Book Mews: Claws, Confessions of a Professional Cat Groomer

Hello everyone,

There are so many  TV programmes throwing light on what it’s like to do various jobs and professions; doctors, lawyers train drivers, vets  and journalists included. These programmes have even been shown to influence teenagers’s career choices. Now there hasn’t been a programme about cat grooming yet (to my knowledge) but there is now a book by London based Professional Cat Groomer and Cat Behaviourist, Anita Kelsey;

Anita Kelsey is the only cat specific behaviourist in London, with a work based degree in feline behaviour and psychology, as well as ample experience with cat behaviour and grooming. Throughout her years of visiting people’s homes, she has amassed a wealth of adorable and ridiculous stories about her feline clients, and their owners

Now, cat grooming is a whole new world to me even though we have our own three kitties (thankfully we are able to take care of their low maintenance grooming needs) so I was especially interested to know what professional grooming involves.

Each of the book’s 20 short chapters is a self contained story based on Anita’s experience while grooming a particular cat such as Tilly Too Toos (below left), Little Wolf  (below right) and Little Miss Sleepy Head (this sounds like a certain black, three pawed cat we know). These humorous chapter names gave me the feeling I was going to like this book.

What hit me first about the book is Anita’s honesty in sharing her experiences – warts and all. From being hospitalised by a cat not happy to be bathed, dealing with rude clients to struggling to get the neat finish she’d like to give her feline clients. It’s this honesty that allows you to laugh at the situations she finds herself in. And laugh I did (much to the annoyance of my fellow passengers) as I squeezed in a chapter on my short journey to work. Each laugh was breathed with a twinge of guilt at the situations Anita had to face in her newly chosen career though. Although my other half is German I still find Schadenfreude an uneasy concept. What also permeates the stories is Anita’s enthusiasm to get the job done but not at all costs, sometimes admitting defeat rather than cause more stress for the cats she’s grooming by using less holistic methods.

Anita Kelsey is one of a small group of holistic low-stress cat groomers in the UK, taking cat grooming to the next level. The only cat groomer in the UK who also holds a degree in cat behaviour,

So, if you want to know what it’s really like to be a professional cat groomer, visiting client’s in their homes and at the same time enjoy the refreshing honesty of the author’s anecdotes then get yourself a copy of Claws, Confessions of a Professional Cat Groomer.

Oh, did I tell you about the Mog Tips? No? Well, not only does the author share her funny stories with us, the book contains numerous snippets of really useful advice and tips on how to groom a cat in different situations. Now, be really thankful that you won’t have to go through what Anita did to get this knowledge 🙂

If you would like to get the book yourself it is available from:

Amazon UK by clicking on Claws, Confessions of a Professional Cat Groomer.
Amazon US by clicking on  Claws, Confessions of a Professional Cat Groomer.
Amazon DE by clicking on  Claws, Confessions of a Professional Cat Groomer.

More about the author:

Anita Kelsey holds a first class honours degree in Feline Behaviour and Psychology (work based BA Hons) and runs a vet referral service dedicated strictly to the diagnosis and treatment of behaviour problems in cats. She is also a qualified cat groomer and specialises in grooming aggressive or phobic cats. Anita writes for Your Cat Magazine and is on their experts panel answering readers questions on cat grooming. She also advises on feline behaviour for the CFBA (Canine and Feline Behaviour) magazine as well as being a full member. Anita, a strong advocate of a vegan lifestyle, is based in Notting Hill, London but consults all over the UK as well as international requests. She lives with her husband, a music producer, and two Norwegian Forest cats, Kiki and Zaza.

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Thanks,

Iain