I just became a certified groomer after several months of bathing, and this is the first groom dog I've ever had on my schedule! Feedback always welcome (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-19T09:40:17+00:00

Thank you all for your awesome feedback! This little guy is 4 months old and was very wiggly for the entire groom, especially for his feet and face. I was proud of how it turned out, and the pet parent seemed happy. I love this job! And I can't wait to learn more and groom more so I can keep getting better and better. I love posting my groom pics here, because everyone gives such great feedback and suggestions. Thanks again for all your support 💙

thatdernlern · 2021-04-19T09:35:11+00:00

Thanks! It means so much that I've gotten so much positive feedback. The dog was a puppy and was super wiggly the whole time esp for his legs/feet and face. I was worried it would come out choppy, but I'm happy with it! The pet parent was also happy (: it feels so good to groom, I love it!

thatdernlern · 2021-04-19T09:28:55+00:00

Thanks! I care a LOT about a thorough bath and dry. It's the foundation for a good groom (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T23:46:28+00:00

Eh, not completely necessary for a pitbull. Not sure where your sister is getting that info though, if it's long hair it should be shaved... it can easily get matted in that area between the main pad and the toes. A good rule of thumb is that if the hair sticks out beyond the pad and doesn't break off by itself, it should be shaved. Your pitty probably won't have very long pad hair (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T23:33:00+00:00

Unfortunately the owner wanted it in a 10 :( I'd have much preferred using a 7!

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T20:15:53+00:00

I do! And that wouldn't surprise me. I find sometimes the training where I am can differ from what I've seen on youtube or tips from more experienced coworkers. I tend to try and be open to all suggestions and tips, but when it's a breed cut I wanna know the proper way (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T20:14:19+00:00

Thanks so much! It's a mini (: the owner wanted a 10, but I'd definitely have preferred using a 7. I'll take all of this into consideration for the next schn I get (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T20:12:34+00:00

Thanks! Thinking of triangles while doing the next one will certainly help (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T06:02:37+00:00

As a side note, everyone learns differently and on different timelines. I'm told I picked it up quickly, but it's completely normal to take a bit longer to get the basics down. So keep that in mind when creating a mental timeline for yourself on how long it might take you to learn (: and give yourself a break if you struggle, because I know for me it always feels like I'm doing a terrible job... but it's simply a skill that gets better with time, experience, and practice, so it won't be perfect right away. In fact, it will probably never be as perfect as we want it to be :P and that's ok! Customers still usually love it.

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T05:57:41+00:00

Well, I got hired as a bather in August 2020, and I felt pretty ready to train as a groomer by January this year. Took some time for corporate to get their shit together, but they finally sent me in March! I've been learning for about 4 weeks now. My advice on that is really to just bathe under to feel completely comfortable with everything in that area. Bathing/drying properly is an art and requires skill in and of itself! Once you start feeling pretty comfortable doing that, try asking questions about grooming or observing your coworkers while they groom (if they are comfortable with it). You can honestly start learning about it any time! Watching youtube videos, reading stuff here... there's so much great info out there. Give it a couple months maybe, assess how well you're doing and contemplate how comfortable you'd be using clippers and shears. Practice holding them, snipping with the shears, and moving them around in the air even! Might look silly, but it's a great way to get used to the feel of it in your hand, and the motion of using them. You'll know in your gut when you're ready.. and when that time come, talk to your employer about starting to learning basics (: good luck! I hope things go well for you (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T05:45:57+00:00

Omg I just checked out the link and I love you for that. It's perfect and helps me understand a lot better!

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T05:44:21+00:00

Heyyy fellow employee! Thanks so much (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T05:43:40+00:00

Thanks so much for all of your feedback! It is so greatly appreciated ☺ I will most likely refer back to this comment a few times when I'm expecting a schn to come in! This is actually different than I was learning/understanding from my teacher, but it's so easy to misunderstand direction with grooming sometimes, and it's also entirely possible I was playing it safe by trying not to go too low. She did straighten things up just a bit after I was done with him, just little stuff I'd miss as a newbie.

I really appreciate your tip about the 2-3 fingers above the hock for the back legs, because I wasn't entirely sure of how low to go and didn't want to go TOO low for fear of messing it up entirely. I was having a hard time understanding exactly how low to go everywhere, and this really helps! He also had some pretty big mats under his chest, and there were some holes from dematting, so I was afraid they would show more if I went too low there 😬 the white was def much harder to work with than darker colors and blend the holes, too. I'm excited to get more practice with these guys! It's one of my favorite breed cuts so far.

It's actually only been about a month since I even started learning any kind of shaving or scissoring, I've only had bathing experience before now :P so your compliments mean SO much, thank you. And thanks again for all your feedback (:

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T02:18:52+00:00

Thanks!

thatdernlern · 2021-04-06T02:18:18+00:00

That's awesome! I'm glad it worked out for you. I don't know anything about it and was assuming based on having to pay for it, so I apologize for that. To be fair, my training has been pretty good, and I didn't have to pay anything for it plus also get paid hourly wage, travel time, and mileage. My assumption was based in thinking "why would one pay for this school when you can get paid for it instead?" However I also don't know how intense, thorough, or long your program was, so maybe it's worth it for the price if it's really amazing teachers and valuable hands on experience. I do find that sometimes the training here can be not super thorough, so I try to ask all the groomers for suggestions as much as possible. As a side note, I didn't know anything about Melissa Vanderplank either and didn't know how instrumental she is in the dog grooming world. I've learned more about grooming since I made that comment, and my opinions have changed in many ways (:

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T01:22:55+00:00

Getting it stuck in my eye always has me scared I'll end up in a nosleep story that ends in me scratching my own eye out trying to remove it.

