Life

During the holiday season, I spend more time than usual thinking about things I am grateful for. One of those things is my long-time career of pet grooming.
Even though groomers deal with more poop and odiferous bodily fluids than most professionals, and beside the fact that pet grooming is not very glamorous, there are a lot of amazing things that come along with being a part of this industry.

Groomers are some of the hardest working people on the planet. From morning till night, you multi-task—and then, you do it all over again the next day. Do you need a break from your hectic routine? Do you find yourself wishing you could take a little trip and get away from it all?

Looking for a fun way to surprise customers and help your shop stand out this fall? Be bold and festive with your very own Groom-O-Lantern! Whether you are a beginner or pumpkin carving master, you will be set to start a new tradition with our groomable dog templates.

Five years ago, Milena Bermudez of South Amboy, New Jersey, never dreamed that her creative grooming would be featured on the Netflix original series, Orange is the New Black, or that her skills would be showcased in the new Hugh Jackman movie, The Greatest Showman.

Setting goals and dreaming about the future is the easy part compared to the hard work that it takes to reach those goals. If you want to be great at something, you must do a whole lot more than dream about it.

Show of hands: how many of you have friends or relatives who think you play with dogs all day? Who believes your shop is like something out of a movie or situation comedy? That every dog is happy and well cared for?

Grooming can make a big difference in the lives of pets, and in some cases, it may even save lives. For New York dog and cat groomer, Mark Imhof, also known as “Mark the Dog Guy,” It was a pit bull named Cleo that started him on the path to becoming a groomer for shelter animals in desperate need of his services.

It is estimated that between six and seven million animals will go into a shelter this year. Many of them will never leave it alive. Three to four million of the pets that enter a shelter will ultimately be euthanized.

When your parents and their parents were young—they chose a career. John became a plumber. Steve was an electrician. Donna became a secretary or a teacher. They trained for or found an opportunity and accepted a job. That job became their career. In short, their career chose them.

Everyone makes mistakes. Some are insignificant, for instance, putting a bow on a dog when the owner is someone who prefers bandanas. Some are much larger, and can affect our livelihood.

How can you increase your grooming business, polish your reputation, delight your customers, and have a little fun all at the same time? The answer is, by taking and publishing photos of your customers’ pets. And it’s easy.

Growing up, the now 25–year–old Macie Pisa was no stranger to competitive dog grooming. Looking back, she remembers the hard work and excitement that filled her home in the days leading up to a grooming competition.