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You love your cat, and you want the very best for her. You don’t want a trip to the groomer to turn into bad experience, or a bad result. This makes most cat owners understandably hesitant, and sometimes even wait too long before seeking professional help for a grooming problem. Here’s 7 points to either look for, or ask about when you are looking for the right place to have your cat groomed.

1. No dogs. This means the business has made special provisions for your cat to have a quieter, less stressful experience. Whether it’s cat specific grooming days, hours, separate work-space, or a feline exclusive business, this establishment has made an effort to put kitty at ease while it’s visiting.

2. A certified cat groomer will insist on bathing your cat as part of the grooming. Grooming means cleaning, actually washing away impurities that cause the hair to mat, plus other debris like the flaky dried saliva people mistake for dry skin, or smelly bottoms. Bathing benefits the long-term health and hygiene of your cat. Water-less  sprays or wipes just leave more debris in the hair. Would you use the same approach to clean your hair? Groomers who avoid bathing cats are either inexperienced, or misinformed.

3. A certified cat groomer will offer you choices and solutions for your grooming challenges depending on your lifestyle, grooming issues and budget. Yes, I said choices. There are a variety of styles beyond just shaving to resolve issues from mats, hairballs, excessive shedding, dandruff, etc. They will also recommend long-term solutions or schedule to put your kitty issues at ease.

4. A certified cat groomer is knowledgeable about cats. This means they can identify more than just three cat breeds. They can name the viruses your cat is vaccinated for, they can tell you about where breeds originate from, personality traits, colours and coat types, etc. In short, a pro cat groomer knows as much about cats, as a dog groomer should know about dogs.

5. A certified cat groomer is transparent. They will tell exactly what they can or can’t/won’t do. They won’t hem-and-haw. As Yoda so famously said “Do, or do not. There is no try”. They’ll talk you through the entire process; what they do, and why. They’ll let you have a look around their facility and ask questions. They’ll point out the little differences that make their grooming facility cat friendly, for example, the products they use and the grooming tools.  You won’t be able to participate in the actual grooming process (due to insurance policy coverages), but they won’t mind if you want to watch.

6. A certified cat groomer has credentials. Whether it is diplomas of certification on the wall, a portfolio of a body of their own grooming work, or insignias of memberships. They’ll post recent pet industry events they’ve participated in. Don’t rely on just photos on a website. These are easily stolen. Ask for proof their credentials.

7. A certified cat groomer won’t do dog-centric trimming. This means shaving the legs, the face, trimming whiskers, or trimming pads (although triming toe tuffs can be done on request, it is considered a faux pas by cat fanciers). There are sensitive whiskers that run along the back of the forelimbs and interspersed in the toe tuff hair. The legs have very delicate ligaments and tendons prone to nicking. There is no professional justification in shaving any of these areas.