Changes have been made to the nail-trimming at Mondou. While I raved about it in a previous post, I'm no longer sure I like it as much as I used to. Earlier this year, they changed which stores the services would be provided at. They stated they would only do it store that had a lave-toutou (dog washing station), this wasn't really a problem with me, I don't necessarily disagree with that. 

The latest change is now we have to call or pass by the store ahead of time to make an appointment for the nail trimming service. While I do understand where they are coming from, I strongly disagree with this new procedure. A big part of it has to do with not knowing about ahead of time and being informed, rather rudely, by a clerk when I showed up today. She acted as if this was well-known news and that the changes had been well advertise for a long time. She also said it's been a week or two since they had the sign up in the window.

First of all, I don't go to the pet store all that often, certainly not on a weekly basis, more like a monthly one. So that would be easy to miss. Even more considering the sign on the door was slightly wordy and didn't highlight any key words I might catch on my way into the store. Second, it was only the website and twitter for a few days before hand. I don't have time to read all the tweets that are made and one tweet is easy to miss when you don't check them for a couple days. Their website wasn't much better, it only gave 8 days notice and while it was in the news column, I think they should have put on the events page as well since this is a big change. The wording of their announcement also needs to change since there can be some confusion over the need for appointments. In one paragraph it clearly states that they are needed now but then in the next one it mentions getting a number when you show up for quicker service. 

Second, I don't always know what I'm up to from one week-end to the next, so I like the convenience of being able to show up when I wanted. Sometimes I have time in the morning and other times in the afternoon. If for some reason I couldn't go on the Saturday, I could go to another store on the Sunday. I fear that with making appointments, I might not be able to get in on the day I want or have the choice of time. I usually go when my dog's nails need to be done and sometimes I don't know until that week. I feel like I'm going to have to make an appointment a couple weeks ahead of time so that I can pick the time. I also feel that the way it is now set up, less people will be able to get their dog's nails done in one day. 

Third, my dog like seeing the other dogs while waiting in line. I found it was a good way to socialize her and now this opportunity was taken from me. While I get that you want a more secure environment, you are taking away an enjoyable experience for most dogs and their owners. I don't necessarily love standing in line for an hour but I did like that my dog got to interact with other dogs and I enjoyed being able to speak with other dog owners. 

Like I said, I understand why the changes were made but I have my doubts that they will be the best for the people who enjoy this free service. We shall see and I will keep you updated. 

Update (June 2012): The other day I was at the dog park and overhead some people talking. Apparently others aren't happy with the changes and I'm not the only one who has stopped using this free services as well as shopping there.  

Trimming a dog’s nails is not something I want to attempt anytime soon or ever. I realize it’s not that hard with My White Dog since she has light nails and the quick is highly visible. She’s also a calm dog so I don’t expect she would put up a fight with me, meaning the risk of accidently cutting the quick is quite low. Still, I’d rather someone else do it.

When I was at the vet’s, I noticed that they charge 14$ to clip nails. I will admit that price doesn’t seem high but for a job that would take all of 5 minutes, it is a little costly. I was going to look into how much a groomer would charge, when I found myself on the Mondou (pet store) website and one of the services they offer is free nail trimmings.

I noticed that the store near my house, the one on Victoria in Greenfield Park, was having a nail-trimming event one Saturday.  It was supposed to run from 10:00am to 3:30pm, so I planned to show up in the afternoon. We were a little late getting there, showing up around 2:50. I walked around the store first for a couple minutes because we were going to get food while there. At 3:00pm we ask where they did the nail trimming since we hadn’t seen the table at the back, only to be told that the event had just ended. Someone else had shown up and asked the person doing the nails if they could get in line and was told yes, since she thought she had another half hour left. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get the same answer because by then a store employee had wised up to this and did not let anyone else in line.

The website clearly said until 3:30pm and the person doing the trimming had thought it was until then also, but apparently the store manager (or owner) never lets it go past 3:00pm. While we were at the cash, another dog owner came with their dog and was turned away. She looked at the employee and said but the website said 3:30pm before leaving, clearly unhappy about it. I found this to be a little unprofessional on the part of Mondou.  I think that if the website says specific times then the event should go to that time.  

When we got home, I checked the website again and found out that another Mondou store in the area, the one on Chambly Blvd. in Longueuil, was having the same event the next day and called to confirm the hours. We got up early and showed up around 11:00am and there were about 8-10 dogs already in line. Since the person doing the trimmings takes a lunch break, we were told to come back in the afternoon but asked if we could squeeze in since we live 35 minutes away and the Greenfield Park store turned us away the day before. Thankfully they let us, which was highly appreciated. 

I am a big fan of this service and will definitely use them again, but not at the Greenfield Park store. I would definitely go to the store in Longueuil or LaSalle since the staff there have been friendlier and more helpful. The nail trimming events do happen on a rotating basis, so you have to look up when they will be at what store. As well, the hours do vary a little, so it’s best to check the hors on the website or call the store to confirm.

The people doing the trimmings are experienced, usually, students that are studying to be animal technicians or vets. The first time I took Finley I didn’t know how she would act since she had been with us for only a month at that time, thankfully she was cooperative and didn’t give the girl any trouble. That wasn’t the case with all the dogs but the girl that day was very patient and I was impressed by how professional she acted. She handled the dogs very well and from what I could tell, never hurt any of them nor did she get their quick by cutting too much of the nails, even when some of the dogs clearly didn’t want their nails trimmed and fought it. Dogs do get a treat at the end from the person trimming their nails, a move I endorse. I did forgo the store treat and gave Finley one of her favourites that I had brought with me.  

One last thing, while the service is free, owners can give a donation to the MIRA Foundation when they get their dogs nails trimmed by putting money into a box on the table in the nail trimming area. For upcoming nail trimming events please consult Mondou’s event page. 

Update: Please check this blog post to see what I have to say about the changes that they made to this service. In short form, you know to make an appointment ahead of time to get your pet's nails trimmed now.