Sigh. Girl, I need to tell you something. Your golden retriever deserves better than a sad, fluorescent-lit grooming table in somebodys cluttered back room.
You know how when you drop off Cooper and the whole place smells like wet dog and stress? Yeah. That low-key ruins your whole morning.
Well you know me. I’m on Pinterest at least once a day, mostly to fall down a rabbit hole of gorgeous interior design salons, or home offices that I have no business drooling over since I work in a 20 year old office. This time, though, I was on Pinterest and I came across a number of these grooming salons, and I have to say, they are all so freaking cute, they make my apartment feel like a cardboard box.
A well-designed grooming salon can actually calm down a dog (Cooper would walk in tail wagging rather than shaking by the door).
These 10 pet grooming salon design ideas are giving me some serious inspiration for Cooper’s grooming space. And honestly, I think they might give you the push to find the space Cooper really loves.
#1: The Neutral-Toned Grooming Reception Area That Feels Like a Boutique Hotel for Dogs
You know how you sometimes walk into a place with your dog and you just “feel” it… that calm, clean energy that tells you both of you are going to be okay here? That’s exactly what I felt when I first walked into this place.
My favorite part of this reception area is actually the energy it gives off. It’s very warm and welcoming with the walls in House of Dapper Dogs’s signature “warming greige” and light oak LVP flooring with nice recessed lighting to keep the room soft and bright without harsh overhead buzz. It’s polished and welcoming without being cold and frankly, our dogs pick up on that energy too!
The built in wooden dog kennels with black metal bar doors under the wood topped counter are the real star of the show. The dogs just sit there waiting under the counter but they never feel like they are caged in. The built in kennels are great for holding dogs so the floor does not get destroyed when they come in still wet from the car ride.
On the right, a white gloss sideboard cabinet holds all the grooming tools for easy access. Small floating natural wood shelves on the left wall display a few of the treats and shampoos in a way that doesn’t feel cluttered.
If you’d like to DIY this look, then you can use a dog fence panel system and a thick butcher block countertop cut to the same size. It will have that built in look without having to pay the price of a built in.
Make your wall logo simple and three-dimensional. Flat prints get lost. A raised logo like the House of Dapper Dogs bear mascot looks good in the picture, and it looks good in person too.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @houseofdapperdogs
#2: The Stainless Steel Grooming Bath Setup That Makes Wash Day Actually Enjoyable
This has happened to all of us. Your golden retriever sneaks out of the yard, and when she comes back, she looks like she rolled in mud. You are now stuck trying to wrestle her into your bathtub so you can soak your whole bathroom, your clothes, everything else.
This setup fixes that.
The room is done in all white walls, clean wipe down panels and herringbone luxury vinyl plank flooring in a warm blonde tone. The black anti-fatigue mat in front of the tub catches drips and gives your dog something to grab on to if she steps out soaking wet.
My new hero piece is a stainless steel elevated dog bath on a folding X-frame stand so it’s at a comfortable height to use. The built in leash hooks on the crossbar help keep squirmy dogs from falling out. Next to it is a hydraulic grooming table with adjustable height handles so I don’t have to chase her around the kitchen floor to brush her.
A front-load washing machine tucked underneath the wall cabinet means we can wash our dog blankets and towels right there. No more carrying soggy towels across the house.
A wall of cabinets keeps the pump-bottle shampoo (ours is a delightfully girly “Marshmallow”!) and grooming supplies off the floor. A multi-head spotlight ceiling fixture bathes the space in bright, even light so we can actually see what we’re grooming.
Have a coiled grooming dryer on the table so that the coiled cord doesn’t get underfoot. No need to trip and fall while trying to hold a wet, wiggly dog.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @houseofdapperdogs
#3: Paw Print Ceiling Lights That Make Your Salon Feel Like a Pet Paradise
As soon as you walk into this space, you feel like you’re in a place that your golden retriever would definitely approve of. The teal paw print pendant lights on the ceiling are playful, bright, and tell every dog (and dog mom) that this is their place. The warm amber walls and curved burnt-orange bench seat create a cozy, low-anxiety vibe that anxious pups need.
The real star of this salon is the pair of light fixtures on the walls. Teal paw-shaped LED ceiling fixtures accent warm-white strip lighting along the top of a tiered ceiling border. You’ll want the cream-colored, curved upholstered waiting bench in burnt-orange channeled velvet so that the energy doesn’t get too crazy. The turquoise four-tier display stand is perfect for storing grooming sprays and shampoos so clients have something to browse while they wait.
Keep display shelves around eye level (48-60 inches) so that products are visible but don’t take up precious space that dogs need to feel calm. Additionally, keep corners rounded like the curved bench, so they don’t bump into your dog’s hips when they get excited and start wagging their tails. That alone will create a serene space without a full remodel!
