What we do and why we do it
We do not work like a traditional dog grooming salon.
Instead, we follow a holistic approach (considering the whole dog, emotions included) and utilise consent based techniques and teach cooperative care while using positive reinforcement (I will explain each of these things further below).
We adjust the groom to the individual dogs comfort level and build trust and confidence in the dog while they are with us during their appointments.
How is this different to traditional dog grooming salons?
Traditional dog grooming salons have a task-based work system. This means their sole purpose is to complete the job that has been booked in without necessarily taking the individual dogs needs into consideration. Dogs will often be pushed through their groom even if they are showing clear signs of distress. Their behaviour and emotions are ignored or dismissed (usually due to a lack of behavioural knowledge from the dog groomer), breaking down the trust between dog and dog groomer, and increasing the risk of fear development and the risk of instigating a bite.
Holistic and consent based dog grooming salons have a care-based work system. This means they consider the whole picture (emotions, physical difficulties or pain, learning history, the days events) during the grooming appointment and will groom based on behavioural observations.
The groomer will also use consent and co-operative care techniques with the dog and positively reinforce desired behaviours. This builds trust and confidence which creates a positive experience for the dog, reducing the appearance of fear-based behaviours.
Why we do it:
Meet Ty.
Ty is my big beastie. He’s a complex boy and we have overcome many challenges, big feelings and general overwhelm in the time we have spent together.
Ty widened my world when it came to dogs, yet at the same time, really restricted my world too.
He kickstarted my interest in complex dog behaviour due to me needing to understand why he did the things he did so I could help him. Along with the interest in behaviour came the interest of force free, fear free training.
But his complexities also made our world small. He will never be a pub/café dog, he cannot meet strange dogs, he does not like being touched by strangers, among many other things.
Ty will never be able to go to a traditional dog grooming salon.
There are many other dogs in a similar position to Ty and they need a safe place to go where they feel listened to and respected, where they can slowly build trust with a new familiar person and where “bad” behaviour doesn’t exist.
This is why Comb in the Country Dog Grooming exists -
Because dogs deserved to be listened to.
Holistic dog grooming
Holistic grooming looks at the whole picture to determine how much of the groom that the dog will tolerate. Just like humans, dogs can have bad days. Dogs can also have a negative learning history when it comes to grooming, therefore observing their behaviour can give the groomer an idea of how to change those negative emotions into positive ones.
Positive reinforcement
Positive reinforcement means rewarding the dog with their favourite thing (be it treats, a game of tug or a good scratch) to increase the chance of them repeating a specific behaviour. For example: a dog gives you their paw so you can cut their nails, so you give them a tasty treat, then they know that presenting their paw means they get a treat.
Consent based
Consent based grooming means asking the dog for consent. It can sound like a bizarre concept but asking for consent and giving the dog choice to take part builds trust. Building this trust helps to speed up the grooming process in the long run.
Force free
Nothing is truly force free, especially when going to the dog groomers, but we try to be as force free as possible. Force free means the dog isn’t forced into doing a particular thing. This is where consent and cooperative based techniques come in.
Cooperative care
Cooperative care involves teaching the dog certain behaviours that makes the dog groomers job easier. For example: teaching a paw hold to help with nail clipping or a chin rest to help with grooming around their faces. Cooperative care gives the dog choice and control in taking part.
Low stress
Because dog groomers can’t be truly force free, we aim for low stress. Low stress means working to your dogs comfort level and not pushing them over threshold, keeping the grooming experience as positive as possible.