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I am unable to upload any photos anymore as my computer considers this to be a malicious add-on. Therefore I will not use this blog any more because without photos it is useless to me and my family/friends. ByeBye Too Bad So Sad.

Rufus is here to stay for a week. He is an 8 month old Airedale and a whole lot of fun to have around. Our boys have met him before so the meet and greet went smoothly...even uncle Rexy settled in well with his presence. These photos are of quiet time in the shop after a good long romp and play.

Later today Ziggy, the Jack Russel Terrier, will be by for his #10 shave off. He does not get a bath due to skin problems so there'll be one more dulled blade for the sharpening box. He is a bit of a touchy boy about his legs and from time to time the muzzle comes into use. Otherwise it is a quick and easy job.

Heidi came in for her end of summer tidy before heading home for the winter months. She was in only 4 weeks prior so it was basically a bath and brush with customer requested 'pixie feet' and tidied face. She is a 14 year old shihtzu cross...kind of tall and terrier like ... her owner likes the schnauser type fringe of 1 1/2 inches along the tummy line to diguise her lanky legs. She is pretty close to blind judging by the way she picks up her feet when she walks.

Well now here's Rocky, Newfie Cross, with a seriously matted coat after all of his summer swimming at the lake. The matting went all down his back and sides. I was able to squeak a #5 blade under the felt so he at least had some fuzz left this year. Last year I could only manage a #10. His owner and had hoped it would not come to this again as I did a thorough groom on him in the spring before any mats could form then. But alas here we are again. The final outcome was not as drastic as last fall. As before though his mane, legs and tail were dematable but the body all came down to a #5 length this year. Better luck next year Rocky as we may shave in the early summer so by fall he might be fine.

Well I've had the regulars come and go over the summer scattered inbetween with the some boarding and daycare dogs. But, the cat room remains unused to date. I've sent an application into the SPCA to foster cats in hopes to make use of this part of the facility. I've added a hiding/perching type cardboard box to each cat kennel now after seeing them in use at the SPCA. I simply went to UHaul and bought new small size boxes for this purpose. They are 12x12x16. I cut about an inch and a half off and inverted it on top to hold the bed and cut an entry arch in the side of the box. These are not in the photo as I took this shot some time ago. There have been a few more finisihing touches to the kennel walls as well. I sure hope the SPCA needs me otherwise I'll just have to go out and get me some cats on my own to care for. I miss having cats about the place.

Texas was with for us daily doggie daycare for two weeks while his owners vacationed at the resort 5 km up the road. He is a Lab/Newfoundland cross and really looks like an oversized Lab. He is 1 year old and full of exuberant energy...his folks were thrilled that he had so much fun and exercise here. At the resort he had to be on leash all the times and tended to bark in his loudest and most fierce voice at all who passed by their site. While here his barking was quite minimal as he was much too busy having fun chasing squirrels and romping along with our 2 Standard Poodles...even cranky old uncle Rexy our Pom/Poodle cross enjoyed his company. This photo is of him all bathed and brushed and ready to head off home to Seattle.

Yuki is a cute little Chihuahua cross and is a regular grooming dog here at the shop. She is staying with us for 3 days as a boarder. She will be groomed later today to get her all ready to go home early tomorrow morning. She's very shy and being the only boarder just now she has lucked out and gets to come in the house to watch TV with us in the evening. Ah yes we do spoil her!

The grooming table has not been very busy this summer but today WOW...not by volume but by size!! Today Clifford came to my grooming table. He is a 9 year old Newfoundland...so cool, so calm and so gentle!! This was a 4 hour groom and only so because his owner had cut out a bunch of mats already. He got bathed and dematted and tidied. What an excellant dog but thank goodness that my hubby is big and strong. We lifted him in and out of the tub directly to the table. I was able to dry and groom his hind end before he got to tired to stand. I finished his front end while he sat. Then when he finally had to lie down on the table I worked out his throat and ear mats. We lifted him down from the table in his lying position. We took him out for a walk about so I could see him in a larger perspective and so he could relieve himself. Then I was able to run a 1 inch combe down his front legs to even them out better. He still had some choppiness to his looks from the 'home' scizzoring but he looked 100% better. Every one felt great about the groom!!

I have had a parade of regulars through the shop since last posting. There have also been several new dogs but I only managed to photograph these two. The Cairn Terrier is Tess...she is a newly adopted 7 year old spayed female...sweet girl but a little skittish on the table. And...they told her that Cairns don't shed....hahh! The black cross is a 14 year old female...terrified of the dryer...had to towel dry with the fan blowing. Her trim is a kind of schnauser body with a short round face...customer requested custom grooming!! We have added a boarding kennel set-up to the shop so once in a while things are hopping around here.

I had a visit from Max and McKenna for a bath, brush and tidy. What a big job for all of the day! Max is the larger of the two and with a much heavier coat. It took me 4 hours to complete his groom. He is a big strong boy and somewhat resistant. Luckily McKenna is way smaller with a less thick coat. Her groom only took 3 hours to complete. They are hugely high maintenance dogs but turned out beautifully in the end.

