Salty Haircut Policies
Our policies on haircuts, scheduling, matting, etc.
Although this page is new, the philosophy behind these policies has been at the heart of Salty Dog since the beginning. These policies support our original mission to be a salon where everything is truly for the pets. As always, we strive to provide a calm and positive grooming atmosphere where pets feel comfortable and safe.
These policies apply to all clients whose dogs need regular haircuts, including but not limited to: Maltese, Yorkshire Terriers, Poodles, Bichon Frise, Havanese, Coton De Tulear, Shih Tzu, Wheaten Terriers, Cocker Spaniels, Schnauzers, all Doodles, and many long coated mixed breeds.
When considering your pet’s coat maintenance, there are three factors we can work with to keep your dog mat-free and looking their best:
Frequency of professional grooming
At-home maintenance
Length of haircut
We have to find a balance between these factors that suits your budget, schedule, lifestyle, and aesthetic preferences.
Scheduling
All clients are expected to adhere to a schedule of appointments that is appropriate for their dog’s coat type, maintenance routine, and style goals. The schedule must allow for the dog to arrive at their next appointment without matting and without being significantly overgrown. Consistent appointments also give us the opportunity to build a relationship with your pet so they are familiar with us, our salon, and our process. All of this means grooming appointments are less stressful and more comfortable for your pet and we are better able to meet your grooming goals and style preferences, so your pet always looks their best!
We Require a Haircut Appointment Every 6-8 Weeks
Your groomer will recommend a schedule they feel is suitable for your dog’s coat type and your haircut goals. As a general rule, all haircut clients are required to commit to a schedule of haircuts every 8 weeks or less. For haircuts longer than 1/2”, we require a schedule of haircuts every 6 weeks or less. Depending on your pet’s coat, your groomer may recommend a more frequent schedule or adding a bath & tidy between appointments. We may be unable to offer appointments to clients who do not maintain a consistent schedule.
If You Get Off Schedule
If a pet goes longer than the recommended schedule without a haircut and becomes matted, the pet must be shaved. No dematting will be offered to pets who are off schedule, regardless of the reason.
Adding Bath & Tidy Appointments
If you choose to include bath and tidy appointments to your pet’s schedule (which we strongly recommend), they must be scheduled between haircut appointments, not in lieu of them.
Prebooking Is Strongly Recommended
All haircut clients are encouraged to prebook at least 6 months of appointments at a time, after their first appointment with us occurs. We are typically booked 6 or more weeks in advance. If you do not prebook, often we will not be able to book you an appointment at the interval you need, and this may result in your pet going longer than recommended. We will not be able to make exceptions to our policies for clients who do not prebook if we do not have an opening within your recommended schedule. Prebooking ensures you can adhere to your recommended schedule and keep your pet well maintained.
We may require prebooking for pets whose coats or styles require more maintenance.
Matting
Matting is uncomfortable and unhealthy for your pet. It can exacerbate skin conditions, reduce blood flow to the skin, mask other issues, and matts are often uncomfortable and risky to remove. For this reason, we want to work with you to find a schedule and haircut length/style that works for you and your pet that decreases the likelihood of matting.
We Only Offer Limited Dematting
If your pet becomes matted while you are adhering to our recommended schedule, we will offer one minor to moderate dematting session, provided the coat can be safely dematted without stress or injury to your pet. We will recommend changes to the schedule or haircut length/schedule to help you avoid matting in the future.
In an effort to support and provide the best care for our most sensitive pets, dematting is not offered for puppies, senior pets, overly fearful pets, or those with anxiety or reactivity to the grooming process or environment.
We Do Not Offer “Spot” Shaving
We do not recommend, and do not offer “spot” shaving (meaning shaving out just the matting and leaving the surrounding coat). Spot shaving leaves uneven coat that is prone to rematting and usually leads to larger and larger shaved patches at each visit. Instead, we want to help you proactively prevent matting to better ensure your pet’s safety, comfort, and appearance. For the same reason, we strongly discourage you from cutting mats out at home. Also note, cutting mats with scissors is very dangerous and can lead to severe injuries, therefore, we strongly recommend against this practice.
Repeated Incidents of Matting Will Require Shaving
If your pet becomes matted two or more times within 6 months, or if at any time your pet becomes matted because of being off schedule, we will have to shave the pet down and start again with a new schedule.
In the event your pet must be shaved down, we will require a change to the haircut length/style and/or appointment schedule going forward.
It is our professional position that matting should be prevented. In this spirit, we want to help you take a proactive approach to managing your pet’s coat rather than a reactionary one. Your home maintenance routine is a vital part of achieving your grooming goals. Please let us know if you need help choosing brushes or products or developing good technique. We are happy to help.
Thank you for your understanding and your commitment to help keep our salon a safe, comfortable, and positive grooming environment.
