To all you groomers! - whats the worst thing youve seen on the job?

Inga · 10-28-2007, 08:18 PM

I am not a groomer but with my rescue project I run into the dogs covered in mats, flees, ticks and maggots all the time. I have also come across a little Poodle mix that had it's eye literally rotting out of it's head. It was truly disgusting. The owner said, "Well you can't get near him he is so mean" Imagine the poor thing sitting in so much pain and then being expected to be all happy go lucky. Some animals suffer so badly at the hands of man. It makes me so sad and Angry.

Tico · 10-29-2007, 03:26 AM

Ok I have heard alot of things. Not maggots on a dog oh my god. How in the world can that happen. I have a lab. How often should you brush your dog or bath him to keep this from happening. I give him flea drops and take him to pet smart once a month. I am going to start to try to bathe him on my own is this not a good idea I am not a groomer and may not do the same as pet smart. I hope I never get this problem how to avoid this?

Love's_Sophie · 10-29-2007, 04:34 PM

Usually maggots are going to be on long coated dogs who have been allowed to stay wet; the heat from the dog, along with the moisture enable flies to lay eggs on the dog's coat, and they hatch; the dog's skin, which is getting irritated by the moist conditions, enable good 'feeding' for the new hatchlings.

Other instances include untreated wounds on the dog. The dog doesn't have to be long coated either.

ACampbell · 10-31-2007, 01:47 AM

I am not a groomer, but I think the grossest things I've ever seen as far as that goes was when I was about 16 we had a stray cat show up, she had a bit of missing fur on her leg but wasn't too friendly so nobody got up close enough to see it. About a week later, she was laying in the sun in front of our barn, so I approached her to get a good look at her leg, which was now the size of a rawhide bone. She was so sick she let me touch her, so I brought her down to the house and got some gloves (I lived on a ranch, they are a pretty basic item along with syringes etc) and pressed on the sore spot to see if it was tender...well it obviously wasn't tender, but the infection was so bad that it ruptured in a stream about the size of a pencil of green chunky goo...the smell would have gagged a maggot! I flushed it out with a large syringe and saline and before I could get her a shot of penecillan before taking her to the vet, she had died from the ruptured infection I'm guessing.
That and I found a dog once in a burned down building that had gotten into a fight with another, he smelled so bad I thought he was dead when I saw him, he wasn't moving, covered with maggots and flies...so I walked by him and he wagged his tail...he was so disgusting I didn't even know how to pick him up, I ended up getting a blanket and rolling him onto it and using it like a sling to get him in the truck and to the vet...luckily he survived.

oscars mum · 10-31-2007, 02:39 AM

When i got my dog you could see the fleas crawling on him. I held him for the drive home and i was crawling with fleas too.I bathed him and deflead him a.s.a.p. The water was black he was that filthy. I thought he was in bad shape i can't believe what those other dogs have gone through-the poor things.
Why would these people even pay to get their pets groomed when they don't even care about them. I would never let my dog get in that state. Some people should be banned from owning pets.

Alison · 12-02-2007, 05:26 PM

I once groomed a cat that had so much poo matted to her bum that it covered her butthole, so when she relieved herself it just got stuck and got more and more compacted. It smelled like a trash bag full of food left sitting out in the summer sun. Ack, i normally have a strong stomach but man... and her poor back end was so raw and infected under that, she died not long afterwards because the infection ( the amount built up on her bum had to be at least 6 months worth) was so bad it had gotten into her blood stream.

misspr85 · 12-04-2007, 09:39 AM

I'm beginning to itch as I read this post.

digits mama · 12-05-2007, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lorina

Warbles are a common name for the cuterebra larva, which eventually turn into botflies. It starts out as a tiny, tiny, tiny larva that live on grass and burrow under the skin, then grow to be about the size of a large grub before they exit the skin.

Creepy and gross, but not a sign of neglect. Any pet that goes outside could get one. People can get them, too. My vet's dentist had one on his head.

Thats what we call the wolf worm here. Yea Ive seen them on cats. Oh it is so nasty.

