does anyone know who i can call in reguards to an abusive dog groomer other than animal control?

Question

I dropped my dog off this morning at a dog groomer to get her nails clipped due to i wanted a proffesional so the dog wouldn't get hurt or nails clipped to short,well the groomer contacted my husband to come pick her up b/c they stated the dog tried to bite them while they were trying to bathe her..my dog is very gentle and would never bite or has never bit anyone when my husband picked her up she had almost no toenail and was bleeding so if my dog did snap that was probably the reason also she smelled sooooo bad we had to drop her off at a different groomer to finish the bath process and when we went back to get her they didn't understand what the problem was with the other groomer she was a perfect and easy dog to bathe...sorry so long of a story but does anyone know who or what i can do (also the other dog we took there before they stated the same thing about biting but i believed them then due to not so sure about that dog but now i'm not sure!!!ugggh my poor baby what should i do

Answer 1

Well, since groomers do not need to be licensed (like a hairdresser would) , there really is nothing you can do, other than get your $$ back if you paid anything. You could call the SPCA and they will go out and look over the business. The police will not do anything, you could report them to the BBB, but they don't really do anything either.

Trimming a nail back to far and making it bleed happens all the time. Groomers feel bad about it, but it just happens. If the nails are black, or the kwik is long, or the dog moves his foot in mid clip...it's just so easy to make them bleed that way. We don't do it intentionally. Yes, we are "experts" and "professionals" (most of us anyway) but we ARE human and we are not perfect. I don't think that making a toe nail bleed warrants a cruelty complaint. I'm not trying to make excuses for this groomer, but lord knows I have cut a nail too short many of times and I have been grooming for 15 years.

BUT...If your dog has been groomed several times before and never had a problem with biting, then all of a sudden tries to bite this new groomer...then maybe they were too rough with it. On the other hand, maybe the dog was nervous from all the noise and other dogs in the shop, and all the groomer did was try to pick the dog up..startled it, and it bit her. What I am trying to say is there is no way of knowing what happened while your dog was there.

My suggestion to you is to just not take your dog back to that groomer, and if anyone asks you for the name of a groomer...just don't refer anyone there.
If you really feel that your dog was abused (mishandled, hit, beaten, choked etc) then I would definitly call the SPCA and have them check out the shop. But I just don't think filing a complaint over a toe nail trimmed to short is worth the call. I'm not trying to sound callous and I'm sorry you had a bad experience...but if every grooming shop were to be shut down over a toe nail bleeding..there would be no groomers. 99% of groomers have kwicked a nail at one time or another...same goes with vets.

Good luck with your pooch. I hope you can find a groomer you are comfortable with....we aren't all bad! :)

Answer 2

As a groomer I have to do my bit to defend your groomer at least somewhat. When it comes to biting, never say never. All dogs can and will bite given enough provocation. That said, if the nail was trimmed too short and bled there are a few common reasons. Either the nail was accidentally cut too short - common in dark nailed dogs and/or if the dog was struggling and putting up such a fuss that the nail ended up too short, or the groomer was so inexperienced she didn't know how to properly cut nails. Dog bites during nail trimming are probably the most common biting incidents in grooming shops. Few groomers are so lacking in experience that they routinely remove too much nail.

So, who do we believe in this scenario? Groomer A who reported nearly getting bit or Groomer B who managed the dog without difficulty? In this case, I tend to believe Groomer B, simply because of the smell you report on picking up the dog from the first groomer. Sounds like the dog let go the anal glands, something that usually only happens when the dog is extremely frightened.

As is typical of humanity in general, there are groomers with differing personalities. Some are more heavy handed and less patient than others. Some dogs simply do not like some people, much less some groomers. Some groomers refuse to take responsibility for their actions and will not own up to a mistake, instead blaming the problem on the client's dog. For you to have had a report from this groomer of biting with a previous dog makes me think that perhaps this person falls into the less tolerant and heavier handed catagory.

As for recourse - unfortunately, there's not too much you can do. In trimming nails we are doing our job. Matter of fact, we are doing it at your request, so you can hardly claim that your dog was abused by having it done. Bleeding a nail is such a common occurance that if it were to become a police matter, there would be no groomers. If you do not like the way a groomer handles your dog, go somewhere else. If it seems your dog does not like a particular groomer, go somewhere else. Just because a nail gets trimmed too short does not imply abusive treatment. Some dogs will put up such a fight for nail trims that groomers should be claiming the dog abused them!

You can, however, spread the word that you had a problem with this particular groomer, and recommend to your friends and neighbors that they avoid that shop.

