# Rory (and I) survived her first home grooming! (photos)



## Deacon Blues (Nov 22, 2013)

Over the weekend I converted a coat closet into a mini-grooming station. It's not fancy, but I'm just a pet owner, I don't show.










The sun came out today so we headed out for a jaunt in the park, and got a little dirty.










So I took the opportunity to try out the bin bath technique. It does a very thorough job and Rory was a good sport. Apart from an emergency butt bath all her grooming was done with a professional groomer.










My drying technique needs _lots_ of work but I got her dry. I need to re-read that part of From Nose To Tail. The tail needs work.










She was so happy to be done with the ordeal she gave me a smile.










Before heading off to nap on the sofa with her toy frog.










Interesting footnote: the Diane Klumb book "The Havanese"  says the average Hav will need to be bathed 760 times in it's lifetime.


----------



## AnnaM (Jun 2, 2012)

She is beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.


----------



## HavMe1 (Jan 17, 2014)

OMG I love her smile. And wow. What a coat!


----------



## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

I love the idea of having your grooming station in the closet! Great idea! Looks like the experience was a good one for Rory..who by the way is just adorable!


----------



## tra_po (Aug 14, 2013)

Oh my goodness... those smiles are adorable! 

That is awesome. I'm glad to get some feedback on the bin idea. I'm going to be mom of 2 Havs soon and I may need to be more efficient in my bathing!  Love the grooming closet.


----------



## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

I love your grooming area and groom, great job! I ordered a grooming table, it's on the way. I want to set up an area to do some grooming in between the groomer and eventually do it myself. How do you like your dryer? Is it an ionic one? I am in the process of looking to get one and came across what looks like you have.


----------



## Lily528 (Oct 3, 2012)

Nice going, Rory looks fantastic!


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Rory looks GREAT, and I LOVE your new grooming station! I wish I had a place to try the bin method, but my kitchen sink is just too small, and my knees won't take using the tub.

As far as the dryer is concerned, yeah, human driers work, but they take a lot longer. One thing you can do is to set up one dryer on the stand, pointed at the dog and set on low, then work on the dog with a second dryer in your hand. That way they are getting dried on both sides at the same time.

Still, in the long run, I am really glad I finally switched to a force dryer. I first had a cheap B'air dryer… they work fine, but are VERY loud. Now I have a Kool Pup and absolutely LOVE it!!! It and the B'air take about the same amount of time, but the Kool Pup is MUCH quieter, and has a rheostat, so you can dial in the speed you want for faces, etc. 

I can dry Kodi with one of the force dryers in half the time a human hair dyer takes. It DOES take some getting used to… you handle it differently than a human hair dryer. Heather Andrews posted a GREAT video of using a force dryer that helped me immensely!


----------



## Deacon Blues (Nov 22, 2013)

jabojenny said:


> I love your grooming area and groom, great job! I ordered a grooming table, it's on the way. I want to set up an area to do some grooming in between the groomer and eventually do it myself. How do you like your dryer? Is it an ionic one? I am in the process of looking to get one and came across what looks like you have.


Jen, I like the dryer alot. It's the Andis 60070 Comfort Dry Ionic/Ceramic Pet Dryer purchased from Amazon for $39.99.

I haven't felt the need to use the high heat or high fan settings and in my estimation it dries pretty quickly. I had a Metro Air Force for my German Shepherd and it would probably blow Rory right off the table.


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Deacon Blues said:


> Jen, I like the dryer alot. It's the Andis 60070 Comfort Dry Ionic/Ceramic Pet Dryer purchased from Amazon for $39.99.
> 
> I haven't felt the need to use the high heat or high fan settings and in my estimation it dries pretty quickly. I had a Metro Air Force for my German Shepherd and it would probably blow Rory right off the table.


You definitely DON'T want to use high heat. Not only is it too warm for the dog, but will dry out and damage her coat!

My first experiences with a force dryer made me put it in the closet for a LONG time&#8230; for just the reason you mentioned. I almost blew Kodi off the table, and he ended up looking like I'd stuck him in a light socket!  Fortunately, from Heather, I learned it's all in the technique. You have to learn HOW to use it on a small, long haired dog. 

(BTW, my old B'air is now in the barn, being used to dry my horse after he works! )


----------



## Deacon Blues (Nov 22, 2013)

krandall said:


> You definitely DON'T want to use high heat. Not only is it too warm for the dog, but will dry out and damage her coat!
> 
> My first experiences with a force dryer made me put it in the closet for a LONG time&#8230; for just the reason you mentioned. I almost blew Kodi off the table, and he ended up looking like I'd stuck him in a light socket!  Fortunately, from Heather, I learned it's all in the technique. You have to learn HOW to use it on a small, long haired dog.
> 
> (BTW, my old B'air is now in the barn, being used to dry my horse after he works! )


Karen, do you know where I can find the video by Heather? BTW I just use a fleece cooler on my mare, she dries off quickly.


----------



## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

I love all the pics. She is a cutie. ❤


----------



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Deacon Blues said:


> Karen, do you know where I can find the video by Heather? BTW I just use a fleece cooler on my mare, she dries off quickly.


Oliver's got a pretty thick coat this winter, and I haven't wanted to clip out more than just his chest because of our very variable weather. We've gone fro 56F to 6F in a 24 hour period here this winter! (we went from 45F yesterday to 16F this morning!) On the warm days, when I work him in the indoor, he gets warm enough under the saddle and girth that it would be hours before he dried on his own, and since he's not at home at the moment, I can't wait hours for him to dry under the cooler before I put his blankets back on. So the dryer has been very handy! 

Found the video!:


----------



## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Rory is GORGEOUS! I love your grooming closet and all the photos you uploaded. I may try the bin method. I currently wash Emmie in the kitchen sink but putting her in a bin of water with shampoo may make it easier to get her clean and not use as much shampoo, thus making rinsing easier. :bathbaby:
-Jeanne-


----------



## BFrancs (May 17, 2012)

Rory is adorable. I love how she is smiling and she's even smiling with her eyes too! She is a cutie.


----------



## sandypaws (Aug 8, 2012)

Rory is absolutely beautiful. I love your new grooming room. Very creative. With all those towels it looks like a massage parlor. lol


----------



## Den&Barb (Dec 6, 2013)

Nice setup.
Where is the sink in relation to the closet/grooming room?


----------



## Deacon Blues (Nov 22, 2013)

Den&Barb said:


> Nice setup.
> Where is the sink in relation to the closet/grooming room?


The sink is just my bathtub, about 15 feet away.


----------



## Celesthav (Mar 20, 2013)

Rory is beautiful. Love her smile. You did a great job on the grooming station. Very creative. Your stack of towels looks like the stack I have for Maggie by the back door. It's been a rainy and now snowy winter.  

Did I read the number of baths for the the life of an average Hav correctly? 760! Wow. I bathe and groom Maggie every two weeks. Hmmm. I may need more towels. :biggrin1:

Jeanne


----------

