Hi, All!

Okay. Some dogs are difficult to groom, especially if they might have long hair.

Other than rendering them unconscious, what are some ways to make it a more pleasant experience for both the dog and the person doing the grooming while keeping the dog awake at the same time, please?

Thanks!

Different dogs respond to different way of grooming.

My little puppy HATES having his feet touched so it makes nail clipping and feet brushing interesting.
I had to get my partner to physically restrain him when we do this... he is getting better slowly as he is finally realizing that I'm not going to hurt him and he isn't going to be let go until we are done.
My partners is holding a little looser each time and we are almost to the point of him just sitting on his lap while it is being done without having to hold him.

Some dogs it might be better to teach them to 'stack' like a show dog.
This is where the dog is trained to stand perfectly still on either the ground or a grooming table.
Once that command has been mastered you can move onto brushing the dog for short periods.

When I brush mine I usually just wait until they are nice and sleepy and are laying on the couch, then I just squat down in front of them (so there is no escape) and start brushing.

My mum however has set grooming times for her dogs. They get picked up, taken into the laundry and put on her grooming table.

The earlier you start grooming a dog the better. The breeder of the dog should have been brushing them since about 4 weeks old and you just continue doing so every single day until the dog is well behaved... then you can move onto brushing only when needed.

Those shampoos that have a conditioner make tangled hair much easier to comb out