Professional grooming tips?

[irmi623]

I'm taking Mojito in for his first professional grooming this Thursday and was hoping for some advice. The groomer does a lot of Yorkies and actually owns one (I saw one leaving the day I went in to make the appointment and it looked beautiful) but I'm wondering if I should make any specific requests? (I'm going to keep his hair at about 1.5-2 inches -- not that it's much longer right now and definitely want hair on top of his head to grow out so that I'll eventually be able to give him a topknot.) Just wondering if there's anything I should/could specifically ask for?

Thanks much!
Mojito & Irmi

[red98vett]

I've found WRITING down exactly what you WANT cut.... and you DON'T want cut helps - they may do what they want anyway but you have your written instructions to fall back on and if they do a good job ...WONDERFUL....a bad job - you can say something and it's right there in writing.

I've had groomers totally ignore me and do something ...like trim their faces....when I specifically said DO NOT TOUCH THE FACE....so I now have it on paper.

As far as a cut - look in the gallery or ask someone who's yorkie has a cute cut if you can print their pic and take it with you.

[YorkieRose]

I had some clients bring a photo or note...it works great. The groomer can keep it on file and refer to it the next time. When a person tells me I did not do it like the last time, I ask how long ago was that...2 months, 2 years..LOL I can not remember how I do my own hair some mornings.
A smart groomer will listen to the client and groom the dog the way they like..and that can be hard sometimes when they insist I shave them down like a naked chicken..but with a badly matted, soft coat there is little else to do. A good discussion can bring you both to a good understanding of what you want.

[LvMyYorki]

Pat- that is a great idea to take the pic in and keep it on file!

Villette- I too have a list that I keep in his carrier that has everything that I want done... Most of the time I bathe and condition at home, but othereise.. here is my list...
1-bathe/condition
2-clip nails
3-shave pads of feet
4-pluck hair in ear canal
5-clean ears
6-check anal glands and express if needed
7-shave hair on back and tips of ears...generally clean them up
8- scissor trim his face...NO clippers anywhere on his face!
9-hygeine clip ("willy" area and bottom)
10-scissor trim his legs and feet and skirt...just a trim to shape

That is my list, but I have Tino in a full coat, well, I'm working on it. As far as the clippers on the face...my suggestion is that if you are going to keep his hair on this head long and you are going to put in a topknot, then don't let them trip the hair between his eyes. Its like having bangs... it grows the fastest and it shoots straight in their eyes when it grows out... and let me tell you it takes FOREVER to get it to grow out so tht you can put it up again! I made this mistake when Tino was a puppy and first went to the groomer. The groomer told me that they always use clippers there unless the dog is in a show coat... I swear its taken forever and its a pain in the butt!

Here are some pics of Tino after is grooming appts... The first is the pic of him as a puppy and you can see where they shaved his face. This pic was taken in October... The other pics were taken in Feb... 5 months and look at how little the hair on his face grew! For some reason the hair on his body grew just fine, but not those pesky little hairs that poke in his eyes and won't stay in a top knot!

[irmi623]

Thank you all so much for the advice!!!

[Passionfruition]

I will use this advice soon, too! Thank you for asking, and answering before I had to! LOL. Yay!

[chewysmom]

Tara:
I love Valentino's cut. I think I will print this out and take it with me when I get Chewy groomed.

Irmi: Haven't seen you on in a while. Where are you taking Mojito to be groomed? I just called Doggie Do on 3rd Avenue and they wnted $90. CRAZY!!! I don't want to skimp but 90 bucks...jeez.

[SoCalyorkiLvr]

If you can make an appointment at a time of day where you can stay and not have to leave him, that is what I would do. I have a groomer come to my house because I have 6 furbabies that get groomed, but if you can be there it's better for your baby and then you can tell the groomer at each step what you want. I have heard too many stories about people telling the groomer what they want and even giving written instructions and coming back to the exact opposite of what was asked for. I know there are a lot of groomers who do it out of their homes and this would be good too.

Just some suggestions. Good luck.

[ReconsMomma]

Originally Posted by red98vett

I've found WRITING down exactly what you WANT cut.... and you DON'T want cut helps - they may do what they want anyway but you have your written instructions to fall back on and if they do a good job ...WONDERFUL....a bad job - you can say something and it's right there in writing.

I've had groomers totally ignore me and do something ...like trim their faces....when I specifically said DO NOT TOUCH THE FACE....so I now have it on paper.

As far as a cut - look in the gallery or ask someone who's yorkie has a cute cut if you can print their pic and take it with you.

As a groomer I totally agree with this. Write it down and take a pic if you can it really does help.

[Dartprincess]

LvMyYorki

Thank you for the listed printed it for future reference.

Carol

[Hope]

Originally Posted by LvMyYorki

Pat- that is a great idea to take the pic in and keep it on file!

Villette- I too have a list that I keep in his carrier that has everything that I want done... Most of the time I bathe and condition at home, but othereise.. here is my list...
1-bathe/condition
2-clip nails
3-shave pads of feet
4-pluck hair in ear canal
5-clean ears
6-check anal glands and express if needed
7-shave hair on back and tips of ears...generally clean them up
8- scissor trim his face...NO clippers anywhere on his face!
9-hygeine clip ("willy" area and bottom)
10-scissor trim his legs and feet and skirt...just a trim to shape

That is my list, but I have Tino in a full coat, well, I'm working on it. As far as the clippers on the face...my suggestion is that if you are going to keep his hair on this head long and you are going to put in a topknot, then don't let them trip the hair between his eyes. Its like having bangs... it grows the fastest and it shoots straight in their eyes when it grows out... and let me tell you it takes FOREVER to get it to grow out so tht you can put it up again! I made this mistake when Tino was a puppy and first went to the groomer. The groomer told me that they always use clippers there unless the dog is in a show coat... I swear its taken forever and its a pain in the butt!

Here are some pics of Tino after is grooming appts... The first is the pic of him as a puppy and you can see where they shaved his face. This pic was taken in October... The other pics were taken in Feb... 5 months and look at how little the hair on his face grew! For some reason the hair on his body grew just fine, but not those pesky little hairs that poke in his eyes and won't stay in a top knot!

I have a question about the trimming around the eyes my groomer said if i don't keep it cut back she will have bad eyesight to trim and cut to look very neat? Is this not true?

[chewysmom]

On the list it says no clipper on the face, scissors only. Why is that?

[Stitches29]

Thanks for the list to take to the groomer. I'm like a lot of Moms. I would like to be able to put Maggie's hair up on top, but not interested in the body hair dragging the floor.

[ReconsMomma]

Originally Posted by chewysmom

Tara:
I love Valentino's cut. I think I will print this out and take it with me when I get Chewy groomed.

Irmi: Haven't seen you on in a while. Where are you taking Mojito to be groomed? I just called Doggie Do on 3rd Avenue and they wnted $90. CRAZY!!! I don't want to skimp but 90 bucks...jeez.

Holy hell, that is like 3 grooms with us here.

[chewysmom]

You could not even immagine here in NYC. Evenn PETCO is pricey!