Tail Talk Grooming Chronicles with Hound Therapy

What Your Groomer Wishes You Knew About Your "Aggressive" Dog

• Shannon & Tanya • Episode 4

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Grooming Training: The Ugly Truth Behind Grooming Difficult Dogs

Ever wondered why some dogs seem impossible to groom? Shannon and Tanya from Hound Therapy pull back the curtain on what really happens when pets struggle with grooming sessions. They tackle the widespread misconception that difficult dogs are simply "aggressive," revealing instead how fear, anxiety, physical limitations, and lack of experience typically drive challenging behaviors.

The conversation takes a fascinating turn when they explain how pet parents unwittingly reinforce problematic behaviors. That cute growl when someone approaches your lap dog? You might be laughing, but your groomer faces the consequences when sharp tools need to come near those sensitive areas. The team shares their professional approach to working through these challenges—using patience, positive reinforcement, and sometimes extra hands rather than turning difficult dogs away.

Through a revealing story about a partially-groomed rescue doodle, the pair illustrated the telltale signs that a dog has previously resisted grooming. Those uneven haircuts with untouched feet and faces aren't random—they're clear indicators of a pet that needs specialized handling. Their humanity-over-vanity philosophy shines through as they emphasize early training, short positive sessions, and consistent exposure to grooming environments. Whether you're a pet parent struggling with a reluctant furry friend or simply want to start your puppy off right, this episode delivers practical wisdom from professionals who've seen it all. Ready to transform your pet's grooming experience? Listen now, and discover why Hound Therapy's approach to challenging grooms makes all the difference.

To learn more about Hound Therapy visit:
https://www.HoundTherapy.com
Hound Therapy
3509 E Park Blvd.
Plano, TX
469-367-0009

Speaker 1:

Welcome to Tail Talk Grooming Chronicles with Hound Therapy, the podcast where we talk all things pet grooming, daycare academy and more. Hosted by Shannon and Tanya of Hound Therapy serving pet owners across North Texas, we're here to share expert tips, hilarious pet stories and the inside scoop on keeping your furry friends happy and healthy. Our motto humanity over vanity. And don't worry, we don't bite. Let's get started. Who let the dogs out? Who let the dogs out?

Speaker 2:

Grooming difficult dogs isn't just about skill. It's about patience, understanding and safety. What happens behind the scenes when groomers face aggressive, anxious or untrained pets? The ugly truth may surprise you. Welcome back everyone. I'm Sofia Yvette, co-host, slash producer, back in the studio with Shannon and Tanya, professional groomers at Hound Therapy. Shannon and Tanya how's it going todayound Therapy Shannon and Tanya how's it going today? It's good, sophia. How are you? I'm doing very well, and that's wonderful to hear. Now let's answer the question everyone wants to know when it comes to grooming training what is the ugly truth behind grooming difficult dogs?

Speaker 3:

Well, I would say the ugly. Truth is that a lot of people just their dogs are misunderstood. Either they're afraid, labeled aggression, they've got anxiety, they might have some physical limitations, matted coats, which just means usually it's from the other three that I just listed above, or lack of experience, which means they haven't come in. You know you have a dog. You think your dog is a puppy when it's a year old. With reality, aggression is a label that's given to dogs just too freely. They're not necessarily aggressive. There's a lot of reasons that a dog can act out kind of like a child. So if he's anxious, if there's storms out that day, he might be acting unusual. If he's not used to riding in the car and you put him in the car and every time you take him to the vet, then you bring him with a groomer. The groomer reaches down and he goes to bite you. A lot of groomers will not do dogs that show any signs at all of being anything other than perfect.

Speaker 4:

I know of groomers that if a dog even shows like snarls, shows a tooth, they'll send it home. They have to get done.

Speaker 3:

Not all dogs like their nails done. Not all dogs like their nails done. Not all dogs like to be taken from the owner. So there's a couple of things that we do. We like to get everybody here to start early, definitely encourage everybody. If you have a puppy, four to six months after that first round of puppy shots is probably the best time to bring them in. We use positive reinforcements in here. We keep our sessions real short and we do them frequently as that puppy is getting used to coming in.

Speaker 3:

Or a new dog, an adopted dog, whatever it is, we're not going to keep it here for six to 12 hours. It's going to be in and out. We're going to get them done and then they're going to come more often and realize that it's a little easier to do. If we need to restrain, in other words, if it's a physical limitation that the dog is biting for whatever reason, you know we'll have two of us so we'll hold them up. The biggest is being calm and being patient and we do that in here. We know that we're always prepared for the unexpected.

