Rascalmyshadow

I used to let my dogs walk loose lead but it became not fun and too hard to control if I had anymore than two with me, not to mention they are quite a high prey driven breed.. I also have two very nervous dogs and one of them is a little untrustwothy with strangers. Now they are kept in heel every second they are on the leash but they always get a good run off lead which gives them plenty of time to sniff, pee etc. I have noticed a huge difference in they're behaviour, the two nervous ones are now much more confident and happy and I can relax knowing I have complete control.

I guess these people are no different to the ones that buy a poodle and then bring it in and insist it doesn't come out looking like a poodle

I will explain what happens if the coat is clipped but if thats what the owner wants then I have no problem doing it. I would rather a dog be comfortable and well maintained than ending up a matted wreck.

Try groomers edge emerald black, I have been using it on my two black poodles and they come up awsome.

I bath my dogs in warm water (always) I also bath them once a week to once a fortnight after 13 years of grooming it has never caused an issue, most of the problems are caused when the owner doesn't wash out all the shampoo properly. Most of the dogs I see with bad skin problemsa are the one's that are rarely washed.

The last two days has come with such a shock, my gorgeous boy I will miss you so much and I know no other will ever fill your space in my heart. I am so sorry your life was cut short hopefully you will now be happy and pain free. I never thought this day would come so quick, I hate having to play god and decide your fate. RIP Joshua 23/3/2000-13/6/2008

I groom a toy poodle that has had this procedure done, she had a really bad bite (I've never seen anything like it in a poodle) and her bottom teeth were damaging her top gums. Each week she was taken back to have it slowly tightened, the dog seemed to be in no discomfort, last time I groomed her she was due to have it off.

Hi I groom in Moorabbin, not sure if that is too far for you to travel. I do a lot of westies and haven't had a complaint yet, if you would like my details feel free to PM me.

I used to use Wahl and found them to be good I now use Andis and Laube and find them both to be better.

Don't waste your money on a stand dryer go straight for a twim motor force dryer. If you don't want to spend a fortune the Melbourne Dog Centre (think the name is right) makes an awsome small dryer called the Hurricane. It is a single motor but is powerful enough to do a standard with up to an inch or so of coat but it is cotrolled with a dial so can be turned down and be used on a toy.

I have taken 2 of my dogs to a wonderful bowen therapist, he lives in Frankston but I'm not sure if he does house calls. His name is Christian and his number is 8707 0885/0418 334 036 give him a call and have a chat. Good luck

My 7 year old girl has been diagnosed with incontinance after multiple bladder infections, she was tried on stilboestrol with no success, then on Propalin we had good success but it made her quite snappy (a side affect that occurs in a small % of dogs). Now she is on Incurin 1 tablet every second day and she is doing great. We tried bowen therapy with her and it didn't work.

I use Fido's everyday shampoo on most ofg my clients dogs unless they need something medicated. I also use Aloveen conditioner. I think the shampoo is around $40 for 5 litres.

I have been grooming for 13 years and have never needed to use any type of restraint, I don't like them at all I think they are uncomfortable for the dogs and very dangerous to rely on. If you have a naughty dog be calm and patient and slowly teach it manners, if you have a dog that bites put a muzzle on it and do the same thing. The more a dog is controlled the more it will want to fight about it the next time. If I get a dog that doesn't like standing I do as much as possible with it lying down or sitting and then prop it up with one arm to do the rest.

Hi I use the hydrobath at work to bath my clients dogs and at home I use the ordinary bath with a shower nozzle for my own dogs, IMO it is harder on the back and shoulders using the hydrobath and as Ari stated you will need to empty and refill it a few times to rinse a dog properly.

My 8 year old mini poodle is really slowing down he has a bad hip, back and shoulder although on a good day if you didn't know him you might not notice but on a bad day he can't even lift his tail. Can anyone please give me some info on the apple cider vinegar, thanks.

One of the vet nurses I work with her SWF was diagnosed with it when it was around 6 months old (I think) I'm sure it was given a course of cotisone and she came good. I don't know of any natural remedies.

I don't fast my dogs I don't think it has any benefits whatsoever, occasionally all but the two older dogs will skip a meal by choice anyway.

I find tails in interesting subject. I started to notice years ago while grooming, one breed in particular would wag their tail before they were going to bite, not something I was accustomed to as I was taught a dog with a wagging tail meant it was happy. Then along came my maltese x silky she would wag her tail very slowly if she didn't like another dog, my now oldest poodle will do a kind of stiff wag if he doesn't like another dog, I know then to pull him away immediately. Both dogs the behaviour seemed to be reserved for other dogs and not humans.

I have a few dogs that I do a 'clip only' hey are all over 12 and get easily stressed, I ask the owners to wash them the day before so they are completely dry they don't always look the best but they stay comfortable.

Although my prices are different I charge the same way as BC. IMO it isn't fair to the clients to charge per hour, I have worked with so many slow groomers they would be ripping half of their customers off.

I have clipped a few border collies and the owners have told me they seem much happier. Don't mean to criticise anyone but I wouldn't go any shorter than a 5# also a lot of them are grey underneath not black so her/his colour might look a bit different.

Thanks all for the advice, as soon as the dog started this my OH did ignore him but he just carries on barking we will keep it up and hopefully time will improve him. Normally I would have told my OH to feed him but because he is so scared of his bowl I don't think it would work well.

We took on a 9 month old male toy poodle two and a half weeks ago, he was sold by the original breeder to another breeder with the intention he would be used as a stud dog, however the new breeder didn't like his temperament and decided it wasn't a good idea to breed from him. His history is he was raised outdoors in a kennel invironment the second breeder told me he hadn't been toilet trained, he was a bully with other dogs, he had never had a collar or lead on (never been for a walk) and he was a fear biter (yep I like a challenge). We picked him up from the airport (he came from NSW) he was stiff and in shock. It took me all of two days to have him toilet trained, he is great with all our dogs, he now loves his collar and lead (and his walks) and so far have seen no sign of fear biting (he is great with the kids). I have two problems to still solve, 1: he was petrified of his food bowl we seem to be overcoming that slowly. 2: he is still frightened of my OH, all my OH has to do is stand up and he is off barking and hides outside. When my OH gets up in the morning he does the same thing. How would be the best way to approach the issue? What sort of things should my OH be doing to improve the problem? He is a quiet person the rarely raises his voice so I am not sure what is making the dog react in such a way, it is quite obvious he hasn't had such a pleasant past but I would like to make sure he has a great future.

My little Sebastian has had a runny eye since we rescued him at 14 weeks, I finally had him knocked out a few days ago and had it checked out properly. Vet has found there is a membrane covering the duct, we can leave it be and the only problem it will cause is a messy face so we have to be vigilant about keeping the area clean to avoid dermatitis. Other option is take him to a specialist and see if they can open up the duct permanently. My question is has anyone else had this surgery done and what was the long term outcome? Has anyone left the eye as it is what was the long term outcome?