Expert Advice from Mr. Adnaan A Khan, Founder, K9 School
With the run down of this article, let’s understand the stress-cycle from a dog’s perspective and how pet parents can help their animals by preparing them for a visit to the groomer.
A Dog’s perspective -The Stress Cycle
The grooming centre is a chaotic environment, filled with unfamiliar smells, loud sounds, and still more anxious pets. These different elements, combined together, along with the rough handling from untrained staff, creates a situation where a dog feels threatened, and may respond in one of the three manners: Fight, flight, and avoidance
1. Fight: This is the mode in which the dog becomes reactive, and would either bark, or growl, or even attempt to bite.
2. Flight: If the dog finds even an iota of space, it will try to physically escape, and this may cause further stress.
3. Avoidance: This may be interpreted by some staff as compliance; however in this situation the dog will start to shut down, and this would mask the underlying fear and stress the animal will experience
All the above responses are a result of improper handling, and can potentially cause physical harm to the dog. However, pet parents can try to prepare their dog for grooming at home by taking some proactive steps, before they actually face the situation in reality.
Preparing Your Pet for a Visit to the Groomer
1. Early Table Training at Home: The first and foremost thing is to ensure that your dog is comfortable on elevated surfaces like grooming tables. It would be imperative to introduce them to different positions – Offering paws, wearing a muzzle on command, or even lying down. Infact, pet parents should reward their pets with treats for positive behaviour. This activity would help the dog get familiar with any kind of table handling and they will not be anxious when they experience these actions during the grooming sessions.
2. Getting Tool Ready, Gradually: The best way to train a dog is a reward-based training method. This method can be used to introduce your dog to common grooming tools such as nail clippers, dryers, and brushes. Ensure that you engage your dog’s auditory and visual senses by showing them the tools and working with them in a positive environment.
3. Explore the Groomers: Take your dog to the grooming centre just to explore the place, and allow them to get used to the smells and sounds of the place. If possible feed them a meal there to create a positive grooming centre association.
4. Do your research: Before choosing a groomer, do your due diligence. Do not only look at the cost of grooming when choosing a centre but also focus on handling skills, empathy and animal care practices of the staff and the clinic. As for reviews and find out more about specific groomers. Well-trained and compassionate team would make a huge difference to your dog’s comfort
Summary
The difference between a bad, and a great grooming experience is the effort that the pet parents put in proper preparation, reviewed and careful selection of the grooming clinic, and understanding whether the staff that is interacting with your dog is compassionate, careful, trained and certified in handling animals. As a pet parent it is our responsibility to advocate for the welfare of our animals and demand better standards from grooming centres, to ensure that they are able to transform the experience of petcare in India by making it less stressful, and more safe for anyone involved.