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @abraxasdesign
#4: The Elevated Dog Grooming Bath Station That Makes Wash Day Actually Enjoyable
There have been many times that my golden retriever has bolted out the back door, rolled in mud, and I’m standing there thinking, “where do I even begin?” I used to feel like this every weekend.
The mood in this grooming room says spa-meets-workshop. A hydraulic lift dog bath in cool gray is center stage, on a herringbone LVP floor, with chrome restraint arms and built-in shampoo bottle holders. Your dog will stay calm, and you will stay dry.
The storage situation here is really doing heavy lifting. The gray wood-grain shelving unit with a tall cabinet door panel keeps towels, brushes, and other products off the floor. We also paired it with the wall mounted gas boiler for instant hot water. Taking a bath is getting so routine.
Mount your chrome arms at the height of your shoulders. This way, you aren’t hunched over the tub. Install waterproof LVP planks in a herringbone pattern. This way, your floor won’t warp when your dog runs around on the floor with wet paws.
If you love creating a special dog spaces in house design ideas in your home, then having a grooming station like this one is a must. You’ll be skipping the groomer’s chair in no time.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @birch_carpets_vinyls_laminate
#5: The Rotating Product Tower That Makes Your Salon Look Like a High-End Boutique
Your golden retriever gets the spa day she deserves, and your salon gets to look the part too!
Our display isn’t anything to sneeze at either. It’s a heavy-duty cream-white, multi-tiered rotating tower that holds everything from our 5 liter jugs of shampoo to the pump-top conditioners. The display is organized by product code, which includes S03, C11, S22, S05 and so on. We like to put the display under some soft, ambient lighting for an in-store experience.
The tower is built with a variety of matte laminate panels and has rounded oval shelves – no sharp edges because we have dogs running around this area. Each shelf has a different product category. Bottom shelf holds the bulk refill jugs, middle shelf has our treatment creams and top shelf has the specialty items.
1. Label all of your products with printed alphanumeric codes on clean white tags. Sounds nerdy, but it speeds up each appointment because your staff grabs the right bottle immediately instead of squinting at tiny labels mid-bath.
Store your high volume items (shampoo, conditioner and detangler) on the bottom shelf, where they are less likely to be tipped over.
If you combine that with a few other tricks, like the 12 dog grooming tips every pet parent should know, you’ll find your workflow getting that much easier.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @jirpet_official
#6: The Bright Yellow & Stainless Steel Grooming Station That’s Actually Goals
Your golden retriever just shook water all over the bathroom walls again, so you’re on your hands and knees scrubbing shampoo off the grout with a toothbrush.
This space is giving off some serious “I have my life together” energy. With bright yellow cabinetry against white walls, the space is happy and bright. The stainless steel grooming tubs make cleaning a breeze and help keep the room tidy. Dogs pick up on your calm, so the more relaxed you are about bathing your dog, the less likely they are to squirm.
The setup runs on two commercial-grade stainless steel wash tubs with built-in faucets, a hydraulic adjustable grooming stool, and a high-velocity pet dryer mounted on an arm stand. Yellow wall-mounted cabinets store shampoos and conditioners — those rows of red and blue gallon bottles are not just cute, they’re organized by type.
The funniest thing about storing my products in color coded product bottles is that I can simply reach for the right shampoo for my dog without reading the labels in the midst of a bath – it saves stress, lessens the time spent bathing, and my dog’s happier too!
Did you know that some floor tiles have drain grates built into them so that you won’t have any standing water and no slip and slide? What a genious. Of course you can also set up a home grooming corner and make your own dog grooming table. To do this just set up a table and make a platform for him to lie on.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @verointeriorsph
#7: The Neon-Lit Grooming Studio That Makes Bath Time Feel Like a Spa Day
Your dog is soaking wet, shaking water everywhere. As you stand there, you get a nice shower as well. That is the moment which our well-designed grooming space avoids.
This saloon has a serious energy going on. The whole space is done in white marble effect panels and exposed painted brick. The lush green wall panel behind the glowing “Koda & Co” neon sign in teal make this saloon look polished but warm. I bet even the wildest dog would feel less stressed walking in here.
The main attraction in this part of the room is a hydraulic scissor-lift grooming table. There is a pink and teal rubber mat on top of the table that makes grooming a dog much easier on your back. I also have a stainless steel dog bath tub on the right side of this room. The grooming arm loops are in teal on this table. On the wall above the table is a wall mounted comb and scissor rack.
The Artificial green wall panel size is roughly 24×24 inches and costs a fraction of real plants with zero upkeep.
One suggestion I had was to mount your neon sign directly onto the green wall panel. It’s not only a photography backdrop, but it helps to not make the room feel so sterile. Your clients will definitely post it on Instagram every time.
