Grooming Station

[krisykris]

So I just moved into my new house and in the finished basement I have a deep double sink... which immediately I thought "That would be SO great for grooming!!" I'm looking on input of how to get a full grooming set up down there w/table, tools, ect. Right now I usually use my kitchen counter as a makeshift station, but it's super messy and I hate it.

All I have right now are sharp scissors, a bunch of different shampoos conditioners and sprays. A doggie comb and bigger bristled brush and my blow dryer.

I really enjoy grooming them myself, and they get it done by me once a week and by the groomers every 6 weeks. I'd really like to invest some money and time and learn to do it myself though. I feel like 35 bucks per dog per 6 weeks is a waste when I could do it on my own :).

[krisykris]

anyone? :)

[otch1]

Hi krisykris... was in a hurry but I believe I saw you have 3 dogs, all small breeds 2 are coated? You'd save a lot of money setting up shop in your basement. You can look in Pet Edge and similar catalogs for retail prices on equipment. You will do well to start with a noose and bolt attachment into wall, for sink to keep dog in place. A shower nozzle attachment for sink. A grooming table with arm and noose, set next to sink. A hand held or industrial dryer for blowing excess water from coat while dog is in sink. A cage dryer, to attach to the front of a verikennel for finishing/drying. A clipper and blades for sanitary trims, between paws and eyes. Scissors, blades and other equipment as needed. Approx. $150. table, $125.00 indust. dryer, $125.00 cage dryer, $100.00 clipper. You can also go on ebay and find a lot of these things used, in reasonably good condition for reasonable prices. This equipment will pay for itself in a year or so, if you have a $120.00 groom bill every 6 weeks! Good luck!

[Brattina88]

You definitely need to invest in some good clippers with different sized blades, lubricating oil, scissors and blades... as well as proper brushes (my dollar store and human brushes didn't cut it LOL) like otch1 suggested.
A sprayer makes bathes much easier, and a pet dryer (human ones blow hot air and are not good for the pets) will cut your time in half.

Now, you probably can't get professional work done using it, but a lot of people use their washer or dryer tops as a 'grooming table'. They do sell an arm and noose that can be attached to any table, that may be most cost effective (not sure if that's an issue or not...)

Good luck! It takes some practice; I'm sure you'll look up the how to's on the internet or in some books. The best ones are the ones with color pictures that show how the clippers are being held, IMO ;) Feel free to post for help, as it may be hard to find set grooming techniques for the mixed breeds...

I've been grooming Maddie myself for years, but just this year I have "quit" sending her to the professional groomer when I decided to get lazy, and I'm doing it all on my own :o I saved a lot of money already (and it went straight to the gas tank lol). $35 per dog, every six weeks? whew, and I complained about Maddie's $35-$50 :p