Dog Groomers

The Role of Dog Groomers

Sooner or later, every dog needs a bath, and if you either can't do the job on your own or don't enjoy performing this task yourself, you're going to have to find someone who will. Enter the dog groomers, those wonderful souls who take our dirty dogs and turn them back into Prince or Princess Charming all over again.

A Groomer's Job

The dog groomer's job is to make your dog clean and presentable again, and he/she will do this through whatever methods are needed, including:

Bathing Your Dog

This can be a regular shampooing or a medicated bath to kill fleas and ticks. A blow dry is usually included in the basic price of the job.

Brushing Your Dog

Longer coated dogs like the Shih Tzu, or Yorkshire Terrier require extra brushing to keep their long tresses from becoming matted. There is a bit of an art to properly layering and brushing these breeds, and dog groomers can remove matting with the least possible amount of hair loss and discomfort.

Clipping Your Dog's Nails

Many owners are down right squeamish about trimming their dog's nails, for fear of hurting their pet or making him bleed. Dog groomers know how to find the "quick", the blood supply to the toe nail, and so they can trim your pet with the least amount of trauma.

Cleaning Your Dog's Ears

Dog groomers can remove excess hair inside your dog's ear canals and give the ears a thorough cleaning. This can help to ward off ear infections and ear mite infestation.

Squeezing Your Dog's Anal Sacs

This is definitely a job no owner really wants to do. Two sacs reside on either side of your dog's anal opening that may become filled with fecal matter from time to time; although, many dogs never experience this problem. However, if you notice a bulging in this area, and your dog begins to drag his behind on the floor like it itches, it may be time to have the excess matter expressed out. This is not pleasant for you or your pet and is one of those jobs that is best left to the professionals.

Finding the Right Dog Groomers

It's important to find dog groomers that you can trust and who make you feel comfortable. You can simply open up the phone book and pick a shop in your neighborhood, or you can do a little homework first.

Do any of your friends take their dogs to a groomer? If so, ask them how they feel about the way their dogs are handled, and if they really like the grooming job when all is said and done.

Also ask about the cleanliness of the shop. It's normal to see hair on the grooming table and floor while a trimming is in progress, but this should be thoroughly cleaned up after each dog is groomed.

What about tranquilizers? It's a fact that some dogs are really nervous and uncooperative while being groomed, and some shops advocate the use of tranquilizers, while others do not and will simply refuse to groom your dog if they cannot do it safely. Decide now which school of thought is right for you and your pet and choose your dog groomers accordingly.

Dog Grooming as a Career

If you really like to groom your own dog and think you would find working with dogs pleasurable, then perhaps you should consider the possibility of grooming dogs as a full-time career. Once you receive groomer's training, you can even groom from your own home, essentially becoming your own boss, and setting your own schedule. With the average grooming job costing around $40, the daily pay would be around $200 if you had five appointments. Seasoned groomers can do approximately eight dogs a day, so as you can see, this career can be very lucrative.

External Links

• National Dog Groomers Association of America