Pretty sure I lost a customer today, while trying to "educate" them....
 

Ok..most of you know that I own a grooming salon. So today I have a regular customer come in with her tiny little poodle. She gives her to me, tells me she wants her regular cut and reminds me to be carefull because of her hip displaysia (sp?) I love doing this poodle because we always put her in a cute little frufru cut and she is really tiny(maybe 5lbs or so) so the cut is super cute on her. So I take care of her as usual. When the owner comes back I tell her that I notice she seems to be coming into heat. Owner gets huge smile on her face and says....oh great, I plan to breed her this time! Seriously????? So I put on my best concerned, yet nice face and say.... Are you sure that you want to do that? hip displaysia is hereditary so she would be passing it on to her puppies. plus it is really not good for her, it would probably be very painful for her to carry then deliver puppies with her condition. Not to mention it would probably worsen her condition. Owner gets all mad and hufffy with me. I say that I am sorry I didn't mean to offend her I was only concerned for her dogs health. Owner tells me that I am groomer not a Vet and if she wanted medical advice she would go to a vet. :eek: I say ok thank you have a nice day. Have any of you guys ever had a similar situation??? I was really trying to be helpful and used my friendliest voice. Do people usually get upset when you try to help "educate" them???

I am sorry that happened to you.. it is mostly people who know they are wrong who get so defensive... you did the right thing, maybe she will think about it after she has a bit of time...
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Oh yeah.

Usually when that person knows that they are making a poor decision and just don't want to be reminded of it...or have it validated.

Don't worry to much..you did do the right thing. It does not take a Vet to know right from wrong sometimes.

I am glad that you chose to stick up for the pup!! :thumbup:

I know it's harder to do than it is to say but I wouldn't worry about it. You did what was right, you were just letting her know and trying to help her out.

:eek:yOU DID THE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT THING! gOOD FOR YOU. yOU HAD THE POODLES BEST INTEREST AT HEART.:thumbdown:thumbdown:aimeeyork

I've noticed that people ALWAYS get defensive when they know they are in the wrong...noticed it too many times to count LOL. In fact, if someone gets too defensive I automatically know that deep down they know they aren't doing the right thing. So sad that she's willing to pass on hip dysplasia..people like that make me sick.

You did absolutely the right thing!!! Shame on that woman for even considering breeding her!! Hopefully, she will take in what you said and think about it and make another grooming appointment with you in a few weeks to tell you that you were right!!

UGH. I cannot stand people like this... They think "breeding" a dog is some kind of free way to get more dogs. They don't think of a dog as a responsibility.. More like a fashion statement or something.

I have a 2 year old shihtzu, my mom's friend has a male shihtzu, and the other day she said "we should breed our dogs". I was like what for? Can you take care of a pack of dogs? I know she can't. She said breed them and SELL it... I am impulsive, and burtally honest most of the time.. So I set her straight. She looked at me like I was some kind of insolent child.

I was soooooooo angry I could spit. The ignorance of people!!! And the worst thing is, they DON'T want to be educated. Or they think that the knowledge is bull****.

You did the RIGHT thing... It's admirable of you to do it. I hope the prospect of losing one or more customers will not make you zip your lips next time something like this happens.

You did the right thing....it sounds like u spoke to her respectfully and out of concern for her dog. And as for her sayin 'you're not a vet' - true, but anyone who had the knowledge you clearly have would have told her the same thing, I'm sure once she calms down she'll realise that and hopefully rethink the idea. As the old adage goes: The truth hurts (especially if its not what you want to hear!) xxx

You did the right thing. The poor baby:( I go to my groomer for a lot of questions she knows as much as my vet, with some things even more. She can tell the age of a dog and my vet can't also she can look for the beginning of trouble. So please even if you have lost this person maybe the next will need your experience.

You did the right thing! I agree, people who jump and get defensive so quickly, generally know they are doing the wrong thing!
It seems to me that it must be about money for her, because why would someone who loves their dog even risk that? That's really sad! :(

Its amazing to think that after she told you to be careful with her dog, that suddenly she doesn't like the fact you are very truthful when it hurts her feelings. You had the dogs interest at heart where it should be and she should count you as a dogs best friend. You don't need to be a vet to know that and if you are breeding dogs you need to know information like that. No one else should have to remind you of health issues that you shouldn't be breeding. You did wonderful and don't let one customer get the best of you. Keep up the good work!!!!!

You did the right thing...people hate to be reminded when they are wrong. I love my groomer...in fact, i think she knows more about dogs than my vet does. We always discuss my dogs care...and most of the time i listen to her advice!

Sounds like this woman already knew it wasn't a good idea to breed the dog and she reacted like that because she knew she was in the wrong. You only did what any responsible pet owner would have done, whether a groomer or not. There's just no accounting for some people, so you do the best you can and don't worry about it. You were very nice and she chose to get upset. I feel sorry for the poor little dog that will probably be forced to have puppies that will cause her pain and bring puppies into the world with the same problem she has. At least you tried to educate her.

I think you did the right thing, good for you for speaking up! :D

I hope she realizes that if she decides to breed that puppy, and everything goes well, well, when those puppies start showing signs of having that disease shes gonna have LOTS of unhappy new puppy owners, and shes gonna feel real crappy then....so you did the right thing! she will be sorry! :thumbdown

Friends of mine recently lost a 8 week old rat terrier/chichua (i cant spell) mix to parvo- and the breeder forgot to mention that the father was exposed to the disease a yr before...ummmm big NO NO NO! and they plan on breeding again! :eek: some people are realllll stupid