A video of a dog’s hair grooming session allegedly gone wrong has gone viral on TikTok.
The clip was posted two days ago by @blissboydoodle, the TikTok account of a goldendoodle—a cross between a golden retriever and a poodle—and had 1.5 million views at the time of writing.
A message overlaid on the clip says: “I dropped my puppy off at the groomers as a sweet goldendoodle…” The footage shows a fluffy haired goldendoodle laying down in the back of a car. “…when I picked him up he was an angry 30 year old poodle!!!” the message continued. The video shows the dog with extremely short hair on his body and snout, and longer hair on his ears and head.
A caption shared with the post reads: “And to the groomer who did this, I hope this pic haunts you for the rest of your dog grooming life!!!”
Despite the poster being horrified by the dog’s haircut, several TikTok users praised the groomer for doing a “beautiful” job. Some claimed the groomer may have been forced to give the pup a dramatic trim due to matting, resulting from the hair allegedly not being brushed out regularly by the owner.
Grooming is essential for maintaining your dog’s health and long-haired breeds are “particularly vulnerable to severe hair matting,” noted a February 2022 study in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
The study stated: “Chronically matted hair can contribute to and cause medical conditions such as skin irritation and infection, recurrent or chronic ear and ocular infections and disease, anal soiling and obstruction, fecal constipation and impaction, urine scalding, and parasitic infestations.
“In some cases, chronically matted hair can encircle the lower limb(s) and constrict blood flow and lymphatic drainage resulting in soft tissue death, bone injury, and potentially amputation of the affected limb.”
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The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic led to a decline in the pet grooming industry following the temporary closure of non-essential services, such as dog grooming, due to safety restrictions.
North America formed the highest share of the pet grooming services market in 2021, accounting for more than 41.25 percent of the overall revenue that year, according to a report by Grand View Research.
The global pet grooming services market size was estimated to be worth $5.38 billion in 2021 and is anticipated to grow at a compound annual rate of 7.09 percent from 2022 to 2030, according to the report.
“Key factors fueling the industry growth include rising pet expenditure, an increasing number of pet groomers and grooming businesses, expansion of service offerings, and pet humanization,” the report said.
Several TikTokers sided with the groomer in the latest post, claiming the dog looks “much better” than before.
Leapofaith Border Collies said: “looks soooo much better after the haircut. your groomer did a great job.”
PunketteBabe noted: “it’s a beautiful groom considering all the matting they had to get through.”
Cat Officially Cat said the dog “probably feels so much better now. matting can be painful.”
Kate agreed, saying, “what an improvement! dog groomers truly are miracle workers, he looks so much better and more comfortable!”
User courtney.rose.09.90 wrote: “They did a beautiful job! That clean face is perfection. Make sure you’re using a long pin slicker brush AND a comb at home to maintain his coat.”
Amy Hiles agreed, noting: “That’s actually a pretty darn good job for a shave down. Super even and looks like they kept as much of the top as they could. I get it though.”
Newsweek has reached out to the pet company involved in the post via email and the original poster via TikTok for comment. The video has not been independently verified.
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