Correcting Behavior During Grooming – Learn the 4 Keys to Successful Pet HandlingIf you are a long time pet professional, you’ve probably mastered today’s topic. If you are fresh to the industry, you are probably struggling with it. How do you handle the dog that does not want to cooperate with the grooming procedure?
By Melissa Verplank, CMG
We have a motto within my companies when it comes to learning:
It is at the very core of everything we do. Why?
I see learning as never-ending. It does not matter what stage you are in your career. Or what stage you are in your life. Continued learning offers positive opportunities around every turn.
I was never a great student in school. Traditional academics did not excite me. But once I got into dog grooming, now that was a different story.
I became passionate about learning. About growing my career. I didn’t seek out traditional methods. Most of my learning was self-directed. Something much more challenging before the age of the Internet! I quickly understood the wealth of benefits continued education unleashed.
Certified Master Groomer and author Melissa Verplank talks about the evolution of The Theory of Five – a method of grooming she developed to create reproducible results and systematic communication with team groomers and clients. From it’s early inception to the foundation it has become for dog grooming instruction, the Theory of Five has helped groomers around the world save time and make money.
If you’d like to purchase The Theory of Five, Click Here.
Want to learn to groom dogs on campus or online? Learn more about our Distance Learning Program and get $100 off tuition with code LUCKYDOG.
Want to keep your skills sharp? Subscribe to Learn2GroomDogs.com for access to hundreds of videos from top stylists. Use code LUCKYDOG to get 50% off your first month.
For those who want to become a professional pet groomer, but have difficulty attending a physical grooming school, Paragon’s Distance Learning Program offers more options. In this video, Melissa Verplank shares an update on the Paragon Pet School’s Distance Learning Program. Not only has this home study program proven itself effective for training people entering the industry, but it’s also being embraced by grooming salons of all sizes too!
If you want to learn the skills necessary to become a professional pet groomer at home, or you need help training your grooming staff, check out Paragon’s Distance Learning Program. Visit ParagonPetSchool.com today and use the promo code “LUCKYDOG” and get $100 Off your tuition!
Is professional pet grooming the right career choice for you? It’s a field with many benefits, and Melissa shares some of the perks that resonate with many people entering the field. In this video, she shares her own experiences with what it’s like to work as a professional groomer and what can make a groomer successful.
If you’re ready to start your pet grooming career, whether full or part-time, check out Paragon Pet School’s Distance Learning Program and start learning all the skills you need from home. Get started on our Home Study Page today and use the promo code “LUCKYDOG” and get $100 Off your tuition!
Master Groomer Melissa Verplank explains why you should save the date to watch the Westminster Dog Show, America’s oldest institution for purebred conformation. Spawned in 1877, Westminster’s all-breed show is a source of inspiration for great grooms as breeders and owners show their top dogs.
See the “stack” of the 204 eligible breeds across every group and variety as the best-in-breed and best-in-show are selected Monday, May 8, and Tuesday, May 9. Check out the Masters’ Agility competition starting on Saturday, May 6 and Sunday, May 7. Visit Westminster for the full schedule to tune-in: https://www.westminsterkennelclub.org/2023-dog-show-info/2023-schedule-of-events
Whether you’re just learning to groom or striving to improve your repertoire, don’t miss this chance to study top dogs!
Want to brush up on your AKC standards? Look into our advanced education opportunities at https://www.paragonpetschool.com/home-study.
Want to pick up new tips on the fly? Check out https://www.Learn2GroomDogs.com, where our library of great grooming videos can help you level-up.
Do you know your croup from your withers? In this video, master groomer Melissa Verplank discusses the vital role of canine anatomy knowledge in successful grooming. Great grooms flow from a solid understanding of the structure and kinetic capabilities of your subject.
Want to bone up on your canine anatomy? Check out Melissa’s definitive Notes from the Grooming Table at the Paragon Pet School bookstore: https://paragonpetschool.com/product/notes-from-the-grooming-table-second-edition/
Want to take a course? Explore your distance learning options at Paragon: https://paragonpetschool.com/home-study/
When you attend trade shows and clinics, preparing in advance can help you make the most of this experience. Seminars are a great way to improve your skills and recharge your batteries. Meeting your mentors and soaking up their knowledge is a fantastic opportunity, and if you can see and hear them in action, it maximizes the experience. When you know what you need and what you hope to get out of the session, you can better prepare yourself to squeeze out as much as you can from your time together.
If you are young and fresh to the industry, the amount of information that you get can be intimidating. Listen, take notes, and soak up every bit of knowledge that you can. Sometimes that may mean suspending what you know in order to make room for something new. Trying new techniques or ideas can be uncomfortable just because you’ve never tried it before. Keeping an open mind enables you to break from your routine to get different results. With time and practice, the awkwardness goes away and you become more efficient. Remember: having more tools, techniques, and knowledge allows you to have multiple approaches to a problem.
