Genuine question: groomer report cards

[carlx21]

Hello, dog groomers of Reddit.

I am just genuinely curious about this… if your salon gives clients “report cards” will you tell them if their dog is difficult during the groom?

We’ve been seeing our same groomer for the same 2 years since he was 4 mo old so I think he’s pretty good with her, and if he’s matted I will tell her upfront or she will let me know during pick up this area was matted so she went shorter etc.

We have never gotten any constructive criticism feedback on the report card before, so I’m just curious if others use this as a way to communicate w clients that a dog is difficult?

Also, what is the line between difficult behavior you’d expect during a groom vs something you’d want to tell a client about or to work on at home?

Thanks!

 

[nguyentrongphuoc]

@carlx21 I would always tell a pet parent what their dog was difficult for but in a polite way on the report cards. Instead of saying they were an absolute menace for the bath I’d say “Fluffy wasn’t a huge fan of the bath” and they list a few ways they could with them at home. I hated always sugarcoating unfavorable behavior because should the pet be groomed by someone else I’d rather the parents be aware so they can warn the next groomer that hey they get a little spicy for their nails or whatever. If the pet is actually awful for something I tell the parent directly, usually giving a heads up when I call them and then again at pick up.

 

[brandilynn17]

@carlx21 If I have a dog with any behavioral problems, I usually discuss it in person rather than put it in a report card. It's way easier to have a conversation about that face to face than in a couple short written sentences. Plus it's harder to misconstrue things and easier to immediately correct misunderstandings.

The mild version of typical "difficult" behavior is stuff like being squirmy for holding legs, not loving to have their face held, pulling feet away while I'm trying to trim nails, etc. Thats all normal dog stuff and I expect to see that in my day. While I do work on getting the dog more comfortable with those things over time, I'm experienced enough with handling that they don't really make my job all that much harder. Almost every dog has one specific "thing" that they're not a fan of, but I can still honestly tell the owner that their dog was a good boy/girl that day.

More serious behavioral issues I do address with owners, and often give "homework" of things for them to practice at home. Biting and snapping with the intention of actually getting me is one big one. Or a dog that completely panics for the dryer, which I do understand because it can be scary. But the owner has to be aware so they understand why Fido might be going home with a damp spot here and there, or why it's in their best interest to keep the dog shorter so we don't have to worry about drying as much while we work on getting them used to it. I'll also address dogs who have major overreactions to certain kinds of handling, so the owner can practice at home. For example, I groomed a dog the other day who was yowling and thrashing because I was holding his leg. No clippers, didn't have scissors near him, not trimming nails. He wasn't in pain. He just wasn't used to having his legs touched. That's something I discuss with owners so they can help me and their dog by working on that problem area.

I know we think of grooming as a normal fact of life, but we ask a whole lot of the dogs we groom. Most dogs don't love baths. The blow dryer sounds like a vacuum and that can be scary. We lift up their legs to shave their armpits with a weird buzzing machine that probably tickles. And to top it all off, we ask them to hold their heads perfectly still while we spend ten minutes trimming it into shape with scissors right near their faces. If they have a behavioral problem that can cause harm to them or me, or is actively making one of us more stressed than we need to be, then I'll address it. Pretty much anything else is all in a day's work, and I can still count them as a pretty good dog.

 

[carlx21]

@brandilynn17 This is all great info to know, thank you!

Such great points about how much we ask of dogs during grooms - and all while taking them to an unfamiliar place w unfamiliar people.

 

[%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6]

@carlx21 I don't do report cards but I run my business via text message so I can easily document things with the owners. I will often sugarcoat things for new clients because dogs can (understandably) be iffy around strangers. If I don't see an improvement after a few visits, then the sugar coating comes off and we get down to work

 

[stevennuwave]

@%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6 What a great comment I totally agree with what you are sayi...DEAR GOD WHAT IS YOUR USERNAME?!

 

[%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6]

@stevennuwave It's from Mean Girls lmao

 

[carlx21]

@%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6 Lol I love the mean girls reference… and thank you, this makes sense.

I’ve been in this sub for long enough to know that not every client is like this, but from my pov once we’ve seen the same groomer 2-3 times and you and your dog have a relationship w them / trust is going both ways that is priceless!

If I ever did get brutal honest feedback I would def appreciate it and take it seriously and work on whatever at home.

 

[%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6]

@carlx21 I've given brutal feedback MAYBE 10 times in my 6 years of grooming & pet sitting. In these incidences, it was strictly because the dog was a danger, or in life threatening danger. If your groomer says something like "he was wiggly for the dryer", ask them to elaborate (in case there are multiple issues), and what you can do at home to change the behaviour. A lot of people don't even realize that they're rewarding bad behavior in some situations, so your groomer may be able to point that out to you as well.

