Dog Groomer Career - What's it like? How's the job market?

:usa: Greetings & Good Day!

I'm thinking about a career with canines... what's it like in Dog Groomer world? Any tips about finding the right training? What's the job market (demand) like? What kind of pay range should an entry level groomer expect? What's the pay range in general? Any thoughts about going it alone... or having mobile/in-home services?

Any shared thoughts from anyone will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks! :thumbs up

Hey there, John. Welcome to the forum. :D

I don't know much about grooming, except that it takes more training to become a groomer at PetSmart than it does to become a trainer. :eek:

If you're going to open your own grooming business, I'd think you'll need all sorts of insurance to protect yourself as well as your clients. If you're going to build an in-home business, you'll need to get yourself (and your employees, if you ever have any) bonded. As for market and demand, that would greatly depend on where you set up shop. I would imagine someone in a ritzier part of town would make far more than someone in a middle-to-low-class neighbourhood.

Good luck with your new career! :thumbs up

I think your questions have been answered by the above post. If you are really interested you can seek out training schools in your area and there are a couple of big ones in the states to choose from. They can be quite pricy but you wouldn't be tied to their business like you would if you trained under someone. Who wants to train someone that would take their business away. Petsmart now trains their groomers in shop but I believe you have to stay with them for 5 or so years.

There is a lot to know about grooming. It is not as simple as shaving down pets. Each breed has its own cut and tools to be used.
Besides the cost of the training, getting all the tools needed is also not cheap.
One last thing. Grooming can be very hard on the hands over time.

I would suggest that you go visit some really good and reputable groomers and ask them a series of questions about their career, the pros and cons. I find that you can learn a lot about a career when you actually interview someone in the field. This way you will get a better idea of everything that is involved. You may also want to work in a grooming salon to see first hand how a grooming salon is run.

Getting started as a groomer can be quite an expense. You have the training which can run a few thousand dollars, plus the equipment which will run you over a thousand dollars for the good quality stuff. A good pair of clippers will cost a few hundred dollars. Then there are the setup costs which have already been mentioned.

There is also a lot of heavy lifting involved and many times the animals are not keen on being there, so being bitten and scratched is part of the job. I got a nasty bite once from a cat when I was grooming it at the vet clinic I used to work at.

Grooming can be very satisfying, especially when your customer is happy with the end results. You also have the satisfaction of working with animals which is a reward in itself.

Grooming can be rewarding, but unfortunately not financially! I am so sick of being poor, when I move to Ontario I will change careers so I can afford a mortage. In Florida at least you don't have a slow season due to the freezing cold, like we do here. I only worked 1/2 of january, it was so dead. It is very demanding physically, as you are standing and leaning over all day, as well as the lifting and sometimes restraining animals that don't want to be groomed or have their bath that day. Then there are the occasional nasty customers, and the ones that neglect their pets and only bring them in once a year for a shave down, and you'll find skin infections and maybe even maggots under all the matts. Ugh. To be a groomer you must have patience, good customer relations skills, be physically capable, business sense, and also know when you CAN'T groom a particular animal because it's too agressive. I have heard too many stories now of groomers having their face bitten, nose bitten off, chunk of cheek bitten off, blood infection from cat bite, etc. You have to know how to read an animal.

For the pay, it really can vary. I know in some parts of Florida the average groom price is very low (like 30$ for a shih tzu), so that would limit any pay. Some parts (bigger city I guess?) however are more average, being around $40 or 45. Some places pay by the hour (when I started 7 years ago I was paid $8/hr), some are commission based (anywhere from 40-60% depending on experience and equipment owned). The only way to make any money is to run your own business.

:usa: Bravo! You guys are great! This is the place! Super responses! Saves tons of time surfin' round the web (dontchathink?).

I like the idea about interviewing an actual groomer. I could pretend I'm a reporter on some expose' assignment. I think I'll take my dogs in, one at a time, to different places, and get chatty with the staff... at the same time, I'll be inspecting the employees for scar tissues and/or missing appendages.

Honestly, I'm not sure regarding the physical requirements... I'm sort of an electro-mechanical technician at present. I fix "things" and contraptions of all sorts. I'm used to heavy duty working with my hands and such. My last job I worked on lawn/garden tractors... sometimes they can be like big angry mechanical dogs... thank goodness I never had to bathe them! Although, now at 44... I feel it more! I think my back is beginning to show signs of obstinance.

