PERROS SI
RESIDENCIAL DOG GROOMING COURSES
Contact: Perros Si, Alta del Mar 6 B, Almunecar 18690, Granada, Espana.
Phone 607 235572
Andalucian Dog Grooming/Care Courses. Spain.
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Having run our own dog grooming salon and kennels for the last 10 years here in Spain and having worked with dogs for 25 years, we offer the following courses that teach and show through hands on experience the realities of caring for dogs and the grooming business. One of the main motivations behind the kennels and the courses is to raise money to continue caring for our rescue dogs & cats and to feed, worm and care for the numerous strays here. Please take the time to read our whole site.
You will be the ONLY student whichever grooming course you choose, a huge advantage to you.
20 day (4 weeks, 5 working days weekends free) 'all breed' certificate grooming course 3500 euros including accomodation You will learn how to groom breeds to a very high standard and how to handle dogs.This course combines the two courses below. You will train in a busy salon environment which nothing else can prepare you for. If you want to start your own business this course is perfect for you. You will leave with a certificate of completion and be fully prepared to take the intermediate exam of your Country (if that is the route you want to take).
10 day (2 week, 5 working days weekends free) 'all off ' certificate grooming course 2500 euros including accomodation You will learn to clip a dog off completely, the most important part of learning to groom because this is when you learn to be safe.There is no such thing as 'speed grooming' especially when you are a beginner. Speed only comes with time and practice. With this course under your belt you can earn money mobile, work as an assistant or in a vet and return when you're ready to do the one week 'breed only' course.
5 day ( 5 working days) 'breed only' certificate grooming course 1500 euros including accomodation You will lean how to style breed dogs which includes complicated scissor work.
10 day (2 week, 5 working days weekend free) teacher training course 3500 euros
Available only to residents ouside of Spain and with a minimum of two years grooming at a professional level. Teaching such a dangerous and artistic skill to a novice in four weeks, with the promise of starting your own business, is a tall order. As with any good teaching process, management improvement courses, leadership skills etc. psychology is at the root. Understanding your student, their goals, their capabilities is crucial to success. Gaining the reputation as a teacher with standards and integrity will benefit your salon or school and greatly increase your yearly income. Unlike the grooming courses, it is beneficial to be in a group situation as we learn from each other, bounce of each other and role-play (not as embarrassing as it sounds!). There will never be more than four in the group. You will also have work experience with a real grooming student so that you can put into practice the skills you are learning.
For your information if you are learning to groom from scratch with a view to earning a living, then learning from a DVD, a book or a course any shorter than 2 weeks long for 'all off ' grooming or 4 weeks for 'breed grooming' (wherever that may be) will not work. You will be wasting time and more importantly money. I have had several students that have completed 2 & 3 week courses elsewhere under the guise that this will be sufficient to start a business. It isn't. The standard of grooming and quality of clipping and scissor work is awful. There are sites with photos of proud students next to a groomed breed dog that are laughable. The problem is YOU don't know what is an acceptable breed cut. As long as your teacher is saying, "well done you, it looks great, have another glass of wine," you won't know the difference. The most common comment from our students first clients is, " this is the best my dog has ever been clipped." We spend a lot of time researching so that you are confident in what you have learned.
Details Courses run during the months of: January, February, March, April, May, June, September, October & November. Exact start dates are flexible due to flights etc. but we do aim for arrival and departure days of Friday, Saturday or Sunday. You are responsible for getting yourself to Malaga or Granada airport where you will be met and taken to your accomodation.
The courses are intensive and the teaching is one on one, by one on one we mean you will be the only student not one on one in a group. There are only seven 20 day places per year available. There are two teachers which offers you two distinctive styles. We tailor the teaching according to your ability and experience. Everyone is different, we work at your speed. We have lots of our own dogs so there are plenty of willing and unwilling victims to practice on so it really doesn't matter if you make a mistake. We also have a huge client base.
Our students tend to be older, from the UK or Spainand in the process of changing their lives. You can come and meet us and have a go for the day (for free). If you choose to visit you can stay at the local B&B, 18 - 25 euros per night depending on the time of year. If it's not for you that's ok.
Although Almuñecar is a stunning place to lean to groom, escape the UK and couldn't be a better location to spend your free time and do your homework, this is not a working holiday. Learning to groom to a high standard is tough and requires 100% commitment from you and us.
