Solution For Grooming Behavior Problems

I had an interesting experience last week. I’ve been grooming a little Bichon named “Frizzy” several times since she was a puppy. Instead of settling down on the table and getting better and better about her grooming as usually happens as puppies mature, this little girl has been getting worse and worse. She would climb up my arm constantly, wriggle out of the LIPS supports, jerk her head, and generally behaved in such a way that she became “an accident waiting to happen.” Now I am not exactly a pushover on the grooming table. I know how to be firm. But this dog would not let me hold her face while I trimmed around her eyes, and would not even stand still for trimming around the foot. Grooming her was scary as well as frustrating.

I brought it up with the owner, because I was having to charge more, and I had to let her know that the difficulties were such that an injury was possible. It turned out, not surprisingly, that the owner had already sought the services of a trainer. The really good news was that she was working with a trainer from Karyn Garvin & Associates here in Tucson, Arizona.

Last April, when I spoke at the International Association of Canine Professionals (IACP), I made a great connection with Karyn Garvin and her staff of trainers. Karyn and I sat down together and discussed the possibility of working together to help with real life behavior problems, such as dogs behaving badly at the groomers. “Frizzy” was a great opportunity to put our vision into action.

In this instance, the pet owner had already contracted with the trainer for a series of sessions. We decided to use one of her sessions at the groomer's. I set aside time to work with the owner and the trainer present. (1.5 hours). It was a win-win situation. Actually, it was a win-win-win-win, as the groomer, the owner, the trainer, and the dog all benefited from the collaboration. It was more than worth the extra time that this grooming required. With the trainer present, it was like working on a different dog. The trainer used a prong collar and the command “Wait” to keep the dog focused and still. She also worked with the owner correcting the dog. I just groomed. My favorite moment was when the trainer said to the owner, “You can’t let Frizzy get away with ANY wiggling, or she will just take advantage of you. You must make her stay completely still.” Oh, thank you, thank you! The owner also learned about how I comb out mats and tangles. Both women were totally entranced as I carefully trimmed around the eyes and created the beveled Bichon “ledge”. And Frizzy was perfectly still while I snipped away. Using the command, "wait", our trainer, Kristen, extended the dog's attention. You cannot imagine what a relief it was from previous groomings with the dog jerking its head all over while I tried to carefully trim right above the eyelid. Just THAT part was worth the visit for me. And the trainer took a bunch of my cards to hand out, as now she “knows a groomer.” Too cool!

The plan is for the owner to continue working on corrections-while-grooming at home and to stay with the dog for the next grooming. I agreed, but stated that we could not do owner handling indefinitely. One of the most valuable aspects of this collaboration was the trainer being very clear with the owner that the responsibility for training the dog to behave during grooming squarely rests on the owner’s shoulders. This is one Bichon owner who understands that she has shaped her dog’s naughty behavior, and her understanding this allows me to enter into a better level of conversation with her about the difficulties I experience in grooming her dog.

Knowing how to handle dogs on the table is an important aspect of professional grooming. There are limits, however, to how much "training" a groomer can do while working, and the kind of intervals involved in grooming. Effective behavior modification requires more frequent sessions than most visits to the groomer allow. And sometimes pet owners who are doing their "homework" and are brushing and combing the dog at home actually undermine the efforts of the groomer by allowing and excusing a much wider range of naughty behaviors. The pet owner is often focused on having the dog be happy, the groomer is focused on getting the job done safely and reasonably quickly. The in-house collaboration with a trainer allowed us all to get on the same page, and become consistent in our handling of this dog. The one who really benefits from this consistency is Frizzy.

There is additional benefit to the trainer in this collaboration. She has the knowledge that her skills have relevancy. Grooming is a very important aspect in the life of a Bichon. By showing this pet owner how to correct her dog's misbehavior during grooming, the trainer has applied her skills to a real-life situation that was problematic for this owner and dog. Also, Kristen got some first hand observation of pet grooming and how behavior problems show up on the table. She also learned how I work with dogs and gained confidence in my grooming abilities and handling style. And I will be much more inclined to refer my grooming clients to a trainer whom I know will address grooming behavior as well as the usual sit-stay stuff. Networking: groomer-trainer-owner collaboration for the successful raising of a Bichon Frise. Try it!

Specifics: Groomer was Barbara Bird from Transformation Pet Center, Tucson, Arizona
Trainer was Kristen Codianni from Karyn Garvin & Associates, Tucson, Arizona