Pet owners worried as dog grooming shut down in Sonoma County to slow coronavirus

It’s possible the only things Denise Kramer loves more than “Lord of the Rings” are her miniature schnauzers.

Kramer’s son named the oldest of the four dogs Jasmine, after a Disney character. The other three names are plucked from Tolkien’s pages - Luthien Tinuviel (Lulu for short), Elbereth Gilthoniel (Gilly) and My Precious.

Under normal, coronavirus-free circumstances, Kramer’s schnauzers are immaculately groomed by two local shops, Best in Show Pet Grooming and Classic Tails. Lately, though, dogs and cats are finding it as hard as humans to get a decent haircut. That may sound like a frivolous need at a time when thousands of Sonoma County residents are laid off and people are having trouble finding toilet paper and sanitizer. But pet owners insist that good grooming, especially for some long-haired dogs, is anything but cosmetic.

“Schnauzers have a two-layer coat,” Kramer explained. “The underlay is soft and cottony. The upper layer is wiry. If the underlay is not groomed out, it can cause mats, chafing, irritation. My sister’s dog is part schnauzer, and it became irritated under its arm. It got an infection, and it cost her $450 at the veterinarian. Those mats need to be regularly removed. A good groomer does that.”

But good groomers are hard to find these days. They do not fall in the category of businesses that Sonoma County health officer Dr. Sundari Mase has allowed to reopen following her original stay-at-home order. That has some families worried.

For one thing, the matting issue is real. As fur twists tighter and tighter, it can pull a pet’s skin and even tear it. And it isn’t just knotted hair.

Shaggy canines like doodle mixes can pick up fleas, ticks and foxtails, all of which are potential health issues, and can be susceptible to overheating as the weather warms. If dogs don’t have their ears cleaned and tweezed, they can get ear infections. If anal glands are not expressed, they can rupture. Unclipped nails can split or eventually curve far enough to puncture an animal’s foot pads. Some dogs and cats are treated with prescription shampoos because of skin allergies.

The obvious solution is for pet owners to handle these grooming chores themselves. But not everyone has the proper space or equipment, and some elderly or compromised guardians might not feel up to it. Also, have you ever expressed a dog’s anal glands?

Many pet owners have become amateur stylists over the past few weeks, but that can lead to photos like the one Sonoma County Supervisor Lynda Hopkins posted to her Facebook account Tuesday. Hopkins, a veteran sheep farmer, took a shearer to her standard poodle, but the motor died halfway through the buzz and the dog wound up looking like a college mascot victimized by rival pranksters. Hopkins has become an advocate for pet groomers receiving some form of relief from current restrictions.

“People are concerned about their pets’ welfare, in light of rising temperatures and the prevalence of pests and bugs, as well as weeds and foxtails and things that can bury deep in the coat and cause problems,” she said.

Mase noted Wednesday that if a cleanliness issue becomes a health issue for a local pet, a veterinarian can refer the animal to a licensed groomer. But that’s another level of expense for pet owners at a time when many have little or no disposable income.

With shops officially shuttered, groomers are among the small business owners losing income. Amy Cadogan, co-owner of Hair of the Dog Pet Grooming on Stony Point Road, said she had to lay off her eight employees as soon as the stay-at-home order landed in mid-March. She has since received both a Paycheck Protection Program loan and an Economic Injury Disaster Loan Emergency Advance, and is preparing to rehire all the workers.

“So we’re good,” she said. “But when we come back, if it’s mid-June, that money will be gone. That’s gonna be weird.”

Some shop owners have resorted to seeing a small number of clients. Mercury Muse, who along with his mother runs Chez Jeanne Dog and Cat Grooming in Santa Rosa, admits he is one of them.

“I understand we’re right on the fringe, pet services, in terms of being essential,” Muse said. “If anyone came and said no, we’d stop. I’ve been preparing for that since we started. It’s for dogs that medically need it.”

Demand is surging. Cadogan said she has about 150 phone calls to return. Muse said Chez Jeanne could be “absolutely slammed” if they were allowed to fully open.

And all of them believe they could groom pets safely, with the same sort of distancing requirements the county is placing on other retail establishments. In fact, one anonymous groomer, who asked for anonymity because she is still seeing clients and fears being reported by competitors who aren’t, says her shop is already doing just that.

“Clients don’t come inside,” she explained. “They’re at one end of a 6-foot leash. The dogs run up to us and we grasp the leash from the collar area. That’s a split-second exchange. Everyone’s got masks on. If we handle leashes, we spray them. We’re careful handing any payment. I check in with my employees every day, ask them, ‘Do you feel comfortable?’?”

Mase is not convinced these precautions are enough, or that pet grooming is essential. In addition to the proprietor-customer interaction, both would be touching the animals. At least two housecats in New York and a dog in North Carolina have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

“So it’s the same kind of physical distancing requirements for animals as for human beings, which is why dog parks have been a little bit of an issue,” Mase said. “What the CDC says is your pet should not come into contact with a strange person, a person they’re not normally in the household with.”

Mase said more research needs to be done on transmission of the virus to and from pets. One point she was clear about: While she continues to review the eligibility for pet groomers, she is not on the cusp of taking them off the restricted list.

“At this time, we’re probably looking at that after we look at retail businesses opening for curbside pickup, after we look at some of the outdoor activities,” Mase said. “But it’s along that continuum. Somewhere after that we’ll be looking at things like pet grooming.”

You can reach Staff Writer Phil Barber at 707-521-5263 or phil.barber@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter ?@Skinny_Post.