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Grooming Him Myself... Okay, I have officially decided that I'm going to try grooming Miles myself. It seems that every time I bring him home from the groomers he chokes non-stop for days. I fear they might be using a loop (don't know the technical name for it) around his neck during grooming, which is irritating his trachea. It doesn't help that he's an energetic little guy, and no doubt pulls against the loop, pressing on his trachea more. Bottom line, I just don't want him to get hurt, or to suffer injury to his trachea due to grooming. He always chokes and coughs for days after a grooming trip. So...for those of you who groom your own yorkies, what do I need to know? What tools will I need (to shave the area by his eyes and nose, and how do they clip the hair between their toes?)? Are there any videos or books you'd suggest? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! |
I would be interested in learning about this, also! |
I home Groom most of the time. My dog groomer gave me some pointers because I live far from her now and its hard to get to see her. I know when I started homegrooming they is a Yorkie Talk member that made helpful you tube videos showing how to groom face, feet, body and such. I still am not the greatest at it and can always use pointers myself.:) |
I have no tips as I am just not good at the grooming thing. But I wanted to let you know I found a mobile groomer who comes right to my house, and he is done within 45 minutes. I can even peek in the window and spy on him! ;) She does not use a rope around his neck, and no crates or cages, or waiting time, etc. |
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Good Luck! I have been grooming Fiona since day 1 of getting her. I used to work as a grooming assistant, so I know the basics, I mean, she doesn't look as good, but still I get the job done right. Fiona is a little pistal, and I think she wold have been horrible at the groomers. When I had a dog up on the table, and had a trach problem, we would make a harness out of a leash, and then hook it up to the table, and I would also have another loop around the belly by the hind legs. I just have a easy to use WAHL razor, and scissors, and we do just fine! Good Luck! |
Some of the answers would rely on how you prefer the cut to be...short, long? I personally like to keep my pups legs long and his beard long...his body is medium length. For his paws, use a small clipper...just take your time and you will see the hair growing between the pads...that is what you want to make sure and get. I use scissors to round off the shape of his paws. Thinning shears are also one of my best friends!! I will admit, Raley is better behaved during grooming if someone else does it. When I groom him we break it down into sessions! Good luck! |
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I groom Cerise myself. I invested in a good clipper set and hair cutting scissors, blow dryer (with large round diffuser end) comb, brush, toiletries, etc. Once, or every two weeks we have grooming night. I keep her head hair in a bob with the top knot part extremely long to have a braid hanging with bows, and her body (back to tail) in a blunt cut (bob) shortly even with her sides. I keep the hair on her chest, stomach and private area shaved. The hair on her legs is long and will continue to grow until all is long and even with a blunt cut at the paws. People who see her always complement her cut. It probably sounds strange to read the description but it is very cute to see on her. It took me a while to get comfortable with the tools but now I have mastered grooming and will NEVER pay for something I can do better and with my expected perfection. |
Grooming I do Sprocket's grooming cause I'm cheap, I can't spend $50, every 4-6 wks, just can't AND the grooming is never what I want! Don't get me wrong, it's not BAD, just not worth $50 bucks! And Sprocket is traumatized for days. I do not use a razor, just scissors, I have a long and a small pair, the ones with the round nose. After the bath, once a month we groom, use treats and praise and love. Sprocket sits on my lap in the bathroom after the bath, I use the hairdryer, and yes at first he didn't like it but now it's OK, we comb and brush, when we're done there we go to the bed w/towel on it, w/scissors & treats and trim the hair. I figure I can screw up his hair cut as good as a pro and it costs nothing, besides dog and I have some quality time and I check him over and we play. I love the smell of clean dog!!:rolleyes: Do it you have nothing to lose, it's fun. You can teach your baby a new trick the one called "show me your belly", he already "knows pretty baby" and "good dog" :D. Sorry this post was so long. :animal-pa |
Don't forget to check out this section and read the threads for ideas: Yorkie Grooming Talk - YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community |
