Amen, Lisa. That picture is so hard to look at but anybody considering choosing a groomer should know that this kind of thing can happen and ask a whole lot of questions before ever using any groomer. I wasn't thinking of choosing one but did want to know how severe a wound the cage dryer could cause and was really totally shocked by the extent of the injury. I expected a burn - not that huge open wound that looks like a vicious dog-attack wound. Eye-opening and really terrifying to think about what those things can do to a helpless, confined dog. Those things should be banned.

I sure didn't know about Kiwi's injury. That much have been awful to have gotten through! No wonder you were scarred by it. Poor little Kiwi.

Some dryers have a heat setting. The groomer needs to check the heat, if it's too hot, they need to turn the heat off. If they're cage drying, they should NOT turn on any heat, it gets too hot for the dog. The high velocity dryer that was in our mobile grooming van had no heat, it blew room temp. When I blow dry my guys w/a hair dryer, I use a cool setting, even the warm can get too warm.

This is from that link, they even show pics of the poor dog:(: A spaniel was virtually cooked to death in a home-made drying cage after her owner dropped her at a dog groomer.
The next time Maureece Sarell saw her pet Trudie, the animal was critically ill at a vet’s. A court heard the seven-year-old had to be put down after suffering internal bleeding, blistered skin and dehydration.
Magistrates were told the golden cocker spaniel spent 20 minutes in groomer Jo Taylor’s contraption – made from a tarpaulin-covered steel cage with a heater attached.

You'd be surprised how many groomers get bit, by cats & dogs. If you get bit by a cat (since they have very sharp teeth) & it severs a nerve, you can't use for your hand! There's some dogs that turn into kujo when they're put in a cage. If the owner doesn't tell you this, you get bit when you take him out of the cage. That happened to a girl in our grooming class, she got bit by a cage fright dog & she was bleeding a lot. I've had to muzzle some dogs bc they hate to have their nails clipped & they tried to bite me. Some dogs hate the high velocity blow dryer & try to bite me & the dryer. I've learned to watch their body language & they'll let you know they'll bite by showing you their teeth.
For that groomer to come right out & say those things is rude. I never charged anybody more bc the dog tried to bite loll. It's part of the job.

I would assume and hope that a groomer knows how to read a dog's body language! But my question was how would the customer know if the dog really bit, or the groomer just said they did?

I've taken a lot of my fosters to this vet, and I always ask them if they were good while they were there. Sometimes they will say the one that is usually well behaved was the worst one! I wasn't in there to witness it, so how do I know if it's true? Like if I think my dog would never bite, and they tell me he did. I don't know if I could believe that.

My Louie is more than 2.5 years old and I only just had him groomed for the first time. I'm not sure what it is that makes me not trust groomers. If I could observe the grooming session I would be willing to allow him to be groomed regularly but that isn't possible. What are they doing that I can't watch? My mom thinks I am being crazy but if the dog is hurt or mistreated it is unable to tell you about it. How sad :( It isn't easy to do it myself but I prefer doing it to allowing him to go somewhere unsupervised. Now, I have this tiny delicate little girl that has not been the same since her concussion and I will NEVER allow a groomer to take her. Better safe than sorry!

So did she ever say the dog tried to bite & charged you more? If the dog really bit, it would've broken skin. Usually, they give you a warning bite, just a slight nip, it doesn't break skin.
IDKnow why she would charge more, all she needs to do is put a muzzle on the dog (only for short period) or stand away from the dog's head & get the grooming done. The dog won't try to bite the whole time, it would be certain things they don't like, like nail clipping or the blow dryer. Unless the dog doesn't like being touched by strangers @ all.:confused:

[quote=capt_noonie;4276004]I'm scared to click the link, but does it say who
This is about the fifth time I am typing this out. I should have given up long ago, but I believe this is so important to know about. . The OP of Chloe's thread shared this story with a groomer who has a good grooming blog. She explains how this could have happened.

I copied the story without the images to save you from the horrors of them. Chloe healed nicely without needing surgery or skin grafts. However, both she and her mom are scarred from this experience, and she suffered so.

Grooming Smarter: Chloe's Story

This blog d written by Debi Hilley

"This is Chloe’s story as reported to me. It is sad and I have to warn you, it is disturbing in so many ways it may make you totally rethink the way you operate your drying facility. It has me asking questions that I cannot answer about dryers in general.

To begin with, on Sunday, January 31, 2010 I was checking my email when I saw a subject that made me do a double take. It read “Chloe, horribly burned at groomers”. Let’s just say that got my attention FAST. I opened it and was horrified at what I saw and read. Over the remainder of the afternoon I exchanged several more emails with the person who found my blog when researching burns on pets. After the incident, a friend of the family (the person who emailed me the story) came over and took photos for them and is assisting the family in dealing with this. She asked me to write the story and inform groomers of the incident, as she has decided this should never happen to another dog. I agree 100% that it should never happen again, but I also feel like it should never have happened in the first place.

I am confident that this injury is legitimate and I am confident it didn’t have to happen.

