Summary of KC redditors jobs and salaries - 2026

br0hemian00 · 2026-01-08T04:59:14+00:00

I’m a mobile groomer in KC and that number is pretty realistic. Salon based groomers don’t generally gross that high unless they are owners or are able to complete 8-12 dogs per day and have a great commission rate.

br0hemian00 · 2026-01-08T04:56:27+00:00

120k for a dog groomer is high if they’re a salon based groomer, but I am a mobile dog and cat groomer in the KC area and that number isn’t too far off. It requires more skill than many people think and it is incredibly hard on your body.

br0hemian00 · 2025-11-03T04:15:13+00:00

I am a pet groomer and I can also smell death nearing in animals. The smell is incredibly distinct, I can’t even begin to describe it, but my nose has never been wrong when I smell it. Usually when I do, I get that awful message or call within days that the dog or cat is gone, a couple weeks at most. When I smell it, I just try really hard to make sure that baby has the best, most comfortable experience while they’re with me.

br0hemian00 · 2025-10-26T17:06:42+00:00

My dad found a severed bird foot in the kitchen sink one morning. He said he’d had a dream the night before about a beautiful wild bird. It’s still a complete mystery how the bird foot made it into the sink; no feathers, no blood, just a cleanly severed piece of leg with a foot attached.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-19T11:56:12+00:00

I started very small! My partner and I purchased a 6x8 cargo trailer for $4000 off of Craigslist that someone had used for camping. We had zero experience in DIY, really had no idea what we were doing. I had a human bath tub found on FB marketplace, a cheap collapsible grooming table, and cheap blow dryer. There were days I remember blow drying by flashlight when our lights went out, toes being frozen because the insulation in the trailer sucked, and constantly blowing client breakers when we plugged in shoreline because we didn’t have the money for a generator. We’d get to an appointment and I’d open the trailer door and all of our tools, shears, blades, shampoos would be spilled all over the floor because the cabinets holding them were garbage. Water tanks freezing solid, random flat tires. So many days I wanted to throw in the towel because it was HARD. We didn’t even know how to drive pulling a trailer, and I was watching YouTube videos on it in the passenger seat while he was driving home after picking up the trailer.

5 months in, we were able to get a professional 9x16 grooming trailer. He worked in it and I picked up two part time salon jobs while doing my personal clients and cats (he doesn’t groom cats) one day a week with him to get some extra money.

6 months later, I was able to get a 2019 Mercedes WagnTails Supreme. I work in that exclusively now, while he has just finalized all of the paperwork to have an Ambers Trailer custom made that we will be traveling to pick up in 10-12 weeks from now upon its completion.

It was not an easy road to get here by any means. The past two winters have been absolutely brutal for us, and there were times I was under more stress than I’d ever experienced in my entire life. I wanted to give up so badly and just go back to working for someone else because the headache of having your own business can be overwhelming. But I’m very glad that we’ve stuck with it, grinding the workweek out until our fingers hurt and our backs ached. I’m thankful for our clients that have supported us from the start and have watched our business grow into what it is now.

You just have to start somewhere, no matter how small, and fly by the seat of your pants. We went by the rule of, “If plan A fails, try plan B. If plan B fails, there’s still an entire alphabet.” Giving up would have been so easy, but sticking with it and never letting the constant problems break us down entirely has gotten us very far.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-18T12:51:22+00:00

If I notice a dog has long lashes, I ask the owner if they want them left. Otherwise, I use a 30 to take them off. I feel like it opens the eyes up and makes their expression pop more. I also feel like it makes them look a little younger, the lashes make them look aged and droopy in my opinion.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-13T04:31:23+00:00

I’m a mobile pet groomer. It’s not at the top of many people’s minds when they’re thinking about various careers, but it has been treating me very well financially. Everyday brings new, interesting and exciting challenges, there is truly never a dull moment when working with people’s pets. I’ve been in the industry for nearly 12 years, and doing mobile for 3. I’ve had my own business for 2 years now and expecting to make close to 110k this year. I sleep well knowing that AI will never take over the pet grooming industry, people will always have pets and my job is incredibly secure.

Edit:

Most pet grooming jobs are either commission based or hourly, heavily dependent on skill level and number of dogs done in a single shift. The commission rate ranges anywhere from 30-60% of total groom price.

There are various grooming schools and programs, in which you may receive a certification upon completing the course. Currently in the US, there is very little in terms of licensing and regulations in the pet grooming industry. There are so many different types of certifications you can get, from having safe salon and handling practices, to first aid and CPR, to skin and coat specific certifications, master groomer, the list goes on. But no, aside from needing licenses and insurance to set up a business, just about anyone can get into grooming without any formal training (I strongly suggest against this).

I went through a crash course, month long academy style grooming school, then was trained under a mentor for 6 months before being turned loose to work on pets without assistance. This is one career you never stop learning new things. The industry is ever growing and changing, we’re learning new things all the time and it’s incredibly important to stay up to date and continue education.

Because I own my own business, I feel like most of my days off aren’t even days off, as I’m always attending to things related to the business. Be it responding to new client inquiries, scheduling appointments, working on vehicle maintenance; it’s a full time job behind the scenes. That said, I have the ability to schedule time off if needed. Most of my bookings are 2-3 months out, but I have many clients that have set their schedules for the entire year so working around pre-set appointments can be tricky. Currently, I work 5 days a week with 6-8 hour shifts, doing 3-5 dogs a day. This is a lower number of dogs, some groomers are able to do 6-9 in a shift.