Fluffypoms · 12-07-2007, 03:50 PM

I have seen a lot of severely matted dogs, some which I have been unable to complete as they needed sedation at the vets to be finished. The worst one I can remember was a black dog, a collie cross, that came to me to be groomed. They came up with a story I didn't believe, that the dog got out for 2 weeks and they just got her back. There was no way the coat had got that bad in 2 weeks. I sheared it all off and underneath the dog was suffering with terrible mange. I felt so so sorry for her and really drove it home to them that the dog needed urgent vets attention.
There have been so many I can't even think now, but I do get saddened on a daily basis by peoples lack of care and attention for their faithful companions.

rubyjewel · 12-12-2007, 04:45 PM

Wow... what a great diet I'm on here... I started out hungry but after reading this forum, I'm just not hungry any more! Lol

The worst thing I saw was a dog (a cocker) that was badly matted with hair and mud, the condition was just repulsive and no excuse for it... but the owners said she was matted like that because she got left out side over night (ohhhhh blawwww blawwww blawwwwww) I was thinking, did it get left out side over night 10 years ago and you just now realized you have a dog... but anywhooo I did not say what I was really thinking lol. As I was trying to shave the dog... and revealed what was underneath I was just shocked, the dog had tons of fleas and sores, it was bad... I was thinking that that was the worst thing I ever saw and was pretty grossed out after shaving the dog I was glad to have the worst over with and the poor dog would get some relief... but then I got to the ears... OMG, they were rotting, yellow and green pus... the ears looked so painful and the smell was bad... this dog was so good and handled it so well, I just could not understand how some one could treat such a nice dog so poorly...

scintillady · 12-13-2007, 11:23 PM

I guess I don't understand why someone who took such awful care of their dog would pay to bring it to a groomer. If I neglected my pet that badly, I would be embarrassed and ashamed to bring it to a groomer.

Alison · 12-14-2007, 09:18 PM

Unfortunately the people who do allow these sort of things to happen are a.) uneducated about the kind of care that pets require-yes they can be educated but to me there is no excuse, just like you research the features of a new car before you buy it you should research the needs of an animal before you get it. b.) they see nothing wrong with treating and care ( or not rather) for a pet in this manner after all it is "just a dog".

snowflake · 12-22-2007, 02:51 PM

Most people that bring in dogs or cats that are severley neglected do try and make up some story about how they got that way so i do think that most are embarrassed. I'm just glad that at some point they have decided to bring the animal in for some care. I get the once a year dogs wether they need it or not... I get the dogs and cats that have never seen a groomer in their lives (or barely) . I don't listen to the stories the owner tells. They are pathetic and not worth listening to. I get my joy from cleaning up these animals and knowing they feel so much better...just a shame that when they leave me they will probably be thrown back into the yard and i wont ever see them again or i'll see them next year.
There are too many WORSTS for me to remember... Ive seen all sorts.

imagroomer · 01-10-2008, 10:24 AM

While I was in grooming school, I had a dog come in for a shave down. The whole dog was matted to the point of a #40 shave, and so covered in fleas that the bath water was blood red. The dog was a 3 1/2 year old shih tzu that had never been groomed before. He was so scared he peed on me twice and pooped on my table.

Shanette Peters · 01-14-2008, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashes

ok a few days ago a dog came into the grooming shop completly matted. he was about 13 years old, over weight, some kind of standard poodle mix, lived outside, and hadnt been to the groomer in 7 years the woman told me. i told her right up front that due to the dogs age and coat condition i would have to just shave it all off. she was fine with that and just said whatever you have to do. i brought him back, put him on the table and began shaving. i hadnt gotten 3 strokes in when i noticed a sore of some kind on the dogs back. i went around it for the time being since old dogs get stuff like that. but then i found another and another. upon closer examination i was appauled to find that the sores were actually HOLES IN THE DOGS SKIN and what had created these holes? MAGGOTS.. the holes actually had woms crawing in them. -shudders- so we called the owner.. he went right to the vet and was treated. the owner called us the next day in tears thanking us for helping her dog. it turned out in total he had five holes in his body and would have surely died if we hadnt found them.

but what i want to know is.. has anyone else ever seen anything like that before???

the worst i have seen so far has been, a golden retriever so aggressive it ended up doing an alligator roll on me, a chihuahua that needed 4 people to hold it down while shaving its pads, i found a fish hook in a dogs bum area also another dog had one in the lip, peice of glass stuck in the paw, then countless others who come so matted it is just crazy. Thats been about the worst so far.
Shanette Peters/ Aunty Noah's Pet Styling.

