Pantops Pet Salon & Spa
Charlottesville's Professional Dog Grooming

In the nature vs. nurture debate, I often wonder if dogs can be born with some of the same “special needs” that humans are. We all know from experience that they are born with certain personality traits; shy, over-friendly, dominant, lazy, etc. These traits taken to the extreme require more intense training to overcome or at least control. I have seen dogs that are lazy – just as soon sit around and get fat as anything else. Here in the shop we call them “sit down dogs.” During the grooming process they are constantly trying to sit down, making brushing and clipping almost impossible. And wouldn’t you know it, along with being lazy, they are fat. Some are so fat it’s no wonder they want to sit down. Which came first, a dog that had a voracious appetite that due to lack of exercise became fat or slow metabolism and laziness that led to being fat? You know, that vicious cycle. Then there’s the hyper dog that won’t sit still – and forget about leash training. He is the one that’s prone to nonstop barking as well. And at what? Nothing in particular, just for attention.

When I was growing up, I never imagined we would label a behavior on the part of dogs as “separation anxiety.” Yet I think these personality traits can usually be dealt with by spending a lot more time in training and controlling the environment than would be normally required. But what I really want to know is if dogs can be handicapped as my son Carl is – with cerebral palsy or mental retardation. The kind of “special need” that can’t be overcome regardless of the amount of time, training, or love spent.

You see, Carl operates on a 3-5 year old level, and we organize his world and ours around that. The range of mental retardation can range from faintly detectable to something far more serious and dramatic.

For the past two years, we have had a Cardinal at our window feeder that bangs his beak on the window – loud and hard. He works himself into a frenzy and actually stares in wildly and pants. Now understand, we have lots of birds of all stripes and colors use that feeder — to include many other Cardinals — and it is only this bird that behaves that way. We think he looks and behaves a bit deranged.

I wonder if we see more frequent “special needs” behavior in dogs and humans because we take care of them. They aren’t left to “survival of the fittest” as in the early stages of their evolution.

We don’t usually think about our pets needing a visit to the dentist, but maybe we should. By age 3 about 80% of dogs and 70% of cats show signs of dental disease. It is more common in older pets and small dogs who have overcrowded or misaligned teeth which are more difficult to keep clean. The symptoms of dental disease include bad breath, sore mouth, dribbling, yellow or brown tartar, bleeding gums, pawing the mouth, loose teeth, tooth loss, and difficulty eating.

Usually the cause of these symptoms is a buildup of hardened plaque which can lead to gingivitis (inflamed gums) and further progress to periodontal disease. Oral health is not just about teeth—poor oral health actually can affect organs in the body. The toxins are transferred through the blood stream to cause infections in the liver, kidneys and brain.

Talk to your veterinarian about preventive care for your pet’s teeth. Care may include specially designed toys, large kibble (wet foods build plaque more rapidly), and even tooth brushing! Maggie, my Springer Spaniel, had awfully bad breath so we would frequently try to brush her teeth but she would squeeze her lips shut to get away from the brush!

Click here for more details about oral health for dogs as well as a chart including pictures of dog teeth with varying degrees of dental disease.

Also keep an eye out for the Veterinary Oral Health Council seal of acceptance for products that have met their standards.

I remember one Christmas when a friend of mine asked me to keep his new Bernese Mountain Dog puppy for a few days – he would pick up late on the 24th as a surprise for his children. It was fun to do, and she turned out to be the perfect pet. However, don’t get caught up in the gift-giving excitement—a dog is a large responsibility. Below are several points to keep in mind before you get that cute puppy:
1) Never buy a dog just for the children. While they may show interest at first, more often than not that interest will wane. Feeding, cleaning the backyard, exercising, and grooming are more like work – petting and playing are the fun part and guess who the work will fall to when the kids get bored?

2) If you’re single or a couple that works, training and housebreaking can be very difficult – maybe impossible. Once a dog is an adult and can stay in a nice backyard that’s fenced in with shelter to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer, you might get by 9 to 5. But a puppy needs socializing, training, and frequent outings for housebreaking.

3) While the upfront cost of the purchase is easily known, the costs of food, shelter, and veterinary care need to be budgeted for as well.

If you’ve got the time and money, I can’t think of a better present for the whole family than a brand new puppy – red ribbon and all!