Many trainers at these sessions have limited time. They are often rushing from one obligation to another – judging competitions, speaking in seminars, or providing hands-on clinics. If they can, many will take the time to answer your questions. If you know what you need to ask, it helps you make the best use of the brief time you may have together. Be prepared – write down your questions in advance so you don’t forget something important or stumble over your words. Being ready to participate in the learning experience helps you make the best use of the session – and the presenter will respect you for it.
With so much to see and do at trade shows, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Break out the catalog and study the floor plan before you arrive. Map out your plan of attack to make sure you get to everything you need to see. Some shows have free apps you can download to help make the most out of your experience. Know the schedule of events so you don’t miss that speaker you’ve been hoping to see. Sometimes it’s good to go to shows like this with a friend – divide and conquer, then compare notes later.
As your knowledge and skills advance, the clinics won’t be as daunting. They will become a great way for you to fine-tune your skills. You can begin to network and exchange thoughts with others in the industry who can provide insight when you need it. Plus, these types of functions are a great way to invigorate your career.
These principles remain valid for many forms of advanced learning in the pet grooming industry. Maybe you don’t have the opportunity to do a hands-on training session. There is a wealth of information to learn from these all-star pet stylists. You might be in the audience at a trade show, pet grooming competition or watching a grooming video lesson featuring one of these top stylists. The better you can execute the core skills with your everyday grooming, the easier it will be to successfully transfer their lessons to your own grooming table.
If you are not as accomplished as these award-winning and highly successful pet groomers are – take note. You can learn a lot from their well-developed skills. Learning new skills, tips, and tricks make grooming pets all that more fun!
Happy trimming!
Melissa
Why do you attend trade shows? How do you make sure you get your money’s worth? Jump on the Learn2GroomDogs.com Facebook page and tell us about it.
In my years of teaching new pet groomers, I’ve seen hundreds of dogs take advantage of a new students. Dogs pull, squirm, whine, snarl… and bite. I’ve seen many students frustrated to the point of tears.
Then a miracle happens.
An instructor will walk over to the pet and gently take over for the student. Suddenly, this challenging pet turns into a perfect angel. The students’ jaw drops. A moment in stunned silence passes before the student exclaims, “How did you do that?!” The answer is simple:
Energy.
Dogs have keen senses and an uncanny ability to pick up on our energy and our confidence. They read us clearly even when we don’t think we are connecting to them. In the example above, the dog picked up on the instructor’s energy without a word having to be said.
Dogs are primarily nonverbal communicators. They have a language of their own. They are very clear in the messages that they give us. It is up to us to be able to interpret that language.
The #1 rule when working with pets is to remember the three C’s. As a professional you must remain: Calm, Cool, and Collected in ALL circumstances. The second you step out of this energy mode, the dog pet will know it.
Dogs are hardwired to think like dogs. They need a pack leader. If you do not exude the three C’s, dog language translates that to “poor leader.” The pet will not follow you. It will not cooperate with you.
So how do you gain the upper edge in this situation? Believe it or not, it all starts with your BREATHING.
I know it sounds far-fetched. How could something we do without conscious thought help in this situation?
To create a calm, cool, and collected energy, you need to be cool, calm, and collected. Deep breathing allows you body to channel that calm and focus. To make it happen, your breaths need to be deep and saturating. Breathe in slowly and deeply through your nose. Draw in the air and feel it fill your lungs. Now exhale slowly through your mouth. The most important part of deep breathing is to regulate your breaths. Three to four seconds in. Three to four seconds out.
Try it. You will feel the oxygen saturating your body. Tension begins to leave your shoulders. You will start to feel more relaxed almost immediately.
Deep breathing can release stress and provide other noticeable health benefits. You will likely feel calmer after performing deep breathing exercises, and may trade feelings of anger or fear for a focused, relaxed state of mind. Most dogs will totally gravitate to this energy in a very positive way.
I firmly believe that 98% of all dog bites are preventable by reading the animal correctly and taking the appropriate precautions to protect yourself while gaining humane control over the pet. Your hands are your livelihood. You must take utmost care not to let your hands become injured.
Every pet is an individual with different physical and emotional characteristics. Some dogs receive clear directions and boundaries at home, making them very easy to work on in a professional setting. Other pets will not have the skills necessary to be well-mannered candidates in a professional grooming setting.
The personality quirks that you’ll experience while working professionally with pets will range from dogs that are perfect angels, to dogs that are mildly annoying, to dogs that could be potentially dangerous to work on for both the handler and to the pet itself.
Whenever working with pets it is always critical to remember the 3 C’s. As a professional you must remain calm, cool, and collected in all circumstances. And don’t forget to BREATHE.
