As an educator in the industry I receive countless emails and private messages on Facebook from groomers with very common questions.
One of the biggest questions I receive is “How do I become a faster groomer?”
Slow and Steady Wins the Race!
Many salon owners and corporate stores push their groomers to be more productive. From a business perspective it is understandable. However, each groomer has their own comfort level and ability to groom a certain number of dogs per day. I am a firm believer that “haste makes waste”. You can ask any one of my three children and they will tell you that I have been saying that to them since they were very young. In fact, I just said this to my eight year old grandson while he was doing homework. No matter what task you are tackling in life; whether you are driving a car, painting a room, cooking dinner or even taking a test in school… haste will make waste. So the best advice I can give you is to:
slow down and do your best work.
Your speed will develop…
with experience and confidence over time. Accidents can happen If a groomer is pushed to groom more dogs than they are physically and mentally capable of handling.
Not only can accidents happen but the quality of the grooming will suffer. Quality should always come first over quantity. Quality grooming is what will bring customers back for years. Those pre-booked appointments are the “gravy dogs” in this business. They are the dogs that are on good schedules and often do not require dematting and resetting of patterns. They are your maintenance grooms. However, those customers will only get to that point if they are getting quality work and their dog is happy. Dogs can sense how a groomer is feeling. If they are rushing and uneasy, the dog will feel it and often times they will react. A calm, relaxed dog is much easier to groom than one that is uneasy about what is going in.
How do you become a faster groomer?
Here are a few tips that I recommend to work on:
Do all your preparation work. Cut nails, clip sanitary area and clip pads before you start grooming.
Dry, brush, comb first. Do not start grooming a dog until they are completely blow-dried straight, completely dry, brushed and thoroughly combed out. If you start grooming and have to stop to brush out a matt, you will waste time.
Have a system when you groom. Always start in the same place and end in the same place on every dog. If you jump around you will waste time and get lost in your groom. Dogs are creatures of habit. They will start to understand what you expect from them when you have a system in place. For example:
“If I am grooming a Poodle my routine would be as follows. I would first clip all four feet and clip the face. I would then set the entire body to whatever length I decide. I would then groom the back legs, move to the front legs and groom the top knot, neck and tail. I would not move on to the next section until each section is completely groomed. The goal is not to have to go back over any section of the dog once you move on.”
Dog grooming is a skill that takes years to master.
It takes time to feel comfortable handling the dogs and also building your skill level. Be patient and be true to yourself. Work at a pace where you feel comfortable. Soon you will look back and be surprised at how much you’ve accomplished and how efficient you have become!
If you would like to learn more or improve your grooming skills, consider Jodi’s award-winning book, her online streaming video seminars, or her all-new Distance Learning Program where you can work through the curriculum on your own time at your own pace!
