Clipper HELP for Jackson!!
 

I'm irritated... our groomer nicked Jackson again, on his front leg... fairly big little area he has been licking. I noticed him licking, and it seemed a bit irritated and then it turned into a big scab. She definitely got down to the skin. I have been putting coconut oil on it which seemed to help, and the first night I put a little dab of neosporin cream and watched him for a while so he didn't lick it. It is looking better.

But it sucks because the groomer is SO nice, and really seems to care a lot about what she does, and I love the way she styles his hair, she is the only one who seems to style it the way I like, for the most part and is also the best price (she's a mobile groomer, I won't take him to a place where I have to leave him), However this happened before with a fairly big nick on his skin folds by his back legs last year, and after I emailed her a pic, etc, she offered me a free groom and said she was sorry... but it's the fact that she is not telling me up front! I am SURE he let out a yelp (he's a drama queen anyways) so I am positive she knew what she did. Now that it's happened a second time and she hasn't told me....

ANYWAYS. I never thought I'd say it, but I feel like I want to just invest my money and time in learning to groom him myself. I think he would be better for me, and we could take our time if needed, and since he was just groomed professionally, I'll have a good start and place to follow.

I like his body very short, like this
Attachment 376607
Attachment 376608

It can't be THAT hard right?!?

And I want his face to be more like this (not him, another yorkie):
Attachment 376609

Where do I begin?!

I looked at marcella02's thread in grooming which is very helpful.

For Jackson, who does not have thick hair and is kept short year round, what clippers would you suggest for his body?
I was looking at these:
Keep pets looking their best with this Andis Company 7-Piece Pro Pet Clipper With Professional Blade from Walmart.com. Save money. Live better.
(Andis 7 piece pro pet clipper with professional blade) - $70
or
Wahl Pro-Series - Walmart.com
Wahl pro series complete pet clipper corded or cordless - $40

I'd prefer to spend less but if one is really better than the other, I'll go with pricier. But like I said, don't need anything super fancy, he's just kept shaved down short. Is there a particular blade # or comb that is used for this cut? (clueless here!!)

Would something like this be good for ears and such?
Amazon.com: WAHL 9962-717 Compact Travel Trimmer:...
As far as nail clipping, I'll leave the clipping to the vet. However I want to invest in a grinder of sorts. But Jax can be somewhat noise sensitive, so I need something quieter that gets the job done.

This:
Oster Animal Care Gentle Paws Premium Nail Trimmer, 1pk: Pets Love Walmart : Walmart.com

or
Dremel 7300-PT 4.8-Volt Pet Grooming Kit -...
Any help would be great!

Poor Jackson!! I too would very upset if I was not told that something happened.

Andis and Oster are definitely worth the extra expense judging from what I have read from groomers and dog exhibitors here and in other forums. The pros can tell you which size attachments are the best for Jackson's hairstyle.

Your investment in tools will be quickly made up by the money you save grooming at home. I think you will find it very rewarding for both you and Jackson.

Brit that style would be so easy to do. I have an Andis set of clippers and they weren't the expensive ones. I have been using them for 2 years and never had a problem with them. I use a 7f blade on Jada and Bogie's bodies and I keep it really short year round because they wear clothes every day. This is the set that I got and I did order a 5f blade to go with it but rarely use anything other than the 7f. I use a Simply Pink by Oster small trimmer for pads and ears. You will need a decent pair of shears and I bought mine at Sally's. reviews for clipper some mention them getting hot. I have never had a problem with that other than if I do Jada, Bogie and my Moms Biewer Jazzy all back to back. I do have to let them cool off between dogs then.

Amazon.com: Andis 60105 12-Piece Easy Clip...
mini clipper for ears and pads
Amazon.com: Oster Simply Pink MiniMax Animal...

I started off with a heavy Wahl clipper that cost me about $110 but it was loud and it needed various blades depending upon how short I wanted to cut the hair. After that I got a rechargeable Andis clipper that also had an adjustable blade, which means it adjusts from a 9 to a 40. It has snap on combs if you want the hair longer. The clipper is much quieter and also much easier to maneuver it in tight spaces. Ashley was so much happier when I used that clipper. It's pricey, but I'd really recommend something like this. I love mine!

RBC ProClip ION Clipper

There is a comb for most clippers (#0) that is mostly a guard so razor burn and cuts dont happen as easially. I have always clipped my own and yorkies are SO easy to groom. My 2 poodles are afraid of the clippers so I have to scissor them,only. So Mina,is easier. She doesnt mind the clippers and there isnt really any major place on her that is shaved to the skin. I say go for it,just do a bit of home work first. Start with just one part of your baby (shaping feet,tiny trim on topknot) something like that.

Brit, I'm sorry that Jackson was nicked :( Poor guy. I wonder why she didn't tell you?

You will be surprised to see how easy it is to groom... I use cheap $30 clippers from Wal-Mart and have for years. They work great and I am thinking about upgrading to some better ones because I have committed to grooming them for the rest of their lives.

To keep up the puppy cut that Jackson has, will take you NO time. I promise you won't regret making the decision to groom him yourself. Even if you have to take him in once a year to tidy him up, you will save so much money.

