A Groomer With A Disability By Cass Lambert

I have several medical illnesses that have required me to endure chemotherapy treatments and surgery many times in the last eight years. Many of them are auto immune related and all of them are incurable. The second last treatment for just one of my conditions caused me to gain over 90lbs in less than six months on my slim 120lb frame. The side effects of all these treatments can be more dangerous than the illnesses they seek to control causing weight loss, hair loss, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, heart and liver damage and even seizures that lasted 11 months and caused the loss of my drivers license for over two years. Working is very important to me as it provides quality of life during a difficult time and of course I need the benefits for my expensive medications. My most recent treatment, which I had to stop in the last few months due to loss of benefits when I stopped working full time, caused the opposite problem which was to loose all that weight in only a few months. I am also more susceptible to colds, flu’s and other illnesses. Due to my bowel condition, even taking an antibiotic for one day risks my life and unfortunately causes me to miss work. My clients seem very patient however and simply reschedule. Many of them are persons with disabilities themselves so are very understanding.

At the end of the second most recent chemotherapy to control just one of my chronic illnesses my Specialist decided that to continue to try to treat one of my illnesses was simply too dangerous, and as a result I was referred to a Palliative Pain Specialist to control the debilitating pain this illness causes. This occurred with in a few months of me returning to work at a large pet store chain. Unfortunately my original position was not available and I was very interested in attending grooming academy so very thankful for this opportunity off I went! I was very surprised at how hard it was! See I have worked with many different species of animals and non animals throughout my entire life as a trainer. I have trained everything from hamsters to cows (and of course dogs!) as I study animal ethology or how animals learn as a lifelong hobby and am even working towards my BA.
Animal ethology is defined as being the scientific study of animal behavior, especially as it occurs in a natural environment. I have always held a particular interest in aggression as a behavioral process rather than in a particular animal group and often study one type of behavior in a number of unrelated species. I find understanding how animals think and learn crucial to being a successful and humane groomer. I also share my home with a number of pets including (current at the time of publication only) 5 cats, 3 dogs, a hamster, a rabbit, a tank of vicious fish (including Jack the homicidal Cichlid) and a horse.
See when I had watched groomers work in the pet store I used to work at, it always looked so easy to me, although it did not always look “fun”. I had no idea the hours and hours of studying required, both in the classroom and around the grooming table. Not only to make a pet look and feel great, but to do it as safely as possible for everyone involved. Dogs are sharp at five out of six sides after all! A bite from a cat can literally end your career not to mention the effect stress can have on their health.

The greatest challenge I face as a groomer with a permanent disability is coping with the daily and sometimes hourly changes of my condition. I have Severe Pelvic Nerve Neuropathy. How this was explained to me was that I had been in such severe pain for so long it caused severe, irreparable and incurable damage to the nerve endings in my pelvis. The bad news is there is no cure and my doctors are not even sure how to treat it and only know that it may end in my complete reliance on a wheelchair or worse with in a few years time. The worse news is it appears to be spreading. I was on many medications for chemotherapy to control the severe and debilitating pain of this new incurable illness but had to stop when I lost my benefits and have a very limited strict diet that I have to adhere to daily.

One of the challenges I face is when I am in debilitating pain. Unfortunately nerve pain cannot be managed by any pain medications including the strongest of narcotic medications. On days I wake up and cannot walk or move my fingers it can be difficult to get started and get to work. On these days I am very grateful for assistance with dogs that are difficult to groom and limit the amount of clients per day and use my wheelchair/walker for extra support. Another way I cope with this challenge is by building a repeat client list full of kind, good and understanding dogs and people. I find that on my bad days the dogs seem generally to behave better almost as if they sense this. I manage my pain with medication samples provided by my doctor until my Ontario coverage starts, such as anti neuropathy pills that are thought to possibly interrupt the constant signals my nerves constantly and continually send. This at the best of times can be excruciating. Sometimes these pills even help!

On good days I am able to groom with minimal issues. I try to groom as gently and humanely as possible and also with respect to how dogs may feel on any particular day. I can empathize that just like me they may not feel great and be a bit grouchy, especially if they are also coping with large tumors that may be painful or conditions such as hip dyspepsia or even arthritis. I am currently trying to build a home grooming business and have decided to specialize in pets with disabilities themselves as I believe I have a particular empathy and understanding of their needs. I am not strong or big enough to force a large dog to stand still and have adapted. I try to use their anatomy and how they move to make my grooming job easier.

photos by Laura Gaudette of studio http://www.studio82.ca/
For instance recently I had a 10 year old 80 lb border collie that lives on a farm with a duck pond she loves to swim in (and is prone to matting with a very fine coat) and is visiting my groom shop for her regular haircut on my table that did not like her front feet touched due to arthritis and is coping with a large inoperable tumor on her left side due to a thyroid condition. She also suffers from tumors throughout her abdomen and legs and is not able to stand patiently for very long. Now I know at 98 lbs (current at the time of publication) I do not stand a chance of “making” her do anything and want to be as humane as possible so the way I would trim her right foot was to stand on her right side, trim her right foot with my curve shears after combing the right foot out in a circular pattern and then lifting her left foot gently up and straight back and holding with my left hand as I trim with the curve shears in my right hand. I also have an assistant lift the leg for me on a particularly bad day or particularly strong dogs.

