later, the lady shows up, carrying the poodle. "I'm back," she said, "But of course (in a rude tone) you KNEW I'd be back didn't you!"
(me) "What, no, what's wrong? I didn't groom that dog.."
"Oh so you knew about it then!"
(me) "No, honestly...I don't know what you are talking about...would you please tell me what is wrong with the dog..."

<<At least another 5 minutes of chewing me out/yelling at me before I could convince her to tell me what was wrong>>

Apparently the dog's foot was bleeding....apparently it was ALL OVER her truck, her clothing, etc. *coughIdontthinksocough* And apparently it was all my fault, and apparently I did it to the dog! I looked at the foot, and there was blood.....not gushing....it looked (to me) like maybe just the nail had been jerked or something, (probably caught on something) and was bleeding, or maybe the pad had a little nick in it.

Anyway, we gave her money back, paid for her to go to the vet (still waiting on the results for this). UGH. I completely checked the kennel the dog was in (NO BLOOD at all!) and looked on our WHITE floor....nothing! I'm sorry, but if the dog was bleeding from the groom, and was in the kennel for at least a half an hour, there would be blood in the kennel! I think she did it to the dog herself getting him in the car or something! I've been chewed out by many people (also about things I didn't do) but never as bad as this lady!

I could go on and on about the dogs today.....we had waaaay more then we could handle, but we had to bring all these dogs in for "Customer Appreciation Week," and then do them all for less $$. The doberman mix who decided to freak out and decide to snarl and bite at us for no reason (we were nicely brushing her) was particularly fun. Normally we get mostly really good dogs, but I guess all the mean/gross ones felt like coming in! Not to mention a collection of idiot owners! What a day! I ended up leaving 45 minutes late too!

And then it was the first class for Nebo to go to.....UGH. He acted like he had never had a day of training in his life! The trainer used him as an example (more then once) and she showed people how to teach their dogs not to jump.....yeah, he was jumping on her like crazy! The problem was, he was confused...he knew she had a treat, so he was trying to do "tricks" (sit, bark, up, etc.) to get it, and what she wanted him to do was sit still! He was extremely hyper, and basically did not listen to me at all (what is that thing at the end of the leash making noises at me? huh??) He has been in the puppy class, and none of these dogs had taken a class before...sure didn't seem that way! And then I get home and he acts like my perfect little angel again.....does all the commands perfect.....Nebo! You are making me look like a fool!

Ok, done venting. Thanks for letting me take up space. Now that the venting is over, I think dogs are on my good side again! Even that little naughty boy Nebo! And I really do enjoy being a bath/brusher, and I enjoy working with dogs, there's just some days.......

[shais_mom]

poor you Amy!!!
I am sorry you had such a ROTTEN day!!
But to make you smile when I first looked at the topic I thought it said "I don't like kids today".
Then I looked again, and I saw what it said!!!

[wolf_Q]

LOL well normally I like dogs *MUCH* better then kids!! I'm a dog person, not a kid person! I think dogs just didn't like *me* today!

[micki76]

Sorry you had such a crappy day! Don't you hate it when they make you look bad in front of the trainer?!?! Chester did that the first time we went to the behavoirist when we got Millie. And he's normally very obidient.

[RubyMutt]

Sorry about your day!! Isn't it horrible how a few rude and *coughIDIOTcough* people can just ruin your day??? I'm sure that in no time your trainer will be using Nebo as an example of how a command is done perfectly! Hope today goes better for you!

[DoggiesAreTheBest]

Sorry you had a bad day, Amy! I do not have to deal with customers, but the people with in my company can be very rude. Thank God I am in a position to say something back to them.

It must be something in the water, I swear! People are very rude these days! You can confront others without being a total jerk! It really is possible. I am sure she would have gotten her money back and sent to the Vet courtesy of Petco if she came in with a better attitude!

Sorry about Nebo. Draker has his bad days too. He has had so much training (and my Bank account can prove it!) yet sometimes he acts like he was never taught his manners. It gets better as they grow up, though. I could never be upset with him for too long. I am sure Nebo worked his charm on you too!

[jenluckenbach]

been there, done that!!!!
I could vent for hours, days, WEEKS, on the rudeness of our grooming customers, and how EVERYTHING that ever happens to their dog can "lead directly back to the grooming shop" yea, right!

[Dixieland Dancer]

I think I can relate to this kind of day too! Especially the part about your dog making you look stupid. Every dog I have ever had has had their "I never learned that command" attitude at one time or another. Dixie was the worst though when I took her to a dog show in Columbus Ohio a couple years ago. She would not do anything I asked her to do. When we were healing she just decided to stop and smell the other smells in the ring and ended up so far behind we were disqualified. We continued. She would not jump over the high jump would not retrieve the dumbell and basically acted like she didn't even know who I was! It was the longest 5 minutes in my dog career history.

