
Regular grooming keeps the pet healthy, happy and hygienic.
We all know grooming is an important part of a pet’s life. Timely and essential grooming keeps the pet healthy, happy and hygienic. With a well-groomed pet, the house can be odor-free, dander can be controlled and there would be less shedding.
Sometimes there are pooches who have hair tangles and the coat becomes dull. With good grooming, and the use of the right products, one can actually keep the four-legged baby squeaky clean and dirt-free to reduce the chances of any infections and skin disease.
As a pet parent it is essential to know when and how to start grooming your pet. This gets easy when you locate a professional pet groomer near you and have a conversation with them about the breed you own and how to go ahead with it.
For pet parents living in Mumbai suburbs there is The Good Doggie Pet salon and spa founded by Tanmay Juvekar in 2018 in the heart of Kandivali east Mumbai. “It starts with small steps, touching and playing with the paws, rubbing the ears, petting your pet in a manner that would replicate combing”. In Tanmay’s words,”
Grooming needs time and patience. A sort of trust is built between the groomer and the pet.
You as a new parent must do all that a mother would do for her child”. Understanding the breed in hand, grooming can be a longer process or a quick one. The frequency of baths also depends on the breed and lifestyle of the pet. That being said all breeds must visit the groomer at least once a month. Why? Because grooming is an intimate process and can take hours. It needs time and patience. A sort of trust is built between the groomer and the pet.


“For all the years that I have been working, I have come to notice that I spend a more attentive time with the pet in the sense, noticing the changes in the pet, be it mentally, physically or their health”, Tanmay further explains, how groomers are the bridge between the pet parent and the vet. A pet owner visits a groomer more often than he visits a vet, that makes the groomer more closely associated with the pet, than the vet. A good groomer will always notice every little change, right from skin infection, limping limbs, growths or deformation on the body, fluctuation in weight to ear and eye infections as well.
While learning grooming and educating oneself to become a certified professional groomer, young groomers are taught about anatomy of cats and dogs, skin infections and other general health issues. “I have learnt the greatest thing from my grooming teacher, Shams Lakhani, owner of Pet Pamperer. He always said, choose sanity over vanity and this has been my motto ever since.” adds Tanmay.
The biggest myth in the eye of the general public is if you shave a dog, it feels less hot or sheds less! “Shaving dog does nothing but sets the pet on a road of skin and coat damages and more grave issues like exposure to direct sun causing skin damage and in worse case skin cancer.” Tanmay further adds, “All us groomers dread to shave dogs, we have other substitutes to tackle shedding. There is furminating and de-shedding. Rather than going to the root it is essential to understand that shedding is normal during peak months.”
“When do you actually shave? Only when recommended by the vet or in long coated breeds if the dog is matted beyond repair”, says Tanmay. Regular brushing of a pet is a must, it’s the most zen thing to do. It’s equally relaxing for you and your pets. Slicker brush, pin brush, rubber curries there are a universe of brushes available. Proper brushing keeps the fur well-aired and healthy and regulates the flow of blood and keratin to the hair stands, maintaining the coat and keeps your pet knot and matt free.
“There are several options for haircuts and trims, that suit the season, especially for long coated breeds like Shihtzu, Lhasa, Persian cats, etc. Doing puppy cuts and teddy cuts and feathering on Goldens and Cocker Spaniels is the best part, to see a complete transformation of the pet. Investing and sticking to the right groomer, trainer and vet is like your three kings from heaven to pet parent,” chuckles Tanmay.
“Grooming may be my occupation, but it surely does not end when I shut the salon, I get calls from pet parents with concerns on health or anything in general, I am always there and happy to help with the knowledge that falls under my expertise. Our salon completes five years in business in May and the best sign from the universe was one of my clients communicated with her cat through an animal communicator and the cat mentioned he likes being groomed by me and enjoys his grooming session. That coming from a cat! best gift ever,” says Tanmay, beaming with happiness.
Grooming is all about bonding When an animal grooms its offspring in the wild it creates a bond of generational love and knowledge. Tanmay Juvekar and his team at The Good Doggie Pet salon and spa aim to create such a bond with a lot of love, care and pampering through their grooming.