A really random blog post...

Remember Wilson from the sitcom Home Improvement? 

I felt a bit like him today, when I was chatting with J today. 

What do you think?    This St. Bernard was on a table, yes, but the table was very low, probably around One and 1/2 feet off the ground.  This big guy is very tall..luckily he is also very well-behaved.  I had to reach up to shave his back.  J thought she should take my picture, because this is all she saw when she looked over to talk to me.

Here is my dog Logan, nearly finished with his brushout.  He always wears a pony tail..or he can't see a thing. 

Hush!  That is his head!  No jokes about  "I can't tell which end is which".  I've heard them all.  When his hair is down like this, I always think of this guy.

Sam the sheepdog of Looney Tunes fame. 

Or maybe this guy:

Cousin Itt from the Addams Family!

And one last random thing..

Every year, it gets earlier and earlier:  People's urge to warn us of the impending long winter.   Today, J got the 1st one.  The client said:  You can trim her short one more time, then she better start growing out for winter.

PEOPLE!  It's July 21st!  Yesterday a city in our northern state was being called the "hottest place in the world".   The heat index has been in the 100's.   How can you even THINK about  winter.  Also, FYI:  If you start growing out this dog that you rarely (by rarely, I of course mean NEVER)  brush now, by November (when it actually starts to get cold) she will be matted and need shaving again! 

I told you...really random. I just had to get that off my chest.  Thanks for listening.

Matted Hair I.D. and Amazing Clients

Isn't this blog fun?  Where else can you find entertainment like this?  Ok, don't answer that.  If you are super bored, read on. 

Today, I took this matt off a dog today.  Any guesses what it was? 

That's it laying on it's side..a perfect hole in the middle of it.  I *might* have been using it as a finger puppet earlier in the day.

And...here it is standing up.  It was actually able to stand upright that way!  It's the little things that make my day fun. 

We'll get back to that. 

I wanted to post about our amazing clients.  How they give us little gifts at the oddest times, which sometimes make us cry.

Pretty, huh?  J got these from a client, who had just lost their beloved dog.  I know??!!  They lose their dog, and they send her flowers?? What is up with that, isn't it kind of backwards??  We should be sending them flowers.  I told you, AMAZING.  There was a sweet note that came with the flowers, thanking her for all the years she took care of their dog.

And look...they were Daisies! This is the really touching part.. the dog's name was Daisy! 

Our clients do things like this.  Our veterinarian staff many times get baked goods after a euthanasia, they also get flowers and beautiful  homemade cards.  It's so good to know we made such an impact in their dog's life that they take time out to do these things, even in the saddest of days.   We appreciate them so much.  I've always thought it was an interesting thing, how the death of a pet bonds a client to you.    You would think it would be cards for "thanks for giving my puppy her first haircut" or "good job on getting that dead animal smell out of him".  I guess it makes sense though, all that time spent with their pet over the course of a life, it's pretty important.

We do get little gifts at other times as well, and I actually did get a very nice gift card for fitting in a couple of skunk dogs!  Ha!  I think the funniest one was a card and bath salts I got from a dog because it was the 1 year anniversary of his 1st haircut!  I felt bad..I didn't get him anything!

Back to this..I know you are dying to know.  It's the tail I shaved off of a Standard Poodle!!  So matted it came off in one piece.  That dog went home a whole lot happier! 

Fun with instructional notes.

It's been a while since I've gotten a note.  This one made me smile.  It even came in an envelope, which was a nice touch.   Click on the photo to enlarge it.

This note could've been shortened up to "Do what you always do, but trim his rear shorter, so poop doesn't get stuck on his hair when he goes to the bathroom."  But what would've been the fun in that??  I love notes.

Here Kitty, Kitty..

Hi!!  I love Kitties.  They are so pretty and fun to chase.  I chased a kitty and my owners thought I needed a bath.  Humans are so strange.    Here is what he looked like:

We have a problem with skunks in the area.  If you haven't had the pleasure of smelling the fine aroma of a freshly skunked dog, count yourself lucky.  It's pretty awful.  Believe me, when we get one of these emergency baths in, they go in the tub immediately.  The worst part about skunk spray is that apparently when you add water to it, the smell gets stronger.   So, even dogs we thought weren't that bad, show us that isn't the case when we start their baths. 

Getting rid of the nasty smell is a bit tricky, and nothing is guaranteed to remove it completely.  I will say using tomato juice doesn't work.  We get alot of "red" dogs in for baths after their owners have tried that old time remedy.  One client didn't have tomato juice, so she tried tomato soup.  Yeah..that doesn't work either.  Wow..that was disgusting. 

If someone wants to try their hand at home, we give out the following recipe, which many of you have heard of.

1 quart of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide
1/4 cup of baking soda
1 to 2 teaspoons liquid Dawn dishsoap.

We used this for a few years too, and it does work pretty well.  The key is the dish soap, as skunk spray is very oily and the Dawn helps to break it down.

We've changed strategies now, thanks to this bad boy:

It works VERY well.  We give a cleansing bath 1st...and if the smell is strong enough, we mix dawn into that shampooing.  Next they get the Smelly Pet.  After that, they get a leave in conditioner which smells amazing.  Smelly pet also makes a leave in spray.  The really bad ones get a dousing in that as well.  And, yes, we charge extra for this service.  Sadly, we still always have to give a disclaimer, as no matter what you use, for a month or so afterwards, every time the dog gets wet, you will smell it again. 
The worst part of doing these baths, is that the skunk smell will get into your nose...and that's all you can smell sometimes for 1/2 the day.  I'm asking everyone else to "smell this dog" and tell me if it still smells like skunk..  nice.    I always hope I can just go immediately home when this is part of my day..I always worry that I smell of skunk too.  Not cool.

Smelly Pet also works for dogs who have rolled in deer or bear poo, and the ever popular dead fish.   Lucky for me dogs love to smell bad, it helps keep me in business!



Monday blues?

Lots of people hate Mondays.  I have never been that way.    Monday is my day to get things done.  I usually book myself the heaviest that day.  I have actual energy after the weekend.    By Thursday I'm running out of steam and Friday is my day to take a lighter load when it's possible.  This energy continues into my evening. Tonight, I moved agility equipment, mowed the lawn, weeded my flower bed, and trained my dogs.  I HATE yard work on the weekends.  Maybe that's why I have so much energy on Mondays. What was your Monday like? 

Here's something that made my day even better.  I donate a grooming a month to the local Humane Society.  This little boy was brought in by animal control, and no one ever claimed him.  He arrived in pretty rough shape.  I think he may be an Australian Terrier, as his coat has some wire to it. 

He wasn't much for the camera.  That was all matted horribly filthy hair.  Here's the finished product.  I'm sure it's no surprise that I had no other choice but to take his coat short.

Who would abandon this dog?  He was the sweetest little guy, I'd guess he was about 7-8 years old, and neutered.  He had no issues with getting a haircut, as nearly all these humane society dogs I groom.  I think they are just grateful that someone is helping them feel better.  I hope his new look helps him find a forever home soon.