Mitzi is a god-send! My peke-cocker mix, Walter, is touch sensitive. I don't know what happened to him in the four years of his life before he arrived at APA, but he really does not like getting groomed.
I discovered this first when bringing him to another well-known groomer in the area. They weren't able to finish him (even when he had on a basket muzzle), and told me in the future they would consider bathing him but not grooming him. At first, I was disappointed but couldn't blame them.
All Breed Dog Grooming is across the street from my apartment. I had passed it many times but never given much thought to the place with the simple sign and straightforward name, until Walter got so fluffy, and it got so hot out, and he was always covered in sticky burrs. I really wanted to help him out by getting him a shorter cut, but I just didn't know if there was anywhere I could take him.
I was surprised to see All Breed had a handful of really good reviews here on Yelp, so I called and explained that Walter was very touch sensitive. Mitzi said that she had been grooming for 14 years and felt that she was up for the challenge. I brought Walter in, and he did indeed prove to be a challenge.
Unlike other more "prissy" groomers out there, Mitzi showed extreme patience on that first time grooming him. She kept him from 8am to 2pm - sent me text updates and a picture, and gave him breaks when he needed them. Despite it being a nerve wracking experience for her (Walter gets pretty freaked out when the clippers come out and go anywhere near his neck/chest/feet), she managed to finish the grooming completely (not leaving his head and paws long like the other place did). And at the end, she explained to me what she did and how he handled it and suggested I bring him back from a couple baths during the summer as his hair grew out so he could get used to being groomed.
Last week, I decided to bring him in for a bath, as we'd discussed, and Mitzi, on a hunch that it was the grooming table/noose that stressed Walter out, gave him a trim free of charge, and did his grooming on the couch, and on a table without the noose. She said he handled it much better, and that he just didn't like having stuff around his neck. She suggested when I picked him up that I bring him back once a month or so for a small trim and bath rather than letting his hair grow out and having to groom him from scratch (he's veryyyy fluffy).
All I can say is God bless people like Mitzi, who have patience and compassion. She was certainly under no obligation to take a risk in grooming my sensitive and sometimes snappy pup, but she sympathized, and did, and even found a way to make it less traumatic for him. She even sends a pic when he's done or during to let me see how it's going. She shows Walter and her other four-legged clients with such affection that I know this is a labor of love for her.
I can't say how relieved I am to have found All Breed Dog Grooming - and so lucky to have it right across the street! But if your dog is nervous about being groomed or you just want to be sure they are in loving hands while getting cleaned up, I'd definitely recommend All Breed!! There is also a discount if you let her know you found her on Yelp! read more