As a veteran groomer, I am sorry you and your dog had this experience. It is unfortunate that many in this industry promote themselves as "professional" when in reality they are poorly trained and lacking real experience. There are several organizations that certify as to the talent and knowledge of groomers, with both written and practical testing required to earn the title of "Certified Master Groomer" Until such time as federal or state licensing becomes routine for groomers as it is for hairdressers, looking for a shop with well qualified, certified groomers should help you to find the best for your pet.

Answer 3

I am a groomer and appologise that this horrible experince has happened to you unfortunatly I don't think you can do much about it unless other damage is done to the dog. You may try your local ASPCA but I honestly don't know. I know this is awful but it happens. I have never Thank Goodness cut a dogs nail like that but an inexperinced groomer or csomeone who just doesn't care can cause us good ones to look bad. But the same as your hairdresser one bad cut and the whole hairdresser association looks bad. Also some dogs without being hurt by the groomer feel intemidated and sometimes try to bite the groomer but a pro can usually talk them out of their fear. Sorry again about you horrible experince and Don't take your dog(s) back there again.

Answer 4

I think you should write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper about this incident. That way when it gets printed in the newspaper the whole city will find out about this incident and by word of mouth protect their dogs and others from having the same cruel treatment. I as a fellow dog owner would definately want to know about this before I took my dog there. Even if the groomer only did this once i would NEVER use their services. Also i would think you could call the better business bearu and report maltreatment of customers(your dog)

Get the word out there!~ No one should get away with treating animals this way!

Answer 5

those who answered your problem are correct. u should make a police report for further criminal use in the court of law. gather all of the proof that u can. do everything the legal way. i would suggest video taping the care that is being given to your pet, never leave your pet alone again with any animal caregiver. this way u know for a fact that, your loved pet gets the proper care it needs. most groomers, and vets use a muzzel to control the animal, and to keep from biting them. this usually is a general rule to use muzzels for the caregivers saftey. u need to find out if one was used during the care of the animal. if so, how could it bite ?
you should call the humane society, dog warden, local police, spca, and planned pet hood. do not give up until someone is willing to investigate the problem. there are sworn animal officers that do care, and will take action. if u do not want to give your name and information to them, u don't have to. all of the sources are listed in this message. u should always trust ur vet to clip any animals nails, most groomers do not know what they are doing, if the nails are clipped to short, and are bleeding, cram a bar of soap into the dogs nail. this is recommened by all vets.

Answer 6

Boy, I sure hope you took a lot of photos!! As others have said, contact an attorney and the police. You might be able to contact an animal protection group who could send in someone undercover to gather evidence. I hope those people go out of business fast. Spread the word. If there is sufficient proof, a local TV station could be notified to do a report. I'll never understand how anyone can be cruel to a pet. I'm so sorry your pup had to go through that!

Answer 7

Tell the Better Business Bureau...and spread your story to all your friends and family, that will stop people from going to that groomer. You really can't call the police, as you have no real proof...you would show the cut paw, and the groomer would say they didn't do it...there is no real case there. But if you tell others, that word of mouth with spread really fast...and business owners hate that!

Answer 8

Call your local police department and at least report the incident, then I would for sure call the Better Business Bureau, they will check into the work ethics and see if any other reports have been made.....If the groomer works for someone other then themself, I would contact the manager or the owner of the business and also report the incident...Good Luck!

Answer 9

You need to contact animal control. They may want to come "see" your dog and the residence to verify there isn't any abuse or neglect related issues with your dog. Make sure your dog is up to date on vaccinations, is clean, and doesn't have any external or internal parasites such as fleas, ear mites or worms. If you can pass a clean inspection, obtain the report from animal control and file a complaint with your local police department. You can file a complaint for harassment and depending on what she says, maybe even a restraining order. For your dog, to guarentee she doesn't run out of water or food during the day, fill up a larger, heavier bowl of water. Like a bucket. Even the plastic storage containers they sell in stores. She won't be able to tip it over and she deffinately won't run out of food. Keep proper documentation of her living conditions when you leave every day to make sure the neighbor isn't maliciously coming over to mess with your dog. If you must, invest in a security camera. She's not allowed to tresspass on your property especially if you post no tresspassing signs. So knock out these steps and within a short period of time, you can have the law cease the situation.

Answer 10

Why not call your local SPCA? Or call a lawyer... or call the police. You could also call your local newspaper or the local tv stations. Try and do some research about other clients of that groomer. See if anyone else has had a similar problem.