Terms and conditions
Dog grooming policies (the boring but important bits):
Cancellations:
Whilst we understand that sometimes appointments have to be cancelled due to an emergency, we ask that you give us at least 24 hours notice where possible, prior to appointment cancellation, as we have a waiting list of clients that can be filled with another dog in need of a groom.
We reserve the right to charge a fee of 50% of the total groom price for appointments missed or cancelled with less than 24 hours notice payable prior to any future booking. If a deposit was paid this will not be returned.
Late Arrivals:
Please be punctual. Arriving 15 minutes or more late for appointments will in most cases require re-scheduling and a missed appointment fee of £15 will apply. We send a courtesy a reminder text a day prior to your booking, to make you aware of your appointment date and time. The appointment time was made exclusively at your request and a late arrival will be considered a missed appointment. Your deposit as such will become non-refundable on this basis.
No Shows:
On the occasion that you have missed your appointment we have been let down by an empty appointment slot and as a small business this has a negative impact on us financially. We reserve the right to charge a fee of 50% of the groom total for appointments missed before you can make future bookings because the appointment time was made exclusively at your request. Deposits will not be given back
Late Collection:
We do not have the space or resources for your dog to stay after its groom has been completed. Due to the health and safety risks, any dogs not collected at the agreed collection time will incur an additional charge. Uncollected dogs will be charged a sitting fee of £5 per 15mins.
Behavior:
We appreciate that all dogs have different personalities and have different feelings towards the grooming process. We have experience with nervous/anxious dogs and will always to our best to make them feel at ease and work at a pace they are comfortable with. In the rare occasion that a dog is showing severe signs of distress, you may be asked to collect your dog mid-way through a groom. We will never put ourselves or your dog in danger just to complete a groom, we work with sharp objects and off the floor tables where injury is possible and of course want to avoid incidents at all costs. Owners will be required to pay 50% of the total groom cost if their dog is required to be collected early. It is incredibly rare that a dog needs to be collected early, we will always do our best and use our professional knowledge to work with a dog and complete the groom.
Mats:
In accordance to the Animal Welfare Act, we will not spend more than 15 minutes de-matting. A matted coat may result in us having to clip the coat short all over - our priority here is comfort as matting can be painful for the dog and dangerous to remove. There is an extra
charge for matted dogs due to the extra time it takes and excess wear and tear to equipment. Regular appointments and a good brushing routine at home drastically reduces the likelihood of mats so we always encourage all owners to book ahead and brush regularly at home.
Deposit:
It may be asked of you to pay an upfront deposit (50%) upon confirming your appointment, this will be taken off the total amount due at the end of the groom.
Liability:
No liability will be accepted The Dogfather in injury caused by the difficult or aggressive behaviour of your dog.
No liability will be accepted by The Dogfather when any health problems are uncovered or aggravated by any part of the grooming process. We will endeavour to notify you of anything we uncover during the groom.