Groomer Has It

Those links were great. That is more along the lines of what I was expecting from the groomer's. Now, I'm no groomer and I give groomer's alot of credit for being able to do what they do (I know I never could) but from this competition and challenge I really was expecting a bit more creativity from them. 

AgileGSD

Cute pet grooms aren't what ends up on groomer to groomer's cover. Often the cover dog is a creative grooming contest winner. IMO none of the groomers did a great job on that challenge, as I think the idea was creative grooming and some just did pet grooms. The ones who did creative grooming, only the winner IMO did a good job. The ones who used color just seemed used it randomly and it didn't look good. Here are some examples of good crative grooming:

The magazine cover usually features top-notch "regular grooms" but that is beside the point.  I agree, the groomers on that show did not appear especially artistic or creative, IMO. 

I posted that same Petgroomer.com photo gallery a while back, and got negative feedback from some people who thought it wasn't in the dog's best interest.  To each his own.

 Pet psychics.... Meh. I believe that people and animals can communicate, very clearly, but I have a hard time dealing with the idea that someone would choose to use that to make a profit. It always seems hokey, to me.

jennie_c_d

 Pet psychics.... Meh. I believe that people and animals can communicate, very clearly, but I have a hard time dealing with the idea that someone would choose to use that to make a profit. It always seems hokey, to me.

I couldn't agree with you more here!! 

I just caught this show this weekend - it's very odd.  And I totally agree that dying the coats... it's just not right, imo.  I hate it.  The rainbow colored old cocker for a FORMAL picture!?  Gah!

you can go to the groomer to groomer magazine website and check out the back issues. a lot of the dogs they present are poodles, and the art that they did on these dogs was spectacular! What the groomers did on the show was really bad grafitti.

this show continues to disappoint me. this whole chanllege was set up for all the groomers to fail. groomers that actually make the cover spend months, even years, designing and creating their style. NO ONE could do what the judges were asking for and make it look any better than what kathleen did. they are going to sit there and judge them on something that really was impossible. truthfully, none of those grooms would have made the cover, but thats ok, b/c i dont believe any of them got a fair shot at this challenge. for this challenge they should have given each contestant a white poodle. telling everyone you can pick your own dog, who are selected from a dog park, was stupid. there was not much to choose from, but everyone at least made a good choice (with exception of jessica).

i hate the way the judges talk to the groomers while they are grooming. i seriously would not be able to handle it. i was even offended when xavier made that remark to jessica about the golden being easy (and i hate jessica). while i understand his point (goldens dont require a haircut, like the others did, or the amount of brushing artists briard had), but he could have worded it differently. goldens are def. not always easy.

im glad jessica left b/c she was awful. all she cared about was having her friends there. she cries about malissa and will leaving, not b/c they were good groomers and should have stayed, but b/c she was close to them. i had a lot of negative things to say about malissa, but at least she tried. jessica seriously hasnt even done anything i would consider a groom. just bath/brushes. i really believe that kathleen is being edited to be the bad guy, when in reality she is just mature and wants nothing to do with the kids' antics. hell, im only 23 and i would have done with some of this bs a long time ago. im glad that everyone left is at least somewhat talented.

i also wanted to add about the time limits. they arent that bad. every groomer has a time limit. you have to time your day so that you know how many dogs you can accept. the better you get the quicker you get. doing more than 10 dogs a day requires you be able to get dogs done in less than 2 hours (im going by a normal 8 hour day). everyone has acted like they time limits are so terrible on the show, but that is a real life grooming problem. if you cant work quickly under stressful situations, while still doing a good job, then you wont last as a groomer.

I like watching the show.  But, its starting to get under my skin how they just so excited when they see it's a little dog they've got to groom.  I'm sorry, but they should be able to and have no problem grooming large breeds.  The other night, they were so excited to see the Westies.  That guy Jorge seems to have changed his attitude too--when the show first started he was like, "I'm Jorge, I groom this and that celebrity dog, etc.  But, now he's changed to, "I hope it was good enough". 

I hate to even begin to admit this on here, but I do cringe when I see that certain breeds are coming. It's not because I don't like the dogs, personally. It's because they have a coat type that is difficult to deal with, and a LOT of it (any coated dog over 50 lbs has a LOT of hair to handle! LOL). I cannot charge enough for the amount of work that goes into hand scissoring a Husky (oh yes, I have, I left an inch all over and he looked AWESOME!). I charge $50 to hand scissor a Miniature Poodle. I charged $80 for that Husky. It was three times the work. The dog was fabulous. Nicest personality a dog could have, easy to work with, well cared for.... Just too much work! I do enjoy working with the big dogs, but it can be too much (of course, they aren't getting paid and they aren't grooming all day, so it's a totally different situation).

