# MiniPoo Terrified of Chris Christensen Dryer



## CtPoodle (Sep 9, 2012)

I have a 10 month old MiniPoo named Rembrandt. Rembrandt is professionally groomed every six weeks. I bathe him in between groomings.
I gave Rembrandt a bath this afternoon and placed him on the grooming table. I bought a Chris Christensen Kool Dryer and it arrived this week. I previously dried Rembrandt with my human hair dryer. I turned the Kool Dryer on low speed and Rembrandt was terrified, horrified and mortified of it. He was trembling and his heart was beating very fast. He kept looking at the hose as if it was a big monster and trying to jump off the grooming table.
I dried his back legs and hind quarters with the Kool Dryer then switched to my Conair human hair dryer. I finished drying him with the Conair and all was fine. Groomers, trainers, behaviorists what can I do to help Rembrandt from being terrified of the Chris Christensen Kool Dryer hose?

I bought the Kool Dryer after months of research. All the reviews said it was super quiet. I thought it would be near silent. The Kool Dryer is quieter than my Conair but not impressed with the noise level. The Kool Dryer does a great job in drying Rembrandt's hair faster. I spent near $400 on the Kool Dryer and have a MniPoo who is terrified of it and an owner who is not impressed with the noise level even on a low setting. Most PF members love their Kool Dryer. What am I missing about the noise level of the Kool Dryer?


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## Imaginarium (Jun 29, 2013)

Just dry him. You can give him a treat after you're done if you want. I usually can even dry puppies with a force dryer with no nozzle. If he's young and healthy, he will be okay and get used to it.


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

Puppies can be very dramatic, but I find they get through grooming sessions when they reach that point where they realize I'm not hurting them and they're not going to die. My own dogs don't love the dryer, my puppies screamed themselves when I first dried them, but now they tolerate it.


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## patk (Jun 13, 2013)

is there a special treat he loves? i would turn the dryer on (though perhaps not directed at him at first) and give him the treats; hopefully he will associate the noise from the dryer with goodies. it's what i did with my dog years ago when i put him in the bathtub with water running and rising around his ankles. boiled chicken livers were hard to resist, but my dog is a foodie. if yours isn't, then it's a bit harder.


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

I would lay the hose down on the floor and not turn the dryer on. Feed him his food near it...as close as he's comfortable. I'd give him a treat if he goes to investigate it or even if he is close to it. 

Then I'd turn it on when he's not that close, just where he can hear it and feed him treats to pair the dryer with good things...treats, his favorite game or toy and then turn it off and go do something else and don't do anything special with him for a while. Then repeat. 

He should be getting pretty okay with it and you can see if he'll come over for a high value treat (when he's hungry) while you have it on and are holding the hose or toss him a treat or favorite toy if he's not wanting to come too close yet. Don't direct it at him just yet. Do this for a few days. When he doesn't look terrified, put him on the table and dry him in his least sensitive area for just a few seconds and end it when he seems all right with it. Don't push him too far at first. Do this a few times a day and gradually increase the duration of time you're drying him. Make it as mild as possible and don't push him to the point where he's really scared or his heart is racing. 

I like to do things this less forceful way because I like to increase pressure on the dog gradually. It can make for a more pleasant experience instead of pairing the grooming stuff with a scary, lousy time. It shouldn't take more than a week or two of these exercises to change his mind about it.


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## elem8886 (Sep 19, 2012)

Lots of good advice to get Rembrandt used to the dryer. Do you know what your groomer uses to dry him? How does he react with the groomer? Lots of dogs are very dramatic for their owners and test to see what they can get away with. When you are using the dryer be firm but gentle and keep sessions short so that you can end with a positive - try to stop the dryer (or point it away from him) _before_ Rembrandt is about to struggle or jump down.

The Kool Dryer _motor_ is quieter than other HV dryers but the noise of air rushing through the hose and crashing into your dog is going to be the same as other dryers. Is it the dryer itself making the noise you hear or is it the air? As Imaginarium said, you can use the hose without the nozzle and that will be a bit quieter too. Maybe you could start that way and once he isn't scared of the hose you could introduce the nozzle.


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## Carley's Mom (Oct 30, 2011)

Stella is so scared of the dryer I have just given up and let her air dry. So I feel your pain... I got her a year ago and she is now 3 years old. I don't have a clue why she gets so crazy, but she will throw up and shake so bad, it is sad. I am lucky I don't try to do anything fancy with my girls. I don't mind curls and short clips all over.


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## Oodlejpoodle's mom (Sep 11, 2009)

When I have pups for the first time, I dry them without the nozzles, the noise is much less and not so frightening. Also, you could try the happy hoodie, I recently got one as a gift, it did help: Happy Hoodie For Dog Anxiety Relief


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

I just want to add that I have been researching dryers as well and your comment that the Kool Dry is quieter than your hand held human dryer is very impressive. I don't know if you have ever heard most force dryers, but they are usually quite loud! 

When I groomed dogs, we didn't have the time to introduce quite as slowly as you can at home. We took off the nozzle and talked to the puppy but it was more or less forced. They all got used to it eventually. 

