Grooming Through the Ages Sally Hart of Tailwaggers looks at how groomers can prepare themselves for the ageing process:
A
s, we covered the ageing of our dog clients and how best we can cater for their varying needs, last month, I thought we should have a look at ourselves this month. Don’t worry, I am not suggesting the mirror straight away, after all, Christmas was not that long ago.
Part 2 Groomers I can just about cast my memory back to when I was a freshly trained dog groomer - 19 and so much more supple. So many things have changed since then, including my ease of movement. So many improvements, and this is even more noticeable for me as I started out my grooming career in South Africa.
Now don’t feel too sorry for me We had electric, even back then, and I had the most up to date clippers and blaster. For those of you who were grooming 20 odd years ago, you will likely remember (and used) the Oster Golden A5. Brilliant clippers, in fact they don’t make them like that anymore. Mine are still going! My trusty back ups. For newer groomers who may not know, these clippers were fantastic and never stopped, as long as you changed the brushes! But heavy, oh so heavy compared to today’s clippers. Nowhere near as fast, and boy did they get hot. Singed fingers were an almost daily consequence. What hasn’t changed, is that this is 36 | Total Grooming Magazine
still a physical job, some clients still don’t book their dogs as regularly as they should and, if we are going to have a long career, we are going to age! It is up to us to ensure we look after ourselves and take the correct
precautions and care. It is imperative to take care of our bodies and there is now much more emphasis on our tools and equipment being less wearing on our bodies.