One day last week, Chloe, a rather small yorkie, was dropped off at a grooming salon that she usually goes to with no problem. Everything went according to plan as far as the owner knew. They picked up Chloe and she was groomed but she had a horrible odor they couldn't pinpoint. When they got home, they realized she was limping slightly, but she took off upstairs and ran under the bed before they could investigate further. A relative came by and went to retrieve her from under the bed and she yelped like something hurt. Upon further inspection they discovered an area of red dots that looked like pimples on her chest. She was not acting really sick, so they watched her. The spot got larger and weepy as time went on, and she got lethargic and refused food and water. At this point the family felt they needed to go to their vet. He was in surgery but advised they not wait and take her to the Emergency clinic.

She was diagnosed with a thermal burn.

What at a grooming shop could cause such a burn to occur you might ask? Simple: a heated cage dryer or a stand dryer that has heat being used as a cage dryer. These dryers have temperatures that reach up to 155 F according to the manufacturers and since that heat is enough to do severe damage to skin with short contact time, imagine what prolonged contact can do. Can you imagine being in a closed box with that type of heat being blown on your skin? I can't and I cannot understand why groomers still use this type of dryer!

The groomer was shown the photos by the family friend and was visibly shaken. They had no idea there was a problem with the groom. The thing to note is that according to my contact, the grooming, drying and bathing are all done in the same room at the shop in question. They do use heated cage dryers and it is believed that this is what caused the injury to Chloe. According to the shop owner Chloe never made a sound or acted like she was uncomfortable.

I have a hard time believing that a dog would not make an effort to try to get away from a heat source that is burning their skin. You would imagine that at least as the burn was beginning to occur the dog would be whining, scratching or barking. After the burn set in deep in the tissue, pain would be diminished as nerve endings are damaged, but at the beginning, there are signs. Likely the signs were tuned out or ignored as a normal fussy dog. In this case that decision may result in deadly consequences.

Chloe is scheduled for her first surgery this week. They had to wait until she was stable to perform the surgery. From my experience with burns, they were likely also waiting for the skin to finish dieing off. She will likely need more surgery, and possibly skin grafts to cover the area damaged by the burn.

In Chloe’s case, I FIRMLY believe the burn could have been caused by a hot dryer used on a metal cage. The metal cage bottom gets hot and holds the heat that is being transferred to it from the heat dryer. It never cools off and transfers its heat into the dog’s skin. A yorkie, with thin hair, has no insulation from the heat and the skin damage caused is deep and traumatic. I have seen Vari Kennels melted from the heat of a dryer! Imagine what they can do to skin over time!

I do not believe anyone WANTS to injure a pet, but when equipment is used incorrectly or by people not paying attention, injuries happen. A heated stand dryer (pointed into a cage and used as a cage dryer), or a cage dryer on Medium or High in an enclosed area creates an oven. Cages that are covered, surrounded or enclosed fit that bill. It is an accident waiting to happen.

Many groomers do not think that the dryers they are using can cause damage to the skin of the dogs. We need to rethink that position. We need to educate groomers and bathers to the dangers of the dryers we use daily. Unless we KNOW that they can kill, and either never use them or use them extremely carefully, then more dogs will get hurt or die as a result of their use.

In the next installment of this series I will discuss the way burns occur and then in the third installment we will discuss ways that heated dryers can be useful when used correctly and alternatives to them that are safer and more effective. I will also have an installment on what cage dryers actually ARE and when they become a problem because many people thing cage dryers are all equal and nothing could be further from the truth!

My goal is to educate as many people as possible to the effects of these dryers in the hopes of another pet never having to go through this."

From YT thread: Hello and Chloe...
This is one amazing little girl! She is healing wonderfully without surgery. The vet is amazed...her visits are now down to once a week. I see Chloe's mom everyday and she said even the deep long wound has almost healed closed. I am in awe...from seeing Chloe at the beginning (the pic does does not capture the severity of this burn) and where she is now 4-5 wks later. It was thought she would require a skin graft...and thanks to all your Yorkie prayers and the Silva Cream, God is bringing her thru. Chloe's story is far from over - I truly believe she is but one of many, that will make a difference and prevent this from happening to our "kids". Whether it be via Mfgs of these dryers or holding groomers more accountable and more oversight.

God Bless All Of You - Yorkies sure own a great bunch of people!

Sincerely
Pat (owned by 3 Boston Terrors) and Chloe's Friend

[quote=lisaly;4277072]Poor little sweet Chloe! I hope she is ok now!

pet smart does not so Im safe there

Omg just one more reason to learn to groom Waffles myself. Just bought clippers today. Last groomer visit she came home very stressed. So I decided its time for me to learn to do it myself God help me. :-)

Post pics of your grooming. We love photos.

What a sad, scary and yet, educational thread this is. That poor baby...I can't imagine the pain. I have burnt a finger cooking before and it hurt so badly. I can't even begin to know how Chloe handled her pain. She is a hero. I would love to see pictures of her sweet face now after seeing those of her burnt body.

I thought I would be happy with the mobile groomer I had here for Jasper's grooming this last time. But, my gut keeps telling me that I can do this myself. Sometimes we need to listen to our guts. At least I do.

I hope these cages are banned here in the States. These sweet babies, all furbabies really, have so much going against them. There are puppymills, bybs, brokers, some unsafe groomers, dog flippers and who knows what else. I'm so glad knowing that I've joined a community that gives a voice to the needs, health and safety to those that walk on 4 legs and give us so much unconditional love.