Did I pay to much? First proffesional grooming.

Brittany

Brittany

New member
I took Busa and Jixer to the groomers Friday. I called a lot of places and found a place that had a groomer that was familiar with the Newfoundland breed. Her mother breed newfs and she did grooming for show newfs. Have heard good reviews about her and the kenel she work for. I was kinda disappointed with the experience. I told them I just wanted Jixer to get a bath. He didn't need it but what you do for one you do for the other lol. I told them I wanted Busa to be bathed, tummy barreled, face and feet trimmed up, and the rest of him trimmed up where need. I didn't want clippers and didn't want anything done to damage the coat. I just wanted him to be cooler for the summer. I just want him to be trimmed as much as could be to be cooler with out damaging the coat. I got a quote of $25-$30 for Jixer and about a $100 for Busa. They said it might be alittle more for Busa depending the time to groom since it was his first time and would probably be unsure of the experience and might take longer. I totally understand that. I asked over the phone when I got the quote how long it would take and they said the better part of the day like 5 or 6 hours. But when I dropped them off and asked again the women who wasn't doing the grooming said 3 hours I just assumed she wasn't as familiar with the time it took for a newf. The groomer had already walked back with Busa right before we left. They called a couple hours later and said Busa was really nervous with the dryer and they were going slower so the wouldn't upset him so it would take longer then expected. I said ok and called back a hour later to check on him. They said he was doing a lot better and she was cutting him now. They were there a total of 6 hours. When I picked them up the price went from $130 ish to $210. Which I understand it took longer then expected. But that seemed like a big jump. Jixer was $60 and Busa was $ 150. All they did was bath Jixer and clip his nails (not dremmel) and clean ears. Busa has his face ears and feet trimmed up and the shaved his belly. And of course a bath and they clipped his nails and cleaned his ears. That was it. The groomer said their ears and nails were not bad. I do them weekly. She also said that there wasn't much undercoat to be raked out and she could tell I raked his regularly. They didn't even really smell good just like flea and tick shampoo. I was really not impressed with the whole experience. Was I expecting to much? I have my own thoughts on the situation and the price change but I want to get everyone's opitions before I say to much and just give the facts. I would love everyone's two cents. Thanks.
 
ElvisTheNewf

ElvisTheNewf

Active member
I think that's a crazy amount. We've had Elvis fully groomed (bath, conditioning treatment, brushed, trimmed, nails, ears, tunneled, etc) and it was $120 in WV and $100 here in Ohio.
 
blaue_augen

blaue_augen

New member
That doesn't sound like an unusual price to me if they spent that much time on the. Suki is about $120 around here.
 
2newfs4now

2newfs4now

New member
I've paid as much as $200 for Max and he wasn't matted. Here's the but, he came out looking like the show dog he was bred to be. It took just over 4 hours. Groomers can get quite a few small dogs done in that amount of time so, I understand why it's so expensive.
 
DAWNMERIE

DAWNMERIE

Active member
Around here they wanted over $200 for Zeke, that's why I do it myself. I absolutely understand the price they want and why.
 
Jager's Mom

Jager's Mom

New member
I paid up to $120 plus tip for my first newf. And as low as $55 plus tip.

I would just be confused as to why the raised the price. I'm guessing they just put Busa into a cage and put a dryer on him, got him a little bit more dry, then used the regular dryer to finish. Not like they would have been "working" on him the whole time.

Who knows... but guess it's a learning experience.

It is difficult to find groomers that want to take on the long haired giant breeds.

With my second newf, I have done him myself.
 
Jeannie

Jeannie

Super Moderator
I can tell you what I would charge if you tell me what kind of dog Jixer is how much he weighs. If he is a lab type coat weighing under 50 lbs I would charge about $30 for a bath, nail trim, ear cleaning and dry. Did they have to blow our undercoat on the newf or work on mats?

Anytime I have dog in for a first groom I do not guarantee anymore than a bath and cleaned up. If the dog is comfortable, not stressing or upset, I'll do more as I can. The last thing I want to do is get a first time grooming dog upset and the dog learns to hate grooming forever. In this case I most likely would have dried/combed out the newf and had you bring him back another day.

