Do it yourself grooming?

Have you ever thought about using a Dremel on her nails?  I use one on my dogs and its so nice.  Besides not getting that jagged, rip a hole in your foot if one steps on you after a clipping, kind of nail, I can get them really very short.  There are some great threads on it around here. 

As for grooming, I have no idea, but perhaps one of our groomers will be along shortly.  There are a few on the board.

I think anything that teaches your dog to allow you to handle its body is a good thing.  Heck, she can't end up worse than you've gotten so far it sounds like.  And it's only fur, it will grow back no matter how badly you hack it.     I also think it's a great way to build a bond of trust and love between you and your dog.  I recently had Indie clipped down short, because of the deshedding capabilities I think the groomer has that I don't, like high velocity dryers and shedding blades.  But now that he's short, I think I'm going to keep certain areas of his body kept short by trimming them once a week.  You could trim your dog in short sessions that don't overly stress her, build her trust and tolerance, and give you a chance to learn as you go.

I'm sure the groomers here are more than happy to help.  I've learned alot from them already.  I second the dremel recommendation, I just bought one at Walmart and am eager to have nice smooth, non gouging nails on my dogs!

Make sure you post pics of your attempts!   

Oh wow - been there, done that.  I have 4 Standard Poodles and I have brought them to groomers and then wondered if they switched dogs or something!  I have actually picked up my dog, got in my car, and cried!  I am very specific in what I want, right down the size clipper blade I would like them to use.  After a few really horrible experiences, like having a top knot practically shaved off, a tail pom ruined, uneven cuts, etc, I decided that I couldn't do a whole lot worse.  I bought some books and studied them.  I researched equipment, saved up, and bought it.  A friend of mine made me a grooming table.  I fixed up a room in the basement and got started.  Besides saving a LOT of money, it's really been fun.  I have made my fair share of mistakes, but I have learned a lot, and each time it gets easier and better. I have now been grooming for over a year. I now have people ask me who grooms my poodles - they like them so much that they want the name of the groomer!  Yea! 

Regarding their nails - I have quicked them a time or two and I hate it when that happens.  A couple of my dogs have black nails and then they move around, and it just happens.  If you are going to clip them, have some kind of blood clotting powder right there.  I now dremel my dogs nails and I love it.  Sometimes I will clip a bit and then dremel.  Dremelling gives you such a nice smooth finish.  I bought a dremel with a light on it - works great.

There are things like checking their anal glands and pulling hair out of their ears that isn't real fun. My poodles are prone to ear infections if I don't get that hair out of their ears.  That is not a pleasant job, but it's something that has to be done.  We survive it! 

Good luck!  Grooming really is a nice way to bond with your dog.  It isn't necessarily easy when you start out, but it gets better as you go along.  Sometimes dogs are not good for their 'mommies' like they are for a stranger - I had to get tough with my dogs a time or two.  I do have the 'noose' that hooks onto my table arm and I use it when I have to.  Most of the time the dogs are really good for me now - they sit or stand or lay down when I ask them to and we don't have many problems. But at first they thought they could be naughty and get away with it, and I almost decided that grooming was just way too much work.  I stuck with it though, and I'm glad I did.

i groom my own dogs... groomers here are mean... so i bought some good clippers and am doing all of it myself. was a bit annoying at first, since they wouldnt hold still, but they have learned...

now, granted i am not very particular on how my dogs look, so if a cut is uneven, it doesnt bother me. sure as heck doesnt bother my dogs, so...

and i do the nails myself as well. moca's got black nails, and i have never quicked them. but that's because i am reaalllly scared and always leave them a bit longer... haha

   I groom my own dogs, been doing so since I was around 11 years old.  It started with the family poodle, and parents who were thinking that buying the clippers was cheaper than years of paying the groomer.  They were right, the first couple of times the poodle looked a little choppy, it got better after that.  Once I moved out I got a Yorkie, I was the only groomer he ever saw, the same with the Westie.  My Cairn went to the groomer twice, once when I smashed a finger at work and couldn't do it myself, and one last time when he was really old & sore, he needed to be buzzed just for comfort's sake.

  I've been working on stripping my 14 month old Aussie terrier, he is looking good, and is really cooperative with it, I'll be doing the same with the 9 week old Aussie pup I just picked up.

I think if you can groom your own dogs, GREAT!  My Mom had a poodle.  She had these long, pretty ears.  One day I noticed her ears were a tad bit matted from food she ate. I trimmed them, that's how it started....

