Grooming at the pace your dog can handle.
For senior dogs, dogs recovering from surgery, and dogs whose coat or handling needs more time than a standard appointment allows. Every dog is assessed first, then groomed to a written plan — never to the clock.
- Senior
- Dogs who can no longer stand comfortably for a full groom
- Recovery
- Dogs cleared by their vet after surgery or illness
- Anxious
- Dogs who panic at dryers, clippers or handling
Care is decided in advance, not improvised on the table.
Special care is grooming for a dog whose age, condition, behaviour or coat changes how the session has to run. It is not a breed or a size — it is a judgement about what this dog can safely tolerate today.
Most owners do not know their dog belongs here. Pet grooming has no single industry standard in Australia, so there has never been an agreed definition of a special care dog. We set our own — what makes a dog special care, and what that dog needs from a groom.
Every special care case begins with a pre-grooming consultation, before any grooming session is scheduled. Every dog starts with an assessment: how they stand, lie down and react to the dryer, and what they will tolerate and what they will not. From that we write a grooming plan — what we will do, what we will not attempt, and why.
The groom follows the plan, not the clock. If anything changes mid-session, we stop. When a dog needs a vet, the dog goes to the vet. See how the assessment works — or about house visits if your dog grooms better at home.
Thirteen situations, three groups — and a catch-all.
If any of these sounds like your dog, a standard appointment was never going to be the whole answer. Find your group — then book the consultation that fits it.
Age and condition
- Senior dogs — 13 and over, in most cases
- Dogs with a long-term health condition
- Dogs with a health concern you have raised
- Dogs in recovery
- Dogs in rehabilitation
- Dogs with chronic pain
- Dogs with an injury
- Dogs with a disability
Behaviour and background
- Anxious dogs, or dogs who react strongly to handling, dryers or clippers
- Rescue dogs, where the history is not known
- Dogs who cannot settle for a standard appointment
Coat and first visits
- Severe matting, or a coat in very poor condition
- A puppy over eight months old who has never been groomed
And the catch-all
- Any condition that may affect the standard grooming process
What you take home.
- A record of what was done, what was not attempted, and why
- Notes your vet can read, if anything changed during the session
- A plan for the next visit, based on how your dog went today
Not sure whether your dog is a fit?
Tell us about your dog — age, condition, and what has made grooming difficult. We will tell you honestly whether special care grooming is the right route.
Book a consultationOur standard
The Filicious Special Care Standard was written by us. The assessment, the grooming plan, the stop points and the records you receive are Filicious Special Care Studio's own work — defined, taught and assessed here, not adopted from an industry or veterinary body.
© Filicious Special Care Studio · Filicious Pet Professional Pty Ltd