The introduction to the grooming process is a vital part of any puppies development, and just as some children are happy to have their first haircut - others will find the first haircut more challenging.

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At your puppies first grooming session we will take take their first groom slowly using positive reinforcement to reward good behavior. We use clippers, scissors, and high velocity driers and there are also numerous other dogs in the salon at the same time! All of these things can be very confronting and sometimes overwhelming for a puppy to deal with. However, with careful handling and lots of cuddles and kisses the majority of puppies find the introduction to the grooming process "not too bad!"

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After your puppies first groom Jamie at Paws! then play will advise you of the best schedule to place them on. Some puppies get a gold star and go straight onto 4- 8 weekly scheduling (this is rare) Majority of puppies are asked to come back in 3 weeks for a bath and tidy and then 3 weeks again after that for another full groom (we require all oodles to keep to a 4, 6 or 8 weekly schedule)

 

This allows us to have 3 grooming sessions close together so we know your dog is used to being handled and groomed - this will set them up for the future of regular grooming whilst enjoying the process of being pampered! On rare occasions, puppies who show fear, aggression or are extra wriggly during their first groom will be asked to attend the salon once every 2 weeks as they need a very consistent grooming schedule so we can teach them that there is nothing to be scared of, there is no reason to nip the groomers and how to stand still and focus so we can safely trim them. Once these behaviors have been ingrained, puppies will be placed on our normal 4- 8 weekly schedule depending on grooming requirements.

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Our only focus with puppy grooming is to provide a happy and safe experience. Aesthetics are not important for your puppies first groom, often they are wiggly and more worried about looking at what we are doing - this is why grooming is a learning process for all dogs. Often there are stray hairs and bobble heads for the first groom - rest assured we will get those hairs next time! Please bear with us while we refine your dogs haircut over the next few grooms - they will be much happier with a slower introduction to the grooming process!