As of 11/10/07, I need to make a minimum of $35.00 an hour to operate the business.  The profit after labor, rent, utilities, etc is not enough for me to be employed solely as an owner—I have to groom as well.  Not as much as when the kids were at home, but I can’t sit and just supervise—yet.

Our top groomer salary is $16 an hour—add benefits, medicare and vacation to that and I need to budget $18 an hour.  Labor for our industry should be around 50% of cost—that’s where the $35 an hour comes from—the remaining $17.50 per hour goes to rent, utilities, insurance, supplies, equipment, etc

Our groomers can do 5-6 dogs a piece per day by themselves and that’s it.  They can’t do more and maintain quality.  I can increase that production by hiring a bather-dryer and I do.  When she is employed, the groomers can do between 7 and 8 dogs (but then I have an extra salary to meet).

So, the first consideration in determining the cost of a haircut is the per hour fee.  The second consideration is the skill required—full coated dogs that are scissored by hand require much more skill than a clipper cut.  Take a Bichon Frise for example.  A scissor cut between 1.5 and 2 inches costs $68 and that’s if there are no tangles.  A clipper cut to ½ an inch is $48 and takes almost an hour less time.  If you bring in a Collie and it takes 2 and a half hours to brush, bathe, and dry him, expect a charge of $87.  Add trimming of the feet, tail, and feathers—it’ll be closer to $100.

A third consideration is the density of the coat (whether it is matted or packed with undercoat).  Dogs that come in once a year to be clipped short for the summer cost more than those dogs who get the same clip but come in every 6-8 weeks.  For example, a 6-8 week short cut on a cocker is $48.  It will be more like $55 if the Cocker has a full coat.

Another very important cost factor is pet behavior.  Puppies and seniors generally require more time and patience, thus cost more.  Some customers expect that since their puppy is smaller that it will cost less, but it usually takes as much time or more to get them acclimated to the grooming process.

So, there you have it—time, skill, condition and behavior are factors considered in price.  Clients can get the best value for their buck by keeping the coat in a matt-free condition to reduce the labor charge.  Our posted price is based on a good condition—if we have to brush your dog an extra 15 minutes, expect a corresponding increase in your bill.

This is one of the best bargains going when I consider costs per hour of other service industries—called a plumber lately?

I would estimate that 60% of our customers are women and they are comfortable with what they want.  They can discuss bows, cologne, conditioner, and spa treatments quite freely and with enthusiasm.  The men that come in are usually more of a challenge.  They often don’t know much more than the dog’s name.  The conversation goes like this:  “What kind of haircut do you want?” — “I don’t know, it’s my wife’s dog.”  Oh boy, here we go.  He stands there in his jeans, baseball cap, unshaven and with a chew in his cheek.  As far as he is concerned, you could shave the dog bald–it means more to his wife than he does anyway!

I know that when I was younger, my dogs had to reflect my machismo.  I had a German Shepherd, Irish Setter, and Collie–see a pattern?  When we owned our Scottie Margaret, I found her to be too small to romp around the way I like:  “Want to jump in the car and go to Lowes?”  Probably not.  She became more my wife’s dog.  After a lot of complaining, I got my first of three Great Danes.  Now I could grunt, spit, and be thoroughly disgusting with my bad-ass dog.

Reminds me of the time I was admiring my granddaughter when she was born.  We were having a family dinner and I held her in my arms and said, “She is just precious!”  My son Michael looked at me in disbelief:  “…Precious?”  He said, “Dad, what is that, your feminine side?” 

You have to understand that having been raised as an Army brat and then putting in 5 years myself, my personality reflects an atmosphere of male dominance and discipline.  Real men don’t say “precious,” and I think working in a female dominated industry for 32 years was having its effect on me!  The first three years of business I operated only a boarding kennel, and that certainly was manly enough.  But then I needed to expand my ability to make money so I added grooming.  It took me a long time to adjust to putting bows on poodles and spraying them with perfume.

One of my favorite customers is a guy who weighs about 300 lbs., shaves his head and has tattooed arms the size of my waist.  Occupation?  Tow truck driver.  Pet?  Toy Poodle named Midnight.  His hands are the size of a baseball mitt — much larger than his poodle.  I couldn’t help but ask him what he was doing with such a little dog.  He just smiled and grunted that it was his wife’s dog.  “Got a problem with that?”  I took another look at his arms and said, “Nope, how do you want him cut?”  His answer?  You got it.  “Shave him down all over and no foo-foo stuff.”

