Dog Groomer Career Guide: What Pet Groomers Do, How to Start, Where They Work and How the Career Grows

Dog groomers keep pets clean, comfortable and well presented.

BLS describes groomers as specialists in a pet's appearance: they typically groom dogs and cats, with tasks that may include cutting, trimming, shampooing and styling fur, clipping nails and cleaning ears.

O*NET's task list for the occupation adds washing, brushing and trimming coats, discussing a pet's grooming needs with the owner, and front-desk work such as answering telephones and scheduling appointments.

BLS adds that groomers also schedule appointments, sell products to pet owners, and identify problems that may require veterinary attention.

That last duty shapes how the trade is written about.

O*NET lists examining animals for signs of illness or injury and contacting veterinarians among the occupation's tasks.

It is the boundary groomers work within: they notice the lump or the irritated skin, stop, and tell the owner to see a veterinarian.

They do not diagnose or treat.

Job ads use several names for this work.

O*NET's sample of reported titles for the occupation includes Dog Groomer, Groomer, Pet Groomer and Pet Stylist, alongside Dog Bather and kennel attendant titles.

Sharing that list does not make two titles one job, so read a posting's listed duties, not just its title, to see what the employer means.

BLS lists the settings groomers work in as a grooming salon, kennel, veterinary clinic, pet supply store, or mobile grooming service — a self-contained business that travels to clients' homes.

That list covers more ground than it first suggests: independent and franchise salons, the grooming departments inside big-box pet supply stores, mobile vans and house-call services, vet clinics that keep a groomer on staff, and boarding kennels that run grooming tables alongside boarding.

The closest thing BLS publishes to a map of where the work sits is the industry split for the whole animal caretaker occupation — groomers together with kennel attendants, pet sitters and the rest.

In 2025, 40% of animal caretakers worked in “other personal services,” the industry group that includes pet care; 10% worked in professional, scientific and technical services, which includes veterinary services; and 9% worked in retail trade.

BLS publishes no split for groomers alone, so treat those shares as occupation-wide rather than a portrait of grooming.

The formal entry bar is low.

BLS says animal care workers typically have a high school diploma or equivalent and learn on the job, and that pet groomers typically learn under an experienced groomer, with grooming schools as the other main route.

In practice, the doors into grooming are:

• Start as a bather or grooming assistant. Bathing, drying, brushing and handling unfamiliar dogs are the floor skills every groom builds on — Petco's own career path starts new salon hires on bathing and drying as a Junior Groomer.
• Learn under an experienced groomer. This is the route BLS describes as typical for pet groomers: you begin with bathing and simple trims, and a mentor checks your clipper and scissor work as the grooms get harder.
• Attend a grooming school. Programs teach breed trims, handling and salon basics. Length and cost vary by program, so compare curricula and ask exactly what the certificate covers.
• Train through an employer's academy. Two big-box chains run paid programs of their own: PetSmart says new salon hires start as bathers and then attend its paid Grooming Academy, and Petco says every Petco Certified Pet Stylist begins with a paid certification program.
• Look at apprenticeship. O*NET lists Pet Groomer as a job title vetted by industry and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor for use in a Registered Apprenticeship Program. An approved title does not guarantee a registered program near you, so search apprenticeship.gov or your state apprenticeship agency for live programs.

How long the learning takes depends on the rung.

O*NET places animal caretakers in job zones that need very little to some preparation, with on-the-job training ranging from a few days to one year.

That range spans the whole occupation — kennel attendants included — and it describes learning one job, not mastering breed patterns and finish scissoring.

Separate two questions: whether anyone licenses you as a groomer, and whether the business you work in is licensed.

On the individual side, BLS states that certifications are not required for animal care and service workers.

The trade's own credentialing bodies describe the field in similar terms.

On the page for their own groomer credential, the AKC and the National Dog Groomers Association of America call dog grooming an unregulated profession, with no license, no national exam and no unified training standard.

Voluntary certifications exist if you want a credential to market — NDGAA now operates in partnership with the American Kennel Club, and International Professional Groomers describes itself as offering certification and education for professional groomers.

A certification is a credential, not a license.

