Who, What, Where? A License?
I bet you're thinking "does my dog have a license"?! Actually, depending on the state you live in, your dog may be required to have a dog license. In Pennsylvania it's a law that every dog has a dog license. But...as a pet groomer the story is very different and one that has been debated for some years now.
As a groomer I am frequently asked "Are you licensed or certified as a groomer"?
If you are starting a business as a groomer, mobile or otherwise, or you're a pet owner interested in the services of a groomer you may have asked the same question. The flip-side is that you may not have ever thought about it.
It is important to understand that licensing and certified are two different things in the groomers' world. Certification is when a groomer who has some experience takes a multi-part test, both written and practical hands-on, to become a Master Certified Groomer. This type of certification is conducted by the National Dog Groomers Association and has different classifications of certification. You can be certified, for example, for Non Sporting Breeds (poodles, etc). You can find more information on how to become certified at http://www.nationaldoggroomers.com/.
Groomers with a certification can command higher prices for their services because their skills have been approved by a set of credentials. This is a comfort to some pet owners that their groomer has verified skills.
The other type of licensing that has been at debate at the state level all over the United States is the licensing of each and every groomer in business or employed in a shop. The discussions are usually sparked by an incident where a pet has gotten hurt (my view of the reason for the rise of these discussions) and legislators are pressured to make rules to make sure that every grooming environment is safe for every pet. For example, a story in Pennsylvania was written in the newspaper where a dog was unattended in a cage dryer and died. This created a lot of uproar from dog owners to have statutes created to prevent these situations. Although I do agree that these situations should never have happened, I feel that there are positives and negatives to this idea.
The positives to creating licensing for pet groomers is that the cost of a license may deter groomers that have no training from potentially creating a dangerous situation. The statutes could include formal training as a requirement, a certain amount of experience through apprenticing, and testing. These requirements would give piece of mind to pet owners that their pets will receive the best of care, and avoid potentially dangerous situtatons. All good stuff right?! Maybe....
The negative to pet groomers licensing is that all these requirements have financial costs that will ultimately be passed on to the customer thus raising grooming prices. This may or may not be popular to the client. Another negative is that some requirements may exclude groomers that have been working for a good amount of time but never got formal training. These groomers may have wonderful skills and experience to do a safe and professional job. They might have to take that training which is costly and requires full-time devotion where they would not be able to keep their business running while they're at school. This is an income loss or a total business loss for some.
Finally, all these statutes sound wonderful but without a lot of resources to enforce these rules, it may not prevent a bad situation.
This all sounds like I'm not for licensing. I actually don't know what is the best course for this except that when choosing a groomer, ask questions: what are your education credentials, how much experience do you have... Check out the grooming shop and make sure it's clean and orderly. You can ask for references or ask a friend for a referral.
As a groomer, it's your responsibility to make you customers as comfortable with you as possible. Mobile groomers have an especially sensitive situation since they come into the clients' home, and many times when the pet owner is not home. I always require the customer to be home for the first appointment so they can meet me and feel comfortable with me as a groomer and someone whom is going to be in their home if they're not. And, I always have references for anyone who asks.
In conclusion, licensing is not required anywhere in the United States as of the time of this article but it's always popping up for debate. What do you think?
