I can
totally empathize with you, ToscasMom. I have a Lhasa Apso that I keep long haired because I love her hair, but the problems I've had with groomers is beyond ridiculous.
She's just a pet so I cut her little bangs myself so we can see her eyes thru the fringe - I tell the groomer to
only trim between & just under her eyes and just down the top bridge of her nose (plus the usual feet, mustache & hygiene trims, and ear plucking).
So, what do they do?????
- Her first groomer who she'd been going to for a year & a 1/2
shaved up her head over her eyes for about an inch, taking off all that long hair across the front of her head there. I was literally nauseous for weeks, and it took a year to grow it back to the right length.
- The new groomers since we moved to a new state, shaved down the sides of her nose in December, even tho I now include a typewritten list of exactly what they're supposed to do & not do. Now we're having to grow that back out to the length of her beard; that'll probably take another year.
- Quite a few of them just can't understand why I don't shave her down, and one wanted to give her a Cocker Spaniel cut, with the shave down the backbone? WHO does that to a Lhasa???
The one place in town that I want to get her into, doesn't take any new customers - she doesn't even answer her phone! She specializes in small dogs & has customers with standing appts for years. I've seen her work around town and the dogs she does are beautiful. You can tell at first glance they have an excellent groomer.
So, I've decided it's time I learn to do this myself, even tho I've never wanted to. I get too nervous that I'm going to hurt her. I trimmed her toenails once when she was little and accidentally cut one of them too short so it bled... I almost barfed I was so horrified.
But I stumbled on a video on grooming a pomeranian at YouTube, of all places, and the way she showed to hold their feet & legs while you're trimming them, and how to cut their nails, really, really helped me. I just finished doing it the second time, and it was better than the first time! lolol