A few thoughts about cat grooming...

Thirty or so years ago I was a brand new groomer and my boss, a brilliant but mercurial veterinarian told me he had scheduled two cats for me to groom the next day. I loved cats, but had never groomed one, and told him, "Oh, I don't do cats." He said, "Then you are fired."  Needless to say, I learned to groom cats.  I realized back then that there was very little information out there for groomers to learn anything about grooming cats.  Fortunately, times have changed. 

Now there are cat grooming organizations, and books dedicated to the topic.  There is a current wave, (of which I whole heartedly approve!) of grooming cats holistically, focusing on their bodies, minds and spirits.  If you would like to learn how to safely, kindly and compassionately groom cats, check out: 

http://www.professionalcatgroomers.com/

and the Holistic Cat Groomers facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/groups/HolisticCatGrooming/

These sources will give you educational material, mentoring and more. Grooming cats does not have to be like juggling chainsaws.  The cat above is a rather crotchety thing, with a coat that tangles like none I have ever worked with.  It is possible for me to clip, bathe and dry her without any restraint using methods that modern cat groomers employ. 

And this guy?  He is being bathed in this photo. As you can see he is totally calm and relaxed.  I have groomed thousands of cats over the course of my career, and am still learning.  I am so glad there are like-minded groomers who care about the happiness and well being of the felines in their care.  

 

Comments

[Sandra Perez]

WOW! Great timing on this post and links Daryl. I want to learn to groom cats but my weekend seminar was cancelled last week :( And I attended a seminar by Danelle and was rather put off by her manhandling of the demo cats. So this more gentle way of grooming is very appealing to me. Thank you so much for sharing the knowledge!!

[Daryl Conner]

Thanks for reading me! If you ever have any specific questions, please feel free to contact me. My email is yankeegroomer@aol.com.

[Sandra Perez]

I sure will! Thank you so much!