Groomed and Screwed!

[Savignr]

We made a appointment for Roo our 9 month old puppy to be groomed and when we were asked what type of dog it was on the phone and said Newfie all we heard was whining on the phone, oh there so big, oh there so hairy... whine whine whine. When we got to the Groomers again the whining started as soon as we walked in meanwhile this women breads Russian Wolfhounds anyway she's trying to find out if we had been turned down by any other grooms, lots of questions, which was not the case. We had never used this Groomer before but had heard good things about her so we thought we would give her a try. Our other groomer we used for our Bernese MT dogs we O.K. and never complained about our 157lbs being groomed and but I thought she was a little on the High side but not by much.
Well we went to picked up Roo 2hrs later and again the whining, than see says she needed to have two people work on him... whine whine whine and then the bill comes. Well I was shocked, my wife and I didn't know what to say, we had been planning on leaving a tip but after receiving the bill there was no way to we were spending any more money...

Your asking how much right, well I embarrassed to say but a family of 4 could enjoy a nice dinner in Manhattan (no alcohol) or two full tanks of gas in a SUV at 5 dollars a gallon, you get the picture. Needless to say I'm going back to my original groomers with total love an admiration!

So I have to show off your Puppy Roo before he heads into the backyard to roll around in the Dirt .. PS Mondays forecast Rain/Snow.

 

[Carole Macomber]

Well... I'm sorry the groomer was so unwelcoming and then charged over the top - crazy! ... but Roo is worth his weight in gold! and doesn't he look handsome as can be! What a cutie!

 

[wrknnwf]

:shocker::shocker::shocker:

 

[AngusMcDubhsMom]

Good grief! Guess when you find a good groomer, thank your stars. I was a bit nervous bringing Grace the last time because the previous person who worked on her whined too. After having her for 4 hours, she was still damp and had some matts under her chin. Decided to give them one more chance because that particular person wasn't going to work on her. Anyhow, this time I hit the jackpot. It's not only a groomer but a grooming school too. They asked if the students could work on her. I agreed and the cost was....wait for it....$40. and they did a lovely job on her too. The owner was there, and I told her how pleased I was, so hopefully the good work will continue.

 

[Brandie&Maggie]

Sorry you had that experience. I hate to say it, but the whining would have caused me to rethink taking a pup there. Did they give you an estimate up front? If so you should discuss it with them. Groomers I have been to always take a quick look at the drop-off to check for matts and discuss what I want, then they always give an estimate.

On the plus side, little Roo looks very cute!!

 

[DAWNMERIE]

What you experienced, is exactly what I got here in Jersey but once they started to get funny on the phone there was no way I could let them work on my dogs. Learning to do it yourself is so much better. With anything in life, it's trial and error but at least you work on the bond between you and your dog and he's not having to go through to much trauma at a groomers place. Here they wanted over $200, prices started at $175 and because Zeke is that big it went up from there. Take the money you save by doing it yourself and invest in the K9 III dryer and combs and thinning shears. WORTH IT!

 

[nowhavethreebears]

Oh, he's gorgeous! What a lovely pup. :heart:

 

[Leonard and his bud Snuffles]

Now I have only dealt with two groomers here, since a friend of mine who use to show newfs trims up Snuffles for me now. The first was a REAL.... well the same thing you call a female dog. I have heard this from others here and about the same about a lot of other groomers. They seem to have some real attitudes on bigger dogs, and I am not even talking Newf size. The other groomer I took Snuffles to has won in the local newspaper "Best Of Decatur" She was real easy on Snuffles and worked with him on the floor and let him lay down to give him a rest. VERY nice folks! Now I did find out my friend with the Bassets uses a groomer who we have met more than once, sister has a Landseer that I had heard about but never seen and they do the sister's dog. So I think they would be OK with Snuffles if I ever decided to get a professional grrom again. And if I ever decided to use PetSmart here, we do visit with the groomers when we go in and there are a couple/three there I would be OK with. But I do try to avoid chain stores and resturants because I want my money to stay local and not supporting some big corporate yahoo's lavish lifestyle.

 

[lmfoltyn]

Dawnmarie...I also have to pay high prices at the groomers for my dogs but they are VERY sweet to them...can you give me a ball park figure on how much it would cost to buy the basics to do it yourself at home? I know my Dexter would like that much better as he is getting so old and it is hard for him to be groomed all in one day. I would appreciate the info!!

 

[Whybu1]

The groomers here fight to get Crycket; they all love her.

 

[robertjt]

Sorry you had to experience that. The first time I took Scuba to get groomed, he came out with no feathers on his back legs and 2 pompoms on his butt. I was told she knew how to groom a newf. I told her that I didn't want him cut so short that he looked like a lab - which I've heard can happen. Well, she listened but made him look like a poodle from the back. He does go back, but ONLY for a bath! No scissors allowed.

 

[DAWNMERIE]

Dawnmarie...I also have to pay high prices at the groomers for my dogs but they are VERY sweet to them...can you give me a ball park figure on how much it would cost to buy the basics to do it yourself at home? I know my Dexter would like that much better as he is getting so old and it is hard for him to be groomed all in one day. I would appreciate the info!!

