nd he was right. When you do the same things day after day, you have nothing to look forward to, you become stagnant and burnout creeps in. Our industry is ever changing, and if you don’t keep up, you surely will be left behind. That’s one reason why industry trade shows are so needed. From the minute you walk into a trade show, you better be prepared to soak up lots of new tips and tricks.

Attending trade shows should be a priority for every groomer. Being at one in person is an experience that cannot be duplicated in any other way. Watching demos can show you new timesaving grooming techniques and the correct use of the equipment, which is incredibly important. You can have the most expensive equipment on the planet, but if you don’t know how to use it properly, you are not going to benefit from it.

ho would have thought that the recent pandemic restrictions could turn an average dog grooming business into a thriving dog grooming business? Well, for Brazilian-born groomer Diana Paiva, that’s exactly what happened.

“I made house-calls doing dog grooming, but then the pandemic happened, and I couldn’t go to clients’ homes anymore. Now, I groom dogs at my home,” says Paiva

Additionally, the Malden, Massachusetts-based groomer now only grooms small dogs under 20 pounds and has the workspace to match: “I work out of a small bathroom at home and use a portable and practical bathtub. I put supports under the feet of the bathtub to keep it high and prevent me from having back pain. The sink offers space for my blades, scissors, and other equipment,” she shares.

Age and wisdom don’t automatically coincide. To stay at the top of our game, we must continuously learn. And I always say that a good day is when I learn something new!

When I graduated from veterinary school 35 years ago, they presumed that our veterinary knowledge would turn over every five years. This meant that if you were not updating your knowledge on a consistent basis, you would be antiquated in five years. More recently though, they have figured that our knowledge turns over every two years. Due to this new finding, we are now required to take anywhere from 10-20 hours a year of education (this varies across states) to be able to renew our state veterinary licenses.

The first is: “I know, and I have an education fund already set up.” (While you could stop reading now, I encourage you to read on anyway.)

The second is: “How exactly will I get a 500% return?”

And the third is: “I can’t afford continuing education. I don’t know how to come up with the money.”

Little did I know, this was just the beginning of the technology world changing so rapidly that sometimes I feel like just as I figure out to how to use a new device, it gets replaced by the new and improved with harder-to-learn features. Convenience and speed became the dominating theme in everyday life. We were suddenly connected to anyone and everyone we wanted to reach with the simple stroke of a few buttons on our keyboard, and eventually our phone. And this opened up a world that, for some, was unreachable before.

Liz Jackson of Spike’s Dog Grooming in Biddeford, ME says, “I had the opportunity to visit a local groomer who was a couple of hours’ drive from me. It was great to be able to learn in a more personal setting and share ideas. I took so much from the experience on top of the knowledge. Creating closer connections to other people in our industry builds a sense of community. It was also great to feel validated when I learned that we shared many of the same techniques. Sharing and learning from other knowledgeable groomers local to me has been amazing for keeping my passion for grooming going.”

Most groomers learned their craft by apprenticing under other groomers, as trades have been taught for thousands of years. But because information is constantly emerging regarding dogs, cats, skin and coat, science, behavior, equipment and products, tools and technology, and safety and health, continuing education is essential for us to commit to—even though we may already be working as groomers.