Anyone on here a groomer?
 

Hi, I've been thinking about opening my own grooming shop. I plan to have children soon and would love to have my shop connected to my home. I'm so confused about the schooling for it. Do you need a license or is it just a certificate? I really want to be a good groomer and find a good school to go to. I tried looking online and I see some places are like a 2 month program while others are 2 years. I'm really confused but very serious about this. If anyone can pass some advice and point me in the right direction I would really appreciate it. Thanks!!

I checked into it myself. There is only one accredited school here in Indiana and it is $4000 for 6 months. Will have to wait a while longer, but it was very impressive.

I am a groomer and have groomed for about 27 years now. From time to time I will take on a student if I feel they really want to learn. I charge 6,000.00 for four months and it seems to work out well. It is very stressful for me to teach at first as I wonder if a dog will be hurt, so far everything has gone well. Everyone I have taught has gone on to groom and have enjoyed their work. If you can't afford the school you might find someone near you that is willing to teach you. But you need to be prepared to offer them something in return. I have loved grooming dogs, I can't imagine doing anything else.

Debbie Ray
www.sumtoiyorkies.com
owner
Best Friends Pet Salon
Salem Oregon

Dray - Am I right - you charge $6000 for four months ---- working with someone and helping them learn to groom.

Isn't this very expensive - ????

And - can a person learn enough in only four months - or is dog grooming easier than I think? (This is a serious question.)

Carol Jean

The grooming school in my area charges $4,000 for a three month course. After that, they can start grooming right away. I know of one groomer in my neighborhood who just got out of grooming school, and he has his own grooming business already! He did work as a groomer's assistant for a few months before he went to school, but it didn't take him long to become a professional groomer. I would think that working one-on-one with a groomer would be better than going to school; you'd get more personal attention. $6,000 doesn't seem out of line to me.

Even 8 hours a day for four months doesn't seem like a lot of schooling to me.

I can't think of any other profession that takes so little training.

I am thinking about all the different breeds and the specialized cuts (and believe me some are very difficult) -- plus all the different types of problems you can run into.

**** I would think that a person could spend just four months specializing in only a few breeds. (In fact a lot of the best groomers do specialize in only a few breeds - and keep very busy - because they are good.)

And - please please please - don't forget the hundreds of posts here about "the groomer ruined my dog!" But - I have always thought of these groomers - as groomers who really don't know what they are doing as far as different breeds and their appropriate cuts go.

I asked on a thread one time - how much schooling a lot of groomers here had - and whether or not some of them had only learned on the job.........but I really didn't get any replies.

****** I see ads - learn to groom at home in only 6 weeks --- for sure!

And, alternatively - there was the two-year school I saw in California that cost $12,000. (And - you had to attend their school in person every day - it wasn't a correspondence course --)


Carol Jean

You are right four months is not long enough to be a great groomer, just like beauty school at nine months is not long enough to be a great hair dresser. In four months time I can teach a person to handle animals and to use their equipment with care. The people I teach work beside me and on every dog I do so they get one on one attention. My entire shop is in on the teaching also, we all watch the student close and we all teach her as much as we can . So when she or he goes out I hope they know enough not to hurt a dog and in time their skills as a groomer will grow.
I know this as I am self taught, I learned by watching and reading and having great friends at the dog shows that all pitched in to help me learn. It is an on going process, you can not learn everything all at once.
But I feel good knowing that no one I teach will ever be stupid enough to kill a dog in a dryer or let one fall from a table. I teach the best I can in the time I have and if they want further help my door is always open.

Debbie Ray

Carol Jean, I am not sure I answered your question, so I will add a bit to my answer. Yes I do charge 6,000.00 for 4 months, and I have been paid by the state of Oregon to train a few girls for them in a program the state offers. They were begging me to train the girls and thought nothing of the price. I think that 4 months is enough time for me to teach the basic grooming and for the students to get a job after. Yes they will need to keep learning but everyone in a job has to do that too.

Grooming is pretty easy to learn for the most part, I taught one girl for the state with a learning disability and I just talked to her boss yesterday and she is very happy with her and she is doing great.

The cost I justify as I can only do half as many dogs while I teach someone else. I work with them every minute of my day. There is no other school that gives you your own teacher to stand beside you all the time. I do not take more than one student at a time as I need to watch everything they do.

I hope this better answers your question.

Owner
Best Friends Pet Salon
Salem Oregon

grooming
 

debbie, you have more guts than me! i am so scared that someone will hurt one of my grooming dogs. but it takes so much time away from your own work. i would have to charge more money. i also do show grooms. for over 30 years now. a school will never teach you what a groomer 1 on 1 can .www.dyannasyorkies.com:animal-pa

I think good groomers are very in demand.....at least where I live. A friend of mine and I were talking about using a mobile groomer that comes to your home. She called one groomer that was recommended and he wasn't taking new customers...he was booked out 3-4 months.:eek:

Dyanna , don't think I don't worry the first months I am watching everything they do or one of my employees are. I teach them how to use their equipment so no body gets hurt and if they do as I say... everything will be just fine. But yes I worry, so far we haven't had any injuries.... Knock on wood. But my vet is only 4 blocks down the street :D

There is a grooming school near me that I am thinking of enrolling this summer.
Their curriculum is based on hours so you can finish in as little as two weeks to a year, depending on how well you do and how many hours you are willing to put in each day. It is hands on experience, everyday you are there you will be grooming dogs and learning the different cuts. The instructor has been teaching grooming to students for awhile and has been grooming dogs for over 35 years and is suppose to be one of the best around here. She also teaches you how to operate your own grooming business if that is what you want and also helps with job placement once you complete the course. The tuition is around $3000.

I think it is a great idea if it is something you really want to do.
For me, I have been grooming my own dogs for over 8 years now so I figure why not go get certified so I can groom other dogs as well?

You do not have to go to school or have any training to be a groomer...Although I do think you would benefit greatly by going to school and learning from a professional...I have been grooming for over 19 years now and I did go to school to learn the art of grooming...

As far as going to school for 2 years, I am not sure why it would take that long to teach you how to groom...I went for about 4 months and I was prepared to open my own grooming shop and get to work...I did attend seminars and tried to learn more...

Do look into your zoning regulations to see what would be required of you to open a grooming salon attached to your home...Not all communities allow it!..I groomed and raised my girls while working at home or close to home...It has been a flexible career for me but it is a lot of work...Good luck to you!

~Laura