Grooming at Pets at Home.

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My OH strips off to his underpants and gets under the shower with the dog! But usually we use a dry shampoo that you spray on, rub in then towel off.

Tricia that 'cushion of fur* might cause real problems if it's not sorted. It could be harbouring all sorts of nasties, including fungal or bacterial infections. And any poo in it will make matters worse.

Sorry !
I think we would have to lift her into the bath to have any chance of her standing still that long. And we would have to wear waterproofs.She has a virtual cushion of fur on her behind.
She loves the cold weather too - prefers to sleep outside.

Blimey ruby you're pooch is certainly well looked after!

I have the opposite problem with mine, they love the cold weather (being bred with thick coats for the snowy mountains of Tibet) and suffer in the summer. They have to wear special neckerchiefs soaked in cold water during heatwaves.

Anya Great photo, lovely dog.

Tricia Thanks for that! I was just biting a bit of nail off my finger when I read about your dog's matted poo!

It doesn't seem there are any bad experiences with Pets at Home groomers so, seeing as I have a 25% off voucher, I will go after getting the car fixed tomorrow (later). I will have to take my doggie out with me anyway later as she is sulking because I went out earlier and didn't take her with me.

Also, I have bought a couple of the self heating pads for her, one for in the house and one for the car. Has anyone tried these? I have the window open during the day still and the fan on in the bedroom (menopause) so the other day she seemed a little cold. Well, she was sat on the end of the bed with my scarf round her neck, my bed jacket round her shoulders and my bobble hat on her little head so I assumed she was a little chilly.

The pads came today but as they are a little crinkly and she shies away from packaging, she was very wary of it. I put it in her basket but she has sat giving me dirty looks all night until I put her Dunelm pink kids teddy bear blanket back in and now she is humouring me, pretending to be asleep on it.

Unless you have one like this who loves the mud

Yes mumofmadboys, agree that's often enough for bath. By groomed I meant a good brushing.

We've always done our own dogs, large and small. We only have terriers now so the Belfast sink in the kitchen is ideal.

During a period of hot weather, a good tip for shampooing large dogs outside is to drag your garden hose out to its full length and curl it around the lawn. Make sure the spray 'stop' end is secure. Turn on the tap and leave the water inside the hose warming up for a couple of hours or more.

Shampoo the dog with warm water from a bucket then turn on the spray and use all the warm water in the hose to rinse the dog off.

No mess in the house but make sure you have a firm hold on the dog whilst drying it or it will roll in the nearest flower bed!

I stick our dog in the bath but only about every 3-4 months!

I"ve shampooed and washed many a horse, some of them big buggers ones so I don't understand the problem with washing something the size of a border collie. Either stick her in the shower or in the bath. Only use dog shampoo ( and dog conditioner if you're going the whole hog) then comb the tangles out or cut them off. Hair dryer optional.

Dogs ought to be groomed every week anyway.

I've had collies in the past, and never had problems with poo stuck to fur! However they were indoor dogs and given a damn good brushing (especially the "trouser"area!) at least once a week.

Thanks Jud. There's a dog groomer in the nearest market town, don't know how much they charge.
Our bc must have at least 3 levels of coat. The closest to her body is like felt. That's where the bits of poo get stuck.
She never seems smelly though, just when you get up close.

I take our springer to a local groomer who does a very good job with him. However, the first time I took our cocker he couldn't apologise enough as he said it was the worst job he'd ever done! She will not keep still and turns to jelly. So I was thinking of trying Pets at Home. I'd be interested to hear how you get on Rubylady

I am fortunate, a dog groomer has a mobile grooming service, she parks close to my house ,both dogs are bathed and clipped and I can be with them if I choose

TriciaF I put my spaniel, who is particularly fond of swimming, rolling in sand and mud, into our stand alone shower and use the hand attachment. Have done since she was a pup. Great for shampooing and rinsing off. She gets treats if she is good which is an incentive ? Have you tried looking online to see if there are any local dog groomers? Border collies are quite a handful to groom on your own, I agree.

I wish we had that service here. We have a long-haired border collie and her back end gets very unhygeinic. She can't help it.
I had a go at cleaning her up a bit this morning, she hates it. I had to cut out a few clumps of matted fur.
Husband says 'we'll wash her' - but how?

Ruby My dog has been to Pets at Home twice for grooming (that is every 6 months in her short life). They are lovely with her. They have special grooming tables with a frame to which the dogs are attached by leads. These keep them from jumping off but still not too constraining. She comes dancing out sweet and clean with nails clipped and tats combed out of her ears and feathers (she is a cocker spaniel, and ears are a problem). They have seasonal offers from time to time too.

Thanks for your advice ladies. I will take her once my car has been to the car hospital on Friday to have it's wing mirror repaired. Maybe my doggie will stay still for strangers but she runs off once I have done so much. And they will be quicker and much more assertive.

I don't know about the Pets at Home grooming service but DS's cat, Boggit, received excellent care from one of their vet when the cat was run over.

rubylady My very good friend takes her Lhasa to them and she is very pleased with how they treat her and you can stay close if you want to they also have a vet in the Store so any problems you would have peace of mind.

Quite strange how I will pay it out for her and yet I haven't been to a hairdressers for ages now. I'm starting to look like Hagrid!