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Jennifer Bishop Jenkins MA, ICMG, PGC
Pet Grooming Education
Seminars, Consulting, Publications
Science-Based, Academically Rich
Home of the 15 Coat Types Poster
Jennifer appears (above) on the Hulu Network's Small Business Revolution, Season Three, "Shampooches" episode as the Grooming Expert. (Host, Amanda Brinkman, right)
TO ORDER 15 COAT TYPES POSTERS, PLEASE GO TO THE STORE AND FAQ PAGE.
Groomers Guide Educational Seminars and Publications are a product of the merging of Jennifer's three lifetime careers: teaching, advocacy, and a love of dogs. Jennifer Bishop-Jenkins is an International Certified Master Groomer who brings her engaging speaking style and dedicated research skills to her academically rich groomer educational programs. She has helped to revolutionize the grooming industry with the creation of her 15 Coat Types seminars, posters, and upcoming book, expected out in 2025. Debuting in 2025 you can also find Jennifer's new blog and GROOMERS GUIDE PODCAST focusing on groomer education on the platform hosted by Boss/PetEdge at www.petprotalk.com.
Jennifer's goal has been to dramatically reduce the number of incorrectly groomed and shaved-down dogs. For too long, many dogs have been groomed incorrectly for their natural coat type. This has led them to suffer discomfort, a loss of their naturally most protective outer coat, patchiness and itchiness, and even medical harm, especially in the form of increased skin cancer risk, parasites, and yeast, fungal or bacterial problems from exposure to their very thin skin. Dogs rely entirely on their coats to protect them from everything in their environment.
Instead, Jennifer urges, dog lovers everywhere should be able to get each of their dogs groomed correctly for its natural coat type by professional pet groomers who know the differences in coat type, and who know the correct grooming procedures for each type. And no dog should ever be shaved down (except for medical need i.e. surgeries). There are always humane alternatives for saving coat, no matter its condition.
Dogs are the most diverse single species on land on the Earth in physical appearance. The canine coat is diverse, naturally evolved, and has specific functionality that protects each dog. The naturally-evolved coat types are adapted to the climate and function of the dogs in their regions. Dogs have very thin skin and thick hair - the opposite of humans. We are thick skinned and thin haired. Dogs have a lot more hair than people and skin that is 1/3 as thin as ours. Shaving them down exposes them to seriously increased risk of skin cancer, not to mention parasites, bacteria, yeast, fungus and overall discomfort.
Removing, shaving, or even just trimming the upper torso area on a natural fur-type coat can greatly increase not only cancer risk but also fungal and bacterial infections and on-going skin and follicle discomfort and dysfunction. Shaving a fur-type coat forever changes the healthy appearance of the coat and damages the natural coat's function, texture, and protective abilities. Because of the long dormancy phase in pre-determined length coat growth (fur), and the explosive growth of undercoat hairs that happens when they are exposed in the cutting of topcoat hairs, even one shave down can potentially ruin the natural coat for a dog's entire lifetime.
Jennifer invites caring dog-lovers everywhere to use these hashtags in their social media:
#DogsNeedTheirNaturalCoatsToProtectThem
#StopTheShaveDowns
#GroomersAreInTheCoatCareBusinessNotTheCoatDestructionBusiness
Jennifer has been concerned about the fact that most pet owners are not aware of the lack of educational or competency requirements for pet groomers in the USA. This has, sadly, sometimes, resulted in harm to many dogs. Jennifer works tirelessly with other industry leaders to invigorate and reform "old school" grooming industry practices, replacing them with science-based best practices, genetically and dermatologically appropriate good grooming science based on the dog's natural coat type.
Research into the incredible dog, our co-evolved human companion, has exploded in recent years. The more we learn about them, the more we understand how important the dog is to our own human history. We have begun to see serious academic attention to the many things we are learning about dogs. Jennifer effectively communicates innovative science being done into dogs, the most diverse mammal on earth, for her grooming audiences. Science-based grooming practices alone should determine grooming industry standards and Best Practices. Jennifer's publications and seminars have been called life-changing by many who have heard her speak.
Jennifer gives seminars in person at trade shows, both in the USA and internationally, also online, or she can come to your event or business, either in person or virtually, to consult, train, and explain the dog with a depth rarely seen outside the university setting. You will learn the "why" of what we do, as well as the "how." You will learn more about dogs in one seminar than you ever thought possible!
Jennifer Bishop Jenkins
Award-Winning Groomer and Educator
*Three-time Barkleigh Honors Nominee
*Columnist, Groomer To Groomer Magazine
*Named "Best Groomer in Chicagoland" by the Chicago Tribune 2015
*"Best of Next Door" for several years for her shop Love Fur Dogs
*Who's Who (Marquis) listee 2024-25
*Board Member, World Alliance of Grooming Associations (WAGA)
*Best Dog Groomers in Chicago from "Expertise.com"
*Founder of the Illinois Professional Pet Groomers Association (IPPGA)
*Awarded Top 50 Grooming Blogs in the world
*Best of HomeGuide
*IPG, PGC, and AKC Grooming Educator
*Television show "Small Business Revolution" featured Grooming Expert
*Master Groomers Council on Best Practices
Details on her "Post-Nominals":
MA - Jennifer has two Masters Degrees: one in History and the equivalent in Education Administration, Curriculum and Instruction. Jennifer taught in high schools, primarily in History/Social Studies for 28 years. She also taught in a Junior High School in a gifted education program and as an adjunct in two different colleges. She held a Secondary School Illinois teaching certificate for several decades and retired from school teaching in 2005 while serving as the Academic Dean at a Chicago area high school.
ICMG - Jennifer obtained her Certified Master Groomer in 1985, one of the first hundred or so Master Groomers in U.S. History. She is an ICMG and certifier with International Professional Groomers, Inc. www.ipgicmg.com
PGC - Now being run by the American Kennel Club (www.akc.org) Jennifer served on the advisory board that created the PGC credential and test with the World Pet Association (WPA) when it was first created. A prestigious group of grooming educators worked through a lengthy process to created the PGC. Jennifer worked with other industry leaders to create a legally valid and academically sound standardized test, the Pet Grooming Credential, that can be used as an objective measure of competency in our grooming industry. This standardized 400 multiple choice question test was created and is administered by professional testing agencies. It is the only assessment that would legally stand up in, for example, a courtroom, should groomer competency ever be challenged. WPA generously aided our industry in creating this most unimpeachable credential, and now the AKC runs it as part of their incredible grooming education credentials. Professional standardized test writers worked with the groomer advisory committee, towards the creation of this first legally valid and fully standardized test in our industry to measure basic grooming knowledge of safety and procedure - the Pet Grooming Credential or PGC. Once the test was publicly released, Jennifer took it and passed it, becoming one of the first to obtain the PGC credential, one she believes every groomer should take. Jennifer's 15 Coat Types class is one of the courses PGC recognizes as a preparatory course for the PGC examination. Jennifer is also a PGC Educator.