Considering you've been with the same groomer for 2 years, and started at 4 months old (a bit old but still within the optimal age range for me, personally), it's very likely that your dog is considerably well behaved at the groomers and was properly desensitized as a puppy. We don't expect them to be perfect, just not completely wildin' out

 

[suupertrump]

@carlx21 I don’t do the report cards anymore, they are so small and I feel like I can’t convey all that needs to be said. Also I gave a first time client a report card for their dogs first groom at our salon and he did pretty bad for the groom, I wrote something like “He was being very wiggly and showing teeth, he bit for his nails and need some training.” She took the card to my manager and said I was spewing hateful lies about their dog. I don’t want my words to be misinterpreted so I just verbally talk to clients now.

 

[carlx21]

@suupertrump Jeez. Some people are taking it too personally!

 

[wanderedhome]

@carlx21 We give a verbal report to clients. Especially for puppies we give tips for behavior improvement at home. We do sugar coat it though.

Fido was a bit wiggly today=fido was jumping around all crazy, trying to throw themselves off the table, etc.

Fido did have a nervous poop in the crate= fido pooped and danced in the poop when we weren't looking and had to get a second bath. We are amazed by the amount of poop that can fit in that small body.

He's quicks are on the long side, so please bring him back in two weeks! = omg this is neglect. For the love of god, bring him back so he won't be in pain from his nails literally changing the shape of his foot.

Fido isn't a fan of the dremmel, but was okay with nail clippers today. = Fido tried to bite me the instant the dremmel turned on. I gave up and just used the nail trimmers instead of traumatize them.

Fido gets a bit overwhelmed by all the noise in the salon. The groomer suggested bringing him on sundays since they are slower for us. = Fido tries to lunge and bite at any dog that walks past the table.

have you discussed sedatives for grooming with your vet?= your dog is scared af or aggressive af and is a safety hazard to our staff or themselves.

Fido seemed uncomfortable when I handles his front right foot. I just wanted to let you know incase you wanted to mention it to your vet= Fido legit screamed every time I had to touch that foot. I think he's in pain but will not diagnose because i am not a vet. Please get that checked out.

 

[aryehyehudah]

@carlx21 Some groomers wil lie and say the pet is good cause they think it gets them better tips, but I just mention if the pet is wiggly, scared of something, or aggressive/resistant in certain situations.

 

[jay2242]

@aryehyehudah I don't think it's tips I said nice things in the beginning because I was scared to get yelled at.

 

[%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6]

@jay2242 Yup. And if I got yelled at by a client, I also got "coached" by my manager. No thanks

 

[jay2242]

@%E2%98%A6marius%E2%98%A6 Yup exactly. It was easier to write nice nonsense then risk being yelled at and being lectured.

 

[skyrue]

@jay2242 Sometimes it's just reflex, too. Most dogs do good, so it's kind of a go-to line that gets said on accident when I'm busy or distracted or hungry.

 

[solascriptura116]

@carlx21 i’ll pinpoint things they were good for in the report card (i.e. “buster did so well for the dryer!”) but will tell the parent verbally what the issue was, and put a note into the system that i discussed it with them, as well as what they had trouble for. if they are pretty nervous/scared i will make a note in the report card, along the lines of “im so excited to see him again and make him safe and comfortable for his stays!” or something similar. i’d you don’t have any notes, it’s a good sign! your little one must be a sweet heart

as for difficult behavior, on all dogs bur especially seniors, it’s hard for them to stand up. if they absolutely cannot stand up on their own/ are thrashing for something (getting out of the loop at the bath, trying to jump out of the bath or away from the dryer while screaming, trashing really bad for nails) i will send them home- when they’re with me I’m their advocate, and discomfort is always expected for them, especially with the dryer- it’s very loud and no one wants air blowing on their face out of a loud machine with a lot of power. to work on for home, if they have an extremely hard time just touching their legs or something, that’s the main one i deal with.

 

[chaz1268]

@carlx21 My line for bad behavior shifts further and further back the longer that I do this job . Generally as long as a dog isn’t thrashing/gator rolling or trying to bite me, I can handle it and it’s not so bad. I’ll certainly tell them if their dog is fussy for something but the behavior has to be pretty bad for me to have a serious chat with a client about it.

 

[bws1989]

@carlx21 If you want to find out what information should be included in the Dog Grooming Report Cards, you can visit the link provided: https://www.4menearme.com/b2b/dog-grooming-report-cards/