Grooming Smarter

Neat Feet Revisited

I have done this type of blog before with longer feet, but people are having a hard time apparently doing shaved dogs (plower than a 5 blade) and making the feet look neat and tight. For me it is really easy to acheive this look but since it gets asked over and over again on Petgroomer, I thought I would do this to see if it can help.

 

I use a ten blade on toes, between each toe. This eliminates matting that might already be present and prevents matting that might occur between this groom and the next. I do NOT make it tight to the skin all the way to the ankle like you would on poodle feet, I float off as I leave the area between the toes. This makes it blend into the leg. Then, I take a tight blade, like a 40 and skim around the nail to remove extra hairs that the longer blade left. This works fantastically on ten strips as well as 7 kennel cuts. ANY length of shavedown can be done this way as long as you blend the toes into the leg well to avoid a poodle foot appearance.

 

I know that some people use thinners to remove the matted hair between toes, and that is fine if you are comfortable with it, but to me it still looks sloppy. I prefer a tighter foot on this type of groom.

Here is the video clip. I want to make it clear that the schnauzer in this video clip was VERY matted and it was only her second clip ever. She ended up being a 10 strip all over except eyebrows. She tried to bite me several times during this groom and it is not totally clear how it was finished. However, I do real life grooming and sometimes we have to deal with something not being perfect.

Another note. I have had an issue with all of my video clips failing to fit in the alotted window on TypePad (the editor fot eh Blog). SO again, we have an issue where it appears cropped on my computer. SO, if the video below does not show up as a full screen, double clicking on it should take you to YouTube where you can see it in full size.

 

This afternoon, my son, who is basically a dryer and receptionist at work, watched my video clip and then successfully did the feet on my schnoodle, Flower. SO I hope it is helpful to you as well!

Teddy Bear head Update Number 2

I found this photo with diagrams drawn on it that I used in a Groom Team Newsletter. I would have sworn it was on my website or this blog, but apparently it is not. This dog happens to be in the shop today after a "mommy" haircut, so I had to find the photo to show my help how cute she really can be. 

SO, knowing that it is not where I thought it was, I have put it where it belongs. 

 

If you click on the photo above it will open in a new window making it easier to see.

I am using the combs that come with my Speed Feed most of the time these days and use a 9mm on top of most heads following the arrows in the photo, and making sure I take out the bulk under the ear on the cheeks to make the ears lay flat. I use thinners after the curved shears to blend the head and soften the look. 

What you do with the nose is a style as well as area preference. I live in an area where most shih-tzu and the like are shaved down the nose. Other areas of the country would not have this done, but here, if you do not do it, clients complain it isn't short enough, which is why I did not address that part of the groom in my instructions.

This is a super easy and fast way to accomplish a teddy bear head, as well as being consistent. Hopefully it works for you.

Done in a Snap will take you to my article on using snap on combs posted last year. It is still relevant and applies to the above photo as well.

I have taken the time to videotape three different Teddy Bear heads for you, including one done with a vac system. Hopefully this will help you all see better how I do my heads and learn how to acheive a teddy bear head fast and easily as well. Remember that you may have to clieck on each video twice to enlarge it in a You Tube video window.

 

  

  

 

 The heads above are all done using the same basic technique yet they all look different. I did go back to all of them and touch them up more after the camera stopped rolling because the finishing was not critical to the technique and the videos took over an hour to upload (EACH) as it was.

Happy grooming!

Neat Feet

There are a couple of tricks to getting feet to look neat no matter how short the dog is taken on the body. I am going to show you how to get the feet tight, round and neat in appearance easily and quickly.

No matter whether you are doing a long scissored trim or a short, 7F blade all over this technique works wonderfully.

Start with the pads, and clipper the hair as short as you can go with a trimmer or a tight blade. I also take the hair that is hanging down between the toe pads off with the same blade to ensure the foot is neat. Then trim your nails and remember, the shorter they are the easier the foot is to trim.

Then you clipper the body and the legs. When using a blade or snap on comb on the legs make sure that the blade or comb goes down the entire length of the leg on all sides, coming completely off the foot. It is important to hold the leg as straight as you can to prevent a "dip" below the knee or at the ankle. The video clips show you how to do that on both front and back legs. If the videos appear to be cropped, double click on them and they will open in the full size window at YouTube.

 

 

 

After you have the leg hair trimmed to the length you want, pick up the foot and comb the hair down, holding it tight in your hand and forcing the hair down past the foot. I then hold curved shears at a slight angle and trim off any hair that is falling outside the line my hand creates. If the hair falls past the toes, the pads or beyond my hand it comes off.

Then, I sit the foot down on the table and comb the hair to one side, then the other, trimming any hair that falls outside the line of my foot. I continue this up into the leg as well to ensure the leg and foot are neat and tidy.

   

With the foot still on the table, I then round off the foot again, using a small curved shear at a slight angle. When you are trimming it helps to start in the front and make sure the foot is round not pointed. Starting at the back can lead to a point in the front.

By beveling the foot slightly and raising the hair off the floor you will get a foot that is tight in appearance and will nt drag in as much "trash" from the yard. Once you realize the technique is the same for any length of leg it is easy to get a nice, neat foot. Sometimes, on harsh hair, it may be neccesary to use thinners to blend and soften the hair but it is just not something that I do a lot. 

On a ten shave down, which we do see some of this time of year, I will sometimes take my clipper and skim out the hair in between the toes, not doing poodle feet per say but simply removing the hair that otherwise would stick up and is usually matted. 