Misha hated it at first, now she seems to like it, except for her head and even then, she is not scared, just tolerant. 

Anyways, my point was that if the dryer is as quiet as you say, you most likely aren't going to find anything quieter. So either you will have to get him used to it, or let him air dry.


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

I was at my Mom's over the week end and Matisse got wet so I used her little foldable hair dryer. It's way, way, way louder than my hair dryer and at first Matisse said, "Whoa! WTH?" It startled him and he didn't like it. It was mostly his back legs and bum I needed to dry because he got poop on that area (ewww) so I washed that part. Anyhow, it was only about 15 seconds and he bounced right back and said, "Well, I don't love the loudness but okay fine whatever, just hurry up." lol. 

My girl Chihuahua, Chulita, in the 13 and 1/2 years I've had her has never gotten completely used to the vacuum cleaner. It's not like she afraid so much as she just flat out doesn't like the noise and when I vacuum close to the couch where she is, she backs up to get as far away as possible without getting off the couch. She does look a little worried. Of if she's on the floor will scoot away out of the room. She isn't afraid of the hair dryer though, no matter how loud it is. She loves the heat blowing on her. 

So, dogs come with various temperaments too and sometimes as much as you try to condition them, some just don't quite come around. Since you don't know for sure how your dog will adjust, I'd play it safe and condition slowly and gently. That way, if your dog happens to be of the temperament that doesn't bounce back easily, you know you didn't traumatize him with too much force, that you gave him a chance to adjust.


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## murphys (Mar 1, 2012)

Fritz doesn't like the dryer noise going through the nozzle and he will shake and lean away from it. So we got a Happy Hoodie and removed the nozzle. We dry him with the k9 2 from his front legs back. Then I remove the Happy Hoddie and use the human hair dryer for his chest, head and neck. He also doesn't like the noise of the air from the dryer hitting the brush. The modifications seem to be working well.


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## 3dogs (Nov 3, 2010)

HV dryers are very noisy. The CC are much quieter than most out there. I have a CC PUP & it is very quiet & less noise than stand dryers & most hand held.


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## Anntig (Jun 9, 2010)

One thing that you can try that will significantly reduce the noise is to put cotton balls in his ears and wrap his head in something like a happy hoodie or absorber towel (which I use) before you start, it has the added bonus of wicking out quite a lot of moisture so that when you do unwrap the head to dry it's usually damp rather than wet, then when you're doing the head use your thumb to press the ear over the ear canal to block the noise a bit.
Just don't forget to take the cotton balls out afterwards.


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## CtPoodle (Sep 9, 2012)

Thanks for all your replies. Tonight I sat near the CC Kool Dryer and fed Rembrandt treats. He was hesistant at first but came close to the Dryer. I'll continuing giving him treats and work towards turning the dryer on low in time. Next bath I'll put cotton balls in his ears, buy a Happy Hoodie and take the nozzle off. My groomers use a stand up forced air dryer. I will give them a call to find out how he handles their dryer. He's not a drama queen or cry baby. 

Mary & Rembrandt


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## poodlecrazy51 (Dec 31, 2012)

Poodlebeguiled said:


> I would lay the hose down on the floor and not turn the dryer on. Feed him his food near it...as close as he's comfortable. I'd give him a treat if he goes to investigate it or even if he is close to it.
> 
> Then I'd turn it on when he's not that close, just where he can hear it and feed him treats to pair the dryer with good things...treats, his favorite game or toy and then turn it off and go do something else and don't do anything special with him for a while. Then repeat.
> 
> ...


In my opinion, Poodlebeguiled's advice is the right one to go with. In my opinion, training horses, teaching first grade or raising a spoo puppy, there just isn't any good reason to force, use pressure, or rush. Especially something as important as grooming a poodle. They need to like it. Horses, dogs and children just don't learn well when they are scared. They don't learn well when you shove it at them and tell them...just handle it. When introducing a new thing, never pushing them to accept when they are showing signs of stress, slow and steady wins the race. Your dog will trust you with new things more readily the next time.
Thank you Poodlebeguiled. I love your approach and attitude.


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## poodlecrazy51 (Dec 31, 2012)

should you have gotten the CC Kool PUP dryer? Is it smaller and quieter? I am looking for a dryer for my 2 spoos, and from all the threads, the Kool pup won't work that well on a spoo, but good for a mini? Can you exchange it if you want to?


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## CtPoodle (Sep 9, 2012)

poodlecrazy 51 -- I'm going to call tomorrow to see if I can exchange CC Kool Dryer for CC Kool Pup or a refund. I will not force the Kool Dryer on Rembrandt. I had four Standard Poodles over the last 22 years (all at the Rainbow Bridge) and I used my human hair dryer. The Spoos went to the groomers every 6 weeks also.


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

poodlecrazy51 said:


> In my opinion, Poodlebeguiled's advice is the right one to go with. In my opinion, training horses, teaching first grade or raising a spoo puppy, there just isn't any good reason to force, use pressure, or rush. Especially something as important as grooming a poodle. They need to like it. * Horses, dogs and children just don't learn well when they are scared. They don't learn well when you shove it at them and tell them...just handle it. When introducing a new thing, never pushing them to accept when they are showing signs of stress, slow and steady wins the race. * Your dog will trust you with new things more readily the next time.
> Thank you Poodlebeguiled. I love your approach and attitude.


