Mel's Dog Grooming

01/11/2024

01/08/2024

01/08/2024

09/02/2023

My pretty boy Cody. He knows he is beautiful too! Lol ♥️💯🙌🏻

04/28/2023

Had a Doggie come in today. Believe it or not this is fur in the ears. I use a numbing powder to pluck them so it's a pain free and sanitary option as a add on for you furry family member. It's included with the price of grooming.

04/22/2023

My sweet sweet Cody ⚘️♥️

04/22/2023

Ace ready for the days work 🥹

04/22/2023

Sweetie pie before and after

03/16/2023

💗💗💗

01/05/2023

taking appts for valentines. i recommend calling and scheduling ahead of time

01/05/2023

IS A TIRED DOG A “GOOD” DOG?
It sounds logical - if a dog is tired from lots of physical activity or environmental stimulation they will settle down and have a good, long sleep which will in turn make our lives a bit easier. Sometimes they will, every dog is different and different breeds have different needs, but sometimes a tired dog may become more aroused, more energetic, behave out of character and make bad choices.
Some of us may be familiar with young children who are hyped up, can’t settle down, behave badly or have tantrums and outbursts often when they have not had enough rest or sleep and are over tired. How do we behave when we are overtired? We may feel edgy, snappy, irritable, less in control of our emotions and more likely to make mistakes or bad decisions. The same applies to our dogs.
Although exercise and stimulation are so important in meeting the needs of our dogs, too much may have a negative effect. Too much stimulation increases arousal chemicals in the brain and body and more adrenaline is produced. Even after the stimulating activity has ended, elevated arousal chemicals can remain high for a day or more. Some dogs need time to decompress to allow these chemicals to dissipate.
Balance is important. Help your dog to decompress by providing frequent break periods, a quiet place to rest and sleep where they won’t be disturbed, calming activities like chewing, puzzle toys, Licky mats, Kongs or go for a slow, calming sniffing walk in a quiet area.

01/05/2023

THAT “GUILTY” LOOK
“My dog knows that he’s done something wrong, just look how guilty he looks!" This is something that we hear so often.
People are amused and entertained through social media and even dedicated websites where pictures of “guilty” dogs are uploaded. The “guiltier” the dog looks, the more popular these posts are and the funnier people find them. I find this really sad because it’s a complete misunderstanding of a dog’s body language.
Dogs may look guilty, but they are not feeling guilty. That “guilty” look is actually a dog showing the body language of fear, stress, anxiety or appeasement. The fear of being punished, the stress and anxiety of hearing the person’s tone of voice, demeanour and noticing the person’s body language, the appeasement behaviour in an attempt to calm the angry person down to avoid punishment.
As people, it’s natural for us to want to believe that our dogs feel guilt and remorse about whatever they’ve done wrong. Maybe thinking that they really do feel guilty somehow makes their behaviour more acceptable and is a form of an apology to us.
Dogs are capable of a wide range of emotions that are similar to that of a 2 to 2½ child, but it’s highly unlikely that they feel more complex emotions, like guilt, regret, remorse, shame or pride.
Guilt is a complex emotion and defined as an unhappy feeling that you have because you have done something wrong or think that you may have done something wrong. It’s a feeling of shame, regret or remorse. The feeling of guilt requires an understanding of cause and effect and is relative to time.
Do dogs spend the day feeling guilty, waiting for you to come home to find that chewed up couch or shoe, or are they waiting excitedly for you to come home because they really missed you and are looking forward to some attention?
For the emotional wellbeing of our dogs, let’s seek to understand them more and focus less on how we believe they should feel just because it makes us feel better.

01/05/2023

PREDICTABLE PATTERNS AND WHY THEY MATTER
We can help our dogs to cope in our world by providing predictable patterns that they can follow, even when the unpredictable happens. This requires consistency, repetition and patience, but dogs quickly learn what to do when that behaviour creates a predictable, positive result.
Predictability lowers anxiety, allows the brain to conserve energy and creates a sense of trust and security. Like other animals, dogs are experts at finding patterns. They look for patterns in their world and in the behaviour of others and just like we do, feel so much better when they can make sense of a situation rather than feeling confused or anxious when they can’t find a pattern.
When we create predictable patterns, dogs begin to understand what happens and how they should respond when a specific situation occurs. The situation becomes the cue for the behaviour rather than the cue itself. We often get caught up in using cues instead of just showing our dogs that this is what they should do in this situation. Being consistent and following a pattern with our dogs, creates trust, stability and security in helping them to know what to expect.

12/12/2022