A few months ago, we put a post on Facebook asking groomers for the advice they'd give to first-time groomers.
Jessica responded with some helpful hints about dog body language. We liked what she wrote so much that we asked her to expand on it for a blog post.
We learned a lot from Jessica and we hope that you will, too.
Jessica Moorhead
New Rochelle, NY
Jessica's dog, Tucker, a 1 1/2 year old Bichon mix
Q. What is the best way to learn dog body language?
A. Probably the best way is to spend some time with someone who really knows and understands dogs. Pay attention to what they say, but also to how they move, their facial expressions, and how they interact with different dogs.
Q. Where did you study dog behavior?
A. I didn't professionally study dog behavior at a school. I did study human psychology, though, and read a lot. Both my parents are librarians, and ingrained the art of research in my head.
I love dogs, but when I was younger I was scared of them. Although I would sit for pets, walk dogs, and worked at a pet store, I had a slight fear of dogs I thought I would never get over.
I didn't focus on reading about dog body language until I started getting serious about wanting to be a groomer. I read every book that I could and watched every show about training dogs and animal behavior that I could find. I would even watch wolf documentaries.
You can read as much as you want, but it is still nothing compared to a hands-on learning approach. I was terrified of German Shepherds my entire life, and I ended up working on an amazing sable female named Asia one day in the salon. After starting out so scared of Asia and then coming to love her, I needed to meet her owner.
It turned out that her pet parent was a professional German Shepherd breeder, and she ended up taking me under her wing to groom for her privately.
This woman taught me so much about animal behavior because she both bred and rescued German Shepherds. She would rehabilitate rescue dogs that I wouldn't go near and had little hope for, and turned them into champion show dogs.
The breed I was most fearful of has become my favorite breed. I can't thank her enough for the hands-on experience I got because I was able to use that in the salon with other dogs and pass the knowledge on to others.
Q. How has knowing dog body language helped you as a groomer?
A. It has saved me from being bitten! I've seen a bather get a forearm ripped open and a manager of mine have the tip of his index finger bitten off. These bites could have been prevented.
I know the average groomer will be bitten at some point—if not multiple times—but I'd prefer not to be. I've spent three years being a bather/dog groomer, and I have yet to have blood drawn.
Knowing dog body language has helped me deal with people as well, whether they are co-workers, employees, or customers. Once you train yourself to watch for the reactions of others, and change your body language to respond to a given situation with an animal, it translates over to people as well.
Q. In your response to our Facebook post, you said that groomers shouldn't assume that:
A.) A dog that's yawning is always tired
B.) A dog that's panting is always hot
C.) A dog that's shaking is always cold
D. A dog that's wagging its tail is always happy
What other some other explanations for these behavior signs?
A. These are some of the most commonly mistaken sign in dogs!
Yawning
When a dog is yawning, it is usually a sign of stress if the dog is in a situation besides lounging around at home. I always try to be really careful of puppies and rescues when it comes to their first time grooming. If they yawn a lot or start falling asleep, I stop the grooming process and hang out with them until they relax. Humans do something similar. I yawn when I'm stressed or anxious.
Panting
If a dog is panting heavily during a grooming session, it is probably not a sign that they are hot unless your salon's temperature is too high! Just think about other humans and yourself. What are our normal reactions when we get really scared? Whether it's walking through a haunted house or watching a scary movie, our heart rate goes up, we start to breathe very fast, and we gulp for air. Dogs do the same thing.
Shaking
Shaking goes along the same train of thought. Unless your salon is absolutely freezing, the dog is probably shaking because it's nervous. I hear all the time "Awww, he's cold," especially when the dog is wet and the dryer is about to go on or is on. Whenever I see any of these signs of stress in puppies and senior dogs especially, I treat them as critically important.
The best way to make sure you don't have an injury or a death is through prevention. I went into grooming because I didn't trust anyone with my babies, so I can't imagine having to tell a pet parent that their dog had to go to the veterinarian—or worse.
Tail Wagging
As for tail wagging, one of the best conversations about this subject came when Emily, one of the bathers at the shop, was working with a new trainee.
They had a dog on the table, and the dog was wagging its tail and shaking slightly. The new girl leaned in and put her face directly in the dog's face.
I pulled the girl back and said "Never put your face in the bite zone!"
The girl replied, "It's OK, his tail is wagging."
Emily turned to the girl and said " A mini schnauzer once bit me pretty good at school, and that dog was acting super happy. Obviously it wasn't."
I don't know the exact "wags per second" that a dog's tail makes when it is happy versus fearful, but there are different types of tail wags for different situations and you just need to pay attention.
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Still to come...in Part 2 of the interview, Jessica will give her tips for dealing with shy and aggressive dogs.
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Your Turn
Do you have tips and tricks for understanding dog behavior? Do you have stories about how dog behavior has helped you as a groomer? Post your comments on the blog, or leave them on our Facebook Wall. Thanks and happy grooming :)
