It is true that being able to groom your own dog can lead to cost savings in your monthly budget.
Long-haired dogs, and even medium-haired dogs, have to be clipped quite frequently.
You will find definite cost cutting advantages in being able to take care of this task yourself.
Dog owners are probably looking at having a long-haired dog groomed every month or at least every 6 weeks.
When you work this out over the term of a year, it is not a cheap item in your budget.
However, there are many other advantages in being able to do your own grooming at home.

1. For starters, grooming your own dog is usually less stressful, certainly for him and probably for you as well.
   
2. Getting appointments that work in with your own weekly schedule can be tricky.
   Of course, you can always have a standing booking or make a booking for the next trim, each time you leave the grooming salon.
   But I find that planning ahead like this is not always possible, given work and family commitments.
   I have often been caught out close to Christmas or other holiday occasions when I have wanted to book my dog in for a clipping.
   There have been countless times when I have phoned only to find out that all available time slots had already been taken.
   So learning to do the dog grooming tasks yourself will allow you to groom your pet at a time that best suits you and remove the need to work in with a salon schedule.
   
3. Doing the grooming yourself provides the perfect opportunity to inspect the physical condition of your dog.
   You can check his coat, look for any hidden irritants such as grass seeds and check his paws to make sure he is not suffering from a food allergy or some other type of skin irritation.
   If you find anything unusual, you can then act on it quickly and make a booking with your local veterinarian clinic.
   
4. You will probably find that you will be less inclined to put off getting your dog groomed if you can do it in your own time and without the financial layout.
   This will mean a more tangle-free coat with fewer matted areas.
   
5. If you groom your own dog at home, you can avoid the lengthy waiting times that are often typical when you return to collect your dog from the pet salon.
   
6. You can also save on fuel costs.
   The grooming salon that I attended was not part of a shopping centre.
   The groomer worked out of her own home so this meant travelling to her address for the appointment, then driving to a nearby shopping centre to make use of the time, then back to collect my dog before driving home again.
   

Once you decide to learn the basic dog grooming skills via a video or a dog grooming course you will find that you start to manage the tasks with greater ease and speed.