Your response reminded me how I usually procrastinate about bathing my own dogs due to the bach-aching, ibuprofen demanding postures involved. I'll have to watch closely as the groomers handle my three 100 lb. walking anvils.

I've done some dog training as an apprentice... and a lot of research regarding dog psychology. My dogs behave better than I do and certainly better than most people and/or children. They get invited to more parties and events than I do! It's true! The kids of my friends love to see the dogs so whenever there's a kid party... the dogs get invited. At about 100 pounds per K9, my 3 "kids" are often bigger than most of the party members. The parents are always commenting how they wish their children would behave as well as the dogs. I get the same feedback from neighbors, friends, relatives... strangers...

I get along well with people... I haven't bitten anyone... and I have all my shots... I did well as a dog trainer's apprentice in group classes... until the place burnt down and went out of business... but I enjoyed it thoroughly. I just didn't think I had enough experience, about a year, to do anything with it... and then money demands, and blah, blah, blah, pushed me in other directions... so maybe I'll look into the Trainer thing as well...

I just think it would be more rewarding a career, for me, anyway, to help people get along better with their pets, either through cleanliness and aesthetics, or companionship. I didn't find much in the way of spiritual satisfaction helping people get along better with their riding mowers and machinery. I guess that's what I'm thinking about these days.

Thanks so much for all your assistance and information... I'm always open to suggestions... about anything, any topic, any time... I'm at least smart enough to know... that I ain't smart enough! There's always room for thoughts from others.

To Our Pets & Those That Love 'Em! Cheers! :thumbs up

John V. Brennan
K9Guy

I have a friend that started working in a dog grooming saloon pretty much right out of highschool. Twenty years ago - she eventually bought the salon from the owner that retired. She sold it couple of a years ago and bought another salon. I think she does pretty good because shes been doing for so long and is well established. But I know she works like seven days a week and grooms dogs basically twelve hours a day.

There are a couple of groomer locally one does it out of her home and another comes to your house. I tried the first one - she did okay but she basically just shaved him. I would like to try the later one next and see how she does with him.

Right now I am trying to do it my self. I do so- so with clipping - but one thing I cant do is the nails. Joeys are black I am terrified to cut them.

By the way what does that poll that appears at the top of this thread have to do with dog grooming. :D

:usa:
Hi Joey.E.CockersMommy! Thanks for the response... sounds like your friend has plenty of dogs where she lives... I'm sure that here, in Palm Coast, Flagler County Florida, there would be plenty of dogs to go around, with plenty of work to do... I believe it's one of the fastest growing counties in the nation... and there sure seems to be plenty of dogs here. Although I think I would try to keep my working hours down within some sort of sane work/life balance range.

I have 3 big dogs and they, of course, have large thick nails. I use an inexpensive and portable, cordless Dremel tool with a miniature diamond cutting wheel to do their nails. First I chop up some beef franks (hot dogs) into small quarter inch slices and put them in a zip lock baggy. Then I get a dog, a toe, and a toenail into position... and ziiiiip... right through it. For each toenail successfully trimmed, I give the client a treat. Works like magic and I'm done lickety split with all three dogs. No Muss - No Fuss!

The Poll??? I guess I was inspired by the polls I usually see on my general generic home page and the ones I see all around and about the web these days. I usually find them to be random and somewhat thought provoking. I guess this is my way of being thought provacative. Also, while working here in my home office and making my leisurely contribution to friendly pet forums and such... I had the TV on in the other room... I heard it playing various Olympics related dialogue and assumed it was on the Olympics channel, whatever that is. Then, moments later I hear this beer commercial... well one thought led to another... and I just imagined all these Super Athletes all chuggin' beers and clinkin' wine glasses at some pre-event, Italian style tailgate party surrounding the Olympic stadium. Then, while exploring the screen in font of me, I discovered the item about adding a poll to the thread... one thought led to another... and there you have it. The birth of my poll. I guess they are thought provoking... even if they only provoke thoughts like... "what's up with this crazy poll?".

Enjoy Your Sunday - Don't Drink & Drive... or engage in strenuous athletic activities under the influence... and if your a vegetarian and don't like the idea of using beef franks while toenail trimming, another satisfaction guaranteed alternative reward treat is CheeseWiz.

Cheers! :thumbs up

John V. Brennan
K9Guy