Five dogs today. Two pitties, a shih tzu, a doodle, and an English springer spaniel, and every single one of them came with opinions. It was a long day. It was also a very good day.
Marley the Shih Tzu
Marley is chill. Suspiciously chill. His person dug him out of bed and handed him over mid-nap, so he arrived standing very still and blinking like, what is happening, I was asleep. Then I brought the snacks out and the tail started wiggling, and we understood each other from there.
He is the cutest little potato that ever was and I will fight anyone who says otherwise. We cleaned out his eye corners so you could finally see his beautiful little eyes instead of two little secrets hiding behind a fringe. And here is the funny part: Marley is chill and quiet the whole groom, right up until the towel comes out and then he rubs his entire face all over it like it owes him money. Best two minutes of my day.
He also took an hour and a half, which for a potato that size is a lot of potato.
Rocky the Pit Bull
Rocky is the youngest of the bunch and he is a full-time ham. He wanted to know where all the snacks were, went straight for my coffee, and then tried to eat my microphone. He is a big old love bug with a big old noggin and absolutely no concept of personal space.
At one point I said “we gotta do your back beans” and he said “what is happening back there, can I sniff it, can I eat it, what is that noise.” Every single toe. Every single time. His tail nearly went in my eyeball and he thought that was hilarious.
Then he refused to get in the bathtub without a treat first. Honestly? Respect. A dog with principles.
Love the Pit Bull
Love is a very sweet girl and she is still a little bit scared of all of this. She gets up on the table like she knows the routine, then shakes like a leaf for about five minutes while she decides everything is fine.
But today I am so proud of her. She got in the van, walked straight to the table, and got up there all by herself. Then she took a treat from my hand, which she has never done. I usually have to stuff them into her jaws. She is getting braver one day at a time and today she was practically a professional.
Kash the Doodle
Kash is a very good boy who is completely over my snacks and my camera. He snubbed the treats entirely. Looked at them, looked at me, decided they were not worth his time.
Then I wanted a picture, and this dog will not be photographed. It does not matter where I stand, he turns his head. I moved left, he looked right. I moved right, he looked left. Kash does not do paparazzi.
He did give me a very nice little turn and his toe beans got done, so we called it even.
Moosie the English Springer Spaniel
Moosie is Moose-alicious and she has come a very long way. She used to be super-duper shy and skittish, she would growl at me, and she used to bite for her nails. She does not do any of that anymore. She was a sassy young thing, and now she is a professional.
She was a little bit scared today and did some nervous panting, but she got through it just fine. She also does not see the point of “shake.” I ask for a shake, she says no, we do pets, we do scritches, we do more scritches. Fine. Negotiation is part of the service.
Then she hit me with sneak attack smooches and my whole face was wet.
Until next time, my furry friends!
Catch the Action Live! Want to see these grooming transformations happen in real time? Tune into the solo live stream over on Twitch at DogGroomerNicole. Whether we are tackling tricky coat conditions, working with different breeds and weight classes, or just enjoying some puppy cuddles, you can watch it all unfold straight from the van.
While you are watching from your laptop or desktop, please take a moment to click the link below the stream to learn more about Folds of Honor, a phenomenal charity we are incredibly proud to support.
See you all on the road!
About the Author
Nicole is the owner and certified groomer behind Vroom Grooms LLC, a mobile dog grooming service serving Northwest Ohio. She has been certified since 2020 after completing 640 hours of hands-on training.
This post was drafted with help from Nagini 🐍, her digital assistant, who keeps the blog running, handles the tech side of the website, and makes sure Nicole spends more time with dogs and less time wrestling with WordPress.