12 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Became a Dog Groomer
1. Proper grooming starts with understanding what a dog was bred to do. Grooming isn't just aesthetic - every part of a dog's haircut has a purpose, including the head floof. For example, poodles were bred to be sporting and hunting dogs. You know those pom-poms on their hips? Those are designed to keep their joints warm in cold water.
2. Dog baths are even nicer than the ones you give yourself. We usually spend an hour bathing our dogs. We start off by cleaning their ears and giving them a blueberry facial, which is a concentrated face wash. I'll do a clay mask on dogs who have skin issues. Then I choose the shampoo and conditioner to match the dog's coat type, and I give all our dogs an argan oil face mask. Then comes the blow-dry, fluff, and style. I also love to finish with a dry argan oil to keep the follicles hydrated and detangled.
3. Some groomers go to dog-grooming school, but you'll learn a lot more on the job. You don't need a certification to work as a groomer, but there are schools that will teach you the basics and certification programs like International Professional Groomers or National Dog Groomers Association of America. I once met a girl who took an online grooming class, and I thought that was bonkers. I spent a year working as a bather (the person who washes the dogs and prepares them for their haircut), and it allowed me to work my way up to actually grooming within a few years. Figuring out how to hold scissors was really hard at first, but you pick it up over time if you practice.
4. Grooming equipment can get really expensive. Any hairstylist can tell you that the better your tools, the better the result-and dog grooming is no different. I spend about $400 per shear, and I have 10 pairs (two of each type I use, in case I need to send one in for sharpening). The clippers are about $200 and the clipper blades are $30 each. Those need to be replaced every year or so, depending on the use.
5. It's harder than human hairstyling and doesn't pay as well. The average dog haircut cost about $65, which isn't much considering how much goes into grooming. Groomers make less than hairstylists, and dog haircuts take twice as long. Hairstylists also don't have to deal with trimming their clients' butts and feet.
6. Dogs feel calm when you feel calm. It's true that dogs pick up on your energy. I try to keep my studio very zen: I have a diffuser that spritzes calming essential oils, like chamomile and sandalwood. There are no ringing phones, no barking dogs. I try to meditate twice a day to keep my own energy in check. If I can tell a dog is especially nervous, I'll bring my own dog into the room to hang out and doze off. When they see a mellow, sleeping dog, they feel a little safer. For dogs that are especially skittish, I try to gain their trust by showing them that I understand them. For example, I'll give them a little head's up and slide my hand down their arm to pick up their paw to clip their nails, instead of just grabbing their paw. Sometimes it takes pups a few visits to relax, but over time, I hopefully gain their trust completely.
7. Just like a hairstylist needs to understand hair texture, groomers need to understand the differences in dogs' coats. There are many different types of coats - long, like a Yorkie; short, like a pit bull, and everything in between. (For mutts, you can determine their coat type by looking at it and feeling it.) They regulate the dog's temperature and protect the dog's skin from the outside world, so it's very important to properly care for them. Each coat type requires different amounts of oils, and you'll use different tools to groom them too.
8. Sometimes, the dogs get a little out of control. There are always going to be dogs that are badly behaved or poorly trained. When that happens, I just take deep breaths and try to get through it, and then I ask the owner to take the dog on an extremely long hike before their next appointment with me. I also ask owners not to "baby talk" their dogs, which will rile them up. If a dog is really crazy or panicked, I've suggested clients use a mobile groomer instead who can come to their house and groom the dog there. It's not good for me or the dog to be in a situation where the dog is fighting my every move.
9. It's not uncommon to accidentally clip a dog. People accidentally cut dogs all the time, whether with the scissors or the nail trimmers. Fortunately, that hasn't happened to me in years, but it did when I first started. Sometimes groomers accidentally get water in the dog's ears, which can create an ear infection. It's so important to take your time, especially when you're starting out. It's a good idea for groomers to take CPR and first aid classes to know how to react in an emergency, and if a dog is accidentally nicked, I call the owner and ask if they want me to take the dog in to the vet. Fortunately, that's only happened a few times in the 17 years I've been working with dogs.
10. People will ask you to do ridiculous things, but you don't have to say yes. Sometimes people want me to dye their dogs' hair. If they have a black dog, I definitely won't do that, because it would require bleaching the dog first. I did do a beautiful "sunset" dye on a white Pomeranian, where we did a yellow head, faded to orange in the middle, and then hot pink on the rear and red on the tip of the tail. That was an unusual request, but it was my most beautiful dye job ever.
11. Working with cute dogs all day is even more fun than you expect. I started an Instagram for my grooming business to show off my dogs, because they are seriously so cute and fun. It's so cool to get to spend my whole day with pups. And it's only gotten better since I started working for myself: I have my own space, there's no one rushing me, and the room feels so cozy. It's so rewarding to pamper the dogs and make my human clients happy: They drop off their stinky dog and at the end of the day, they get back a gorgeous, clean fluffball.
12. You don't have to be perfect. For a while, I felt like I had to groom every dog perfectly. If there was even a single hair out of place, I would need to fix it. I grew out of that, thanks to the time I was working at this shop and one of our groomers left, and all of a sudden, I had to take on double the amount of clients. At one point, I was doing 22 dogs in a day - it was crazy. I realized that I could not hand-scissor the perfect cylinder legs on every dog. So I learned to be groom my dogs more efficiently. They still looked amazing, but I had to get over the fact that they weren't "perfect." But the truth is, clients don't care (or can't tell) if their dogs are "perfect." They just want their dog clean, healthy, happy, and cute - and I can do that every single time.
Jess Rona is a dog groomer in Los Angeles. This year, she directed a music video for Tegan and Sara, based on her popular Instagram videos of the dogs she grooms.
