How It All Started
The Holistic Grooming Academy began back in 2020, during the very first lockdown.
At the time, I had already been running a busy, award-winning salon and had become increasingly aware that something was missing in our industry. We were being taught how to groom dogs, but not necessarily how to truly work with them.
There was very little education around:
- Behaviour
- Emotional wellbeing
- Stress signals
- Safe handling
- Cooperation
- Or even our own wellbeing as professionals
Around the same time, my first book The Magic of Holistic Grooming unexpectedly became a Number One Amazon bestseller, and I started receiving messages from groomers saying:
“This makes so much sense, why aren’t we taught this?”
That question was really the spark behind my decision to completely rebrand my existing business (Scrub-A-Dug-Dug) to The Holistic Grooming Academy, where I would redirect my focus on helping to support and deliver an updated education in all things ‘behaviour grooming’.
The Core Belief Behind Everything We Do
If I had to summarise HGA in one sentence, it would be this:
When we understand dogs better, we treat them better.
Grooming isn’t just a technical task. It’s an interaction between two living beings – one of whom might feel worried, confused, uncomfortable or frightened, and the other as a result, who might feel frustrated, rushed and/or desperate to “get the job done”.
There was a common theme in the professional grooming industry that I had very quickly picked up on – groomer burnout was rife, as was grooming-related anxiety in dogs, and so I knew something had to change.
When we understand canine behaviour, how dogs learn, how they communication and what their emotional responses mean, everything changes:
- Dogs become more cooperative
- Handling becomes safer
- Stress reduces
- Results improve
- Relationships strengthen
And perhaps most importantly – dogs and groomers have a better experience.
The Mission
The goal of HGA has always been to gently but firmly raise standards within the grooming industry.
- Not by criticising people.
- Not by creating division.
- Not by trying to enforce our way or no way.
But by educating, supporting and empowering professionals to do better once they know better (I must give credit here to the amazing Mayo Angelou).
Traditional grooming education often focuses heavily on styling and technique (which has a place, for sure), but less on:
- Behaviour science
- Low-stress handling
- Dog bite prevention
- Emotional welfare
- Collaboration with other pet professionals
- Groomer burnout and overall mental health
The Holistic Grooming Academy exists to help bridge those gaps.
I also wanted groomers to be recognised for what they are – skilled, knowledgeable pet care professionals who play a vital role in animal welfare, early preventative measures, and overall health enhancement.
Because you do.
The Five Pillars We Focus On
I called the approach “holistic” grooming because it was always about looking at the whole picture – every piece of the jigsaw puzzle that influences how a dog feels and subsequently behaves. We also look at how we, ourselves, are influencing the results we are getting by taking a more holistic approach to our own self-care – because it is all connected.
In our training specifically, we focus on five key areas:
Behaviour
How dogs think, learn and communicate with those around them. Where do behaviours stem from?
Training & Cooperation
How we help dogs feel safe and willing during grooming without the need for control and force.
Safe Handling
Respecting consent, body language and emotional needs to help a dog feel safe.
Environment
Designing spaces that reduce stress rather than create it, and how we can adapt spaces to consider individual needs.
Groomer Wellbeing
Looking after our own body and mind, in ways that allow us to work and thrive for years to come.
What Makes The HGA Different?
One of the biggest motivations behind creating The HGA was my frustration with “tick-box learning”.
During the early days, I would enrol on various online courses only to be underwhelmed by how easy it was to obtain my certificate – ultimately, I learned that the writing wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.
You know the kind – courses that involved a series of multiple choice questions and answers, a generic certificate at the end, but not necessarily real confidence.
The information in many of these courses were actually very good BUT competency relied on each learner actually committing to the hours of study required to learn and retain the information – and that is something I seldom saw evidence of.
I wanted to create something more advanced, that demonstrated true ethical excellency, and because of this, my accreditation pathway is intentionally more in-depth.
For example, in order to graduate, students must complete:
- A structured learning learning path consisting of 13 advanced modules
- Practical application through various demonstrations and written tasks
- Case-based work featuring real-life dogs in their salons or using family dogs
- Final grading assessment that puts everything they have learned together to demonstrate competency
The goal isn’t just knowledge – it’s real-world ability that graduates can be truly proud of.
Advocating for Synchronised Care
You’ll hear this phrase a lot within The HGA: synchronised care.
Because dogs do best when the people around them are all working consistently together. That means groomers, trainers, behaviourists, vets, and carers are all communicating and supporting the same goals to help increase the chance of success.
I encourage collaboration rather than competition between professionals because ultimately the dog benefits most when everyone is on the same team.
The Community (Honestly, My Favourite Part)
Education is important. But community is just as powerful.
The HGA community has grown into a genuinely kind, supportive space where people can:
- Ask questions without judgement
- Share wins and struggles
- Learn from each other
- Feel understood
- Connect with like-minded professionals and carers
Over the last five years, I’ve work incredibly hard to keep it safe, inclusive and respectful, and I’m incredibly proud of what our members have created together.
Our core values are simple:
- Care and compassion
- Cooperation and consent
- Curiosity and creativity
Looking Ahead
Although The HGA now has members across the world, we intentionally keep the organisation small – we want to remain in full control of how The HGA is structured and how it continues to support it’s members, students, graduates, and affiliates.
Integrity, quality and connection are incredibly important and so, I am very protective of how many students we enrol on our Accreditation at any given time.
Our long-term vision is big though, we aspire for:
- A grooming industry that prioritises welfare over vanity
- Professionals who feel confident and respected for their value
- Safer experiences for dogs and groomers that considers individual needs
- Better collaboration across pet care sectors to help prevent prolonged suffering
- More sustainable careers for groomers who have learned to invest in their own self-care
And of course, change doesn’t happen overnight. But small steps, taken by many people, creates real progress and I am positive that we will eventually set a new standard that measures success by experience rather than aesthetics.
Join our free community today
If you’re here, whether as a groomer, student or dog carer, you’re already part of something positive.
The Holistic Grooming Academy exists because of people, like you, who care enough to ask:
“How can we do this better for dogs?”
And that’s a pretty wonderful thing to be part of.
If you ever have questions, I’m always here to help! Please consider joining us over on our Skool community where you can instantly receive support from like-minded people.
Together, we can create better experiences for dogs and the people who care for them.
