Originally posted by Sevens
Actually, I guess I could have said Sheperd mix instead of Chow/Sheperd mix. And I did tell them he was only 37 pounds. I guess I just thought I should say Chow/Sheperd mix because of the undercoat thing.

I'm sure he'll do fine. I asked my co-workers who they use, because one has a German Sheperd and the other has a Shi Tzu and both of those dogs get groomed regularly. I'm just glad I didn't take him to PetSmart. The owner of the Shi Tzu took her to one near our apartment. When she went to pick her up, she noticed a bald spot on top of the dog's head that wasn't there when she dropped her off. The groomer said, "Yeah, I don't know about that bald spot. You need to take her to the vet and have him examine her, I think she has a skin infection that would cause the hair to fall out."

She took Shelby (isn't that a cute name? ) to the vet that afternoon. He examined Shelby and said "That is NOT a skin infection. Somebody just took out a plug of her fur." Can you believe that? I mean, if you mess up doing your job, admit it and move on. Don't say the dog is sick to cover it up and cause the owner to have to spend more time away from work at the vet and addtional office fees.

Besides I watched them at that PetSmart once while I was deciding whether or not to get Bailey a bath there. I watched a woman manhandle a Yorkie that wasn't biting her, he was just wiggling on the table and he had a muzzle on. She picked him up by the scruff of the neck and a handful of his back and screamed in his face, then slammed him back down on the table. I was kinda like "well, if you have problems with a 5 pound yorkie, how are you gonna react to a wiggly 40 pound pit bull mix?"

I hope wolfQ, jen, and micki don't think I am talking bad about groomers in general just by sharing these stories. I think y'all do a wonderful job that a lot of people don't want to, or don't know how to do. And I do very much appreciate all the advice you have given me on this thread.
I don't take offense to anything you've said, but as a former groomer I could tell you stories that would make you vomit and would make you so mad you'd spit nails. I've worked with some horrible groomers.

Be very careful where you take your pets to be groomed, everyone. It can be a day of horror for your pet, more often than not.