Clinique Veterinaire Monkland

I brought my Yorkie, Baxter, to be groomed at Monkland Animal Hospital this morning and was very pleased with the results. It was the first time he wasn’t a nervous wreck afterwards and his cut is adorable. Prices are reasonable and Joanne was gentle, patient and nice to deal with. I’m very happy to find a local place that is clean with experienced groomers.

This is a post in response to the posting by Amanda F and her grooming experience.
As one of the two groomers here at Monkland, the cat grooming is only as good as the cat allows it to be. In the case of Amanda F and her cat June, She advised us upon making the appointmnet that her cat was difficult. We have had difficult cats before and we advised her of the possibility that the cat might or might not be successfully groomed.
During the grooming June became very stressed. The process took the combined effort of 3 people to try to calm and soothe her so she could be shaved.
But there comes a point when a cat reaches its limit and to push further is dangerous.
June reached that limit and we had to stop.
Amanda was called and advised that the cat was only partially groomed.
Amanda was not charged for the full groom but for a partial shave and nail clipping.
Amanda never asked to speak with us when she picked up the cat.
Amanda never called us to discuss the issues we had with her cat and the possible options available to finish the job.
The photos show a partial shave.
The hair flap that Amanda refers to is that we have to shave under the matts close to the skin. If the cat becomes too agitated we stop. At this point we cannot just put the cat back up on the table to remove a flap of matted fur — the cat needs lots of time to destress and grooming can resume usually in about a week.

Not the best experience with Joanne — the groomer in the vet clinic. Disclaimer: my cat is a little jumpy, but has long hair that matts no matter how many fancy foods, sprays, and combs I try, so requires a main body shave once per year.
1) my appointment was rescheduled the day before — since I was the only client booked for that day she required I move to another day. Not ideal, but I get it.
2) my 10am reschedule needed to now be at 9am if I wanted to minimize the wait time. Again not ideal, but I get it.
3) an hour after I drop the cat off I get a call saying that she is ‘freaking out, aggressive and tense’ and the groomer cannot continue. Never happened before, but maybe she’s getting extra old and cranky so … I get it (I guess?).
4) I pick up the cat who is half shaved, am charged full price (65 $!) and get a good dose of cat shame from the receptionist («I was warned not to put my hands near that one!»). The groomer doesn’t even come to see me herself to explain. Uncool and unfair.
5) I get the cat home and not only is she half shaved but there are GIANT (5×5) flaps of hair on her back that are shaved all underneath, but still attached on top by matted hair. Totally not safe for a kitty and required that I corner her and finish the ‘hack-​job’ with kitchen shears. Unacceptable and unprofessional.
I realize that sometimes it simply isn’t safe to continue grooming an animal that is aggressive or seems pushed to the breaking point — my issues lies entirely with the fact that the half-​done job left my cat with flaps of hair that could have harmed her by getting caught under the couch or bed, and that I was charged full price for a half done job.
If the Monkland Vet groomer sees this — I would love a reply/​explanation to help fully inform the potential patrons who may be checking this site. Saving that, I recommend those with kitties that need grooming steer clear.

I love my vet. First off, she is extremely professional and she has demonstrated numerous times that she genuinely cares about my cat’s health. Once my cat had an infection in her paw that would have required amputating the entire paw if she hadn’t quickly intervened. Another time, when my cat kept uncontrollably scratching the inside of her ears and the vet couldn’t find any mites or other parasites, she offered me a few treatment options. She was conscious of the fact that it was a bit pricey and so gave me a free little trial version of a couple of them so I wouldn’t waste my money on a bunch of medicines that wouldn’t have done anything. I followed the treatment plan she created and it worked; my cat stopped acting insane shortly thereafter.
She evidently cares about people’s pets and she is always very affectionate and sweet to my cat. She has patiently answered my hundred and one questions on feline anatomy/​biology.
I am less professional than my vet and so I will also say this unnecessary fact — she’s hot. Probably the hottest vet in Canada. Obviously this isn’t a necessary trait in a veterinarian, but it certainly doesn’t hurt.
The groomer here is also great. I had her give a lion’s cut to my cat (yes, I am one of those people). She managed to easily calm my cat down during the grooming and even made it enjoyable for her. My cat was in a great mood after the grooming, even.
I would strongly recommend this clinic to anyone who owns a cat or dog. They are exceptional.