I was devestated since we traveled 3 hours just to enter this show and she acted like she had no clue of what I expected from her.

Hope tomorrow is a better day!

[ramanth]

I know how you feel!!

Kia was bad this morning and she knew it. I found her hiding in a corner and then I noticed the living room... many chewed up things that should not of been chewed up. *sighs*

I love her, but I wanted to kill her.

[Pam]

Your story made me sympathize with you but it also made me laugh. Isn't that always the way things go! It is so hard working with the public nowadays. People are so full of anger that you have to wonder where it comes from. Nebo was having an "off" day as we all do but I know the feeling of having a dog make you look like an idiot!

My hubby took our last two poodles (now at the RB) through obedience classes but unfortunately it was in the evening and I had to work so I never got to go. He was telling me that the night of the final judging one of the other dogs (a little terrier of some sort) stopped in the middle of her judging and did a poopie! AAAHH the urge to crawl under the nearest rug!

[Glacier]

Sorry about your day, but the part about Nebo brought back many memories. When I got my first husky pup, I lived in an area where northern breeds weren't common. I called all sorts of trainers trying to find a basic obed. class for Earle and was repeatedly told "I don't work with huskies" A couple people told me that a husky was untrainable so I basically hung up on them. One guy told me that huskies "take over" and lead the rest of the class of the astray. When I finally found a class that would take Earle--that's exactly what he did LOL Four years later, Earle still howls like I am killing him if there is anyone watching while I give him a down command!

[primabella]

what a rude woman. ugh..i don't blame you for being upset. sometimes dogs just frustrate people, like today mickey made me chase him everywhere cause he had a rock in his mouth. at least with this dog and his fun little games, i'll lose a few pounds

[RICHARD]

I used to schedule patients for surgery and would get a similar reaction from patients who misunderstood their instruction! some were world class a-holes.

when approached with the "you knew I'd be back" attitude your answer could be, 'ma'am, i am sorry I don't recognize you!" Let the witch blow off her steam and then say, "Oh you were just in here!, The groomer who attended to your dog has gone for the day, how can I help you?"

(as painful as it is keep your cool, try not to get flustered and remember the old adage, tis better to be thought an ass than
to open your mouth and remove all doubt- they shoot themselves in the foot every time, no pun intended..)

When the blood 'ALL OVER' statement was made you come back with "Ma'am, I sure you would have noticed that the dog was bleeding when you picked him up, there was no blood on the floor and none in the cage when you left. I would not have let you leave the area with a bleeding dog."

be firm, don't argue the point, and don't lose your cool!

The one point that rude people use to their advantage is to
yell and scream and make you fold.....don't back down-and do not show indifference-just stand there and remember that every
windbag runs out of air eventually.

(i once had a woman yell at me, "If I die, I'm gonna sue!"
I thought to myself, "what a trick that would be!" When she
finished i asked her, "HOW CAN I HELP YOU?" she then realized that her rant wasn't goning to get her anywhere.)

when they see you aren't being phased by ther attack they should back down....should you have to explain in front of a
boss/coworker be direct and to the point ..

this b-- , ah, customer claims that her dog was cut and bleeding
from the grooming, i checked the floor and the cage and didn't see
any signs of blood, i would not have let the dog leave had I seen
any signs of the dog being hurt or cut. I am sure if the dog was bleeding ONE of us would have noticed.

It sounds like a script but practice it and it becomes automatic..
by making the last statement you get her involved and she has to come up with a reason as to WHY SHE DIDN"T NOTICE the dog's cut at the time she came in!!!!! If you have a good boss
they will follow up by asking the customer, "Ma'am did you notice the dog bleeding when you picked him up?" sometimes that will take care of it...good business practice maintains that the customer is always right, but sometimes people try to pull a fast one to get a freebie. by getting them 'involved' you can defuse a
situation like that


to save you some grief for the next time (i know that your
time is precious but you may try to engage the
customer in a bit of b.s. before they leave....)

'what a wonderful dog, i hope you like the cut, do you have any questions......' get them to look the dog over before you turn them over to the owners.....


thanks and don't let a jerk ruin your day!

[KYS]

Take a few deep breaths, a hot bath and top it
off with dessert. You deserve to pamper yourself
after this day.

[lizbud]

Wolf_Q,

" Ok, done venting. Thanks for letting me take up space. Now that the venting is over, I think dogs are on my good side again! Even that little naughty boy Nebo! And I really do enjoy being a bath/brusher, and I enjoy working with dogs, there's just some days....... "

I'm glad you're not too p.o.'d at Nebo anymore. As for rude
people, you have my sympathies. They're everywhere.LOL.
If it helps any, Moki acted like a complete wild man at his
first lesson last Tuesday. A whole new class, new dogs he'd
never met, and to top it off, no FREE PLAY time. The class
was all business. It took Moki most of class time just to calm
down enough to listen to me. Maybe next time it will be
better for Nebo & for my Moki.