The grooming environment itself is quite significant to how grooming sessions will go. If the space isn't right for the task you can expect to come across some problems very early on. In this post, I will explore the environmental considerations you should be thinking about prior to grooming a dog in a professional grooming setting.
Table of Contents
Before we even begin to think about grooming activities, we must set up our environment for success. We can do this by coming from the dog's perspective and considering what the surroundings look like based on their abilities and limitations.
I always refer to the five senses when doing my initial risk-assessment for professional grooming salons. With that in mind, ask yourself:
#1 - Are there any unnecessary objects/distractions in the space that might upset a dog in my grooming environment?
The first thing to consider is how breathable your surroundings are. Does the energy flow in the room or are there many obstacles in the way that might distract a dog and hinder progress?
There's quite a lot of research surrounding Feng Shui and the impact clutter has to our emotional psyche that I believe applies to our dogs too. If we look at our society from a dog's perspective, we can agree that how we expect them to co-exist among us is nothing like how they were instinctively born to live and behave.
Dog's are surrounded by obstacles and restrictions, and are often forced to feel trapped and/or confined in small spaces.
Dogs thrive in being able to run free, with lots of space to roam and forage. With that in mind, how can you improve the space where we work to make it more spacious and less compact?
For example, keep objects minimal and resist the urge to buy large ornaments, posters and/or accessories that have no real benefit to the work that you do, if you work in a multi-grooming salon consider how many dogs can safely be in a space at any one time and think about trying to stagger appointments to keep footfall minimal - ideally you would want to have separate rooms to groom dogs but alternatively, there should be plenty of space between dogs to prevent any conflict.
Another note, try to avoid using stackable crates and instead opt for spacious holding pens that enable a dog to move around freely and get constant access to fresh water. Bonus points for a familiar item to help pacify a more nervy dog.
#2 - What colours can dogs see and do I have a dog-friendly colour scheme?
It is believed that a dog is only capable of seeing a select few shades of colour and that they often struggle to see whites, greens, reds and pinks.
More than this however, colour gives up energetic vibrations that influence our feelings and behaviour as well!
Chakras have relevance to different parts of the body so if we look at dogs being "heart" beings (Griffiths, 2019) then we might want to consider implementing green shades into our environment to represent the heart chakra.
While they may not necessarily see green fully, the energetic vibration will have some positive influences on the dog.
Whites tend to reflect light (as does steel) and dog's struggle to assess where a white bath begins and ends while red, yellow and orange tones can energetically increase the heart rate of those in a space which would suggest refraining from using them in a place you want to instil calm.
Keeping your surroundings to calming shades of purple, greens and blues can work really well in helping a dog see but in some cases, feel better on a more cellular level.
Note: If this is a bit 'woo woo' sounding for you, I do urge you to do your own research as there's various scientific studies on this topic that I'm sure you'll find fascinating!
#3 - What surfaces do dogs feel most comfortable on and how does my space support this?
Typically speaking, the majority of dogs will benefit from a good quality, anti-slip surface that supports their posture.
Most commercial flooring has limited ability to safeguard a dog's sense of stability so it is crucial that you do your research before choosing a flooring where a dog will be expected to stand on.
After extensive research into this topic, I came to find that 'Floors For Paws' offered the best dog-friendly flooring for both dog parents at home but also groomers looking for a durable, waterproof and aesthetically-pleasing flooring that supported a dog's need to feel stable and secure. For further peace of mind, this flooring brand has been carefully trialed and tested by Canine Arthritis Management and has obtained their 'seal of approval'.
Additionally, it's important that there's also measures in place to provide padding and comfort where necessary both on the floor and on other surfaces where the dog is required to stand.
For example the use of foam yoga mats and fleece covers can both help with providing a dog with a place to lie down comfortably or stand while being groomed on a table or on the floor, a towel or a thinner waterproof yoga mat for the bath tub. I always advise against using bath grids - not only are they uneven feeling to a dog's tender pads, but they can also cause injury if a nail gets trapped.
Think about what else might a dog come into contact with and how this might feel. Dogs like and dislike different things so having a few alternative options isn't a bad idea at all.
Always keep in mind that often a dog's paws are incredibly touch sensitive for a reason, and more significant than you think - you can learn more about the importance of the paws with my amazing mini-course on paw and pad care here.
Being able to think outside the box when pre-planning helps the groomer to better prepare and avoid potential conflicts.
#4 - What sounds can help make the space more relaxing for dogs?
I've entered many salons where all I could hear was a mixture of radio music, dryers, dogs barking and staff laughing or shouting - sensory overload!
Now imagine how well an average dog can hear and put things into perspective - dogs can hear between 40 and 60,000 hertz, picking up sounds from as far as a quarter of a mile away compared to a human who can only hear on average between 20 and 20,000 hertz. What's more, due to a dog's amazing ears, they can also pick up on wave lengths far more successfully than humans too.
Instead, keep it simple and try to plan your day in a way that limits the amount of noise at the one time.
Staggering grooming appointments to avoid having more than one dryer on at the same time or requesting that staff members keep gossip and fun to their designated staff room, or deciding to turn off the radio. Less is always more.
There is a strong link between pain and noise aversion and studies have found that dogs tend to display signs of noise sensitivity when they are experiencing chronic pain. When a dog is exposed too many sounds, this can exasperate pain and lead to a quicker escalation of reactive behaviours.
Interestingly, studies have also shown that dogs tend to respond better to Reggae Reggae music (Coren, 2017) as a genre but of course, it is all relative based on the individual.
If we want to reflect back to colour frequencies, we also know that colour relates to music frequency/sound as well. Based on us using green (the heart chakra) then, we would perhaps look at having music played between 500 and 600 hertz to further enhance its healing benefits.
#5 - What can my dog smell and is this over-powering?
Sense of smell might just be the most significant sensory nerve of a dog being up to 100,000 times more acute than humans and it is said that they can pick up a scent from over 15 miles away!
This miraculous ability means that how our environment smells is more important than we could ever imagine.
Smell ignites feelings and also memory which should be considered when thinking about the grooming environment because it can lead to a dog feeling apprehensive and overwhelmed leading to various behavioural considerations that may make grooming more difficult.
Again, less is more.
We can really help a dog acclimatise to a new and/or high-stress environment by reducing the number of fragrances we use in our roles but also utilising the benefits of scent to promote relaxation through dog-centred Freework sessions using Applied Zoopharmacognosy.
For example, opting for fragrance-free products on both dogs and ourselves on days we are working, deciding against the use of air fresheners/incense/candles and allowing the dog to adjust to the smells that are unavoidable (you, the smell of other animals/people, the smell of hair drying, the smell of water etc.).
The environment plays a fundamental role in helping to reduce stress in the grooming environment, and while this post only touches on some of the ways to make the environment more dog-friendly, you will no doubt come across many more as you begin to look at your surroundings from the perspective of your dog.
If you have enjoyed reading this post, please hit on the heart to let me know and feel free to comment your own thoughts on this topic.
Bibliography
Griffiths, C. (2019) The principles of canine flow, Canine Flow. Available at: https://canineflow.com/insights/the-principles-of-canine-flow (Accessed: 05 June 2024).
Coren, S. (2017) Dogs like variety in music including reggae and Soft Rock, Psychology Today. Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/canine-corner/201701/dogs-variety-in-music-including-reggae-and-soft-rock (Accessed: 05 June 2024).
Kokocińska-Kusiak, A. et al. (2021) Canine olfaction: Physiology, behavior, and possibilities for practical applications, Animals : an open access journal from MDPI. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8388720/ (Accessed: 05 June 2024).
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