Originally posted by wolf_Q
Oh defense of the groomers....

Just because you see a dog freaking out on a table doesn't mean the groomer is being mean to the dog. I had an awful day wrestling with a gigantic malamute mix with at least 6 inch long fur. The dog hadn't been in since last year. I had to wash him 3 times...and his fur was matted to the skin (ehem and the owner told me he only had matts behind the ears ) Try taking 5 hours of your life struggling to brush out a dog that tries to bite you and yowls every time you touch him. And it's not the dogs fault...it's the owner who doesn't ever brush his dog! I ended up staying an hour and a half late too. Talk about stressful! Both for me and the dog!

I've seen some times where groomers could have been nicer to dogs, and some accidents that could have been prevented...but I've seen a hell of a lot more incidents of stupid owners who just didn't take proper care of their dogs. Yeah, don't get your dog used to grooming, neglect it for 9 months then bring it to us and expect us to magically make the dog look like it did 9 months ago!

Ok done....just ranting...not against any PTers...it's fun to rant sometimes....
I know, it took me a long time to get over a lot of crap I saw as a groomer, caused by groomers and owners. All of the things that Jen & Amy talk about are the reasons why I quit grooming. I always refused to brush a dog that was too badly matted. I just wouldn’t do it. My option was shave it. I would call the owners and argue with them, sometimes until I had to put the phone on hold and scream! It’s so unfair to the pet. We had one lady who refused to let me shave the dog, so she came and picked him up. It was not possible to remove this dogs mats and he needed to be shaved to the skin. I refused to torture the damn dog myself by attempting to brush him out. It was simply not possible. Of course this is the same woman who told me he hadn’t been groomed in two months. She said she only skipped a month. Yeah, right.