I need to add something here. My left hand is fused and does not bend fully. As a result it sometimes looks like I have a leg or foot at a weird angle but usually it is just the realtionship bewteen my hand and the foot that is "off". I assure you no dogs are put into weird positions, only my hand is. 

How to Spray up Yorkie heads in the grooming shop

 

 

 

  

 

 I did this video clip months ago. I was in the final editing stage when Bobo, the dog in the video, was killed during a muder/suicide. I miss Bobo, his dad and his mom immensely. I THINK I am ready to share this video clip. I was able to do the editing, so I guess that is a step in the right direction. As with most of my videos, a double click will take you to YouTube where the video clip will show in a full sized screen. Thank you to Bobo's family for allowing me to use this video despite the family's tragedy.

  

In case the above does not work,   

 

Download Spraying Up Heads in the Grooming Shop Powerpoint

Download PDF Yorkie Presentation

 

I did this presentation for Daryl Conner to show her how I do my yorkie heads. I get consistent, fast results with this techniuqe that make the clients happy and ME happy because the heads always look the same.

It is easier to do this type of head with product and yet a lot of groomers do not know how to use it correctly. This will assist you with this.

Remember as well that you can leave the heads longer than I left Kipper's or even go shorter. His daddy likes it on the short side. I began grooming Kipper about 8 years ago andhis dad actually told me that he was happy with me because Kipper always looks exactly the same.

Clients love that. Consistency is the key to happy clients.

Toto, in the above pictures is the white Maltese Yorkie mix. In the first two head shots he was being groomed by Debbie Slocum, the one in the ring of the front is Toto groomed by Cheryl Percell.

Bob, the black and tan Maltese Yorkie mix was groomed by me.

As you can see from those photos, which were all similar yet different based on the dog's conformation. This type of head can be duplicated on Yorkies, mixes thereof and Westies. I mean, come on! Toto looks more like a Westie than most Westies we see and its because of the product.

The Dirt on Recirculating Bathing Systems

I hear all the time "You are washing a dog with dirty water if you use one of those" and it is not true. I have talked until I am blue in the face about how this type of system works and I have decided to show you how it works, why it works and how fast and easy it will make washing your dogs. I am going to try to dispel a few myths.

Myth number 1: You are washing dogs with dirty water.

BUSTED. You use fresh water and shampoo on every dog. The dogs are rinsed after each wash, and then the tub is refilled with fresh water and shampoo for the next washing.

Myth number 2: Bacterial and fungal infections are often transferred from the water to another dog.

POSSIBLE, but only if you are not cleaning the pump and draining it regularly. I will explain how to do this later in the second article.

Myth number 3: Dogs are not clean.

BUSTED. The dogs are clean with less water and shampoo usage.

Myth number 4: It takes too long to fill the tub.

BUSTED. It takes less time to fill the tub to a level that the pump will turn on than it does to wet down a dog and then lather them up. If your tub uses a lot of water, like mine does, then this system may not be best for you.

Myth number 4: the dogs don't SMELL clean so they aren't clean.

BUSTED. We have been conditioned to associate fragrance and perfumes with clean. The more diluted shampoos used in the bathing systems result in very little fragrance sticking to the dogs.

Clean dogs will have no fragrance. They are devoid of smell. If clients want a stronger fragrance then you can add cologne.

Myth number 5: The systems cost too much and don't offer enough benefit to justify the cost.

BUSTED. You can build your own system for less than $150 complete and the time, shampoo and wear and tear on your body that the system saves is definitely worth the cost.

Myth number 6: I can get a dog cleaner by hand.

MAYBE. But I bet I can get that same dog done just as clean, faster, with less water, less shampoo and none of the hand scrubbing.

Myth number 7: These systems do not work well in Mobile vans.

BUSTED. It may take some creative parking if your tub was installed level, but many vans come complete with a super sudser and the tub angled. One van company is actually building tubs on a slant with a well to put the pump in.

Myth number 8: These types of systems use more water than I would use if I washed by hand.

BUSTED. Because you are filling the tub with the water you would prewet with if hand washing there is no added water usage. They get dogs cleaner in one wash than you can do with two in many cases by hand, and since the shampoo

is diluted to the extreme, it rinses faster than ever as well, saving water.

Myth number nine: It will not save me shampoo because a gallon of water needs a large amount of shampoo to dilute it correctly.

BUSTED. You are not prewetting which means that one ounce or less of shampoo in a gallon of water will get dogs clean. No need to follow the dilution suggestions on the bottles. Those are for handwashing scenarios and are to be used on a

wet dog, further diluting the shampoo.

Myth numer 10: the dogs will miss the hands on that I do when I hand wash.

BUSTED. The washing action of the pump feels good to the dogs, like a massage. If you miss touching the dogs you can. Fell free. You just do not have to scrub get them clean.

In other words, most of the things you hear from people who do not use this type of bather are wrong. They are incorrect. They are blatantly wrong.

I will tell you how to use the systems and how to build and care for them as well in my next post.

In the meantime you can view the video clips I have on YouTube. One is me washing my Wheaten, Kreamer, who needed a bath BADLY. It takes me less than 5 minutes to completely wash him.

 

And here is the rinsing video. You can see how much faster he rinses, how squeaky clean he is, and how clean the water is, dismissing the theory that the dirty water will redeposit the dirt onto the coat.

 

A Note about the videos. They appear to be cropped looking at them here, but if you click twice, it will take you to YouTube where you can see them in full size. 

Until we meet again!