Thank you so much, everyone! I'm sure Miles will come out looking a little funky the first few times, but at least I know he's safe! I generally keep him pretty "fluffy"--his hair is a couple inches long all over--so hopefully will be fairly easy to do. |
Remember, it's only hair, it'll grow back and with Sprocket, it only takes a couple weeks to cover up my screw ups. Have fun!:D Think of how much fun it will be, focus on that and how much $$$ your saving. :animal-pa |
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I keep Copper short and to do that I use scissors. I'm careful and we keep our sessions short. He is getting used to it. I've had him groomed professionally one time. I visited several groomers with the dog and asked if I could stay. When I found one who said yes, I made the appointment. It ended up that the loop was too big and I got to help hold Copper while she groomed the end I wasn't holding. I loved being involved. I took her a thank you card the next day. (Copper was a bit of a wild man.) Since then, I have been doing it myself, but I can take him in and the groomer will clip around his eyes for me for free. I feel blessed to have found someone like this to work with me. I plan to thank her with cookies this Christmas. I also plan to have Copper groomed by her once in a while when I can afford it. :) |
A clipper, a pair of scissors and a drier is all you need. Experiment as much as you like. Yorkies are hair machines. Don't expect miracle results from the beginning but after a few haircuts you will feel more confident and you will form a great bond with your little one Maria |
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I completely agree with you about not paying for something that you can do better yourself. I'm a perfectionist and I'll never pay for someone to groom them. :) |
I tried. Dink does not stay still when I get anywhere near his face! I'll try again. I want his body longer for winter, but his face looks really messy now. He barely lets me comb it. |
We groom in stages---1 day I do the face, another i trim the feet and privates with a clipper and the 3rd day I trim the body. Advice: Start by taking a little off, you can always take more! But, you can't glue it on once it's off. :) Trim in vertical pieces--instead of horizontal, it gives a better flow! We usuallly do it with 2 people--one to care for the dog-1 to trim! |
1 Attachment(s) I just started grooming Tobie myself and I must say it's not as hard as I thought it was going to be. I groomed him for the 2nd time a couple of days before I took the attached pic. Of course, it's not perfect but I find flaws when he goes to the groomer too. My DH was laughing because when I did his belly and legs, I laid him on his back and he fell asleep while I was cutting his hair. LOL. I'm sure he much preferred to have his hair cut while taking a nap than being at the groomer. Hehe. :) |
I felt so bad when I went into a chi-chi stylist (mine) and saw a perfectly groomed Yorkie along with his owner in the salon. I expressed my concerns to my stylist, and he tol me - rightly, in my opinion - that it is a dog. Said he saw dogs groomed better in La Jolla, CA than their owners! As I refused to let my baby be manhandled by some groomer outside my presence or control, I did the deed myself. A big bath, a hair dryer, and kitchen shears did the job. Perfect? No. A little scary on the face? Yes. But cute PLUS a bonding experience? Priceless. Nobody will touch my humble, trusting pet. I make sure to give him a new toy and a food treat after the ordeal, which takes more out of me than it does him. He's always frisky after the fact. |
So far so good! I decided I would try it in phases, so last night we did a good brushing, a bath, trimmed nails, and clipped the hair on his face and head. I figured that was traumatizing enough for one night (for me and him)! It's certainly not perfect--a little choppy in areas--but overall, I'm pretty happy with it! I'm going to try his back and belly tonight, and hopefully his legs and feet tomorrow. Thanks so much for all the advice, everyone! It made this task seem not quite so frightening! |
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This is the video that I have. Got it on Amazon. She goes through all the equipment and is pretty thorough while grooming. The only thing is she uses a slicker brush, which seems to be wrong according to other YT members. I don't use one, but she does. Yorkshire Terrier, Yorkie, Dog Grooming Instructional How To DVD Video and Equipment Guide by GroomingDvds Hope it works out. I'm still learning and wish I could find a video on using thinning shears as my pup has a thick cottony coat at always looks as if I choped up her hair. STill learning. At least is grows out! |
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