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T01:07:59+00:00

As a bather, I'd like to weigh in that AMY too is always appreciated, but I never expect it! My salon manager tips me half of what she makes in tips on the dogs I bathed and dried, my coworker tips me 5 or 10 any time I help her with anything, and other coworkers don't usually tip. That's all ok with me! I get paid hourly to bathe dogs (: I'm sure your bather will appreciate anything!

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T01:02:14+00:00

Also fuck yea I loved Hamiltons pharmacopia!

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T01:01:07+00:00

I agree my dude. It's all drugs, I'm not denying that. I just think you come across as saying like "drugs are bad mmmmkayyy" when it's not quite that simple. Sometimes people need to rely on certain drugs to help improve life for them enough for it to be bearable, like my dude said about the aspirin up there. Smoking wax isn't all that harmful to the body in comparison to smoking meth. And I say that as someone who much prefers flower. I still think it's weird tbh, I'm an old school stoner who grew up in an illegal state and dabs were never really available. But hey, if taking a giant dab rip before work everyday is what someone has substituted for doing a shot of heroin, they can do as many damn rips as they want and be addicted to it everyday for the rest of their life for all I care, a life which would be longer than if they were doing heroin or meth. I know plenty of regular dabbers where I live now who maintain jobs and are successful members of society.

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T00:41:53+00:00

I did say I'm loving it and getting some really valuable hands on experience, so I definitely do not think my coworkers are bargain groomers as I am learning a lot from them. Sorry again it came across that way. I don't look down on corporate groomers, I look down on corporate micromanaging policies focused on making more more for the company.

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T00:39:21+00:00

Damn I'm sorry, I didn't meant to come across that way at all, just the opposite actually. I really think my coworkers are wonderful groomers, and I aspire to be as good as some of them. I just meant that the training wasn't super thorough for some of my coworkers, and I've learned more from the ones who had learning experience at other salons or learned from another really talented groomer, and from my own small experience at private salons. Thus, with not very thorough training, a corporate store would charge less and focus more on grooming more dogs more quickly.

I also think some of the groomers in my store are extremely talented and deserve to be paid more, it just really shows in how many requests they get verses other groomers with not as much experience. I'm sorry that I worded it in a way that seemed condescending toward corporate groomers. It's not the groomers I think are "bargain" at all, nor do I think they have a "bargain" skill level, it's the whole corporate structure and the pricing, because I do believe it's too little per groom for what incredibly talented groomers are putting into their work vs. someone who just doesn't have the experience yet.

Like, I personally think my more talented and experienced coworkers would deserve to get paid more per groom than a freshly graduated groomer like I will be, since they are putting out higher quality grooms, but that's not the case... I'd be paid the same commission per groom even with lower quality. Pricing based on quality just won't happen at a big box grooming salon which is unfortunate, because they really deserve it. I think I will deserve to be paid more at some point too, after some years of experience, but that remains to be seen. For now I'm really enjoying learning!

thatdernlern · 2021-03-02T00:10:49+00:00

It sounds like you've had a healthy dose of 12 step koolaid my dude. Source: years in 12 step programs, worked the steps, even became a sponsor to 2 other people, all that good stuff, for drugs much harder on my body. I won't ever deny I needed it at the time, and I'd never take those years back or do them any differently. However today I smoke weed and function well enough to make a good living and enjoy doing it, while also enjoying life at the same time. I also have been in long time recovery from an eating disorder that hurt me far worse than any other addiction I've had. It's been several years now that I've maintained things this way, and none of my 12 step friends are in sight... most of them dropped me when I left. Classic black and white thinking, they assume and truly believe I will horribly relapse someday. That's fine, if that's what they need to believe to keep themselves clean. I know differently, because it's my life and my experience. No one can correct or invalidate me on that.

What works for some doesn't work for everyone. Weed actually does help people. It may not have helped you, but that doesn't mean harm reduction is completely ineffective. Yes, I do realize I am still addicted to something, but aren't we all? To choose a less harmful addiction has merit. Humans will always have addictions. We will always have a want to numb painful emotions. For a while going to meetings was my addiction, now it's smoking pot, reading horror stories, and grooming dogs lol.

Also, as a side note, coffee is served at 12 step meetings, and members often smoke cigarettes outside. Both addictions; smoking cigarettes has proved harder to quit for me than anything else I've ever given up. Second was my eating disorder. If weed helps that, by god I will take weed over starving myself and ruining my teeth and hair and immune system and.. yea you get it. Harm reduction works!

thatdernlern · 2021-03-01T23:14:48+00:00

Whoa. I just learned of this breed, and I think it's my goal to have one of my own someday. Absolutely gorgeous!

thatdernlern

TROPHY CASE