Wish I had a picture of him to post.
Sugar is a golden ret mix, medium 40 lb, all white long haired dog. High energy, fairly needy.
Adopted from the shelter he has helped my kids get to know dogs better and relieve some fear. But he is a little skittish, doesn't like surprise touches in the tail area and beware of getting near his face when he's eating or has a bone.
And sensitive to brushing. Now I could rename my biz to 'Hair of the Dog', but BLEH. I am able to brush him lightly as often as I can, but certainly not as thoroughly as he needs. Can you say 'mats'?
After a number of appointments with the PetCo groomer (who wanted to do the grooming at another store where they could tranquilize him), we moved to a private groomer (who was good but kept increasing the fee because of the work brushing, clipping and drying him, the latter which took over an hour alone).
Finally on to the mobile groomer. OK. So far two appointments. He has advised me:
'Do it more frequently than 9 weeks to make it easier on the dog.'
Cost is currently $55/pop.
I don't even get my OWN hair done that often.
I am punting this to my husband who connected with this pup in the first place. Yes, I have grown to love Sugar, but am not willing to write so many checks.
Beautiful Dog and Smells Good too
September 17th, 2008 at 06:19 pm
September 17th, 2008 at 07:32 pm 1221679923
My dog ADORES Greenies. I go and get the grooming tools (brushes and nail filer), then I go and get a Greenie. I hold the Greenie up so he can see it but so it's out of his reach, and slowly say "xxx, Keep your eye on the prize." I then set the Greenie up on a counter, where he can still see it but not get to it.
I tell my dog to sit, then I slowly set the grooming tools down on the floor. (Moving slowly and making sure the dog can see everything that is coming is very important.) Then I start to brush. If he gets antsy and moves away, I patiently repeat "Keep your eye on the prize" ask him to sit, and start again.
When I'm done, of course he gets the Greenie, which results in much happy dancing around.
I started out doing this just a bit of brushing and nail filing at a time, and gradually built up the time. He now knows exactly what "Keep your eye on the prize" means, looks forward to grooming sessions, and tries mightily to hold still for me.
Good luck with Sugar!
September 17th, 2008 at 08:03 pm 1221681789
Yes, he will do most anything for a pupperoni! And is very very good at 'sit'.
If nothing else I brush him to keep the mass quantities of shedding down so as to prolong time between vacuums to more than a day. BLEH
September 17th, 2008 at 11:51 pm 1221695489
The vet tech told me the other day that the more you cut them, the slower they grow. That's opposite of what I've heard about human nails, so it surprised me.
September 18th, 2008 at 12:26 am 1221697614
September 18th, 2008 at 12:59 pm 1221742761
I think scfr had a great idea. Get him to learn to associate rewards like food with a bout of fur brushing.
As for the dog not liking it when you go near him when he has a bone, i wouldn't blame him for that, he is, after all, an animal that's acting on instinct.