Dog Grooming Diary - Dogs Don't Always Behave As You Would Expect

The perception that owners have of their dogs can sometimes be way off the mark once that dog enters the grooming salon.

This happened to me a while ago at the Canine Groom School. Meg, a Border Collie, was in for a bath and tidy up. She was brought into the restroom where I was in the middle of doing one of my final written assignments. She came right up, said hello and then settled down on the chair beside me as if she had known me all her life. She would occasionally nuzzle me for a quick fuss and then settle back down for a snooze. We seemed to have an immediate bond with each other.

She then spent the rest of her time at the Groom School in my company. After finishing my assessment I took her outside to sit in the early afternoon sunshine while I had lunch and then she had a quick cuddle on my lap while waiting for her bath. She was a lovely dog and very nearly came home with me!

The surprising thing was when her owner came to collect her and was told about how Meg and I had spent the day together, the owner seemed quite taken aback. The owner explained that Meg didn’t like men at all and would growl and be very unhappy when a man was in the house. Whether this was a territorial thing on Meg's part I don’t know. She may have been perfectly okay with me because she was on neutral territory and didn’t feel threatened.

Anyway, whatever the reason for Megs behaviour, it goes to show that, even if you think your dog may be unsuitable to bring to a Salon because of the way you believe they may behave, it is worth giving it a go. You never know, your four-legged friend may surprise you.