I have been involved in the field of breeding pedigreed dogs for show, security and pet purposes for almost three decades now and my Kennel Yashbans is perhaps the most reputed and leading kennel in India today.  My passion for dogs is already a very interesting and unique profession, and from breeding some ofIndia’s finest dogs, I have now expanded to other pet related fields like pet grooming, pet transportation, pet boarding etc.

Since grooming is synonymous with having great looking dogs for shows and well maintained and clean animals as pets, and  considering the experience I have in this field , I decided to make a profession out of this talent of mine. The reasons were simple for me to start a professional Pet  Grooming Parlour

Grooming as we all know, is a very important aspect of a pet’s life.  A clean pet is a healthy pet and  do not go in for unwanted skin related and health problems.  Though people are aware of this, not many of them have the time to do this due to their hectic lifestyles. Some people do not have the patience and many people do not genuinely know how to do it in the correct way.

Then, while, not many people can understand a pet., or they are simply frightened of them  I take pride in the fact that I can communicate with them, make them understand that what  they are going to go through would be an enjoyable experience and since I have no fear for them, I am able to handle them efficiently.

Now came the actual reason.  I felt a good dog stylist can make or break a dog”s career in the Show Ring.  I  think you can create a super looking dog, as close to the standards as possible, by  the way a good stylist can cut their coat  My experience in the dog game and  involvement in pedigreed dogs, my knowledge of the standards of each breed  gave me that extra edge to be a top pet groomer.

And grooming an animal is perhaps one of the finest meditations a person  can do.  It relieves you of all stress and it actually benefits the  Groomer 

Considering all these reasons, I decided to open a Professional Pet Grooming Parlour, perhaps the first in India, called Fuzzy Wuzzy Pet Grooming Parlour

Well, unlike most professions, you don’t have to have fancy degrees or qualifications to be a Pet Groomer.  All you need to be is  a genuine animal lover, with lots of  patience, and dedication.

No, there is no license or certification required to start a Pet grooming Parlour.  Certification helps you learn the correct method to do basic grooming. . But to do show grooming or clipping or trimming of various breeds, you have to be an artist to visualize and create a anatomically correct dog,  close to the standards as possible.  This is with reference to breeds like the Poodles, Schnauzers, Terriers, Bichon Frises etc.

The type of customers who come to Fuzzy Wuzzy Pet Grooming Parlour are from all walks of life.  Most of them come because this is the best thing that has happened to them to keep a clean and healthy pet.  They come once in six weeks or two months for a full groom of their pet, if it is a smooth coated dog or cat...  There is nothing they need to do in between. If their pet is a long coated breed of dog or cat, they come once a month for the regular trim and complete grooming.

My two daughters and I groom  three to four  pets a day, on an average, as our Pet Parlour is open  only  between 3 p.m. to 8 p.m   We work with our dogs in our  kennels in the morning hours.  Though we do have an increasing demand to take in more than   3 to 4  pets, we do not do this, as  grooming is a time consuming job  since an animal cannot sit quietly like a human being during their grooming process, It also requires a lot of concentration and  we would like to continue enjoying what we do, without making it a  dreary job that we have to do.

A basic grooming of a smooth coated adult dog could be anything from Rs. 700/- and  which takes about 45 minutes of our time.  The amounts vary according to the size, breed, age etc and the amount of time we have to spend on the pet.  Sometimes long coated pets come in with their hair completely matted and this takes hours.  Our prices are flexible too, and sometimes it is based on the affordability of the client too.  We  even get people in the very low income strata ,who want their pet groomed or treated.  Since we are first of all animal lovers . we  would like to offer our services to the well being  and comfort of the pets. Money is not the only consideration.

We offer a variety of services to pets.  A full grooming package consists of a  wash with a good cleansing shampoo, then a hair conditioner, skin conditioning, teeth brushing, nail clipping, cleaning  and trimming of  hygiene areas, ear cleaning,  blowing drying, and perfuming.  Besides this, in the extra packages,  we do specialized hair cutting and trimming,  aromatherapy oil massages and rinses, skin treatments for various infections like fungal or dermatitic  infections, tick and flea treatments, detangling,  hair colouring etc.  Since a basic knowledge of veterinary medicine is required for this, both my daughter and myself are qualified Veterinary  Assistants too.  Of course, the major knowledge of everything comes with my 28  years of running Yashbans Kennels, and  my daughters have practically seen and associated themselves with pets from their every early childhood days .

I would definitely say that my clientele is growing everyday because of word of mouth.  It started with people seeing my well groomed and gleaming dogs at the dog shows, but now my business is growing   only because of the satisfaction of my clients and their recommendations to their family and friends.

I use the most reputed, and  finest products which I personally bring with me, during  my various trips abroad for  dog shows and grooming exhibitions.  Some products are created by me and  I

hope to put them up in the market soon, under the label  FUZZY WUZZY  because of the demand from my clients. These products have been personally tested by me on various breeds and my dogs for over two and half decades now and after being fully convinced of the efficacy of these products, I now feel I am ready to market them.

The most important challenge you face in pet grooming is that many pets are brought up badly and some of them are quite vicious too, and handling them becomes very difficult.  You have to make the pet understand that what  we are going to do to him is something that he is going to enjoy and benefit and  make him look forward to his next appointment with us.  We might have to muzzle in the first two or three times, but after that he is fine with us.  We do not use any sort of sedation or anesthesia in our parlour. Also,  when  we have to give him a show haircut and clipping , it is an exciting challenge to have both his sides look similar in the shape and size . We have to create a great looking dog.  For instance, he might be a dog with a shallow chest or narrow thighs and we have to create him looking proportionate with just the way we clip his hair.  This  job might take a  couple of hours and it is indeed  nothing less than a marvel  for the dog to understand that he has to stay still.

Once any business is successful, you will find a lot of similar businesses mushrooming everyday.  This is the greatest compliment one can have in their career. However,  a  Pioneer in any field remains a  Leader as long as he or she  is dedicated to his or  her profession.  The returns come automatically.  However, my strength lies in the fact that I have been associated in the field of pets for ages, and  not many new entrants in this business can take pride in this.  Another amazing  fact  is that my daughters are involved in this business with me and not everyone can be lucky enough at that.  You can get employees to work in a manufacturing unit or something similar like that, but  it is almost impossible to employ someone with the dedication, love and artistry you have  in you, especially when you have to handle pets.  Only an offspring of yours can understand this and make a business like

this a success.  You cannot do grooming as just a job.

However, I would like to add a note that this is one of the finest Professions in the world.  You  can have this as a part time business or a full time business.  With the growing number of pet loving families, there is tremendous scope in this field.  All you need to have is genuine love for animals, tons of patience and no fear in handling them, as animals can sense your fear and turn into a biter.