Put down the clippers and step away from the schnauzer…

I am going to cheat a little and copy a post I made on a grooming website.  I posted it there, along with the pictures, to get feedback from other groomers, and I got some great stuff!  Lots of validation, which is what I needed today.  I included some “blog notes” in brackets for my non-groomer readers!  Anyway, here you go:

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A woman brought in her little schnauzer today and asked if I had any openings. I had time so I agreed to groom her. I asked her if she wanted a schnauzer clip and she said yes, and she said that she normally grooms the dog at home and “may not be doing it right”.

Well, the dog definitely did not have a proper clip, so I figured I could fix the pattern and make her look much better. I spent extra time dematting too because there were little knots everywhere but not enough to have to shave out.  I was pleased with the groom and thought it looked much better. I called her and then went home because she said she wasn’t sure when she’d be in and I was finished (around 3:30; I work in a clinic and groom from 8 until I’m done.)

Well, a half hour after I got home, my boss called me and told me that the lady was there and really upset about the groom. He asked if I’d talk to her and she gets on the phone almost crying and says she can’t believe I clipped off all the long curly hair on the dog’s skirt. She said she watches the dog shows and knows that the thing about schnauzers it that they have that long, curly skirt!

[Blog note:  Schnauzers do NOT get skirts!  I did not need to note this in my grooming post because it is a common pet peeve among groomers when people want skirts on schnauzers.  It ruins the schnauzer look and honestly I would be embarrassed to send out a dog with a clip following the pattern she had on this one.]

She also said that I didn’t even shave the back like I was supposed to. (I used a 7 on the back.) Well, I told her if she’d wait ten minutes I’d come in and try to fix it for her because I live nearby.

[Blog note:  Using a blade shorter than a #7 results in a shiny, hairless look that is unnatural looking.  "Old school" groomers often did/do this, however, and some people still prefer it.  I will only do this if asked.  A proper groom is handstripped; a #7 blade, blended well at the lines using thinning shears, results in a groom that more closely resembles a handstripped look.]

So I drove back down there, went in and opened up my trusty “Notes from the Grooming Table” [Blog note:  This is a very popular grooming reference book]  and sat down and calmly showed her the pictures and explained what I normally do on a schnauzer to achieve the proper look. The dog stood in front of us looking very much like the pictures in the book.

“Well… I just… I didn’t know that was what they were supposed to look like.”

*grin*

I ended up clipping the dog’s body down with a 10, which is what she was used to, and I apologized for the miscommunication. I told her that next time I would be more than happy to adjust the groom however she liked, or even give her a Scottie clip if she would prefer.

My boss and coworkers told me afterward that I handled it beautifully.  I was so relieved!

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Here are the before and after pictures.