Overview
If you’re a fan of our waggy-tailed, four-legged friends, why not make a career out of it? Becoming a dog groomer is an interesting and varied career, and with 8.9 million pet dogs in the UK, there’s always room for more people looking to help dogs feel, look (and smell!) their best.
In this flexible dog grooming course, you will:
- Explore the day-to-day duties of a groomer
- Gain essential knowledge such as how to perform health checks, care for different coat types, and everything you’ll need to know to launch your own dog grooming business
- Learn techniques that will work for different dogs, how to handle the animals safely, as well as the equipment you’ll use to restrain, prepare and groom them
- Delve into dog anatomy and physiology and learn step-by-step procedures for inspecting a dog, removing unwanted hair, as well as bathing, drying, and of course – the perfect fluffy finish!
You’ll be trusted with beloved family pets so you’ll need to be competent in your skills, and this course will do exactly that. You’ll become an expert dog groomer in your own time and space, through fun, interactive, and engaging course content that will make it a pleasure to study.
This course requires you to have access to three dogs, of different breeds, that you can use to demonstrate your grooming abilities in a video. The dogs don’t need to be groomed on the same day; they can be done at different times prior to the completion of your course.
If you are unable to access three dogs on your own, you can book a session through Oxbridge with our nominated groomer to complete the practical element of this course at our Birmingham facility. Please note that there will be a £100 fee for this. To arrange a session or for more information, contact one of our advisers.
What you'll learn
- Introduction
- Personal experiences of working in the dog grooming industry
- Personal challenges of working in the dog grooming industry
- Introduction
- Tools and equipment
- Blades
- Types of blade
- Blade care
- Introduction
- Preliminary health check
- Eyes
- Ears
- Mouth
- Nose
- Skin/Coat
- Underside
- Paws
- Introduction
- Single vs Double
- Grooming tips for double-coated breeds
- Coat textures
- Coat length
- Introduction
- Basic steps to grooming dogs
- Introduction
- Pre-bath grooming
- Bath and blow dry
- Finishing touches
- Introduction
- Pre-bath grooming
- Bath and blow dry
- Finishing touches
- Introduction
- Pre-bath grooming
- Bath and blow dry
- Finishing touches
- Introduction
- Pre-bath grooming
- Bath and blow dry
- Finishing touches
- Introduction
- The wolf inside the poodle
- Reading dog behaviour
- Dealing with fear
- Dealing with pain
- Dealing with aggression
- Introduction
- Making grooming a pleasant experience
- Introduction
- Nail trimming tips
- How to clip your dog’s nails
- Aggression and nail clipping
- Cutting dark claws
- If you cut the kwik
- Introduction
- Make it positive
- Using the right tools
- Follow the rules
- When something isn’t right
- Introduction
- Preparing for a grooming emergency
- Assembling a first-aid kit
- Emergency know-how
- Muzzling a dog
- Performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation
- Handling minor grooming accidents
- Introduction
- Financial planning
- Useful tips
- Marketing your services
- Introduction
- What is the difference between sanitising, disinfecting, and cleaning?
- Cleaning routine
- Frequency of cleaning
- Cleaning grooming tools
- Additional tips and advice
- Introduction
- It’s okay to say no!
Extra info
Awarding Body
With a heritage stretching back over 150 years, NCFE is one of the largest awarding bodies in the UK. Over 340,000 students were awarded certification by NCFE last year.
NCFE Customised Qualifications are bespoke, unregulated qualifications developed to meet the specific needs of learners. These courses fit in where there are no other regulated qualifications are available. Meaning you can achieve recognition from a well-respected awarding body, even if there isn’t a pre-existing qualification in a certain subject area.
Endorsed by
Course Outcome
At the end of this course, successful learners will be awarded an NCFE Customised Qualification. The training courses have been designed specifically to meet the needs of learners who prefer to study from home.
How is this course assessed or examined?
The dog grooming course covers 17 units of study, with three assignments and a final multiple-choice test. Your assignments will have practical elements to them, which will require you to record your work on an actual dog.
Entry requirements
There are no formal entry requirements for this course, however, it is recommended that you have an intermediate ability to read and write English.
