Dog grooming ‘essential, not a luxury’
WHILE women and men keep longing for hairdressers and barbers during the pandemic, some dogs just cannot wait.
Dog groomer Johanna Somers has been tending to dogs which suffer badly unless they get the grooming they need.
She has been grooming dogs of all shapes and sizes for 11 years.
“A lot of groomers prefer to groom small dogs but
I like the big slobbery monsters as well,” said Johanna, who runs her
All Dogs Great And Small business at her home in Raheny, Dublin.
The Irish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has advised dog groomers they can provide an emergency service for dogs which need urgent grooming to prevent welfare problems.
Dogs with curly coats, such as poodles, bichon frise, shih tzu and Maltese, are high maintenance. Matted fur can lead to skin infections, suffering and serious health problems.
These breeds must be groomed every 10 to 12 weeks or they may suffer, she said.
Normally, Johanna and two staff would tend to the dogs but the business closed in the national lockdown. It is planned to resume normal business on June 8.
Johanna began working last week on dogs which needed grooming urgently.
She said when gardai inquired about the work she was doing, they were satisfied when she explained that she was dealing with animal welfare cases which is deemed essential work.
The 41-year-old mother of three sees the lighter side of grooming in the pandemic when humans say they would like to be shorn, including her husband Ross.
“I’ve done my husband’s hair. I used the dog clippers. Ross told his friends on the golf course and now his friends are asking will I do their hair, I’m sure my hairdresser is probably cringing,” she laughed.
“I’ve had a lot of women saying to me they need to see their hairdresser soon. They are saying to me ‘a dog can get it done but I can’t. It’s not fair’.
“They are saying some dog groomers are open before the hairdressers so they are not happy about that at all. I’m envious myself, totally,” she added.
But she said her work is a very serious matter when dealing with animal welfare. She said: “I would see a couple of dogs every couple of days coming in absolutely dire states. Really bad. They are suffering.”
Matted fur can get so bad that the skin can’t breathe. In extreme cases, circulation is affected which can even lead eventually to vets performing amputations.
She is prioritising cases. No animal must be allowed to suffer.
“We are hoping as an industry that the Government will reclassify us as essential. We are classed as a luxury service and pay 23pc VAT which is absolutely ridiculous because, if you see these dogs coming in, you would know we are essential. We are absolutely essential,” she said.
She is closely following health guidelines for working during the Covid crisis.
She operates a three-gate system where an owner removes collars and lead at the first gate and places the dog through a middle gate while Johanna stays at least two metres away behind a third gate.
She wears full PPE and ensures that bathtubs and surfaces are thoroughly disinfected after each dog. Each dog is placed in a bath immediately on arrival.
She said she will continue to ensure that no dog will suffer from a lack of grooming.