I'll never understand..

[BengalCatGuy]

I groomed this Scottie a couple of times and the owner nitpicked it to pieces. I actually do pretty nice Scotties, but these people had very set ideas about what a Scottie should look like and loved their old groomers style.

The 3rd time it came in to be groomed, I decided that I really didn't want to deal with them any longer and passed it off to the other groomer in the shop. I trained this groomer at groomer school, so she has a similar style to mine. I actually helped her with the groom since she hadn't done more then a couple to Scotties.

The Scottie ended up looking pretty much the same as when I did it. The owners were very happy with the groom with the exception of a couple of little things.

Fast forward to last week, these people refer their friend who has 2 Scotties. I groomed them both and the owners are very happy with the groom. I did my normal Scottie groom however these people do not want me to touch the ears (I know, I know), they like them very hairy.

Yesterday I get a call from the owner of the original Scottie and she loved what I did with her friends Scotties and wants me to do her Scottie just like her friends.

Other than not touching the ears, I can't imagine what I did differently.

I'll just never understand.

Scott

[alabamagroomer]

We probably all have 1 like that...

mine is a shih tzu - cute little black girl. Mom wants #7 all over, leave tail and ears, clean cheeks and leave the "fuzz" around the nose and for the love of God, don't touch the eye lashes!!! Well, one week it's too short, the next week it's too long and the the next week the length is perfect! (I do a #7 everyweek and change nothing!) One time I suggest she change groomers since I was obviously unable to please her. (I am the only groomer at my salon) and she was shocked. "Why do you think I'm not happy???? Please keep grooming Molly!" So now I just know that she is a complainer and I ignore it. Every week now, it's "my husband thinks she was a little short this week" etc. I think it's pretty funny now, but I really let it bother me for awhile.

[TawnyKitty]

I have a Shih Tzu client just like that. I think she does it just to her herself talk.

[Moonpiepoodlz]

Mine's a Bichon....
I've been grooming the dog for about 6 months and not only is he a wonderful dog for grooming, he's kept with a round head which I don't have anybody else with this style and it gives me a chance to work on those heads.
This lady calls every time after the grooming and says to do something else different next time. For a couple grooms, she was asking for more square, bichon style legs; once it was too long, and this last time she asked for a teddy style which in my definition she wanted the neck area taken down...WRONG! She called later that day wondering why the neck was "bald"!

I give up!!!

[Doubledogdare]

On the really nit-picky ones who always whine and complain, I do the dog, tell them to take it home and look at it. If there is anything they want changed, bring Fluffy in the next day and I will happily correct it for them, no problem. And then I always tell them their dog is so very good to do and just stinkin' cute beyond words, I almost didn't give her back to them.

The ones that drove the others nuts have yet to bring a dog back in for an adjustment of any sort. They seem satisified with the option of doing so.

This is otherwise known as "killing them with kindness".

[Jadenlea]

Maybe the other ladies scotties are just nicer looking the the first ladies and when she saw them all groomed up, she thought it was your doing.

I have a shitzu that I groom with a gorgeous thick coat. His face comes out so cute. Nice and round. Well that owner referred a friend with a shitzu. The friend said "We want him to look JUST LIKE RUDY. We just love rudys cut" Well that would be all well and good except new shitzu (nala) has a really thin, fine lifeless coat so though I do the exact same cut, the owners always want to know why she doesn't look "just like rudy" Ive explained many times but she still comes in everytime and asks for a cut like rudy. LOL

[Hello Kitty FTW]

Maybe take a picture? If you do the groom the exact same every time, take a picture of each groom, and see if you do anything different, and if you feel that you don't, then present the pictures to the client.

I did this one time with the only customer who complained about her cat every single groom. One time I supposedly clipped the whiskers, another time the ears were uneven (I never touched this cat's ears), and it really felt like she was telling the truth. I took 4 pictures from 4 separate grooms, face, side/side, back, and top. I couldn't see a difference, and once I showed her, she really couldn't specifically state what was different, either.

[Smart-n-Pretty]

Mine is a Havanese. She is so kinky curly she would do a Bichon proud. Her mom hovers for 20 minutes telling me just do whatever I think is best but, hurry and get her back to me ASAP. I gotta listen to how her 16 yr old Pom died at petsomething and she is SURE ot is their fault. When I mention the dog was old she tells me how healthy he was and I gotta listen to all his idiosyncrasies. All the while she is telling me to hurry and be sure to call her the MINUTE I get finished so she can get her baby back to her. Oy!!!

