Poodles are high-maintenance dogs. Gabriel has a naturally wonderful coat. He's got healthy rich black hair, and it curls beautifully. I brush him regularly and bathe him every two weeks like I'm supposed to. When it comes to trims though, don't trust me!

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Why did you do it?!

Well, I will admit that for some dogs PetSmart has been amazing. My grandmother takes her schnauzer there and he loves it! I've taken my other dog before, and when I went to check on her she was just standing there on the grooming table wagging her little tail! So when it came time for Gabriel to be trimmed up a bit I trusted their grooming salon to take care of my baby. WRONG DECISION!

I was told it would be no more than three hours. Time is very important when your dog is the one who takes care of you! And so three and a half hours passed and I still hadn't heard from them. I went to check on Gabe, and who's in the window? My puppy! And much to my absolute HORROR he was standing there frozen with a HUGE poofy back side and his belly shaved to almost nothing. My dog looked like some kind of show creature!

I absolutely can NOT have my working dog looking like some kind of fluffy house pet, so I instantly went inside and confronted the groomer about it. I got the worse attitude! "Mam, this paper is what you signed, and that's EXACTLY what I'm giving him!" Uhh, no! But I was in bad shape. I had instantly panicked, and couldn't really do more than sit there and cry.

One of my best friends and my mother managed to get things sorted out with the manager in the end while I cuddled Gabe and tried to make him feel better. I think he knew he looked ridiculous. We came home the next day with a pair of scissors (which don't actually work on anything, by the way), a nice razor (but with only one blade), a new comb and a new brush. I was confident that I could do better than that woman had any day. How hard could it be?

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A Previous Success

I have used the razor before. Gabriel is a beautiful dog, but most people call him a female. I really got tired of explaining that he was not "Gabrielle" but "Gabriel." There is a subtle difference there! Nate, another standard poodle who is just over a year older than Gabe, has a goatee in an attempt to look more masculine, so why not let Gabe have some fun? Being the cool cat that I am, I have given him a mohawk. He's awesome!

The mohawk has been a huge success too. He looks great, really cool, and everybody who notices thinks it's absolutely adorable! (And it is!) And so, based on the success of the mohawk cut, I was certain that the rest of him couldn't be that hard. Could it?

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A Current Failure

We waited quite a long time to need to groom him again. The PetSmart groomer had cut his hair so short that it took ages to get it to really look curly again instead of just fall on his back in mini waves! But it has been getting a bit shaggy, and I knew it was time.

So I pulled out all of my tools and got started. His front legs were tough, but not too bad. I trimmed up his front feet nicely while he rolled onto his back and took a little nap. Next I took care of his face and trimmed the sides of his mohawk a bit. I took a little off the top of the 'hawk so it would look more uniform and intentional, and got ready to take on the back legs. Well, sweet little Gabe is a little more tetchy about his back end than his front apparently.

He was fine when I turned on the trimmer, but not when it touched his right back leg! I got through it okay, and took care of both feet, then got ready to conquer the final leg. Just as I prepared to take a little bit off, he moved! I ended up shaving a massive chunk of hair off of his left hind leg... He looks so silly! AGAIN! But this time it's my fault! I attempted to finish up with no more problems, but when I tried to take care of the inside of his leg he moved again! Thus leaving another bald patch... this one even larger than the last one.

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What Now?

Well, now I get to take Gabe all over looking like he got in a fight with a lawn mower and lost. Yikes! But I do love him, and thankfully after such a hairy experience he still loves me. At least, I think that's what it is when he's curled up by my side as I write to you! Dog is man's best friend, and I'm glad that mine has forgiven me for making him look silly.

Anybody else know how to groom a poodle?