Larry Sipe and his poodle, Midnight

A reputable breeder is focused on doing their best by their breed in every way. Your relationship with them does not end when you buy the puppy. They will maintain contact with you and offer you any information and assistance that you may want from diet questions to training. They will give you a written guarantee of your puppy’s genetic health and temperament. They will take back the dog at any point in its life for any reason. They will specialize in one or two breeds and be thoroughly knowledgeable about the history and medical conditions of each.

They will not sell their dogs to pet shops but rather will keep them as house pets. In fact, the Code of Ethics of AKC affiliated breed clubs specifies that members should not sell to pet shops. These breeders will not sell their puppies before 8 weeks of age and they may even insist on visiting your home–they will certainly interview you. They will deny owners that they believe do not suit their puppies.

Because they keep their puppies in their home, the puppies are well socialized and are not exposed to poor health conditions. Reputable breeders may charge a lot of money–Susan Giles’ pet quality lhasa apsos may be $1000-1500. However, these breeders may actually be losing money on their breeding because of the cost of properly evaluating the health of their puppies. Typical tests include the OFA (hip x-ray certification), CERF (Canine Eye Registry Foundation), Penn-Hipp (hip joint laxity), and SAS (subaortic stenosis check). Research the common defects in your preferred breed and ask your breeder what he is doing to prevent and detect those issues.

Reputable breeders will have at least the dame on site for you to see and interact with. They will have a limited number of litters per year. They rarely need to advertise and usually have buyers lined up before a litter is born. They will be experienced and confident in their reputation as a reputable breeder and will be happy to offer you references.

I spoke with a breeder named Susan Giles because one of our customers is a very stand-out lhasa apso named Oliver. Due to backyard breeding and the breed’s natural inclinations, lhasas can come with a myriad of issues. They are typically supposed to be “chary of strangers” but poorly bred lhasas can be kennel shy, unpredictable, and aggressive toward strangers. They are susceptible to physical defects such as cherry eye, renal failure, and hip dysplasia. Oliver is a very healthy boy who is cautious toward strangers but friendly once he gets to know you–exactly what the breed standard calls for. Susan is a show breeder so the puppies she raises come with a thick, luxurious coat as well. She is very aware of the problem of backyard breeders and because of this she insists on a spay/neuter contract when she sells her puppies.

The most important thing to remember when looking to buy a puppy is Do Your Research. Know what health exams your breeder should be doing, what temperament problems you should watch out for, and find a breeder you trust who is first and foremost concerned with what is best for their dogs.

Archived from “The Paw Report:”  Issue #16.

If you’ve ever experienced skunk spray up close, you know it is powerful to the point of being nauseating. Skunks are omnivores, eating both plant and animals, but mostly animals — insects, worms, rodents, snakes, frogs, etc. They burrow and live in dens, often in wood or junk piles. Skunks have extremely poor vision — 50% of their deaths are due to cars and hunting. They have earned the respect of most wildlife and are not bothered by predatory animals. Leave it to dogs’ curiosity to get them in trouble. Skunks can spray between 7 and 15 feet, causing burning of the eyes and a runny nose. Since a dog’s face is usually toward the skunk, that’s the area that gets hit worst.

There are a number of home remedies for de-skunking your dog. The following is one that claims to really work:

1 quart hydrogen peroxide
¼ cup baking soda
1-2 teaspoons dish soap
(add warm water if it is a large dog)
Sponge on this solution and let it sit.

I’ve never tried this in the shop, so we have no recommendations or comments on its effectiveness.

The Salon Process

First, we let you know ahead of time that we don’t guarantee 100% removal of the smell. We can make your dog hospitable and mostly odor free, but if you put your nose to his face, you’ll still smell a faint skunk odor.  Also, water will bring out the smell so if it starts raining you will get a whiff.

Since dogs go at skunks face first, that’s usually where they get hit the worst.  Of course, we can’t get any soap or chemicals in their eyes, so we have to be very cautious in that area. We start by washing with Dawn detergent first.  This will remove a lot of the spray by stripping oils from the coat. We then bathe the dog again using Triclosan deodorizing shampoo.  Before we rinse the dog, we let this shampoo soak in for 5 minutes.  Our final step consists of spraying on “Odor Destroyer.” It is made by Davis Manufacturing and their description of their product is that it is an “exothermic reaction synthesis” that “attacks the molecular structure of offensive odors and completely removes them.” It does seem to do a great job, but I’m no so sure about the “completely removes” part. I think fresh air, sunshine, and time have to get that last little bit of odor.

