Grooming Dogs: What's Good and Bad From Their Point of View

Numerous people choose to have their dogs groomed professionally. I hadn't thought much about what can be involved when a dog goes to a groomer—traveling to a facility unless it's done at home; being caged before the procedure; being left alone with a groomer; being touched and restrained during the treatment; being exposed to multisensory overload; being shampooed, trimmed in vulnerable places, including private areas, dried, perfumed, and perhaps having their nails cut and painted—until I read Stephanie Zikmann's book The Magic of Holistic Grooming: A No-Nonsense Guide To Pawsitively Grooming Your Dog With Less Stress and did a recent interview with her.

Dog grooming

Source: Artem Korsakov/Pexels

Both were eye-openers because I hadn't thought much about the ups and downs and many hidden and not-so-hidden layers—physical and emotional—of grooming. Nonetheless, despite what I've recently learned about its downsides, including an accumulation of different sorts of stress (trigger stacking) and the fact that grooming, like dog training, is an unregulated business and an invasion of a dog's personal space, body, and freedom, it still can be done in cooperative ways so that it can be a pleasant experience and not necessarily harmful to a dog, as long as the dog consents and agrees to be groomed, because we honor their agency.^1-5

There also are marked individual differences among dogs in how they respond to being groomed. And grooming goes far beyond just looking good for a human.

I wanted to know more about grooming, and I'm pleased Stephanie could answer a few questions about what's entailed in making dogs look good and how it can be done holistically and mindfully.

Why did you establish The Holistic Grooming Academy?

I wanted to provide my peers with a safe space to learn more about a dog’s needs in the context of grooming and give them the confidence to embrace a more animal-centered approach in their roles as professional groomers. It is the intent and purpose of The Holistic Grooming Academy to encourage its students to embrace a more consensual approach in their roles as groomers.

What is it like for a dog to be groomed?

Grooming is a physically demanding task, and it is the role of the dog groomer to ensure that the skin and coat are healthy and well-preened to prevent tangles and matting. Anywhere hair grows has to be carefully groomed, which means that for most breeds, every inch of a dog’s body is handled, often against their will. Sadly, there are many “safety” devices and tools that groomers are encouraged to use on dogs who resist, often forcing a non-consensual dog to stand for prolonged periods of time.

The grooming environment is also noisy, smelly, and full of potential stressors, which, if not first carefully introduced and desensitized to, will cause the dog's senses to overload, increasing stress and anxiety in the environment.

Why is it essential that the dog give their consent and that their wishes be honored?

The misconception that controlling a dog keeps the environment safe is not only dangerous, but it can also have groomers believe that the need for learning concludes with just one professional grooming qualification when there’s plenty of room to dig deeper. Being able to successfully observe and communicate with a dog throughout the grooming process and to groom at the dog’s own pace not only helps to build up trust between a dog and their groomer but also helps enhance the experience for all.

Through my work as a force-free grooming behaviorist, I have recognized that safety, especially in an environment as hazardous as grooming, is better achieved when the dog feels safe. But this can only be achieved when the groomer acknowledges each dog's individual needs—their own likes and dislikes. It cannot be achieved through force.

Choice and consent are essential. The ability to choose how we are treated is not a species-specific right, it’s a universal one that exists for all living, sentient beings. It's about opening our minds and hearts to the idea that dogs can tell us their preferences in grooming and that it’s more than possible to reduce the length of time it takes to groom a dog and get far better results long-term if we do it on their terms from day one.

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As groomers, we should incorporate positive training techniques and safe-handling methods to encourage cooperation. If we learn to listen to the dog, grooming can even be a fun process they look forward to time and time again.

Why should dog grooming be regulated?

Since the grooming industry is yet to be regulated, we threaten the quality-of-care animals receive and the competence of our working professionals—anyone can legally groom a dog and make money from it. Many people don't recognize that grooming is not just the art of styling a dog to a certain breed standard, but a service of care that’s main purpose should be to preserve health and well-being through positive training, safe handling, and observation.

Regulation would hopefully bring about strict guidelines to protect animals from untrained hands and ensure that those working with them are confident and competent enough to do so. But I also feel it’s important to emphasize here the significance of continually updating and enhancing our knowledge and skills.

There still are influencers and educational bodies who laugh at the idea of dogs giving consent, highlighting how outdated our industry is. It’s hard to be critical and positive at the same time, but I try to encourage my students to have courage and step into their vulnerability. It’s not about shaming ourselves for what we do today but looking at how we can enhance what we do today to better the future for all.

In an ideal world, all pet professionals would work closely together with an open heart toward providing a more synchronized and unified space for learning extra-curricular skills focused on the psychological and emotional aspects of each individual animal and how best to groom them under less stressful circumstances.