Today I had a visit from Kali...she is a Finnish Bear Dog. Never heard of that before. It is actually a Karelian Bear Dog. She is black and white...about the size of a border collie...with a long curled up tail and lush beautiful hair of a medium length. Very lovely dog...but alas my camera was not in the shop.

Amos and Andy... black toy poodles came in for their usual #5 allover trim. They are delightful little guys...always cooperative and quite easy to do. I also had my 2 daycare Cavaliers in my company for the day. I claimed the gate as mine and the result was a more enjoyable time. They for the most part stayed away from it and had time to enjoy the rest of the yard. What fun!

Today I had a visit from Reagan...a 3 year old Rough Coat Collie. It took 4 1/2 hours to complete her bath and tidy. She had scads of undercoat to come out and lots of mats to demat. She look great once done so very satisfying to work on.

It has been a busy few days. These two are Butch and Maddy...first time here. Maddy is a ShihTzu with a very pretty face. Her groom was a 5/8 all with a light tidy on her ears and tail. Butch is a Shih Tzu X that was also a 5/8 all with a light tidy on ears and tail. His visor should have been a tad longer but I trimmed it while it was damp and it sproinged up to much...oh well.

Also in this week was Pebbles, Black Jack and Angel, Bella and Rufus but no photos this time round.

I've had a busy few days. Simba a black and white, one eyed, ShihTzu male with lots of mats came in for a grooming. I used a #5 blade all over to trim him to a comfortable summer length. He was a good little guy to work with.

Missy came for a repeat groom. She is a Yorkie and I give her a modified Schnauser trim using a #10 body and #5 leg and fringe. Her owner was very pleased with that last time and wanted to continue with it. No time for a photo this time...mom was waiting in the driveway already when I finished the groom!

Two Cavaliers, Julia and Olivia, came to visit for daycare and a bath and tidy. I did not remember to take after photos but did get the befores. They both had an over all light tidy to get rid of their bunny feet and wild fringes. They will be back again for daycare so maybe I'll remember the after shots them. They are our first daycare dogs and a great deal of the time was spent getting them used to the yard and our own dogs. It was really cool to have both of our standard poodles stretched out and relaxed on the floor of the shop along with the little Cavys...every one just getting used to each other.

Today 2 Shelties, Molly and Zoey came to visit my grooming table for the first time. Their coats were quite matted and heavy with undercoat. They each took 3 hours to bathe, dry, demat and tidy. Very time intensive job but very satisfying to see them look so good one completed. They were awesome good and patient considering how long it took and the amount of dematting required. Good challenge for the old grooming skills!!! I only had a chance to get a photo of one of them this time...Zoey.

Buddy visited my grooming table today. He is a diabetic ShihTsu. He has front leg issues and hates ear plucking. For the most part though I consider him to be a good boy. He grumbles throughout the whole process but is only troublesome for nails and ears plucking. He is quite a frail fellow and tips over easily. I find that taking my time, talking calmly and giving him time to cooperate with what I need him to do...we get along just fine. For his summer do I used a #5 blade on his body and on as much of his legs as he could cope with...then I scizzored the rest of his legs. This photo is an oldy...looks like a 5/8 inch trim.

I have had 2 new visitors to my grooming table. First Pepper a Border Collie came in for a groom. She was a bit nervous at the beginning but was so smart. It took no time at all for her to figure what I wanted her to do. I used a 5/8 inch blade to shorten her lovely coat for a summertime of fishing on the lake. There was a lot of snaggled undercoat to work at getting under but I managed.

Next Ceasar came for a grooming. He is a Yorkie and his family is up at the lake for the summer too. I used a #10 blade on his body and a #15 blade to deal with the wispy leg hairs. His face and ears were shortened using blending shears. He was kind of pully with his legs but over all a good little guy. He will enjoy his sand and water beach time with this summer trim.

I had a visit from Sunny and Emmy yesterday. They are poodleX sisters and so cute and full of mischief. The groom was as last time...#4 allover with scizzored legs. They arrived right in the middle of our renovation work but the lino was down so I got the grooming done without difficulty. The walls were all gone on the inside so they had lots of room to roam around. This reno work is going to turn the grooming shop into a boarding kennel for cats and dogs as well and add a washroom and a coffee/snack room.

Today I met a new little friend in my grooming shop. Sammy is a Silkie/Yorkie X with only one eye. He is quite a nervous little guy but he settled down nicely as the groom progressed. I used a #10 blade on his body, #15 on his legs and scizzored and blended to give him a short face to go along with his summer do. I'm not sure is this was what was wanted...the instructions were for short...which as we all know means different things to different folks. He has very sensitive skin so I was careful not to back brush too vigorously...I used the reversed brush technique so the pins of my slicker would have a softer feel against his skin. I hope to see him again but...alas...they are seasonal folks here for the summer at the cabin.

Today Tinkerbell came to visit my grooming table. She is a very timid Poodle X and was very matted this time. I used a #10 blade all over with a #7 on top of her head and #5 for the muzzle. She started out a bit scrambly but was quite good for the groom once she figured out that all I wanted was for her to stand in a certain position for a certain amount of time. A very smart little girl! She will enjoy this tidy clean coat for her fun days in the barn with her buddies.