Since you mentioned this--can I ask you--how do the groomers get paid.  I've always wondered.  In other words I pay $65 for the service itself and then I usually tip about $15.  Now, I'm pretty sure the groomer gets all the tip??  But, what about the actual $65?  Do you guys get paid by the salon owner hourly or a salary or??  I'm just curious.  Maybe I should tip them more??

willowchow

Since you mentioned this--can I ask you--how do the groomers get paid.  I've always wondered.  In other words I pay $65 for the service itself and then I usually tip about $15.  Now, I'm pretty sure the groomer gets all the tip??  But, what about the actual $65?  Do you guys get paid by the salon owner hourly or a salary or??  I'm just curious.  Maybe I should tip them more??

How groomers get paid depends on the market, and on the particular shop they work for.  I think that $15 is a nice tip - more than 20%.  Most groomers share the tips with a bather/brusher if they have one.  The real drama usually takes place in multi-groomer shops where people angle to do the most "tip dogs" LOL.

I must say that I was really amused by the Portuguese Water Dog episode.  We have a lot of them around here, and so groomers in this neck of the woods need to know how to groom them!  But, I think the judges were right.  Just because you don't see a dog often doesn't mean that you shouldn't know what to do with it when you do see it - it's part of being a professional groomer to know the haircuts. Of course, in the real world, it's certainly possible to forget a bit when you don't get many on your table. 

I hate to even begin to admit this on here, but I do cringe when I see that certain breeds are coming. It's not because I don't like the dogs, personally. It's because they have a coat type that is difficult to deal with, and a LOT of it.

Oh, could you be talking about Samoyeds????    I think they're gorgeous, but I certainly don't miss having "cotton balls in my hair", up my nose, in my mouth, and in my eyes LOLOL. Bleccchhhhh.  Achooo!!!!

 Actually, the only Sammy I've groomed had to be totally shaved Broke my little heart. I so wanted his coat to hit the ceiling. It was too matted.

Lori, in every shop I've worked in, groomers make commission. The norm, around here, is 50%. In some shops, there are other perks, like insurance and retail discounts. I get the whole tip, and always have. $65 for Willow is reasonable. That's probably about what I'd charge. For a Pomeranian to get the same haircut, I'd charge $40, LOL. It's just how the industry is. You can charge plenty for a little dog, and not enough for a big one. I don't know why! I'd *love* to see Willow coming, though. Gorgeous, blue Chow Chow that behaves on a table? I'll take that, any day.

most groomers make 50% commission. they usually get the whole tip, unless they have a bather, then they would share it. 15 bucks is a good tip. most people tip 5-10, so anything over and that customer is special, lol. it sucks, but we groomers do know who tips, and those customers are usally the ones who get special treatment. it isnt b/c of the money, mostly b/c the owner is basically saying that they know your work is hard and they appreciate it. bathers will usually not make more than hourly, or like 5 bucks a dog. they are the ones who really need those tips. so if you ever have a dog that is just a bath/brush, you should tip more b/c generally the people doing that are making less than 20% of what you paid for the dog to get done.

 last episode was terrible. i loved jasper and did not think he should have gone. i really think that jonathon should have gone. heres how the scenario would have been if it was at a real salon. jonathon- the owner came in and said i want a traditional lion clip, but here are my instructions. jonathon would have thought, hey i know how to do this, i dont need her instrustions. he does the dog, but he missed one thing b/c he didnt carefully read the owners instructions. now there isnt much of an excuse for jonathon when the owner comes in and is rightfully pissed that something wasnt done right when she clearly stated and diagramed what she wanted. jasper- owner says she wants a standard lion clip, but isnt sure what it looks like just do what he thinks is best. jasper shaves the ears too close b/c that is what he though it was, but afterwards learns it was wrong. when the owner comes, i gaurentee that owner wont be as mad as jonathons b/c she didnt give him the clearest of instructions, and he just thought wrong. that mistake is much more understandable to an owner, and if this show focused on reality at all, they would have made a different choice.

 not knowing a certain breed cut does not say your arent a good groomer. even if you know how to technically do a cut, you cant say you know it unless you actually do the grooming. it isnt a groomers fault that a certain breed isnt in their area. im sure all of these groomers have done at least one porti, but very few get the cut the judges requested. i dont want people to hold too much against the groomers who hadnt had much experiance with the breed. i live in southern california, where everyone has different dogs, and i have only done one, and he was left in full coat.

 I've been grooming for 4 years, and I've never done a Porti, or a Low Chen. I've never SEEN one outside of a dog show..... I've groomed two Pulik, though. One in cords and one senior clipped down. I've groomed LOTS of Chinese Cresteds. I really think it just depends on the area and experience of the individual.