I also offer her a lot of breaks and even will groom from the floor. I am also investing in various slings and nooses that offer additional support on the table for my pets with disabilities as well as making my own job easier.

The reason it works is that dogs are similar to horses. They need at least three legs to stand. Therefore if you hold up one- they have to stand on 3 and still or else they risk “loosing control” and falling which they seem to dislike. They sometimes will struggle at first to avoid the scissors which they fear of course. If this happens I always worry the dog may hurt themselves panicking to get away or off the table so I put gentle pressure on the back of the right elbow or just above the fetlock joint with my left hand while my assistant holds up the left front leg gently. This makes it more difficult for the dog to lifting the leg and/or trying to move it forward while I am trimming. It is non painful and as long as I and my helper stay calm and non-reactive she settles down and I can get my trimming done safely, quickly and with her more relaxed leading to a more positive experience for her. This also helps any fear she may feel in anticipation of the grooming table for next time making the next groomer’s job easier.

For grooming around her tumors I use touch and either clip combs or thinning shears for safety. Particularly if the tumors like the one on her belly are movable. The risk of injury to her is great so I take extra care and keep one hand on the tumor, moving it aside if possible at all times. This can be a challenge but is worth it at the end. I also tend to make the hair on the larger tumors shorter and do more hand scissoring to “disguise” the lumps and bumps. Owners are greatly appreciate this.

The photo below shows a farrier standing underneath a 1500lb horse while he locates a hole in the metal shoe with his fingers so he can start hammering a metal nail in with force. A farrier is a person that trims horse’s hooves and puts metal horseshoe on. All horses, ponies, and donkeys need their hooves trimmed every six to eight weeks through out their entire life to avoid painful conditions. Horses can lives until their late twenties. Ponies can live until their forties.

If he “misses” the hole he may end the horse riding/working career permanently. Not to mention the horses reaction to this sudden and severe pain as this would probably be rearing up and crashing down on top of the farrier. Is this dangerous for both of them? Yes. He has one leg held between his knees and because the horse is standing on three legs he usually stands still. Horses hate falling more than anything, similar to dogs so they are reluctant to put themselves in situations that may result in their greatest fear.

Horses are usually trained to stand calmly like this big guy from birth because horses need to see a farrier through their entire lives. Easier for everyone if no one gets hurt. Farrier’s charge anywhere from $30 dollars for a trim to $300 and more for shoes like this guy is getting. Shoes protect their feet from surfaces like cement and also can help prevent work related injuries- slipping on wet grass as a racehorse. This guy probably pulls a cart. However if this farrier attaches the shoe incorrectly he can actually cause injury instead of preventing it because the shoes are metal and can have sharp edges. Farrier’s train throughout their entire lives and often attend a two or three year college program before they can begin their apprenticeship with an experienced farrier. The apprenticeship lasts typically two to three years.

Another thing I am currently doing and am always open to suggestions is modifying my equipment. For instance I picked lighter scissors knowing I am more prone to conditions such as repetitive stress disorder and arthritis. I also started to take piano lessons after my pain doctor recommended playing with clay (with both hands!) at night while I watch TV to strengthen my hands hoping to prevent anything from worsening. I am currently looking at dryer handles to prevent repetitive stress conditions in the hands and arms. I am also researching grooming table adaptions for dogs missing legs or with other health conditions such as the Border collie’s. The shampoos and conditioners I have selected are hypo-allergenic, tearless and environmentally friendly. For the dogs going through their own chemotherapy treatments the hypo-allergenic feature is very important. I am still learning something new every time I go to work about the dogs, the people and the art of grooming in general. A chance to learn something new every single shift!

Unfortunately I am off of full time work now and have been since January of this year due to my worsening health and reliance on a wheelchair during bad days. The weather also greatly affects my pain with rainy, cool weather being the worst. Sometimes it is impossible to even get out of bed. I am currently specializing in grooming pets with disabilities at home. In our current economy this has been a challenge to start a new company and I receive more “cold call” phone calls from people looking for jobs than I do from clients! To cope with this I have used as many free services online services as possible to advertise including pet websites, building my own web page and using social networking website groups to offer my services. I plan on holding an Open House in the near future inviting people in for free nail trims and have recruited several groomer friends to volunteer their services on this day successfully. I even built my own front sign for economical reasons. I also put up flayers at all the local pet shops and public bulletin boards to be economical. I do plan on hiring a bather, hopefully someone coping with their own disability and becoming wheelchair accessible in the future which will also help build my business. I am also applying for some available government start up grants provided by Service Canada.

One of the most unfortunate challenges I face every day is that people sometimes are very prejudiced towards a person with a disability and assume they cannot do anything. That is simply not true. With the support of my community and accommodations in the workplace, and positive attitude a person coping with a disabling condition can accomplish anything.
All images were presented at Stella’s Magazine in agreement with the author.
Author: Cass Lambert
Photography by: Laura Gaudette