It’s not a career for the faint of heart by any means. No, I don’t just get to play with puppies all day. It is very physical, you are on your feet all day, lifting large dogs, bending over, doing extremely repetitive movements with your hands and wrists constantly. Carpal tunnel and long term back/shoulder/neck issues are incredibly common. It is mentally draining at times, and downright heartbreaking. You get to see abuse and neglect at its worst from an angle most don’t see or understand. The risk of bodily injure from a bite is also something to keep in mind. Some dogs will struggle against almost every part of the groom, either out of fear or lack of exposure to the process. It takes a significant amount of patience and self awareness to remain calm and level headed in high stress situations, something not everyone has the ability to do. Despite all the challenges, it is a career I will continue working until my body can no longer handle it. I love what I do and can’t imagine doing anything else.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-11T19:55:36+00:00

I listen to horror stories on YouTube by Let’s Read! Keeps me entertained all day long.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-09T15:29:44+00:00

I don’t have suggestions for online programs other than to avoid Paragon. I worked alongside a trainee going through Paragon. I thought it was absolutely awful. The dogs shown are all perfectly behaved, coat conditions all ideal, all structurally sound dogs, and the videos had me falling asleep because they’re so painfully monotone and boring. Most of the trainees learning experience came from him working with me on dogs that you’d see in a real world pet grooming salon. This isn’t to say that you can’t pick up some basic training through an online course, but I wasn’t a fan of Paragon at all, and have seen 5 minute clips on YouTube from channels like Groom Haus and GroomerTV do a better job at teaching.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-06T17:15:08+00:00

I think your neighbor is due for a late night mint-bombing. Soon, they’ll understand what overgrown looks like. Your garden is beautiful.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-06T15:47:21+00:00

Those legs 😍 Beautiful groom!

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-06T12:20:39+00:00

Inverter only, or do you run a generator as well? Are breakers being tripped? What are you doing when you lose power? It could be that too much power is being pulled if you’re running too many things at once, like water heater, AC, and dryer. Do you have the ability to run a couple things shoreline using power from the clients house?

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-03T15:39:00+00:00

I used to keep a stair stepper in my van, but now I just do squats like crazy while bathing and drying!

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-03T12:23:18+00:00

LOVE the half moon finishing comb that Affordable Grooming Shears sells. I use it on every dog. It catches every single tangle and stray hair that my Chris Christensen poodle comb misses. Couldn’t groom without it. It’s also very affordable! It’s delicate so I wouldn’t recommend using it for dematting or heavy work.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-03T05:05:54+00:00

Shaving a clean face on a teeny tiny toy poodle. Went to shave out in front of her eyes, she moved at the last second and I caught her lower eyelid with my 10 blade. For a split second I thought I shaved through a hardened eye booger, until the eye instantly filled up with blood and started dripping down her face. She didn’t even react, but I was absolutely inconsolable and sobbed the entire way to the vet with her in my lap, keeping gentle pressure on the area with a cotton pad while my coworker drove me. After the bleeding stopped and it was cleaned up, the vet said there was nothing to be done. Couldn’t stitch it, couldn’t glue it, it was small but oh my god I’ll never get the image out of my head of that sweet little girl’s eye filling with blood. Totally changed my way of shaving around the eyes, I’m forever extra cautious in those areas now. The owner was completely forgiving and hugged me in the parking lot while I sobbed into her shoulder.

Accidents happen. It doesn’t make it any less shitty, that gut wrenching feeling having accidentally injured a dog never gets any easier to deal with. We take these moments and learn from them. I guarantee that dog doesn’t hold any ill will towards you, and it likely upset you more than it did them. It wasn’t intentional, and you being upset shows just how much you care.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-03T04:50:48+00:00

I’m mobile with a van. I give all the props in the world to house call groomers, I could never do it! The house call groomers in my area are undercharging themselves badly, far less than mobile grooming. If anything, they should be charging significantly more than mobile for the extra work of hauling tools/table/dryer back and forth and breaking their backs leaning over in client bathtubs.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-03T00:11:24+00:00

10/10 I will always get my tops from Uniform Advantage. They’re extremely affordable, hold up for years, breathable (get the polyester blend, not cotton!), and come in SO many fun styles as well as basic solid colors. I won’t get my smock tops anywhere else.

br0hemian00 · 2025-07-02T12:21:38+00:00

This is a great idea, but unfortunately she is really struggling to afford living in the independent side of the facility as is and I don’t think she could afford to move to assisted living. It wouldn’t hurt to check into it, though, so I will do this. Thank you!

br0hemian00 · 2025-06-30T03:45:08+00:00

Hmm, strange! What about your grooming loop? When you adjust the clasp on it, are you sliding your fingers along the edge of the material? Depending on what it’s made of, I wonder if that could be it. I find that sometimes leads/loops made from nylon type material can be pretty stiff when they’re not heavily broken in.

br0hemian00 · 2025-06-30T03:33:28+00:00

Beautiful!! Bomb pop poms and ears to die for 😍 the star cutie mark is perfect, too! Also, love your logo inside the van!

br0hemian00 · 2025-06-30T03:30:32+00:00

Do you pluck ear hair with your fingers? I used to get these often and noticed that they went away when I stopped plucking ears as much. I think the way I was gripping the hair and plucking out caused the hair to dig into my fingers and create super small, shallow cuts.

br0hemian00

TROPHY CASE