A dog that has never been handled by a stranger or left with other people has not practiced it. AAHA writes that flat-faced dogs are compromised in their ability to pant and cool down, and VCA writes that excited dogs can be at risk even when it does not seem hot. That is why this page is about doing it slowly, and about the signs that mean stop.
Heavy panting that does not ease, weakness, confusion, abnormal gums or collapse?
Stop the grooming. If you suspect heatstroke, treat it as an emergency. Move him to a cool, shaded or air-conditioned place and contact a vet right away. The signs are in section V, and the emergency steps are on the Heatstroke page.
I. Our Rule
Before the first drop-off, let him meet the place, the person and the steps. Short, positive visits first. Being left alone comes last.
What the official sources say. AAHA, the American Animal Hospital Association, describes two standard methods for fear. Desensitization is “the process by which a stimulus associated with an undesirable behavior is presented to the individual at a level below that which elicits the response followed by a gradual increase in the stimulus level.” Counterconditioning is learning to accept a stimulus “by pairing the stimulus with something that the dog or cat likes and wants.”
AAHA also describes happy visits: “During a happy visit, your pet will greet team members, receive lots of attention, and explore the hospital while receiving high-value treats—no poking, prodding, or needles.” For handling, its advice is: “Gently touch your dog’s paws, ears, mouth, and body for a few seconds at a time, rewarding with treats or a brief play session.”
What AAHA says not to do. The opposite method is called flooding: prolonged exposure to the worrying thing at a level that already causes fear. AAHA writes that in distressed patients, flooding “actually sensitizes the patient to the stimulus and worsens it by causing shutdown or collapse of a patient.” It also says: “Flooding is never recommended.” Another AAHA page says: “Move at the animal’s pace. Rushing may cause delays or intractability at a later visit.”
Spike had been bathed at home since he was a puppy. One day we saw other owners simply leave their dogs at the vet for a bath, so we did the same. For Spike it was new: a strange place, strange people, new smells and sounds. After the bath he was already very upset, and he was put in a small, poorly ventilated space. He developed serious breathing trouble and overheated. The vet who saw him acted fast and, we believe, saved his life.
Our opinion: being left suddenly in a completely unfamiliar situation was probably a strong stressor for him. We cannot know what Spike felt, and one dog is not the measure for every dog.
II. Why Frenchies Are Different
The sources agree on the basics:
- Panting is how dogs cool down. VCA: “Panting is their primary way of regulating body temperature.”
- Flat-faced dogs do it less well. AAHA: “Brachycephalic breeds (i.e., with short muzzles and flat faces) are compromised in their ability to pant effectively and cool down.” On the pages we read, AAHA and VCA name bulldogs and other flat-faced breeds as being at higher risk. They do not name French Bulldogs separately.
- Excitement matters. VCA: “Excited or excessively exercised dogs are sometimes at risk even if the environmental temperature and humidity does not seem high, particularly if they are kept in a poorly ventilated environment.”
- Hot air matters. VCA lists “being exposed to a hair dryer for an extended time” among the common causes of heat stroke.
- Heavy panting can hurt the airway. Merck Veterinary Manual: “Brachycephalic and obese dogs and dogs with laryngeal paralysis develop laryngeal edema and laryngitis through severe panting or respiratory effort during excitement or hyperthermia.”
This is why we treat a scared, panting Frenchie in a warm or poorly ventilated place as a risk, even before it looks serious. It is our reading of the sources above. We did not find a study that follows this in Frenchies at the groomer.
III. What the Research Found
Dogs showed more stress in the common treatment area, without the owner. One randomized crossover study followed 44 healthy adult dogs at a veterinary teaching hospital (Mandese 2021). After a baseline exam with the owner present, each dog had two identical physical exams, in random order: in an isolated exam room with the owner present, and in the common treatment area with the owner absent. In the common treatment area, 28 dogs (64%) showed fear, anxiety and stress scores of 3 or more out of 5 (moderate to severe stress). In the exam room, 19 dogs (43%) did. The authors write that both the stress scores and the heart rates “were clinically elevated” in the common treatment area. Heart rate was 20 beats per minute higher than at the baseline exam.
This study cannot tell us which part mattered most. The place and the owner’s presence changed together, so we cannot say whether it was the common area, the owner’s absence, or both. The authors also note that the people scoring the dogs could not be blinded to the location. Their conclusion: “Whenever possible, physical exams and procedures should take place in low-stress environments with the owner present.”
AAHA adds a practical reason to lower stress at the vet: stress “can alter vital readings and test results, potentially masking underlying problems.”