When we have a skunked dog in the Salon, everybody knows it. The smell will linger for hours after the dog has gone home, despite our cleaning and airing out. We’re usually good to go the next day.

Keep a severely skunked dog out of your house and car until he has been treated. Car seats, carpet, and couches will absorb the odor. Often dogs will try to wipe their muzzles clean, getting the skunk’s spray on whatever they use. You’ll need to borrow a crate for transport and this should clean up easily.

One last request. Wash your dog’s collar or have us do it ($5) — it stinks too!

Archived from “The Paw Report:”  Issue #16.

We’ve used this term before–backyard breeders.  It is estimated that 2/3s of the 50 million dogs in the US have come from backyard breeders.  It is a term that is typically derogatory because it denotes careless breeding.  A professional breeder will put quite a bit of money into the prevention and detection of genetic diseases.   Dogs with physical or emotional health issues will not be bred.  A backyard breeder will breed their dog with any other dog of the same breed (or even of different breeds) without researching the health and temperament issues that the breed is susceptible to.

Typically it is recommended that a puppy buyer look for a show dog breeder and buy one of the puppies that isn’t quite show quality.  AKC registration alone does not mean that a breeder is reputable because AKC staff do not visit breeders–the registration is done through mail and all puppies in an AKC litter—regardless of faults—are eligible for AKC registration.  There are certainly some disreputable show and working breeders.  In this case, their breeding focuses on augmenting one aspect of the breed (usually physical) without regard to maintaining temperament.  Careless breeding also involves inbreeding that produces genetically weak animals that may have debilitating physical deformities.

A breeder who breeds massive amounts of dogs, usually in poor health and social conditions, is the owner of a puppy mill (called a puppy farm in the UK).  These commercial operations are typically where pet shops get their puppies.  Aside from poor breeding practices, puppies from puppy mills do not get the individualized social attention that they need.  They also typically live in unhealthy conditions and when they are shipped from the puppy mill to a pet shop, the stress of heavy travel at a young age makes them susceptible to disease, infections, and parasites from other puppies at the pet shop.  Pet shop puppies are particularly prone to distemper and parvovirus.  Parvovirus symptoms may be dormant for several weeks–enough time for a puppy to look healthy and be taken to a new home.  Pet shops do not typically offer the fresh air, exercise, play, and socialization for a puppy to become well-adjusted.

I had a customer pick up his Cocker after we gave him a short hair cut all over. The customer remarked to his dog, “Boy, you really are getting fat, just like the vet said.” He then asked me what I suggested. I asked him what he fed his dog. He said “Iams.” I asked how much – he said he didn’t know, that he just keeps the bowl full and the dog free feeds. No comment.

I don’t imagine when dogs were wild that they were different from any other animal – it’s all about survival and that means food and water 24-7. They gorged themselves not knowing when the next meal would come. My Great Dane, Molly, never stopped eating. I remember that when she was a 9 month old pup I thought I could feed her all she would eat – after all, she was a growing giant breed. Wrong! She ate so much she started to get fat, and there is nothing more pathetic than a fat giant breed dog. I cut back on her groceries quick.

Just because a food is fat free doesn’t mean that it is okay to gorge on it. And it’s not all about carbs either. We need to eat balanced meals and our portions should allow us a trade for the calories which we burn that day. If you have to eat 1800 calories a day based on your activity load and metabolism, then consuming 1900 is 100 too much. It’s that simple and we know it. If you exercise, you burn more calories — you can eat a little more. If you have a big piece of chocolate cake, then you just took a big hunk out of your calories for that day. The same is true for your dog. Calories in, calories out. You need to find out what the recommended portion of food is for your dog’s age and breed and stick to it on top of an exercise schedule. Lizzie is at two cups of Purina One in the morning and 2 cups at night. Period. If you insist on giving your dog treats for training or pleasure, make sure they are healthy and make sure to count the calories and then subtract that from dinner to prevent overfeeding. (One vet I know recommends baby carrots for a dog treat — dogs usually love them. -Loretta)

If your dog is losing or gaining weight over time, adjust your portions accordingly. Obviously age and activity level are a factor. But make no mistake; barring a medical reason, obesity in dogs is a reflection of the owner’s care.