Grooming Terms & Conditions

Health and Medical Conditions

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Procedures within the grooming environment can be stressful for some dogs, especially for senior, young, overweight dogs or those with medical concerns. The process may expose unknown medical conditions or aggravate a current one during or after the groom. In the best interest of your pet this agreement will give Muttkuts permission to seek emergency veterinary treatment if we deem it necessary for whatever reason. We will do the best to contact you first, before taking your pet for treatment, however this may not always be feasible. Unless we are deemed to be negligent all medical expenses are the responsibility of the owner. By agreeing to these Terms and Conditions you are expressly agreeing to the following disclaimer:

Elderly, Infirm, Overweight or Young Dogs Disclaimer
A full groom can take in-excess of 3 hours and is physically demanding as well as stressful for some animals. Whilst Muttkuts make every effort to provide additional support to elderly/infirm/overweight and young dogs we cannot guarantee that your dog will be able to adequately support themselves for the duration of the groom which may result in serious health risks. There is also an increased risk of other injuries such as cuts and grazes. Muttkuts reserve the right to stop the grooming process at anytime with payment in full being due on collection of your dog.

 

Vaccinations

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By using our services, owners confirm that their dog is up to date with their annual vaccinations against Canine Distemper, Infectious Canine Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, and Canine Parvovirus. An unvaccinated dog may put itself and others at risk. Muttkuts takes no responsibility for any dog that may contract any of the aforementioned diseases.
Muttkuts may ask for proof of vaccination and veterinary information which must be provided.

 

Fleas & Ticks

Muttkuts is proud to be a tick/flea free environment. If your dog is known to have a parasitic infestation, we ask that your grooming appointment is rescheduled to a time when your pet is free from said infestation. 24 hours notice must be provided to avoid a cancelation charge. We recommend that you contact your veterinary surgeon to provide you with the best recommended treatment. If fleas are found on your dog, we will use a flea shampoo and be required to do additional disinfection of our premises and equipment. An additional £10 will be charged to your bill. If ticks are found an additional £5 will be charged to include removal. We will not be held responsible for any infection caused by the tick or removal thereof.

 

Coat Condition

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Muttkuts practice humanity over vanity. If we are presented with a neglected coat and believe, in our professional opinion, it is kinder to remove the coat than it is to de-mat this will be done in accordance with The Animal Welfare Act 2006. Whilst we will make every effort to identify this as part of the pre-groom consultation and coat assessment there may be occasions where the degree of matting cannot be fully identified until we commence the groom.
In this event we will make every effort to contact you however if this is not possible we will, in our professional opinion, do what we believe is in the best interest of the welfare of the dog. By agreeing to these Terms and Conditions you are expressly agreeing to the following De-Matting disclaimer:

De-Matting Disclaimer
Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, it is an offence to cause unnecessary suffering to an animal: – this includes prolonged ‘de-matting’ which is painful and detrimental to the welfare of the dog. If you bring in your dog with more than 15 minutes of de-matting work, we are required by the Act to clip your dog short humanely or refer you to your vet to do the same. We will only attempt to de-matt 5% of a dog – which equates to about 50p sized mat behind each ear, same size in the armpits and perhaps one or two in the groin or tail area. We have assessed your dog’s coat and found it to be matted, therefore it needs to be clipped short. This can be prevented by daily brushing with a slicker brush and comb. Will be happy to explain the correct way to brush your dog and suggest a grooming programme that will allow us to achieve the look you would like for your dog, this may involve more frequent visits to our salon and will certainly involve daily grooming at home. When a dog’s coat becomes matted, it causes discomfort as the matts pull tightly on the skin and underlying health conditions may not be visible. When a matted coat is clipped short, it may occasional reveal sore, reddened and irritated skin, this is due to the fact that the skin has not been able to breathe, and air circulation is not restored. Clipping a matted coat can take longer and cause additional wear and tear on our equipment so a further fee may be chargeable in addition to the normal groom price.
The process of de-matting increases the risk of injury including but not limited to cuts and grazes, skin irritations caused by the shortness of the clipper blades that will be used as well as possible haematomas. In addition, you may see some behavioural changes such as head shaking, excessive scratching, licking and “scooting”. This is where the dog will scrape their back end on the floor to relive itching and irritations. Should you have any concerns you should seek advise from your usual vet.

Additional charges may be incurred due to the wear on equipment, additional products used, as well as time and skill needed to remove matting.

 

 

 

 

Behavioural Charges

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Aggression
Owners have the obligation to inform Muttkuts of any known aggressive behaviour traits their pet may have to other animals or humans. Specifically, the owner must inform Muttkuts if they have been advised by pervious groomer(s) of any of the aforementioned behaviours.

Nervous/Anxious Dogs
Muttkuts caters to dogs with nervous traits, owners have the obligation to inform us of any such behaviours in order for us to cater to their needs to the best of our ability.

Behavioural charges will be decided by Muttkuts depending on the severity of the behaviour and the time, skill, and equipment required to groom the dog. If your dog should bite you agree to be responsible for all related medical bills, loss of earnings and equipment damage. We reserve the right to refuse service if we believe your dog may become a danger to itself or those within the salon. In the event any of these behaviours present during the groom the session may stopped at anytime and the full fee incurred.

Any dogs that are aggressive towards us or any other pet, may need to be muzzled. It’s the owners responsibility to inform us if you wish your dog not to be muzzled, refusal of this, may result in termination of the groom.
We reserve the right to refuse or terminate the contract of any dog or owner who displays destructive, aggressive or unreasonable behaviour.
 

 

Time Keeping

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Muttkuts works to a strict time frame to ensure that your dog receives ample grooming time and one-to-one care. We expect to admit you at your given appointment time, if you are early we may not be able to grant immediate access and would ask that you wait until you allocated time. Likewise, if you are more than 15 minutes late we will may have to refuse your groom on welfare grounds as rushing the groom may lead to unnecessary stress and possible injury. A fee equal to the cost of the groom could be incurred. If you are more than 15 minutes late collecting your dog a late collection charges could be incurred.

 

Pricing

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Any prices provided are an estimate only. Additional charges may be incurred due to:
• Overweight dogs or oversized for the breed
• Unkept/neglected coats
• Aggressive, senior, nervous or timid dogs that require additional handling
• Fleas and/or ticks
• Dogs that require additional handling for whatever reason

 

Cancellations

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We require a minimum 24 hours notice for cancelled appointments. If a minimum 24 hours notice of cancellation of a booked service is not given by the client, the full fee can be charged, unless we have a letter from the vet stating your dog’s illness/injury.
We will make every effort to give 24 hours notice if we are unable to groom your dog. In this case, no fee will be charged for that planned service. Adverse weather conditions may mean delay or cancellation of our services at short notice.
 

 

General

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We recommend not to feed your pet within an hour prior of your appointment. Please also ensure that your dog has been given the opportunity to relieve themselves before being groomed, as this will ensure they get the maximum enjoyment out of the groom.

We recommend puppies wait until 2 weeks after their 2nd vaccinations before booking a puppy groom.
 

Muttkuts at some stages will be unable to groom pregnant or in season bitches, prior notification is required so we can then advise if a groom would be able to be groomed or not. We cannot provide services for any dogs noted under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

. Muttkuts uses social media sites to keep owners up to date with important information and to sometimes share what your pet has been up to during their time with us. Please advise us if you are not  happy for us to post photographs of your pet on our social media sites.