Whenever you have a dog on a table or in your grooming facility, you must use humane, respectful, and consistent training messages. The more you can learn about dog psychology and combine it with actual experience, winning the control and the respect over the dogs will become second nature.
Always remember that dogs are primarily silent communicators. Excessive talking or giving of commands is not necessary to effectively communicate with them. Much of your control can come from maintaining the Three C’s – Always remain Calm, Cool, and Collected while working with any animal.
Any time you feel you are losing control of the three C’s, it’s time to step away from the grooming table and take a break. Breathe. Only when you can totally regain your composure is it time to step back and begin your work again.
There are many videos on Pet Handling in the Learn2GroomDogs library. Also my blog on Rating Dog Personalities is very helpful when determining how to rate personality and behavior in dogs.
Happy trimming!
Melissa
What did you think about these ideas? What do you do that works great for you? Jump on the Learn2GroomDogs.com Facebook page and tell us about it.
Do you experience seasonal climate changes? If you are in the northern hemisphere, I bet you are already feeling the warm weather grooming rush. One week you are slow, then suddenly the sun comes out. The temperature begins to rise. Instantly, your phone starts to ring off the hook.
Let me ask you this.
If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, you’re not alone. When the spring rush hits, groomers are in short supply everywhere!
Finding qualified help is the #1 problem for most business owners.
How often have you advertised for a new bather or groomer and have been able to fill the job immediately? Hardly ever, right? Even after you’ve filled the position, how often has that person been able to perform that job without any guidance or direction from you?
If yours is like most grooming salons, it’s next to impossible to hire the ready-made job applicant. It’s rare to find a person who will be everything you need, right away. Even if you do find great candidates, it’s still going to take work to bring them up to speed. To bring them in line with the way YOU do things in your business. To teach them your culture.
Finding the right people to build your team is always the most challenging part of running any business.
Training is at the heart of all great employees. Unfortunately, training takes time and effort. Both of those equate to money out the door. One of the most frustrating things for any business is to go through the training process only to have the new hire leave shortly after training has been completed. However, if you’re going to run a business that has any growth, you’re going to need to hire help.
How do you find great job candidates who will stay with you? I’m not just talking bathers, groomers, and stylists. I’m talking about anybody that would add value to your business and your team.
I wish there was a simple and clear-cut answer to this very old problem. There’s not.
The best way to get started down the hiring path is finding job candidates with potential. Here are a few things I always think about when looking at prospective job candidates.
Where to Find ThemYou are going to need somebody who understands that working with dogs takes WORK. A lot of work. I look for proof that they are willing to work. Willing to commit. I scan their resume for clues.
I have found that some of our best employees and students come from a more rural background. Being brought up on a farm always teaches valuable work ethics. Many times, they will have 4H in their background. Being active with horses or dogs is also a positive attribute. So is someone coming from a veterinarian clinic, animal rescue, or any professional pet-related background.
Look at attendance records and GPA, not just a certificate or diploma. Check their extracurricular activities. Was s/he in band, sports, or Student Council? These things will indicate how disciplined and focused a job candidate will be. It will also tell you if that person has worked as part of a team.
Check prior work history. Does the candidate have the experience or skills to do the job? Do they have any previous professional experience working with animals?
Here’s a list of traits that make a great new hire. Look for these behaviors during the interview and during their initial trial period.
Here are a few tips when it comes to evaluating a new candidate.
Once you have a new team member, it’s up to you to provide the training that will guide them. Every salon is slightly different. You want your new hire to succeed. That means you are going to have to put in some effort. They need to be clear on your rules and expectations. Ideally, these rules and expectations will be printed in an employee manual – even if it’s only a few pages!
Observe how they work. Even with the most basic tasks like answering phones or washing dogs, many new hires need to be gently coached. Even if their skill level is weak, if they have the right attitude, you will be able to train them quickly. But you must understand where they are in their current level of training. And the only way to learn that is by having them demonstrate their work.
Books and videos can be extremely helpful to the training process, as well. But don’t just assume they are reading and watching the material – and understanding it. You will still need to observe them carefully for the first few weeks, making sure the information in the books and videos is being correctly implemented.
I learned a long time ago that I prefer to cultivate my own team from scratch. That way they learned our culture. Our expectations. They came without a lot of baggage we need to change. If I was fair with them, in return, they were fair with me, staying with my team for years.
Not everybody will stick with you, long-term. That’s all right. It’s part of the hiring process. Part of running a business. You learn to work with it. Always keep your eyes open for great candidates to join your team. Once you know what to look for, the hiring process becomes a bit easier.
Learn2GroomDogs.com members – check out these links for more information:
What to look for in New Hires / How to Keep New Employees – with Melissa Verplank and Judy Hudson
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