IV. Five Steps: Our Plan
These five steps are our plan. AAHA gives the methods: practice gradually, reward, go at the dog’s pace. In the pages we read, it does not give a fixed schedule, and neither do we.
- 1 · Meet the place, with no procedureCome in for a few minutes. Let him sniff around, meet the groomer, and get treats if he takes them. Go home before he is overloaded. AAHA: ask about “happy visits”, short visits “just for treats and praise.”
- 2 · Short handling, with you thereOn the next visit: touching paws and ears, a short brushing, standing on the grooming table, going near the tub, the sound of water or a dryer from a distance. Stay with him if that keeps him calm.
- 3 · A short, positive procedureIf he is calm: a short wash or part of the grooming, with pauses. Watch his breathing and behavior the whole time. A cool, well-ventilated room. No long exposure to a hair dryer. Do not try to finish everything in one day.
- 4 · A very short separationOnly once the place is familiar: you step out for a very short time, and he stays with a person he already knows. Make it longer only if he stays calm. Do not leave for the first time at the moment he is already in a panic.
- 5 · A normal sessionWhen he stays calm through the steps above: a longer separation and the standard grooming. Someone still needs to watch his breathing, the temperature of the room and his behavior.
Being used to the groomer does not remove the Frenchie’s risk of overheating. Keep watching him, even when he is calm.
If he shows intense fear, AAHA says: “it’s important to talk with your veterinarian.” Its list of nonspecific signs of anxiety and distress in dogs includes panting, trembling, lip licking, yawning, hiding and trying to escape. One of these alone does not mean fear.
V. Stop at Once
Stop the grooming. If you suspect heatstroke, treat it as a medical emergency.
First: move him to a cool, shaded or air-conditioned place and contact a vet right away (AAHA). The emergency steps are on the Heatstroke page.
Possible signs, from AAHA and VCA:
- Heavy, excessive panting, or a fast breathing rate
- Thick, ropey drool
- Rapid or irregular heartbeat
- Weakness, or lethargy
- Wobbling, or trouble coordinating
- Confusion, or disorientation
- Vomiting or diarrhea
- Bright red or pale gums, dry or sticky gums, or an abnormal gum color
- Collapse or seizures
In respiratory distress, gray, dark pink or blue gums come late. Merck Veterinary Manual: “Obvious labored open-mouth breathing and changes in mucous membrane color (gray, dark pink, or blue [cyanosis]) develop last.” Do not wait for them.
For a Frenchie with BOAS (a breathing disease of flat-faced dogs), an earlier heatstroke, collapse episodes, bluish gums or marked breathing problems, plan the grooming with your vet first.
VI. Ask the Groomer
Our opinion: ask these questions before you leave a Frenchie anywhere.
- Do you have experience with flat-faced dogs?
- How do you watch a dog that pants hard or panics?
- Where does he wait before and after the bath?
- Is that place air-conditioned and well ventilated?
- Do you use a cage dryer or another source of hot air?
- Can he dry without extra heat if he shows stress?
- Will someone watch him the whole time he waits and dries?
- Will you stop right away and call me if his breathing becomes abnormal?
- Can the first visit be a short “happy visit” with no grooming?
- Can we go step by step over several visits, instead of leaving him for hours at once?
VII. What We Did Not Find
- A study showing that a dog left at the groomer feels abandoned: we did not find one, and we do not claim it.
- An official number of visits to get a dog used to grooming: in the AAHA pages we read, there are methods, not a schedule.
- A study of overheating at the groomer in French Bulldogs: we did not find one. On the pages we read, AAHA and VCA name bulldogs and other flat-faced breeds, not French Bulldogs.
- Which part of the vet stress comes from the place and which from the owner’s absence: the study we read cannot separate them.
- Whether French Bulldogs were in that study: the abstract we read does not say.
References
- Mandese WW, et al. Stress in client-owned dogs related to clinical exam location: a randomised crossover trial. J Small Anim Pract, 2021. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA). Changing behaviors (2015 AAHA Canine and Feline Behavior Management Guidelines). aaha.org
- AAHA. Tips for reducing patient fear in the veterinary clinic. aaha.org
- AAHA. How can my pet have stress-free veterinary visits? aaha.org
- AAHA. Preparing your pet for a successful veterinary visit. aaha.org
- AAHA. Heatstroke in Pets: Signs, Risks, and What to Do. aaha.org
- Merck Veterinary Manual. Laryngeal Disorders in Brachycephalic and Obese Dogs. merckvetmanual.com
- Merck Veterinary Manual. Initial Triage and Resuscitation of Small Animal Emergency Patients. merckvetmanual.com
- VCA Animal Hospitals. Heat Stroke in Dogs. vcahospitals.com