Heather's Hairee Hounds

I have been a groomer for 4 years in Ditchingham. In July 2021 I left the shared salon in Ditchingham and set up my own salon in Earsham. I started my grooming journey when I was 16 years old just as an assistant but I soon fell in love with the job and all the dogs, so my boss at the time started to teach me the practical side of clipping and styling, etc. As well as that I completed at Easton college a Level 2 City and Guild Technical Certificate in Animal care and was awarded a Distinction. After that I completed a Customer Service Apprenticeship at Canine Clips and Cuts while still learning the practical side of grooming. Then once I passed that course, I went on and did a Level 3 Professional Dog Grooming course which I also received a Distinction for. I started being self employed in January 2020 but I didn't have my own business until May 2020. Now my business has completely taken off and I've had to stop taking on new regular clients! Believe it or not, I used to be nervous and unsure around dogs until 5 years ago when we rescued our German Shepherd. She taught me so many things and without her I wouldn't have got over my fears. Sadly she passed away 2 years ago, but she will forever be remembered and that's why she's included in my logo. After she passed it was a struggle so I decided to adopt a 3 year old nervous Cockapoo called Narla. Narla has taken me on a whole different journey! She wasn't as calm and quiet as our previous dog but I wouldn't change her. After going to many different training centres, doing a lot of researching and getting connected with other rescue dog owners I found out about Consent Grooming. Narla used to hate being groomed, she was so scared she would growl and try get away. After using Consent Grooming I can groom her without any restraints. This is what makes me different to a lot of other groomers. For very nervous dogs I even offer Confidence Sessions for free. This doesn't include grooming but the dog gets used to being in the salon before they allow me to groom them. Moving to my own salon has had a massive positive impact on the majority of my doggy clients who are more relaxed now I'm not sharing a salon.