Brittanie Eggerding grew up in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, with a passion for animals. She regularly watched her mom groom animals and was determined to make a career that cared for animals.
“I’ve always grown up in the grooming world,” She said. “I always looked up to my mom and her being the groomer.”
As she got older, she mentored with groomers and learned on the job, also gaining instruction from the Learn2GroomDogs.com video subscription to help build her knowledge base.
With the knowledge of how to groom, but looking for her certification, Brittanie decided to leave South Dakota in 2015 and move to Grand Rapids to attend school. She enrolled in Paragon’s educational services that helps groomers with prior experience hone the skills they need to improve before being a certified groomer.
“I used the school as an excuse to move across the country,” She said. “I needed to focus on the aspects of grooming that I needed to improve. I’ve learned a lot and continue to learn.”
Brittanie says that the grooming community overall are people genuinely passionate about animals, therefore they want to help anyone who cares for animals be as well-equipped as possible.
“The community brings together the people who care about the wellbeing of a pet and doing it for the right reasons,” she said. “Everyone is so nice and will build you. It’s a tight knit community of people who want to better their services.”
Now, 28, and recently married, Brittanie works at Whiskers Resort and Pet Spa as a stylist in West Michigan. She said the best part of the job for her is cultivating the culture of love and care for animals through things like styling and grooming.
“When they come in dirty, or matted and scared, sending them home clean, stylized, and comfortable is so rewarding,” she said. “I love seeing the owners that don’t know what to expect and seeing their faces when we are done too.”