To us grooming is a serious and potentially dangerous skill to acquire. We don't care for the light hearted, dressed up dog, quirkey approach. Our set up is clinical and vet like which attracts everyone because of the generic atmosphere. My uncle was a police dog trainer and now works for the R.S.P.C.A. His son is a vetin the UK and routinely comes out here to help with our rescue dogs and the spaying and neutering of the feral cat population, they are both in agreement that dressing dogs up in coats, hats, shoes and sunglasses is humiliating for them. If you present your business in this way you belittle the skills you have learned.
If you do not learn to use clippers and scissors with great skill you can seriously injure the dog. There are stories of severed tongues & castration to name but a few. I'm not trying to scare you but these are some of the reasons you need 2 or 4 weeks training to learn if you are a beginner and why you should present your business with style and pride and not all fluffy and silly.
Imagine serious old Mrs whoever with her beloved fox terrier stood outside a salon with a photo of a big pink poodle dressed up and holding a handbag! She's going to think it's a joke shop and that you don't take the job seriously. Imagine macho Mr german shepherd owner looking at it! He's going to be too embarrassed to even consider walking in. Just by presenting the wrong image you can alienate half your potential customers. Mr german shepard and Mrs fox terrier are just small examples of the depth of detail our courses cover, with regard to setting up in business, marketing and reaching your demographic.
Finally, it's really exciting that you are considering learning to groom. It changed our life completely and is all we hoped it would be, the same is true for our students, 90% of them have gone on to start their own business here in Spain, the UK and all over the world. If you have any questions email us or give us a ring. 607 235 572 Claire Stack or Chris
All prices include one airport pick up and drop off and accomodation.
The working day
We work on average 5 or 6 hours a day, without a break, there are good reasons for this that will become clear once you start. The first two days your head will be filled with information and the days will seem quick and not so tiring but as of day three you will be grooming dogs every day full on and you will feel it! Five hours of one on one attention is far more than an 8 hour day, with a lunch break, in a group, waiting to have a go and padded out with useless information. These courses are not based on hours per week, the hours we do are relative to how quickly you learn what needs to be learnt.The courses are not about time practicing they are about aquiring skill. You will be taught by myself & Chris on different days. After work it is best if you forget all about grooming for a few hours and then any homework you have should be done in the evening.
Accommodation
We have an apartmenst on or near the beach, you can throw a stone into the sea from the balcony from one of them!. They have one bedroom a bathroom and a lounge/kitchen and is yours for the duration of the course you choose. You are welcome to have visitors for some or all of the course for free.
Terms and conditions
If you wish to reserve a place you will be required to pay a 10% non refundable deposit by bank transfer or use the paypal link, with the remaining balance due 1 week before you arrive.
Q&A's
What if I want a City & Guilds certification?
That’s no problem. You can still do the course with me and then sit the exam at one of the hundreds of C&G Exam centres in the UK. Whichever school you choose you will have to pay an extra 700 to 1000 euros to sit the exam. The first exam is the 7750-02 Intermediate. You can sit this immediately after completion of the 4 week course. I have had four students follow this route and all have passed with distinction, all of them run their own business in the UK. The 7750-03 advanced certification exam cannot be taken until you have had 18 months minimum grooming experience, same cost and locations as the 7705-02.
Saying all that you don’t need City & Guilds to be a dog groomer or start your own business. Once you are safe, grooming is an art, it is creative more than it is anything else and how do you qualify art? Who decides? You do need to be excellent, safe and have bucketfuls of integrity. I have seen C&G qualified clips that are shocking and some that are spectacular.
How long have you been grooming?
I have been grooming for 25 years in total, on and off, Chris for 10. I started when I was studying to become a child psychologist. Animals and art are very important tools when dealing with children or depressed people. I then became interested in dog psychology also. I didn’t continue in child psychology, I moved into media and worked as a television producer in London, Australia and America (all the time still grooming). While I was working in Los Angeles for 2 years, I met Frank Spitz a poodle and Cairn terrier breeder/exhibitor. With him, I learned all about grooming poodles and Cairns. When I finished in television and started a family, I moved to Somerset and worked as a groomer and dog psychologist. We moved to Spain in 2000 and started collecting abandoned dogs and that’s how the kennels grew which naturally evolved into buying the salon. I also worked with Linda Jarrett, a spectacular groomer and true artist at her trade. She used to breed and show Afghans and her dogs have won several very impressive awards over the years including Crufts best in show 1983.Chris is excellent at handling dogs and and dog behaviour, he has been grooming for 10 years and teaching for 6.
