International Grooming Society (IGS) delivers Professional and Holistic Grooming Education that unites science, respect, animal care, and lasting careers.
Quick Business Snapshot
The International Grooming Society is a global nonprofit founded and led by Nathalie Doaré Ariey Jouglard, serving people who work in animal grooming.
IGS offers learning, member support, local chapters, and event guidance, as well as the IGS Certification, its official international qualification.
Registered as a nonprofit under French law since 1901, the organization also runs the Global Groomer Health Initiative, a project that studies groomer health at work.
How IGS Began?
Two decades of independent work = IGS
IGS grew from a gap Nathalie saw in the pet grooming field; that skill alone could not answer every need.
Though she entered pet grooming through a chance friendship with a working groomer, her early fascination with technique gradually turned into a running list of unanswered questions: why animals resisted certain handling, what a wash actually did to the skin beneath the coat.
Years organizing workshops exposed the pattern behind those questions. And the pattern was that pet groomers learned styling in depth but almost nothing about skin science, animal stress, or the physical toll of the job itself.
She closed that gap through research and teaching, which became DAATA, her certification framework grounded in dermatology and animal physiology. IGS followed as the structure DAATA needed, built by a small group across France, Canada, Ireland, and Romania who saw the same gaps and wanted a shared answer.
What Sets Professional Grooming Education at IGS Apart
IGS asks why a method works, and it asks just as often when that method should change.
In grooming, skin, coat, mood, and touch all can shift the plan, so a single fixed routine rarely suits every dog or cat during grooming sessions. This mindset helps groomers make calm, sound choices in the moment.
The IGS Certification sits at the center of this model. IGS developed it together with the DAATA ICDG program, and the qualification follows the DAATA ICDG method.
Candidates first complete the linked online training, then may apply separately for assessment, since a course alone does not grant the qualification. Certification remains an optional step that candidates pursue on their own timeline, and only active IGS members can hold or renew it.
Level 1 covers skin, coat, and the core DAATA ICDG ideas. Candidates sit a written exam and submit a complete grooming video, and they need a score of at least 80 percent to pass. Level 2 goes further into complex skin and coat cases along with grooming-linked behavioral concerns, and it asks candidates for written work plus a three-session case study, again scored to an 80 percent threshold.
This teaching, learning, and performance strategy combined sets professional grooming education at IGS apart.
IGS Services That Shape Professional Grooming Education
IGS offers online courses, live webinars, seminars, and member resources, and it also shares blogs, podcasts, and field updates. These tools help pet groomers keep learning beyond a single assessment and keep new ideas close to daily salon work so that teams can test, adjust, and grow with care.
The IGS Professional Development Certificate keeps that growth going year over year. Members earn points through approved learning, and each yearly cycle requires 100 points, which certified members need to keep their IGS Certification active. The system turns ongoing growth into a steady habit rather than a one-time achievement.
Local chapters give this global work a local voice. Chapter teams connect pet groomers within their own regions, host learning, and build peer ties, while members can also trade ideas across borders. That combination keeps IGS both global in reach and close to home in feel.
IGS also sets welfare guidance for grooming events. The guidance covers calm handling, water, breaks, and safe spaces, and it addresses noise, lights, crowds, and stress too. An IGS Animal Welfare Delegate may support an event team, guiding and informing rather than policing.
The Global Groomer Health Initiative adds another layer to IGS. Its study drew data from roughly 4,000 groomers and tracks pain, fatigue, noise, skin exposure, stress, and other risks on the job. IGS uses those results to build practical tools and learning resources, and it shares health talks, guides, and professional support drawn straight from the findings.
Who IGS Serves
IGS serves new pet groomers and experienced salon teams alike, along with owners, tutors, schools, and event hosts. Dog and cat groomers can join its learning paths, local leaders can build chapters in their own regions, and brands can back groomer health through approved partner work. Some join to learn, some join to teach, and others join to make events or salons safer.
That said, IGS does not approve or certify products. Its partner status highlights genuine action for groomer health, and this limit keeps product claims separate from IGS Certification so the public can read each badge with confidence.
Join the Professional Grooming Education Network
Your next step can reach past a single new technique. Explore IGS membership, learning, chapters, and certification routes, and bring your own work lessons to the group. Then help raise care standards across the pet grooming field.
Meet The Founder
Nathalie Doaré Ariey Jouglard grew up on a farm, surrounded by animals long before grooming became her career, and that early instinct for care never left her.
She studied at the Université de Caen Normandie, then built Groomer Connexion, a trilingual digital magazine that gave professionals across borders a shared voice. From there she went deeper, developing the DAATA ICDG methodology, a system grounded in skin science rather than guesswork, and turning it into the foundation for the International Grooming Society.
Today she trains groomers in person across Montreal, Quebec City, and Toronto, hosts a podcast, and keeps pushing an industry to see occupational health as seriously as it sees technique.
Business Details
Business Category:
Holistic Grooming | International Non-Profit Association
USP:
IGS connects technical grooming skills with animal comfort and professional health. Its approach includes coat science, behavior, ergonomics, ethics, and respectful handling.
Address: France
Phone:
Founder: Nathalie Doaré Ariey Jouglard
E-mail: [email protected]
Social Channels
Online Courses & Certifications
Distinctive Business DNA
Identity:
An international network of grooming professionals, educators, and industry partners, the International Grooming Society encourages holistic grooming through education, collaboration, and respect for animals and the people who care for them.
Mission:
IGS’ mission is to raise grooming standards through practical education, ethical handling, scientific learning, and stronger connections between professionals across the global pet industry.
Vision:
Looking ahead, the IGS wants a future where every groomer has access to trusted education, professional support, and internationally respected standards that improve both animal care and career growth.
Difference:
Most grooming organizations focus on appearance and technique. International Grooming Society takes a broader view by combining coat care with animal behavior, skin health, stress reduction, groomer safety, and evidence-based education.
Besides, its international network also encourages knowledge sharing while respecting regional practices and cultural diversity.
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