Another thing, when I am grooming a dog and I see the price is going to be more than I quoted I will call the customer and explain. I will also try to offer another option that is closer to the quoted price. I really try to stick with my quotes.
 
Emma & Nigel's Mom

Emma & Nigel's Mom

New member
It sounds expensive to me, but I do think location is key. Just like a $300,000 home in California can be a fixer upper, whereas where I live a $300,000 home would be an absolute dream.

I think it's the same with groomers. I happened to find a wonderful groomer who I have been taking my dogs too for as long as I've had them, and she charges a very small fee compared to a big chain place. Are they show dog quality, no, but they look great and smell wonderful. Same kind of cut that you described.

Saying that, we moved to a bigger city for a year and I couldn't find a groomer that I loved and was happy with the price. I found one that charged nearly double what my regular groomer did, but the dogs only smelled good for a day or two, but the cut was perfect. I found another who charged less, but the dogs didn't look as good or smell as delicious. I was glad when we came back to our old neck of the woods and got my groomer back.

If you are not happy, you should look around. The right groomer is out there.
 
M

miriamstolle

New member
That's about right for nashville tn prices, but I do think a responsible person would have called and discussed an increase before continuing a service. Our groomer has us sign a document that discloses price, services rendered etc before she gets started.
 
M

mrs big dogs

New member
Here in Wis, I spend $40 for a comb out(undercoat).
When I took them both in for a full groom it was $82 per dog, but I always do the nails and any mats before I take them to the groomers , If I want them trimmed I take a pic in and explain in detail how it to be trimmed.
 
Brandie&Maggie

Brandie&Maggie

New member
Sounds excessive to me. I mostly take care of Maggie's grooming myself, but take her in for a professional groom about 2x per year (when I'm tired of raking out all the undercoat every day!). We pay about $75-$100 (which includes the tip). I do keep Maggie pretty well combed so she usually doesn't have any large matts (except maybe in the pants, which are impossible!). It takes about 4 hours.
 
Jeannie

Jeannie

Super Moderator
Brandie&Maggie said:
Sounds excessive to me. I mostly take care of Maggie's grooming myself, but take her in for a professional groom about 2x per year (when I'm tired of raking out all the undercoat every day!). We pay about $75-$100 (which includes the tip). I do keep Maggie pretty well combed so she usually doesn't have any large matts (except maybe in the pants, which are impossible!). It takes about 4 hours.
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If you were coming to my facility and asked for this it would be considered a bath with undercoat removal, not a groom. So many people get grooming and bathing confused. A groom is when the coat is trimmed, like when you get a hair cut. A bath is when there is not trimming of the coat, like when you wash your hair.

So you are paying $75 - 100 for a BATH with undercoat removal.
 
Brandie&Maggie

Brandie&Maggie

New member
Jeannie said:
If you were coming to my facility and asked for this it would be considered a bath with undercoat removal, not a groom. So many people get grooming and bathing confused. A groom is when the coat is trimmed, like when you get a hair cut. A bath is when there is not trimming of the coat, like when you wash your hair.

So you are paying $75 - 100 for a BATH with undercoat removal.
Click to expand...
Sorry, I should have been more clear. This includes bath, brush out/undercoat removal, and coat trim as well. I'm pretty sure I'm getting an awesome deal. :icon_bb:
 
victoria1140

victoria1140

Active member
Sounds a lot to me l pay £55 for max which equates to about $80.might be worth considering a k9 blaster and some diy plus good scissors.

Also think they should have phoned you.Max is in all day but thats because he gets lots of rest breaks
 
YorkvilleNewfie

YorkvilleNewfie

New member
Holy crap. $210?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! my god. That's insane. I would've absolutely LOST IT if I were you. There would have been a scene. An EPIC scene.
 
CMDRTED

CMDRTED

New member
Personally I think that's excessive, BUT, I don't live around there. I get a Show Groom, which includes a bath, de-matt, brush and combing, and a trim - $60.00. Normally $75.00 but because we show fairly often we pay 60, discounted Since she is a frequent flyer (every 3 weeks). I think we have gotten positive results as in three straight weeks she was Winners Bitch, Best of Winners, and Best of Breed, so it's not a cheapo grooming, I'm getting my monies worth.
 
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