I thought maybe he had narcolepsy or something, lol!  After the brushing out, I think the gentle feeling of the clippers and comb as I scissored just kept relaxing him so much as he stood there he would start to fall over because he was falling asleep!  Sweet boy :)

Misha's mom likes her to have a long topknot, I think it's cute!  Very feminine :)  There are many styles for pets, I can help you create a really cute style that suits you and your dogs lifestyle.

Happy Tails!
~Miriam

So, Wow!  When I decided to give away a free grooming in a contest, I did not think I would end up doing an 8 hour grooming!  Well, you know you love your job when it doesn't bother you to do it for free :D  Our winner, Sarge, is a Golden Doodle, 10 months old and an outstanding boy.  My Yukon should have been taking notes!

You see all that fur? It was aaaaalll matted.  This is something that happens to a lot of people.  You have a cute fluffy puppy, with that fine puppy hair, and it is so adorable!  Then around 10-12 months old the fine puppy hair starts to be replaced with adult fur, and it seems like over night, your dog is one solid mat.  I recommend having any long haired fur baby at least bathed and brushed once a month, and groomed every 6-8 weeks.  This is also important to keep them familiar with the grooming process as they go through critical emotional developement in their first year.

Sarge had waaaay too much coat for me to try and bath and then dry, so I started by brushing him out.  I got about 65% of the mats out here, then moved on to bathing, and more dematting in the tub with cream rinse.  If Sarge's mom had had to pay for this, it would have been $100 just for the dematting alone.  His regular grooming rate (for a long scissor cut) is $100.  So lucky, she won a $200 grooming!

It's never a sure thing when a dog is really matted that it can be brushed out, but Sarge was such a good boy, tolerating all the brushing and tugging like a true champ, that he made it possible.  If it had stressed him out, I would have recommended clipping him short and just starting over.

Can you believe that that little bit of wet fur could fluff up so much!! Still more mats to brush out. *Sigh

Okay, are you ready??? Here are the afters photos!  His face is trimmed short this time because he has had surgery on his inverted eyelids (you can see the intravenous site shaved on his front leg).  Isn't he handsome?? Such a good looking boy!  Looks and a great personality, he sure has a lucky momma :)

Here's his before and after side by side:

It was a pleasure to spend my day with you Sarge, Happy Tails to you and your family!
~Miriam

So just a note, Sam's Dad from yesterday called me this morning just to tell me how happy they are with Sam's grooming.  His wife said it's the best grooming Sam has ever had (they've had him for 10 years).  Also they love that I left his legs longer than the body, said usually he comes home and his legs always look so skinny.  So, happy me!  Now, onto today:

Beautiful Bella. She is a Schnauzer and Poodle cross, and so sweet! Starting to grow some length for winter :)

Yes, I know what you are thinking.... how do I not just DIE of cuteness overload?? I don't know.  Twinkle just about did me in though :)

Today I did Mikey's ears a little different.  He is a Bichon Frise with a long body, and gets a very short trim for cleanliness sake.  Bichon's have a round styled head, so in order to balance Mikey's head with his body, I trimmed his ears 1/2" all over, and rounded the shape to the ear leather.  So now he can have a nice round face without it looking too big :) Such a handsome boy!  He has the sweetest eyes.

Looking forward to tomorrow, my contest winner is coming in!

Happy Tails!
~Miriam

I know, I know, Sam's before picture doesn't show much 'before'.  I forgot to take his picture, so this is actually after he was bathed and dried ;P  Sam is a twelve year old Shih Tzu, can you believe it?? He looks so young for his age!  He must be well loved.

I ran into a woman in the dog park the other week who had an 18 year old Standard Poodle.  So amazing.  I asked her what she did to take care of her dog so well, and she said "just lots of love.  She has always gotten lots of love".  So there you have it.  Go give your dog a hug :)

Often Shih Tzu's and other mixed breeds will get a 'Teddy Bear' trim, which is the same length on body and legs.  When done short, this is great for sporty and outdoorsy types and if you want to go 6-8 weeks between grooms. 

Sam gets groomed once a month, which means his style can be a little longer.  To give your dog a little more flare, you can have the body shorter and the legs a little longer.  This helps show off the muscles on the body, and give nice clean lines down to the feet with accentuated angulation in the back.

I look forward to contributing to the loving of Sam for many years to come!

Happy Tails!
~Miriam

Today I groomed Buddy, a very sweet Springer Spaniel, and his dearest Mocha, a Cocker Spaniel.  These two are outdoorsy folk, and their Mom likes them short and sleek so they can run and play in nature without getting sticks and leaves stuck to them.  Buddy is clipped short all over, including his ears, and I even clip in between his toes so that the hair doesn't get matted there.
Some people have been told that you don't need to clip the hair from the pads of a dogs feet, but I will tell you that it is very important to do so.  Take Buddy for example, you can see from his before picture that his hair wasn't even that long before his trimming, yet there were sizable mats like little balls of felt already forming in his pads, and mats in between his toes.  When a mat forms in a dogs fur, it pull on the skin and creates irritation, as well as I can't imagine it being too comfortable walking on balled up fur.

Mocha is an American Cocker Spaniel, she is 10 years old and a real sweetie.  Again, her Mom didn't want her to have a lot of fur to collect bits and tangles, but she didn't want her as short as Buddy.  So what I did is a shortened version of the correct breed standard.  The pattern is the same as the American Cocker's that you see in shows with the long flowing skirt and legs, just really short!  Whenever possible I like to use a shortened pet clip of the breed standard in order to show off the beauty of the breed.

These two were wonderful to have at my spaw today, and I am greatful to have the opportunity to be a part of so many dogs lives.  I enjoy learning about their personalities, and observing their loving relationships with eachother.  It was obvious to me today how much these two love eachother.

Happy Tails!
~Miriam

Some nice words from my step-mom, who taught me how to groom:

This is her grooming studio in Abbotsford: Danielle's Dog Grooming Studio
and her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/daniellesgrooming