Sorry it's a book.....

Grooming is what lead me to this forum. I'd say I've spent maybe about $1000 to $1500 but think.... if you had 2 newfs and wanted them groomed twice a year, that would be $800 here for me. Since being on the forum a few locals have come across better numbers for grooming if I want to travel, but that experience left a bad taste in my mouth, plus I want someone to love my dogs not to be burdened by them. (I've been building my stuff over the past 4yrs-usually buy something new each year, cause I save so much on the grooming)

When it was just Zeke, I bought a Metro dryer $180, the one I saw at the self-serve dog-wash-which I also had a bad experience at, Zeke broke the plastic neck holder they had and fell out of the tub. That was that for me, and I also thought if something like that happened at the groomers, I'd never know, I would think they'd be honest but I'm not really confident in people these days.

It took way to long with two newfs and the metro dryer, so I upgraded to the K9III last year with Soundbay-it also makes swimming in our local water hole and going to the beach easier so it's not just for grooming-talk about sand blasting lol I craigslisted the metro and got $100 back, which I used towards the K9III $400.

Had a pair of thinning shears (cheapy ones, I used to do hair-just bought a new pair from Soundbay) and my super duper people hair cutting scissors (back then they cost me $400-Joewells-didn't want to ruin, so I bought some sheers from Soundbay also ) and the Mars Coat King $60/80 with 2 refills, to help blend in my mistakes and I use once a year to take the undercoat out, which will happen very soon just need a warm day, so we can sit on the deck

Oh and I spent $20 on a nice floor cushion for me (Costco) I try to do most grooming out on our deck so I don't have a table but I'm thinking this year I may buy a one piece picnic table (has the metal and you build yourself) but we'll see, (I looked them up and they want $300????) they are getting older and the floor just may be best for us. I also have the Oster dog clippers $200, but I haven't really used to much but want to try this year and see how it goes. My thoughts are if these two shatter my heart and I'm done, I can probably sell off some of what I have and get some $ back, if I want more newfs then I'm already prepared and the expense will be less in the long run.

I do love grooming them, we actually have a good time & I laugh a lot at some of the things they do, like Zeke....I always tried as a pup to teach him to go grizzly (that means show your teeth) I could never get him to do it, one day grooming I needed to cut his nails, he started to showed his teeth....I think I fell over laughing at him cause it's so out of character and it's the one of funniest things to see, someday I'll video it.

 

[chumleysma]

I love to groom my Newf too. I have the K9III, a crappy pair of scissors, a rake that hurts my hand because he chewed up the handle and a Mars Coat King knock-off. I have to laugh when my dog runs away when he's had enough, but always comes back for more. I do truly enjoy it.

 

[lmfoltyn]

Thanks for all the info...I will now know what to look for....I have tried clipping here and there but want them to look like pretty boys not "oh my God, what did you do" type of thing! LOL...

 

[ElvisTheNewf]

Just remember - it's only fur and it ALWAYS grows back. I've made a LOT of mistakes grooming Elvis - including just going to town and cutting off whatever I felt was too long. He looked really funny/bad/embarrassing but it all grew back in no time.

 

[skoorka]

What a jerk! PS. He's gorgeous!

 

[Savignr]

Sorry you had that experience. I hate to say it, but the whining would have caused me to rethink taking a pup there. Did they give you an estimate up front? If so you should discuss it with them. Groomers I have been to always take a quick look at the drop-off to check for matts and discuss what I want, then they always give an estimate.

On the plus side, little Roo looks very cute!!

1- My wife said, after the fact that she should have gone with the little voice inside her that said..CANCEL... CANCEL...
First Mistake

2- We didn't ask for a estimate because we just ASSumned it would be reason and fair.
Second Mistake

3- And yes he is Very Cute...
Thanks!

To the people that grooming there own dogs, you all must have patiences like a Saint and 8 hands and I don't think I could do it.

 

[cmorgan.1505]

That is insane! We pay 80 for a bath, nail trim, ear clean/hairs removed, and a brush for Thor. There is no reason for you to get shocked when the bill comes. We know a range before anything happens and I always plan on paying the highest amount. That is a same, but pretty Roo!

 

[cmorgan.1505]

Just remember - it's only fur and it ALWAYS grows back. I've made a LOT of mistakes grooming Elvis - including just going to town and cutting off whatever I felt was too long. He looked really funny/bad/embarrassing but it all grew back in no time.

This is me with trimming Thor's feathers. I just wanted to cry once I saw the finished product, but it does grow back.

 

[DAWNMERIE]

To the people that grooming there own dogs, you all must have patiences like a Saint and 8 hands and I don't think I could do it.

You just take your time, no hurry one day feet and ears, next day whatever side they are laying on, give yourself a little break and hope to catch them laying on the other side the within the next day or two, and then you do need two people when it comes to having them stand to do underneath and in between the legs and rear. It usually takes me a good week, and as long as you keep combing out your pretty well set. Any extra I save during the year I just put in their savings account For me best tools are the thinning sheers & the Mars Coat King but we'll see what happens this year with the clippers!

By the way.....he sure is a cutie pie!!