All Courses

Sue Williamson

Happy Paws with Sue & Taking the Grrr out of Grooming Dogs Founder & Instructor

Sue has been a life longer dog lover, starting with her own dog when just 4 years old, when she was given a toy poodle (Tina) by a relative. This sparked Sue’s desire to become a dog groomer, but she would have to wait another 50 years until this dream was realised. On leaving school, Sue went into administration until Jan 2016, when she decided that life was too short to spend time in a job where management made life difficult, and chose to train as a dog groomer. On completion of the Dog Grooming training at L.A. Spa and Groom, Sue immediately opened her own salon in a log cabin in the garden. Sue had already decided that she wanted to offer grooming to those dogs who struggled with the grooming process, as she knew that Tellington Ttouch would help many dogs. After achieving Tellington Ttouch Practitioner in 2016, Sue started delivering one day Tellington Ttouch workshops to groomers. She soon realised that the training most groomers undertook were lacking in dog behaviour, and in particular important topics that were not covered included body language and trigger stacking, so these topics were also added to the workshop. In 2019 Sue finalised her first book Taking the Grrr out of Grooming Your Dog, followed by Taking the Grrr out of the Grooming Salon and Introducing Your Puppy to Grrr-less Grooming. Since then Sue has become one of the leading Grooming Behaviour Specialists and provides education to other groomers through her Facebook Group Taking the Grrr out of Grooming Dogs and Educational Portal. Sue continuously studies canine related courses to enhance her grooming and education for other groomers.

Cate Crawshaw

K8'sK9s - Instructor

After plenty of time stuck behind a desk, I knew I needed a change. Unsure of what I wanted to “be” when I grew up, I brought home my first puppy and threw myself into puppy guardianship with gusto. I enrolled him in classes, and that’s where my passion for canine psychology truly began. Recognising my intuitive understanding and dedication, the behaviourist running the classes invited me to assist, and soon I was accompanying him on 1-to-1 sessions. Just over a year later, I was writing and delivering training curriculums and hosting pack walks to help dogs overcome fear-based reactivity. A redundancy from my day job pushed me to reflect on how my new skills and knowledge could be put to use. In the midst of this midlife pivot, I visited a friend, a talented professional dog groomer, to seek advice. Watching her work, I realised how much of traditional grooming runs counter to what we know about canine psychology. The rest is history. I trained as a groomer and, after gaining several years of experience, began specialising in anxious and reactive dogs. Meeting Sue at one of her training events cemented my dedication; with her encouragement, I’ve never looked back. Now, with a name for the principles I naturally gravitated toward; consent-based grooming,I’m thrilled to be collaborating with Sue to explore new ways to help more dogs enjoy calm, positive grooming experiences. Together, we aim to support both groomers and guardians in discovering the ease and connection that consent-based grooming brings