Spa Day for Pups—Careers for People
Joybound Dog Grooming Academy Director Bernie Machado (c) with Academy Manager Hope Minton (r) and instructor Gia Magpanty (l).
In March 2024, Joybound People & Pets broke ground for an innovative career-training program and pet service, the Joybound Dog Grooming Academy, funded in part by the Engelstad Foundation, a longtime advocate and supporter of Joybound People & Pets.
The grooming academy is now open and the public is invited to bring their dogs of all sizes, shapes, breeds, and ages to Joybound for a professional mani-pedi, bath and brushing, and all around styling by academy students in training and experienced, professional instructors and groomers to help make their family pets look and feel their best. And because this is a training academy, grooming fees are offered at competitive discounts.
Grooming is an enrichment experience for Joybound’s shelter dogs; getting an animal out for a novel experience feeds that dog’s physical and psychological well-being.
“The idea at Joybound was to create a vocational school—free of charge to students—for people who have barriers to employment and career guidance for any number of reasons,” said Joybound Dog Grooming Academy Director Bernadette (Bernie) Machado, an expert in the field of animal welfare who has owned her own dog grooming business in San Francisco since 1989. “We wanted to offer people a chance in life to find work they really love, and thus was born the academy—an amazing partnership between our passion to do right by our community and the financial and expert resources available to make this concept a reality.”
The Grooming Academy is one more way Joybound is nurturing the health, happiness, and connection between pets and people.
The Academy is a comprehensive, four-week, 120-hour program, with 25% classroom instruction, and 75% hands-on training. After graduation, students can walk into any grooming salon and apply for bather/brusher, which is one step along many paths toward becoming a professional, licensed groomer and stylist. Students can find work in doggy daycare centers, boarding facilities, retail pet supply stores—opportunities are endless for well-paying, in-demand jobs in rapidly expanding pet-related industries.
Students have a ready and loving source of animal clients—Joybound’s shelter dogs, who benefit from regular grooming for their health and happiness in preparation for adoption. And Joybound’s staff and volunteers bring in their pups to give the students experience working with a variety of family pets and service dogs.
Three washtubs in the Academy’s wet room accommodate all sizes, shapes, and ages of dogs.
Academy students learn the language, mechanics, and skills of dog grooming. They learn dog breeds, anatomy, and types of coats. They learn dog handling safety measures, and they are certified in pet first aid, which gives them a boost over candidates going for the same jobs in the thriving pet grooming industry.
“Students are trained on a wide variety of dogs under very supervised, watchful eyes. We keep the dogs safe, and we keep our students safe,” said Bernie. “Once they graduate from our program and enter the dog grooming and pet services workplace, they are truly acclimated to working with a variety of dogs and dog behaviors.”
Joybound CEO Susan Lee Vick (l) and Dog Grooming Academy Director Bernie Machado (c, in pink) celebrate with instructors and the Academy's first graduating class, July 26; the second class graduated August 30.
“Joybound exists to advance the well-being and joy of pets and people. The Grooming Academy does this in spades," said Joybound CEO Susan Lee Vick. "I am beyond proud to support Bernie's vision for grooming dogs with love while boosting the lives of people who deserve a shot at a meaningful career and living wage."
The Academy's clean, crisp design promotes transparency, trust, and accountability.
The facility is state of the art and fully transparent—literally and figuratively. Bernie designed the space for beauty, safety, and comfort. Awash in natural light, the salon’s dry room sports six grooming tables with overhead dryers, and all the tools and equipment of the trade at hand at each table. In the wet room, three washtubs accommodate dogs of all sizes and coats, as well as student bathers of varying heights and abilities.
Transparent glass walls, windows, and cubbies (where canine clients wait before and after their appointments) are the hallmark of this innovative design. Students, instructors, and the public can see everyone and everything that’s going on at all times, providing an environment that lends itself to accountability and responsibility.
“The public can see us and hear us,” said Bernie, “and know their dogs and our shelter and service dogs are truly in experienced and loving hands.”
Joybound is making an exclusive offer to readers of
The Shadelands Scene.
Use the code SHADELANDS to receive 50% off your first visit,
which you can book here.