[flyingfur]

Boy, I know what you mean. It's enough to drive you crazy! A new customer with a shihpoo puppy (her first dog): first groom, a #0 comb, too long she says. Next groom a #1 comb, too short she says. Back and forth, etc....aaarrrgggghhhhh!!!

I had a customer with a tiny shihtzu who used to ask me - [B][I]every single time she came [/I][/B]- for "[U]dutch girl ears[/U]" and "[U]kitty cat paws[/U]". What the ??? For quite a while I figured I was doing it wrong and would change the feet and ears, but eventually, after much prodding and questioning, realized she just wanted to say that, it didn't mean that I had done it wrong the last time....oh my!

[4Sibes]

Mine is a SCWT. With flat hair. A Flat Coated Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier with a part down it's back. And he's fat. Really, really fat. Saddlebags fat. And his toes look like that freakish giant Aussie bird that slashes humans right down the front...a cassowary I think? All splayed w/ humongous talons, the better to support his fatness with.

The owner is the reason I invented a Patron Saint of Extraordinary Patience. So I have someone to pray to every 6 weeks when that car pulls in the driveway.

On the bright side...the 15 minutes we spend sharing what wasn't "quite right" with the last trim, or "you must not have felt well last time you groomed SCWeeTie cuz you missed this one long hair between his back toe 2 and 3"...is I gifted them w/ an extraordinary price hike last January and plan on repeating the gift this January.

I feel so much better, almost giddy, as they nit-pick away and at the same time are actually paying me to listen to it.

[plushpuppy]

Mine is a Havanese. She is so kinky curly she would do a Bichon proud. Her mom hovers for 20 minutes telling me just do whatever I think is best but, hurry and get her back to me ASAP. I gotta listen to how her 16 yr old Pom died at petsomething and she is SURE ot is their fault. When I mention the dog was old she tells me how healthy he was and I gotta listen to all his idiosyncrasies. All the while she is telling me to hurry and be sure to call her the MINUTE I get finished so she can get her baby back to her. Oy!!!

Gosh are you sure that's not my client you are talking about. this client gives me a list a mile long of instructions and then complains all the time. I cringe every time she calls. Her Havanese is a big one about 25lbs and she asks for the strangest stuff like a race track down the rear so NOTHING can stick to her. It drives me crazy...

[CurbsideCuties]

I do a few like that. I think everyone does. My favorite is a lady who brings in her malticockerdoodleshitzaweinerbeagle thing and spends twenty minutes telling me about his balls and how she does not want the hair clipped back there because she can't stand to look at them and then he licks them and she has kids and blah blah blah! All the while she says "balls" like 20 times. I DIE!

[k9cosmetologist]

4sibes
I am laughing my head off, you are so fuuny, more please

[petgroomaustralia]

UGH...some clients are just NUTSO. I ask what they want, then make my own suggestions and if they still want it their way I slowly tweak it over time to the way I think is best for the coat type. Most of them come to realise that I, shock horror, actually do know better than them what is best, the few that dont I generally send elsewhere. Often they come back after having gone elsewhere and then are wiling to listen and appreciate that I work very hard to make their dog look good. I have been grooming a spoodle for a few years, since she was a baby. She has quite a thick coat and of course they like it fluffy. While she still had puppy coat I could easily keep her fluffy on their 8 week schedule but once the adult coat arrived she would come in quite knotty especially around her neck, tops of her legs and ears and tail. I wasnt about to dematt her every time and told them repeatedly they had to bring her in more often but it fell on deaf ears and so I would do her with a 4f with a 1/2 teddy bear head and they werent happy. They went elsewhere and came back with an english cocker style complete with extremely matted feathers...lol...this time she got shaved down with a 7f. So they have learnt they have to compromise...if she comes in with no knots she gets a yellow comb, if not its a 4f. So now she comes every 6 weeks and her haircut alternates between the two lengths.

[Plexi]

yes, we must all have one of these customers if not you will have!! Mine is a toy poodle 7f body, 5 on the head & ears...short and simple!!?? Nope, seems like there is something I didn't get right and she calls me after she gets home.
How can anyone not get it right as it's so short and no style? I think they just jlike to gripe.