The journey from the grooming table to the new horizons of cyberspace may seem like a quantum leap, but a group of groomers from across the country have been making the trip on a weekly basis for almost a year.
Begun last fall on America Online "AOL", the groomers are linking up on Sunday evenings at 9:00p.m. EST in a private Chat Room called Dog Groom Room. Sometimes the conversations can be so engrossing that they continue on Monday nights, same time, same place.
Under the screen name NGTWRTR, postings on the Pet Care Forum Message Boards last summer suggested the idea of groomers establishing a room of their own in the increasingly popular world of online chatters. Calling to mind the telephone party lines of yesteryear, such rooms are a haven for the shy and the sociable, where people can either reveal their identities or hide behind an anonymous "screen name," like guests at a masked ball.
To members of a highly specialized and widely misunderstood profession like pet grooming, such a forum seems made to order.Tiverton, RI groomer Susan Viveiros, owner of Grooming by Susan, is a regular in the Dog Groom Room, enjoying the camaraderie and joining the discussions on problems and products. Like many online groomers, she is a novice, using her first computer and learning her way as she ventures forth onto the Internet. Most such Chat Rooms can accommodate 23, but she notes "the most we have had so far has been seven. I'm surprised there aren't more of us there." Under her screen name "MadamHound", Susan is a veteran breeder and handler of Ibizan Hounds, she also corresponds by e-mail with other groomers nationwide. "It's a lot cheaper than using the telephone," she notes. AOL currently costs $2.95 per hour after the first five free hours per month.
Surprisingly, many visitors to Dog Groom Room are not fully computerized in their shops. Rose Lee Begley screen name "Rose Lee,"owner of Miss Rose's Grooming Salon in Stuart, FL, uses a computer program for bookkeeping, as does Jackie Corrigan, owner of K-9 Cottage Pet Grooming in San Leandro, CA. "I also use it for my mailing list," adds Jackie, who goes online under the screen name "Groomie."
Mobile groomer , Joyce A. Laughery of Kansas City, KS, uses a computer in managing her business, "but my modem's a new item and I haven't yet figured out how to surf the net." Since she works solo, the fellowship of Dog Groom Room is a big plus for Joyce ,screen name"DogGroomer". "I rarely ever get to be with other groomers, and no one but another groomer really understands me," she says.
Some chatters are more at home with the technology. Melissa Sirianni of San Antonio, TX, known to Dog Groom Room aficionados as "FidoCuts" is computerized in her current shop for accounting, merchandising, mass mailings and reminders. With a new shop under construction, she plans to be fully computerized when it opens this summer.
Rhode Island groomer Sue Oneppo is enthusiastic about communicating via computer. "While cruising the net, I have happened upon various boards of interest to me," explains the industry veteran who now holds the position of Head Groomer for a national pet superstore chain. From her favorite message boards, Sue can download information about Setters ,she breeds Gordons, and recipes. Cooking is another favorite hobby for the longtime groomer who signs on as "LovesToken."
Of course, groomer talk in cyberspace is by no means limited to AOL's Dog Groom Room. Using the Internet, groomers who subscribe to services such as Prodigy, Compuserve and other carriers can communicate through e-mail. Available at her online address of MadamHound@AOL.com, Susan Viveiros is now developing a directory of groomers online and welcomes new listings.
In recent messages on AOL's Pet Care Forum ,listed under Clubs and Interests, professional groomers have helped to answer a myriad of dog and cat care questions, educating pet owners about the grooming profession along with free advice: To queries about nail-trimming, Milwaukee, WI groomer "Slow Red" advises, "Always cut dogs' toenails with the legs pulled back behind the head. Most of the time they don't even know what you're doing until you're finished."
To a message from a pet owner who maintained that "anyone can learn to groom their pet at home. All you need is a table and an A-5 Clipper, a professional calling herself "Groomer1" logged in: "I would NOT recommend anyone try to groom a dog themselves unless they have had some type of training." Listing hazards such as clipper burns and scissor wounds, she concluded,"Grooming a dog correctly is not for the amateur. You would not try to be a veterinarian without training and the same applies to grooming. The best thing to do is keep your dog well-brushed and give it lots of love. Leave the grooming to a professional!"
Writing under the name "PetGirl", another groomer chimed in:"It is not enough to have the right equipment. You also need to be taught how to handle it and use it properly." She cited horror stories of "unplanned neuterings", webbing slashes between the toes and ligament injuries caused by inexperienced home groomers, but offered to share her professional advice on grooming matters.
At the time of my last visit, none of the groomers had responded to the online query, "How do I groom my pet with a Flowbee?"
There have been many questions on how to become a professional groomer. While many experienced practicioners jumped at the chance to respond, listing schools and drawing upon their own career experiences, one who called herself "AA4ME" was not encouraging, responding: "Don't do it unless you are willing to give up a lot of personal time and expect every dog owner you know to think they are the only people in the world."
At any convention or seminar, when groomers gather, they love to swap stories ranging from the horrific to the just plain funny. Dog Groom Room visitors are no exception. Recent topics have included the perils of pesticides: "It cost me $90 in vet bills when I got dip in a dog's eye," and the importance of communication: "The owner wouldn't pay because the cat had been shaved down." Valuable networking regarding new products and mutual encouragement at attending seminars or entering grooming contests often emerge on the conversational screen.
And there's plenty of opportunity to "LOL" which is cyberspeak for Laughing Out Loud. An example: Peter Viveiros, the husband of "MadamHound", sometimes assists her by typing her comments, with his initials in parentheses. "He's a better typist." When new visitor "DogGroomer "asked why she did not type for herself, fellow groomers immediately claimed that Susan's lack of dexterity at typing had to do with the fact that she was the actual model for the film character Edward Scissorhands.
The day is fast approaching when computers in grooming shops will be as common as telephones or cash registers, handling inventory control, client files, payrolls and profit margins.But the avid chatters of Dog Groom Room know that their computers can also open the doors to a wonderful world of knowledge and friendship between groomers. It's only a keystroke away.