By the time I was 12 years old, I knew I wanted to work with animals; you could even say that was when my dog grooming career unofficially started! I developed a love and passion for caring for my family?s dogs and it opened my eyes to their knowledge and emotional capacity. I realized, dogs were just like us, if not better. At 18, I began working as a Bather and immediately fell in love with what I was doing. Two years later, I began grooming and never looked back.   

The first few years of my grooming career were spent working in salons. Needless to say, there were many distractions that made the grooming experience stressful and, in some cases, dangerous. The phone was constantly ringing off the hook, customers were coming in and out throughout the day and there were 15-25 dogs being taken in at once, stored in cages all day while waiting to be serviced. While I am thankful for everything being in a salon taught me and prepared me for, leaving the salon life was the best decision I made for this career as it has given me a new appreciation for what I do.

Being a Mobile Groomer allows me to provide every dog with a one on one experience that is structured around only them and their specific needs. It gives me the opportunity to build trust between the client and myself, as well as with their dogs. It also gives me a chance to educate pet parents on the proper grooming schedule for their dogs to ensure they?re getting the absolute best care. 

I love having a peaceful & personal environment where dogs can enjoy a relaxing, clean and quiet setting and I can take my time through each groom. Having the entire space to groom by yourself is amazing if you are working with a dog who is anxious or fearful as they don?t have to be locked in a kennel or surrounded by multiple dogs and people. Lastly, being mobile allows me to provide a true luxury, one on one service to client?s steps away from their home, giving them peace of mind while I pamper their babies.

As a Groomer, it?s easy to see the perks of being mobile for both you and the dogs but determining how to get into mobile can be quite difficult. As I started my career in mobile grooming, I wanted to make sure I found a work environment that facilitates positive communication, allows for internal growth, and encourages independence and autonomy for every person brought onto the team. Luckily for me, I found all of that in Barkbus.

Barkbus is the best mobile grooming company for any groomer in Southern California looking for a new home. Not to worry, new Barkbus cities across the country are popping up soon as well! Barkbus goes above and beyond for their groomers from providing back braces, noise cancelling headphones, and protective eyewear for our safety, to keeping the office stocked with healthy snacks to keep us nourished throughout the day. They also host different events for our learning and development such as webinars with yummy catered food and CPR training for all groomers.

Barkbus does an amazing job of helping groomers stay connected with each other too so that we don?t get too lonely throughout the day. We use technology like Slack and FaceTime to keep up with each other daily. It?s awesome using these tools to chat throughout the day, exchange photos of the dogs we are grooming, share different grooming techniques, tools, tips and laughs! On top of that, we do monthly events like scavenger hunts and different contests to keep the fun and healthy competition going.

Outside of what is listed on the job posting, Groomers are also granted $150 per quarter for tool sharpening, monthly learning, and development opportunities to continue to sharpen their skills, monthly catered breakfasts & dinners, & quarterly Pet CPR courses for all groomers to enhance safety protocols. There are also additional perks with Ryan?s Pet Supplies like a standing promo code for savings on each order!

All in all, I love working at Barkbus because they truly value their amazing Groomers who show up every day to provide pups across Southern California with the absolute best care and love imaginable.

Joy is a passionate animal care professional who has dedicated her life to working with dogs since she was 18 years old. She has a deep understanding of animal care practices, safety, and nutrition needs and has been grooming for over 6 years. Barkbus discovered Joy on a careers website and began engaging with her over email. After a couple interviews and a tour of our facilities, they happily extended an offer to Joy, and she joined the team in November 2020!

Check out Barkbus here. Follow Joy on Instagram here.