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| PET GAZETTE | GROOMING
GROOMING
Keeping Rover looking fresh and feeling healthy
W
ith research from pet
grooming company
Furminator showing less
than one in 10 British pet
owners consider a breed’s
grooming requirements
as important when choosing a dog, anyone
could be forgiven for thinking the process
of grooming is being neglected by modern
owners. Grooming however is a crucial part
of a dog’s health and wellbeing, hair left
uncut, unclean and tangled can result in a
pet becoming more susceptible to allergy
and illness. Grooming also gives owners
and vets the opportunity to spot potentially
harmful lumps, bites and marks. It is thought
that one of the main reasons some owners
choose not to ensure their pet is groomed
regularly is the cost, yearly grooming costs
for a dog such as a Jack Russell will set
an owner back on average £400 per year
while mixed breeds such as Cockapoos and
Labradoodles can cost their owners up to
£80 per grooming session.
Stuart Simons, a grooming expert with
Furminator, and founder of the Groomer’s
Spotlight, is worried about owners who do
not consider grooming requirements before
acquiring a pet, he says: “It’s understandable
that a dog’s nature would be hugely
important to anyone looking to introduce
a new pet to their home. However, what is
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worrying is that so few people consider the
grooming needs of their pooch.
“Grooming is a really important part of pet
maintenance as not only does it ensure that
dogs look healthy and happy, but regular
grooming sessions at home can create a
relaxing environment where owners and
their pet can boost the bond between them,
while giving owners the chance to check
for any skin issues such as dandruff or
unfamiliar lumps.”
One option for owners looking to keep
their pet healthy at an affordable rate is the
new mini on-the-go grooming salon for
busy owners. It was recently announced
that the car park of a Newcastle Tesco
Extra was to become the site of a PetDen
grooming salon; full grooms at the salon
start from £30. The PetDen parlour is ran by
salon manager Liane Shield and groomer
Lizz Charlton across two climate-controlled
cabins connected by CCTV as well as a
crate-care service for dogs at £5 per hour.
PetDen carries out initial health checks on
all dogs who visit to prevent the risk of fleas
and kennel cough and both groomers are
first aid trained by a veterinary nurse. Robert
Mercer, PetDen’s director said at the time of
the salon’s opening that he was “excited”
and “delighted” adding that the business
was an “exciting new opportunity with expert
grooming and excellent customer service”.
Whilst it is clear that it is important to keep
a pet regularly groomed, there can be such
a thing as too much grooming. Extreme dog
grooming is the practice of giving animals
hair extensions, colouring and “pawdicures”.
The RSPCA has already said that pets can be
“frightened and distressed” by the practice
and has expressed concern regarding a lack
of regulation for “extreme” grooming salons.
One salon that describes itself as specialising
in “creative grooming”, in Burnham-on-
Crouch, Essex told the BBC the practice was
“harmless fun” and that pets are “happy and
freely compliant”. A spokesperson from PIF
described “extreme” grooming as a result of
owners “increasingly viewing their pets as an
alternative to children and are choosing to
spend more money and attention on them”.
Even some “extreme” salons refuse to dye
the hair of pets due to the health concerns
associated.
An RSPCA spokesperson said the extreme
pampering of pets “sends out an extremely
worrying message that they could be
viewed as novelty accessories rather than as
intelligent, sentient animals. Even if a dye is
marketed as ‘pet friendly’, we would strongly
advise against it”.
It is obvious that pets must be groomed
regularly in order to keep them happy and
healthy, however perhaps not to the degree
where they resemble a unicorn.
September 2018