Annie Groom Your Dog

Cancellations & Lateness

If you need to reschedule or cancel, I ask for at least 48 hours notice. Last minute cancellations hurt my business, I completely understand emergencies happen and am empathetic to unexpected situations, but please respect this policy. I reserve the right to charge $45 for cancellations and reschedule requests with less than 24 hours notice, and 50% of the groom price for complete no-shows or lateness that results in a last minute reschedule. These fees must be paid prior to rebooking.

If you are running late, I can accommodate you up to 15 minutes, but beyond that we may have to do a partial groom where I do my best to complete everything. Anything past 15 minutes will lead to no-show fees to accommodate for my driving time and the disruption to my schedule that day.

Required Vaccinations

I require your pup is up-to-date on their rabies shot and parvo/distemper shots. I highly recommend the Bordetella/Kennel cough vaccinations to protect your pup as well, but I do not require it.

Matting, Excessive Undercoat, & Other Coat Problems

Based on your pup’s coat condition, de-matting and/or de-shedding fees may apply. I charge $1/minute and can spend up to 30 minutes of extra brushing and de-shedding beyond a normal reasonable amount. Just as your hairdresser isn’t responsible for brushing your hair between appointments, neither are groomers — there is only so much I can do when working with a improperly maintained coat.

For excessive matting, shaving the coat as short as necessary will be the only offered option.For matted coats that require shaving, sometimes a “pre-shave” is necessary. This means I need to shave your pup’s coat prior to the bath, so I can get them properly clean and to prevent the water from tightening the mats further. I charge a $50 pre-shave fee to cover the damage to my tools from the dirty hair, and because of the additional time and care that is required to safely accomplish this.​

Note: I will not shave double coats (e.g. Huskies, German Shepherds, etc) due to the health risks and coat damage, and I will refer you to a vet groomer or recommend a plan to schedule a series of brushing appointments to save your pup’s double coat.

Special Handling

If your dog requires special handling due to age, disability, or behavior — please discuss this with me. Depending on the situation, I may have to charge a $35 handling fee if the appointment requires extra booking time. For special handling grooms, if there is any time that I feel mine or your pup’s safety is at risk I will stop the groom.

Bugs, Skunks, Skin Diseases, & Injuries

All pets are expected to be free of pests, skunk odors, skin disease (e.g. infection, lesions), and injuries (e.g. broken bone, etc unless aproved by a veterinarian and discussed with me). In certain situations I am happy to help, but contact me first before your appointment if your pet has any of these conditions so we can determine if we need to reschedule.

Anal Gland Expression

I do not offer anal gland expression. The official recommendation from professional veterinarians is that groomers should not perform anal gland expression, and it should only be done internally by a vet.

Proper anal gland treatment requires an internal examination and diagnosis from a vet. Groomers can only legally perform “external” gland expression which can be harmful in several ways: 1) weakening of the muscles and making dogs continuously reliant on manual expression, 2) improper expression of impacted glands these can lead to damage and infection, 3) inability to diagnose a serious internal issue, such as cancer or impaction, that has been misidentified as a simple gland expression from the outside.

There are many groomers that still offer this service in Colorado, and if it’s a service you frequently require during grooming, then I recommend finding one who does.