Think of all the collars you can buy him with the money you save! :p

The Oster Nail Trimmer is crap... the round disk keeps coming off while I'm trying to grind down the nail.

Wahl makes a nice clipper, long lasting. One set I saw came with a small trimmer... I like the corded ones...

Thank you so much! So do you think the 7f blade would get the body cut that Jackson has in the above picture? Do you have a photo of Jada and Bogie's body after you cut them?

Thank you! It's a BIT over my price range - but I am definitely wanting to get a good set of them, that will last us, so looking into everything.


Thanks! I think this is what I'm going to do ... start slow ... attempt little areas around his face first and sanitary areas, etc, and just learn as we go!

Thanks! It's not even so much the fact that he was nicked - I know mistakes happen. It's more so that this is the second time in less than a year that it's happened and both were fairly bad/noticeable and she didn't tell me. :(

Jackson is much more tolerant of me doing things to him, and in the process, we make it a training game. I enjoy using praise and treats and desensitizing him to certain things, and seeing the progress, so I find it to be a good challenge! :p

Nice! Which ones do you use? I was liking the looks of the $40 pro kit from Walmart by Wahl. Your pups always look good, so if you use those with good luck, I am sure they'd work well for Jackson.

This is what I was thinking... maybe still have him professionally done once or twice a year. We used another mobile groomer once that I was very happy with, he seemed more calm and comfortable going to her, but I didn't like the way she cut his face. But this is something we could probably work around... I am sure if I showed her a picture of what she did last time, and ask her to do it a different way, she would. She was a lot more pricey though.

And I know right?! So many more important things to be spending money on!!! :p

Thanks! I hear good things about the Dremel, so I guess I'll go w/ that for nails.

I have an andis, cheap one that has bad blades, but it works if I groom him in 2 sessions.
I use blade 7 he is really short then but not too short, like in the pics.

Sorry this happened to Jackson and hope he's healing well by now. It makes you feel so bad that they have an injury of any kind at the groomers. Can't blame you for wanting to be sure nothing worse happens next time or something though it is very rare. I think once you find a good clipper and give yourself some time, you can do his grooming as well as a lot of groomers unless he has to just look perfect to you. You sure can save a lot of $ if you do it yourself and Jackson will probably like spending the time with you better than at the groomers. Hope it works out and you are happy with your results.

You inspired me so I got Tibbe under the scissors Saturday and trimmed him back short to his dark body color. He's very light on the ends of his hair when he grows out but now he's fairly dark all over except just the tips of his hair which are gray. He just loves his hair being really short! After his bath, he dried in no time and was out in the grass rolling around and zipping all over the yard. He looks funny to me but he sure loves his short "do".

You're not going to regret grooming Jackson yourself!!! Brody had weird visor bangs when he got his hair groomed, I literally laughed when they brought him out he looked so silly. I was too embarrased that my first reaction was a laugh, I didn't have the guts to bring him back. So, I started grooming Sophia and Brody myself.... I definitely don't do the best job... but it works for us! :thumbup:

Aw poor Jackson! That is odd she didn’t tell you, I would tell her about it- Maybe send her an email? Maybe just take a moment and try to give her another chance? I would def be mad, but I know she does an amazing job cutting Jackson, and I know you have went through a list of groomers to find one that you really like. I know things like that happen and she probably meant to tell you-

I know we like our boys in the same cut, so I can tell you how hard it is to do. It looks really easy, but it’s not! I don’t know if you remember me wanting to groom Peanut… Dh and I went and bought clippers and we attempted to do it. Girl it is nothing easy, it took us like 2 hours just to shave his body!! I know it is something that you will get use to and you will get better at, but it is really time consuming and kinda a pain in the ass. I would much rather take Peanut to the groomer and have him done than sit there and torture him!! Yorkie’s hair is so different, it’s like cutting human hair, when I went to cut his face it was horrible, you almost have to blend it in LOL- All I am saying is really think if that is something you want to get into, it is time consuming, very frustrating at first, you have to go slow because you are scared to nick them… Just think about it-

To get that look in the 3rd pic, it's very easy...
1. Comb forward any hair you want to trim. It will cover their eyes if it's fairly long or stick out like a visor if short.
2. With curved shears, the curved side facing their face, the scissor should be horizontal, cut what is sticking out. If you don't have a curved shear, a straight one is fine.
3. Trim a little at a time to get the length, look you want. Once you get the hang of it, you'll know exactly where to trim the next time.

The 7F blade would give a very close cut w/out looking 'shaved'. Remember for blades, the higher the #, the shorter the cut. The #10 (this is what comes w/most clippers w/interchangeable blades) can be used to clip the sanitary areas, under paw, arm pits, underbelly, mats, tip of ears (the flap sides only).
The tip of the sides of the ears, should only be trimmed w/scissors.

I have an Andis & love it, it's very quiet: Amazon.com: Andis 22360 AGC Super 2-Speed...
I also have a cordless rechargeable Wahl, I use this the most to do sanitary clips & little trims, also very quiet. This one has a 5 in 1 blade.
Amazon.com: Wahl 8786-451A ARCO SE Cordless...