Grooming Terms & Conditions
Grooming Terms & Conditions
We LOVE Dogs at Hounds and we do everything we can to make your Dogs Grooming experience with us as enjoyable as possible. We have a few T&Cs in place to help keep the Hounds team and your Dogs safe and happy.
When booking an appointment at Hounds for your Dog to be Groomed we will ask for a deposit on your first visit. Deposits are £20 per dog.
Deposits are nonrefundable, you can change your Dogs appointment date/time but we will need 48 hours notice. If you do not arrive for your appointment or cancel with less than 48 hours notice we will retain your deposit. This also applies if you change your Dogs service after booking their appointment, each service is allocated time and if on the day you change your mind we haven't enough time to reschedule the day. If you wish to change your Dogs service we will require 48 hours notice.
Cancellations and no-shows are incredibly damaging to any business, especially independent ones like Hounds. Because of this, and only in situations where a deposit has not been required, we do charge a cancellation fee/no show fee, this is 50% of your dogs groom, we may also require you to pay upfront for your dogs next appointment.
To help keep the day smooth and avoid anyones appointments running over, we ask that you arrive on time for your Dogs appointment. Please arrive at your Dogs appointment time, if you are later than 10 minutes we may not be able to adhere your appointment as this will cause lateness for future bookings that day.
Have your phone on hand at all times when your Dog is with us at Hounds. If we need to contact you we will call you, this might be to ask you about your Dogs groom, alert you of any issues and to let you know a collection time. You should receive grooming updates via text 48 hours before your appointment, if not please let us know so we can check your contact details. If you change your phone number please let us know before your Dogs appointment.
If you are entrusting someone else to drop and collect your Dog from Hounds please send a note with your Dogs grooming requirements or call/message ahead of their appointment with us. If it is your first time visiting Hounds we ask you arrive with your Dog so we can chat to you and get exactly what you want from your Dogs groom.
Matting charge of £5 to £15,matting damages equipment and takes extra time, because of this we charge a fee to cover any additional costs to us.
Fleas - if we spot fleas/ticks on your Dog we will use a Flea treatment shampoo and need to clean down the whole salon. This can cause us serious delay and we implement a £10 charge for fleas/ticks.
Aggression - Not all Dogs love the groomers or other Dogs, please make us aware of any behavioural issues your Dog might have so we can tailor your Dogs appointment to suit them. We will never put a staff member in danger at Hounds and we can only do what your Dog allows us to do in the Groomers. Regular visits can help ease your Dog into the salon environment and gain trust with the team. If your dogs behaviour is causing any issues in the groomers we may charge a fee due to the extra time needed to groom your dog, this fee starts from £3.
- we reserve the rights to refuse a dog that can cause risk to itself or staff.
- we are not held responsible for any reactions caused by products used in the groomers, all allergies should be made known to the groomer before the appointment.
- please make sure your dog has been to the toilet before their grooming appointment as we do not have the toileting facilities in the salon. A full bladder and/or bowel can cause discomfort for a dog whilst being groomed. A fee of £3.50 will be applied to any dog that frequently toilets in the salon.
- Hounds will not perform any grooming procedure that causes any level of pain or stress to the dog. This can also include nail trimming. In this case we may refer you to a vet.
- we are unable to groom dogs that are pregnant. If your dog is in season we kindly ask you to let us know. Due to the sensitivity of the hygiene area the groom may not be up to the usual standard.
- if for any reason you are not satisfied with your dogs groom, please let us know when collecting your dog from the salon, and we can rectify the issue. Please note that matting, coat condition and behaviour can affect the outcome of the groom.
- please arrive at the time given to you, arriving early can cause over excitement for your dog making it difficult and very dangerous when completing the groom. If you will be arriving early please let us know by contacting us on 01782 632183.
- If you would like to cancel or amend your appointment whilst we are out of working hours please contact us via Facebook/instagram/messenger. Please note that we will require evidence that you have cancelled your appointment via the options above, so we can avoid any cancellation/no show fees.
These T&Cs are to protect Hounds, the team and your Dogs and I thank you for your understanding.