Yes, hair and fur grows back, but the poor dog would not come out from under the bed for days, I'm NOT kidding.  I can't remember the name of the cut, it's where they have the line down the middle of their back, this was the only part I got right, in right, I mean straight, the poor think could have been a bit bald. 

DIY Groomer here, I've been grooming Winnie for almost 3 years now. 

Best advice:  Get (or make) a table.  Dogs are MUCH better behaved when up on a raised surface.  Having an arm with a noose helps a lot too, but be sure not to leave the dog alone on the table, and get a quick release for the noose, in case something goes wrong.

I groom at home. No stress, no noise, etc for the dog. You can take your time too. If you want, let the groomer just do the nails for a while. You can ask a groomer to help you learn to do it safely.  

I also groom at home. I groomed Fluffy our previous dog for about 10 years. Now I do Molly and Bella except for Mollys nails and both their ears. Bellas hair is a Tzu coat so it`s much easier then Molly that has a soft coat. I don`t have a table so I just use my kitchen counter with a towel for Mollys cut with lots of treats. She stands still and I think she loves the one on one that we have during that time. I don`t push it if she starts to get fidgety we stop and start up at a later time. Molly hates clippers so I scissor cut so it can be time consuming. I`m not saying her hair cut is as good as a groomer would do but the money saved its well worth learning to do it yourself if you don`t want total perfection (in my case anyway). Groomers will also help you by showing you how to groom you breed and what combs and brushes that you need for the breed.

I also groom myself.  Now, granted...my dogs don't require clipping.  They just need bathing, brushing, ear cleaning and nail trimming/grinding.  This morning we had a grooming session...the works, everything was done.  My Heidi is still young, 18 months old.  She is doing so much better now than when she was younger.  Boy did I have a time with her ears and feet.

But, I have it down to a science now.  First do Buddy... and she sits nicely watching and waiting for her turn.  So cute.  And, the best thing of All...never did this before...when it came time to trim claws, I said "foot" and she lifted her front feet for me.      One happy owner I am today.

After we finished...we immediately played Chuckit.  Her favorite reward.  Buddy was rewarded with his favorite game...frisbee.

DIY groomer here as well, and always have been I started grooming our own dogs when I was about 9 years old. The groomer was too rough with our Samoyed/Border Collie-X and I asked my parents to let me do it. They did it and I have done every dog I have ever owned since. My boys now are fairly easy and very well behaved. Judge's coat is left as natural possible, I just trim around his feet and pants and any other minor strays that need to be done, but when he's blowing coat you brush and use a shedding blade for hours and then start over the next day! Drake stays natural (I just trim his feathers/pants/belly/tail, etc. to keep them even and neat except for during hunting season when I trim his feathers/pants/belly to help with ease of removal of the burrs he gets in his coat when he's working in the field  I love doing it myself and start my dogs as pups so they grow up used to it! It's very rewarding and great for bonding once you have the hang of it.

Liilith

Yes, hair and fur grows back, but the poor dog would not come out from under the bed for days, I'm NOT kidding.  I can't remember the name of the cut, it's where they have the line down the middle of their back, this was the only part I got right, in right, I mean straight, the poor think could have been a bit bald. 

 

LOL, poor Poodle!  I don't think my Standard could care less what I did with his hair.  He was in a Miami for a while (talk about girly!) and it didn't seem to bother him.

Some of the dutch clips and dutch clip variations have a shaved "stripe" down the back, and a "belt" shaved around their middle.  Is that what you were attempting?

To the OP:  If you are going to groom your own dog, please take the time to learn how to safely use and maintain your tools, be excessively patient with your dog (go very slow to start), and be sure to tell your dog how cute she is, even if she is far from it.  There aren't thousands of professional pet groomers for no reason.  This is a rather difficult and time-consuming endeavor!

Yes, thank you!!!  It was the dutch clip! 

Poodles are one of a kind;-) they're awesome;-)

I groom my 2 Shih Tzu's myself. I personally find it a lot of work,  I never realized how much work it takes until I decided to try my hand at it. It took me a long time to get the hang of it and you can still tell my dogs are not professionally groomed but they are happy. I keep mine in a puppy cut, they seem more comfortable that way and I prefer the look myself. I have the hardest time getting their legs and paws to look good.

    Dh tried his hand at it recently and he did a great job on their body, but their faces were cut way too short, we decided he will be the body groomer and leave the faces up to me.