Clipper/scisorring before shower - no blow drying UPDATE (with pix)

[ej]

 

Last time we took Koda to the groomer, they (one groomer plus 3 helpers!) spent 6 hours on him!  He had no mats, but he was less than cooperative to say the least.  He fidgeted the entire time hence 3 helpers were enlisted to help the poor groomer :(

 

I made an appointment for his next grooming in two weeks time, and I discussed a little bit with the owner of the spa.  I asked if it is possible to use a clipper on Koda's body (trim it down to 1/2 inch), scissoring on his legs and head, THEN the shower.  After the shower, just towel dry (use any many towels as possible), then hand the monster back to us.  Absolutely no blow drying.  We never allow the groomers to clip nails or clean their ears since I do these at home on a regular basis.  The objective of this "speed-grooming" is mainly not to have Koda stand 6 hours again... and also I really felt bad for the groomer & helpers.

 

The owner sounded very apprehensive, he is concerned that Koda might develop skin problem if not 100% blow-dried.  But I do that to both dogs when I give them a shower at home.  I shampoo, rinse and towel dry 2 dogs in under 30 mins (a GR and a GD), and leave them to air-dry for the rest of the day.  My GR is 90% dry under 30 mins and GD needs 4-5 hrs to dry, no skin problem though. 

 

I read that some of you mentioned air-drying the dogs to get the dreadlocks effect, so this is definitely not a rare practice, but have you ever made such requests to your groomers?

 

UPDATE:

So we took him to the groomer last Sat.  Reminded her once again, clipping and scisorring first, then shower.  Not to do his ears, face and nails.  It took her 2 hours, and we got to take him home (YAY!).  Bought him a robe too (modeled by Z here).  Once at home, we had two fans blowing in his direction (he was glad to be able to lie down and nap, he was exhausted), and it took just under 2 hours to dry. Overall we are happy to find a groomer who is willing to work with us, and accommodate our "unusual requests". 

[ej]

Now I feel terrible cos Koda did not get a potty break in that 6 hours. He didn't even get to sit for a bit :(

Thanks for bringing this up.

[Barb @ Gemstone Labradoodles]

It is totally against a groomer's training to let a wet dog out of their shop. I get this, being a trained groomer, BUT, and this is a big but, it is the only way to get the total doodle look with some coat types. I also developed this method to avoid the l.o.n.g grooming sessions my doodles were undergoing by my hands. And I hated the results too.
This led me to experimentation until I came up with the way I do it now. There is a lot of resistance to this in the grooming world and that's why I started this group.
I call doodles the bedheads of dogs and it is an art form to achieve that casual look when freshly groomed. I'm sure thousands of dogs have had a bath at home and never been blow dried and their skin is fine.
Like you told your groomer, towelling is important. I also bought my dogs bath robes to put on after a shower. lol Here is one of my 6 month old pups who looks a little embarrassed.

[ej]

Very cute! I will go bathrobe hunting this weekend ;) Thanks for the tip!

[Kyoko]

I love the bathrobe!!! I want one for Charlie, too!!

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

Gracie Doodle has that exact same robe! I love it on her!

[Lisa {Zoe's Mom]]

How short and what kind of fur is on the cream doodle? I like the appearance of the paw cut, kinda poodlish, Zoe's has hair/fleece on her feet on it is long. You can tell her foot is flat when she stands. This makes it look like the dog is standing on its toes...

[Ginny Nightingale]

I love that cut, too--the legs look great. My groomer always dips in at the top of the foot, but I was trained to do it the way it is shown here when I groomed my show terrier and a Bedlington terrier I had was done this way too.I am learning to groom my ALD myself and am really trying to keep that volume in the feet, but you have to work hard to find a groomer who does it. It is really more like a terrier leg then a poodle leg--anyone else think so?

[ej]

Hi ToxNDaisy

K has wavy fleece coat.
Body -- 1/2 inch all over, using a clipper
Legs & head -- 2 inches, using scissors
Face -- told groomer not to trim the hair between his eyes, we don't prefer big round deep socket eyes.
Ear -- not trimmed, we like his pigtails (hehe!)
Tail -- slightly trimmed so that it isn't touching the ground when standing.
Feet -- we like the poodle feet but not the skinny/hairless knuckles. So I use a pair of scissor instead of the clipper to trim the hair as much as I can, without revealing too much of the knuckles/skin. This way when he is standing up, the hair just covers the knuckles and barely touching the ground, but if you lift the hair, you can see the his knuckles underneath. He looks like he is standing on tip-toe most of the time.

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

I usually bathe Gracie the day before and then do just like you asked though like Caitlin I don't do the scissor cut on the legs. I don't know how but would love to learn or watch someone in action. Gracie does not go t the groomer any more. I think it is asking way too much for these poor Doodles (or any dog) to stand for 4 or more hours. When I groom Gracie we take lots of breaks and it helps my back too! Very nice looking cut though and cute Doodle!