Pawper · 01-14-2008, 03:32 PM

I gotta ask....with all that you guys see and hav eto deal with, how much do you charge an hour??? What is the annual salary for a groomer? My cousin wants to be a dog groomer, so I want her to know what you guys make and what she'll have to put up with....

LittleMoonRabbit · 01-14-2008, 03:38 PM

I can't believe some of these stories. Heartbreaking and gross at the same time. When I got my dog as a puppy, I realized very quickly she had a bad flea problem. I didn't realize HOW bad though until I actually gave her a bath. It was disgusting. I immediately went out and bought some advantix. The vet told me to get rid of the fleas in the beginning, I should use the advantix again after only 3 weeks of treatment. Eventually, the problem was under control, and now she is flea free. I can't believe that I received her in such condition... on top of carrying fleas, she was also sick, under weight, with goopy eyes and she was carrying kennel cough. Very sad... but I am glad she's healthy now. I have a ton of respect for you groomers! You guys must see a lot of crazy stuff, and it's obvious how much you guys care about the dogs that come in.

Shanette Peters · 01-14-2008, 03:58 PM

I have worked for other grooming salons who have their own set prices wither by size or breed. Now that i work for myself at home, each dog i groom i set a price that fits the breed, size, work needed, and at the same time affordable for the owner. Then to groom the dog depending on what i am doing it could take as little as one hour to a few hours (if the dog seems to stressed i will do the grooming in more than one session/day or have the owner assist if the dog feels more comfortable with them there). So i don't have an hourly charge, but say for a dog that takes me 3 hours if i charged 30$ i'd have been paid 10$/hr. The annual salary for a groomer is hard to say as it depends on how many dogs are groomed that year. If some one wants a set pay i'd say work for another grooming salon for an hourly rate or by commission (which i have done myself) and see if that is what you want. Since I work for myself at home I don't have a set salary. There are other costs involved though...such as utilities.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LittleMoonRabbit

I can't believe some of these stories. Heartbreaking and gross at the same time. When I got my dog as a puppy, I realized very quickly she had a bad flea problem. I didn't realize HOW bad though until I actually gave her a bath. It was disgusting. I immediately went out and bought some advantix. The vet told me to get rid of the fleas in the beginning, I should use the advantix again after only 3 weeks of treatment. Eventually, the problem was under control, and now she is flea free. I can't believe that I received her in such condition... on top of carrying fleas, she was also sick, under weight, with goopy eyes and she was carrying kennel cough. Very sad... but I am glad she's healthy now. I have a ton of respect for you groomers! You guys must see a lot of crazy stuff, and it's obvious how much you guys care about the dogs that come in.

Thanks Emily, Its always great to hear when someone appreciates what we groomers do. I can say with great certanty that it is knowing there are so many animals out there that aren't being cared for properly that causes me to want to continue, I have always had a love for animals and now i can share that and inspire my kids to show the same repect for animals.

mastiffmama27 · 01-21-2008, 02:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lorina

I don't see very many of them. Maybe a couple a year during the summer? From what I've read, they're more common on (in?) livestock and wildlife than on pets.

My mom's cats used to get them all the time....mostly the kittens though. None were fixed, no shots ect. Actually they were mostly feral. I think I was the only one that could get ahold of them. She REFUSED to take ANY animal to the vet, period. A friend of mine lived on a farm and she taught me how to take them out and clean them up.

ChrissyBz · 01-21-2008, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lorina

Warbles are a common name for the cuterebra larva, which eventually turn into botflies. It starts out as a tiny, tiny, tiny larva that live on grass and burrow under the skin, then grow to be about the size of a large grub before they exit the skin.

Creepy and gross, but not a sign of neglect. Any pet that goes outside could get one. People can get them, too. My vet's dentist had one on his head.

We get them here. I've had seven and I'm reasonably well cared for. Down here we call them beefworms. The dogs have had many. We don't cut them out though, as long as it's not in a sensitive spot like inside the orbital ring we just squeeze them out. It's like popping a zit. I can tell you from personal experience, it's really painful when they feed. If you leave them in it takes about 6 weeks from infection to when they drop out. Full grown they're about the thickness of a pencil and about 3/8 inch long.