So true. I'm glad you pointed that very important thing out Poodlecrazy. When animals, including humans are scared and stressed, their adrenaline, cortisol and epinephrine (stress hormones) levels rise to get ready for fight or flight. Their heart rate, blood pressure and respiration rates increase, sometimes to unsafe levels. When in this state, the thinking part of the brain gets put on the back burner because their endocrine system is readying for fight or flight. And both parts of the brain can't work well at the same time. This is why deer get "caught in headlights." If they can't run to escape, they will tend to go into a state of learned helplessness which again isn't learning to cope in a healthy way, but sort of dissociating. If dogs are put into a chronic state like this, it is very unhealthy physiologically as well as psychologically. So that is why, for example I am against using force or flooding with training animals if it is enough to stress them too much.


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

CtPoodle said:


> poodlecrazy 51 -- I'm going to call tomorrow to see if I can exchange CC Kool Dryer for CC Kool Pup or a refund. I will not force the Kool Dryer on Rembrandt. I had four Standard Poodles over the last 22 years (all at the Rainbow Bridge) and I used my human hair dryer. The Spoos went to the groomers every 6 weeks also.


Maybe that's the best and easiest thing to do. Let us know how it goes. Good luck.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

I do know that some dogs have more sound sensitivities -- I have one!!!! Not sure if he has always been that way or if it was a result of the terrible flight/delay from Canada when I got him. (He was stuck on a people mover at the airport in MN for well over an hour and those things have a loud beeping noise.) His breeder said it was never an issue before.

Anyway, my groomer said she routinely uses a quieter dryer with Sunny. She also said she grooms many dogs that do not like the loud dryers and has a couple different ones just for that purpose.


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## loves (Jul 2, 2013)

Do you start drying at the rear? That is the best place. Happy Hoodies are also wonderful, muffle the noise. Also, the dog is wet, the air is cool, especially with CC dryers they don't heat up at all, so air hitting cold hair, SHRIEK!!. I can tell when my hairdresser starts drying my hair, it is cold the first couple seconds. The CC dryers have a very long nozzle, which can be awkward to hold. I have the Pup dryer as a second dryer. Puppies I will wrap in a towel, hold close to my chest while they are standing on the table and then with low setting and no nozzle, just open end, start drying them on the rear by exposing small areas at a time. I'll stick the dryer under the towel to get to the sides, etc. By the time one side is dry, the pup is standing in front of me, totally calm. Then he is moved out a bit and I hold a towel on the opposite side of where I am drying and continue to dry. 

My daughter-in-law tried to dry their LH Doxie herself one day while at the house and ZOOM! he was off the table in seconds! Wet dog, full force dryer, right at his front, so needlesstosay, I still handle the dogs' groom when they are here.

For a bigger fearful dog, again start at the rear, cover ears and hold the dryer out further from the dog. Lots of hands on with the non-drying hand and work way slowly up the body.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I have the CC pup and I like it very much. I think it is very quiet. Ironically though I use the same technique as loves although I don't have a table.


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## poodlecrazy51 (Dec 31, 2012)

I am not sure that hoodie would work on a poodle, when you need to dry their TK. I have foam earplugs in the shape of a ball, for our horses. We use them mostly to keep hair we are shaving, to not fall into their ear canal. But they are meant for noise deadening. (I think they may be illegal to use at an AQHA horse show...but I am pretty sure people use them for that...so their horse wont spook....I am going to do a search for doggie ear plugs....My Metro dryer actually has a lot of 5 star ratings..it is just noisy...


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## loves (Jul 2, 2013)

Well, the hoodie is on for the body drying and then taken off when you get to the head. By then the hair has dried a bit and takes less time to dry. Also combing it out completely, head and ears, before you dry also helps it dry faster. Will you get the best results? Possibly not, but since the dog is not happy with drying, sometimes you sacrifice perfection for the sake of the dog.

I groom a very elderly Bichon that has gone into a barking type seizure when drying him. He did it once, and since then he crate dries, I use low settings on his body and the hoodie. Comb comb comb him out, and then use my Pup dryer very very low and slowly to finish drying his head. Is it perfect? Far from it, but he is happy and that makes me happy. Oh yea, I've been grooming this dog for almost 10 years, and the problem just developed this past year as he is starting to show his age more and more.


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## SusanG (Aug 8, 2009)

I wish I had seen this before I bought my Kool Pup dryer. I had the same experience with Molly. It was NOT quiet at all, and the big hose was scary to her. She was 10 months old when I got it (had been using the Andis hand held dryer, which she was ok with as long as I didn't put it on high near her face). I was so excited to get such a great dryer. It wasn't worth the battle. Plus, because the air coming out was more cold than lukewarm, she shivered like crazy, even with a space heater going next to it to warm the air it was drawing into it. I sent it back and had my money refunded. It cost me $24 to mail it, but it wasn't worth $200 to keep something that neither of my girls were comfortable with.


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