Speaker 3:

They're dogs, they are not humans. We give them a lot of human emotions that they don't really have. They're not hard to understand. They tell you with your body language. A lot of people will reinforce a bad habit which then causes them a whole lot more money down the line, because every time this dog is on your lap and you go to touch him, or husband goes to touch him, or your wife goes and just like, oh, that's my dog, and he kind of growls and you snicker like ha, ha, ha, he's reinforcing that bad behavior which is definitely not good.

Speaker 3:

And so then when somebody else comes to grab him, you know, if that dog doesn't have a punishment or a correction, well, it's going to continue to do it, and it's going to do it with everybody. And then you get, oh, your dog's aggressive. That's not to say that some dogs can be aggressive with other dogs, but here in hound therapy our dogs are not with other dogs, unless we know them or there is somebody in the pen with them so that they're leashed. We have a big open play area that they can walk around inside of. Before we actually allow them in with other dogs, we don't just free roam all of the animals.

Speaker 3:

I would say the ugliest truth, honestly, is that people are just ill-informed on something that might be cute and fun at home is not cute and fun here. I mean we have scissors that are nine inches, six inches, eight inches. We are cutting in between their face and we've got their nails. Our face is right next to their face. These dogs have to learn how to deal with a loud blower, with how to deal with other dogs barking, people walking by, people coming in. We have cats that are in here, so our training for that is, as I mentioned before, come early. The earlier you come, the easier it is for your dog to get used to it. If you have a dog you're not sure is aggressive or not, bring them in, leave. Bring them in and leave. Put them in the car. Get them in and leave. Put them in the car. Get them used to the things he doesn't like short bursts and then it won't be so bad the next time It'll go a little longer each time.

Speaker 2:

Understood and so getting into it a bit more. What are some of those early signs that a dog may be difficult to groom?

Speaker 4:

So we have some rescue groups. Some are a little more organized than others. We had one not too long ago where they had this little bitty doodle.

Speaker 3:

We offered to do pads and nails for everybody when they were in there. But this doodle was their person was very interested in getting their dog cleaned up. When she walked in and he was a mess. It looked like somebody had just come in and whacked all over his head with scissors. He's short in one spot, long in another. His feet look like little matted socks. His whole back was shaved quite nicely. He smelled good. He'd obviously had a bath.

Speaker 3:

She asked if we could do the nails and she wondered if we could do a light cleanup. Now, mind you, this is a rescue volunteer, not an employee. So she had just met this dog and she's kind of formed a bond with it. And you know, I said we'll do our best and we'll see what we can do this dog. He did not want his nails done at all. I mean like at all. Growling, biting, lunging, leafing off the table Took three of us. The dog weighs maybe 25 pounds, maybe top. We were able to finally do it. We were able to turn the clipper on, rub the clipper on those feet, let him get used to the noise and the sounds. Same thing with the Dremel Explain to this volunteer because she had no idea what we're doing. We've got three people essentially on one little dog and in her mind it's like you know what is going on. This is just a little doodle. I just wanted him cleaned up.

Speaker 3:

Well, the long and the short of it is this dog was clearly, and I could tell by looking at it he was not good for grooming. He is in a shelter for whatever reason. He is in an environment that he doesn't know. He was brought into another environment he didn't know and he'd come in here looking like something the cat drugging. And the reason that that was is because whoever tried to groom him before he also said we're not doing my nails, we're not doing my feet, you're not doing my face, and so they didn't.

Speaker 3:

And in here they don't get that opportunity. We have to teach them that those have to happen. So I looked at her and I said listen. I said if you see another rescue that comes in, I said I'm happy to try and make them adoptable and look pretty and as cute as possible. I said, but if you see that only half the dog is groomed and the parts that are left are the head and the feet, chances are that dog bites and she goes huh, that makes sense but I think it was also a lack of experience on the dog's behalf, like he 100 possibly was put into a shelter when he was young.

Speaker 4:

He wasn't that old, no, he was definitely under a year. So I think it's just a lack of the people that brought him into this world didn't experience him in the world of grooming and he just never got used to it. That, sadly, is now his life, until he gets used to it.

Speaker 3:

And somebody who tried to groom stopped because he bit. So we don't stop because of that. We're going to teach them that, look, it's got to get done. It may take three of us to do it, but we'll get it safely.

Speaker 2:

Get done, it may take three of us to do it, but we'll get it done safely Well. Shannon and Tanya, thank you so much for stopping in today and updating us on that important information we will catch you in the next episode.

Speaker 1:

Have a fantastic rest of your day. Thank you. That's a wrap for this episode of Tail Talk with hound therapy. Ready to book your pet's next groom daycare stay or grooming academy tour? Call us at 469-367-0009 that's 469-367-0009 to schedule an appointment, or visit us online at wwwhoundtherapycom. Serving North Texas with expert pet care. Until next time, keep those tails wagging.