Where states do regulate, the rules we found are built around the business and the facility.

Colorado requires anyone operating a pet animal facility — premises used for boarding, grooming, handling and the like — to hold a pet animal facility license from the Commissioner of Agriculture under its Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act.

Colorado's PACFA rules also let a licensed groomer work as an independent contractor at up to 3 PACFA-licensed grooming facilities under one groomer license.

Connecticut requires a license from the Commissioner of Agriculture for anyone engaged in the business of grooming or maintaining a grooming facility.

BLS adds that many states require self-employed animal care workers to have a business license.

Which rules reach you depends on where and how you work: an employed groomer, a booth renter and a shop owner sit under different parts of the same rulebook, and city and county requirements add a further layer.

Confirm the current requirements with your state agriculture department or licensing agency, and with your city or county, before you rely on any answer.

Read the label on any pay figure first: BLS has no groomer-only occupation, so it publishes no groomer-only wage.

Groomers sit inside SOC 39-2021, animal caretakers — a group that also includes kennel attendants and pet sitters — so BLS's published wage figures cover that occupation, not groomers alone.

In BLS's May 2025 data, the median annual wage for animal caretakers (includes groomers) was $35,360.

The lowest-earning 10 percent made under $27,250, and the highest-earning 10 percent made over $50,060.

What an individual groomer actually takes home depends on the salon's pay plan, which differs employer by employer.

Some employers publish theirs: PetSmart's careers page, for example, says its stylists earn a guaranteed hourly wage and up to 55% commission — a ceiling the employer states, not a typical rate.

For the figures by state — still labeled as animal caretakers, because that is the series BLS publishes — see our dog groomer salary by state page.

Grooming's ladder is short, and the upper rungs are reached from the lower ones.

The self-employed rung is a real part of this occupation: 25% of animal caretakers were self-employed in 2025.

That share covers the whole occupation — groomers with kennel attendants and pet sitters — not groomers alone.

Owner income is a different question from groomer pay: it depends on the salon's books, its prices and its costs, and our research found no verified owner-income figure to quote.

The sourced demand signal is BLS's, and it points up.

BLS's Employment Projections have animal caretakers (includes groomers) growing 12% from 2025 to 2035, from 365,300 jobs to 409,400 — 44,100 added.

The wider animal care and service workers group is projected to grow 11%, which BLS calls “much faster than the average,” with an average of 69,400 openings a year over the decade, most from replacing workers who change occupations or leave the labor force.

BLS ties the growth to pet owners being willing to pay more for pet care and to more households that include companion pets.

The counterweight is money and body.

The May 2025 median for animal caretakers was $35,360, and it is an occupation-wide figure.

It covers entry-level bathing jobs as well as experienced grooming, so individual earnings move with the pay plan, the services offered and the experience behind the table.

BLS lists stamina among the qualities the work demands: animal care workers must be able to kneel, crawl and lift heavy supplies such as bags of food, and they risk injury when caring for animals.

Part-time work is common in the occupation, and schedules can include evenings, weekends and holidays.

What the numbers cannot price is the draw: daily work with dogs, an occupation (animal caretakers, which includes groomers) whose typical entry education BLS lists as a high school diploma or equivalent, and a ladder that runs from bather to owner.

Whether that trade fits you is what the rest of this guide is built to help you decide.

Search where the settings are.

Independent salons post when a table opens, and big-box grooming departments post bather openings that lead into their paid training — PetSmart and Petco both describe that route.

Mobile operators hire groomers for their vans, and vet clinics and boarding kennels with grooming tables post openings too.

If you are new, apply for bather and grooming-assistant openings first, and say plainly what you can already do: the dogs you have handled and the grooms you have watched.

Bring a portfolio if you have one — photographs of finished grooms, including supervised work from training.

A working interview or a trial groom may be part of a salon's hiring process, so be ready to show your handling on a live dog.

When you are ready to apply, browse dog groomer jobs on GroomerHires, and check the bather listings too if you are starting from scratch.

This guide is career information, not legal, tax or licensing advice. Requirements differ by state and change over time; confirm current rules with your state agriculture department or licensing agency, your city or county, and — for pay and classification questions — the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division or your state labor agency.