What’s the difference learning in a salon or grooming school?
Obviously, this is just my opinion but I think the business motivation behind a grooming school is that they are only a school. They need a constant turnover of students and they have to have groups. I find it a bit, move ’em in move ’em out. I can’t imagine learning to groom in a group, even two students at a time is too much and causes competitiveness and anxiety and if you are in any way shy or quieter than your classmates it’s a nightmare. You cannot have the same attention as one on one tuition that is all about you. When you learn in a salon, you are living & experiencing the career you want to have, not talking about it or trying to imagine problems. You are dealing with clients, co-ordination of your time. The list goes on.
Do the maths. If all the grooming schools had the success rate, they say they have, the grooming market place would be saturated and it is not. They have as many students in a month as we have in a year and only half of our students are from the UK.
What is the apartment like?
They have everything you need: washing machine, loads of books and would normally be 300 to 400 euros a week as a holiday let but because it belongs to my friends and the courses run off season they give me a great deal. Also, Almuñecar is one of the only places left in Spain that give very generous tapas. Between 1pm-4pm or 7pm-9pm, if you buy a beer or a coke, which costs 1.50 you get what can only be classed as a huge plate of food. Then for dinner you can cook for yourself or eat out, both options are incredibly cheap here. You can also have friends come and stay at no extra cost.
The Dogs
We have 10 dogs of our own, all rescued here in Spain. There is nothing like the RSPCA here so when you find an animal in trouble you have to leave it or deal with it. We choose to deal with it. Here are the dogs:
Paddy - Mostly irish wolf hound. Paddy was hung from a tree but escaped. He had no skin on his ears neck and the top of his head. The rope had grown into the skin and he had maggots! He is so sweet and gentle. He doesn't like to be bathed or groomed, who's going to argue with him!
Patch - Bitzer. First dog we rescued. She was living rough on the beach in La Herradura, she hobbled up to me with a bone poking out of her leg. She was skin and bone and looked really ill. She is such a mother dog she looks after new dogs and kittens. She loves a groom and is great to practice on. Poor old patch she's had some really funny hair cuts!
Lulu - Loo was tiny when I found her. Abandoned on a busy road. She is a very nervous but affectionate dog. Loves swimming. She thinks patch is her mum.
Bob - Part pek, part tibeten spaniel. Thief. What to say about bob! You will have to make your own mind up. He's good to practice on because he's hard work and doesn't make it easy.
Sidney bean - Bitzer. Thrown out of a moving car. Lucky for him I was behind them. He's very, very nervous and very, very sweet. He's a really happy little dog, runs as fast as he can everywhere yipping. He's great to practice on. Loves the attention.
Bella - Part german shepherd. She lived in Almuñecar, wild, with two other dogs. The foreigners would feed them. One day a regular grooming client came to the shop with Bella following behind her, Bella couldn't be caught or touched but would follow catherine everywhere. The other two dogs had been poisoned and were dead and she was beside herself that Bella was next. We caught her after 4 hours and brought her here. It's taken 8 months but now she will let us touch her. She loves Paddy and just does her own thing. She loves being with the other dogs, part of a pack. See her in Paddy's pic.
Puppy - Part cocker. Abandoned in the dry river bed, tied to a tree with a bit of green string. Puppy, Teddy and Peluqui are always together. Pulling something, chewing something, always up to no good! All good to practice on.
Teddy - Bitzer. Rescued from small children and torment. Love him, but he's an idiot!
Peluqui - Bitzer. Abandoned in the middle of nowhere in the snow, Paddy and Bella had been gone all day, which is not like them. I could hear Paddy barking in the distance on the Peña Escrita road. I called and called and they would not come back. Finally just before dark I drove up there and found them with Peluqui, tiny and shivering, they wouldn't leave him. Went to get two came back with three.
Luna - Hunting dog. My neighbour didn't want her because she was scared of the gun. From his point of view she wasn't much use to him. She is very calm and sensitive and very affectionate.
Berti - Hunting dog. Abandoned in Otivar. Skin and bone. Berti and Luna are a real double act. He's such a happy, faithful hound.
view from apartment