Keep your dryer on a hook at table level so it’s not under your feet and tangled while you’re grooming.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @kodaandco_doggrooming
#8: Mobile Pet Grooming Van With a Full Pink Salon Setup Inside
Anyone with a well-trained pup can picture this… You are trying to get your golden in the back seat of your car for yet another trip across town to the groomer, and she’s doing the four paws down and refuses to budge. I’ve been there. How awesome would it be if the salon just pulled up to your driveway?
If it feels like I’m taking you into my mobile grooming van today it’s because the walls are wrapped in a hot pink high-gloss vinyl, the swirled pink epoxy on the floor has little flowers cut out of it, and everything is sealed and wipeable so mud paws and wet fur are a zero stress situation.
The pièce de résistance is the matte black hydraulic scissor-lift grooming table that lowers and raises with a foot pedal so that your doggy’s groomer’s back doesn’t get all achy and the dog doesn’t squirm around too much. Also toward the left is the stainless steel wash station with a handheld spray nozzle and hooks for leash restraints.
To top it all off, the grooming arm bar mounted over the head has adjustable belly loops that keep the dog calm and secure without restricting them. That alone is worth the price of admission in preventing accidents during table grooms!
A “Chima Pet Grooming” branded wall graphic ties it all together. A custom vinyl logo print like that might cost you $40-$80 but it makes the place look professional.
As for the ceiling light strips, make sure they are the cool white LED. It’s much easier to see coat color or skin issues when I am grooming him.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @ramos_transformationsllc
#9: Cherry Blossom Ceiling Installation for a Dreamy Grooming Space
My golden girl strutted into the grooming room and her tail started going nuts – this is a lively space.
A fabulous combination of pink and white faux cherry blossoms drop from the ceiling and cascade down the wall like a waterfall, paired with the white subway tile wainscot and light oak LVP flooring. Pinterest-perfect and functional!
And, as you can see from the photo below, it’s all decorated with silk cherry blossom garlands (get at least 15-20 feet!) a light strip light hidden behind the florals to add a warm pink glow and 3×6 inch white ceramic subway tiles with dark grout on the lower walls. The exposed brick pillars are for real, but if you don’t have them you can fake it with peel-and-stick brick panels.
Attach the flowers to a ceiling mounted wire grid, this keeps them secure and you can move them around without damage.
You’ll want silk flowers over real ones every time. They don’t wilt, they don’t trigger your dog’s allergies, and your space looks this good on day 500.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @sdesignfloral
#10: The Scissor-Lift Grooming Station Setup That Makes Every Bath Day Feel Like a Spa Visit
So, let’s say that your dog just came in from the backyard, paws muddy and fur wet, and does a full body shake right next to your couch – again! Bath day used to be a wrestling match. This set-up changes everything.
My room is looking super clean and modern like a salon, the walls are all white marble-effect ceramic wall tiles with a warm oak-tone vinyl plank flooring and recessed ceiling lights. I know my dog would stay calm in here without any chaos or cramped corners.
Is it the star of the grooming section? It is for me. This is the electric scissor-lift grooming table with a black anti-slip rubber top surface. It is height-adjustable so that your back never aches mid-groom. Pair it with the wall-mounted loop arm and noise-canceling ear muffs that hang on the post (yes, for the dog) for an even easier grooming experience. The elevated white resin bathing tub on a rolling frame is set at wash height with a wall-mounted showerhead and a small freestanding hand-wash sink unit for you.
Keep this in mind: mount it on a freestanding adjustable stand rather than a wall bracket, so that you can push it closer to the dog without having to hold it up.
Most of the grooming products, sprays and brushes are kept in a small rolling cart with open top baskets that sits next to the tub. So they are right there and within arms reach and I don’t have to run around looking for things mid-lather.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @sensational_spaces
The One Design Secret Most Pet Salon Owners Learn Too Late
This is something that I would have to say that nobody seems to talk about when it comes to planning out a grooming salon is how much the placement of the lights can ruin the overall look of the salon.
But what most people forget is the importance of grooming tables. If there is any task that should be performed under a task light, it’s a grooming table. The overhead lights cast shadows right where your groomers need to see most. I watched my friend spend $8,000 renovating her salon only to struggle with dark spots around the grooming stations for the next two years before she decided to purchase some task lighting.
Design the location of your electrical outlets and track lighting prior to finalizing your plan. Do not do it after the build as it will cost you a fortune.
Also, and this one stings a bit, skip the light-colored grout on your floors. It looks fabulous in pictures but hold wet dog smell and stains like no other.
Try swapping that for a dark epoxy floor coating that wipes clean in seconds and will look gorgeous in photos for Instagram.
Your Golden’s Next Muddy Adventure Doesn’t Have to Ruin Your Day
If your dog is slowing down, you already know that. And if you want her to, why would you? So what kind of furniture and household items are good choices to help you protect your home? Read on to find out.
Pick one of these couches and just try it. One month later, you’ll be asking yourself how you lived without it.
Sometimes the muddy paw situation has hit my rugs harder than others, these carpet cleaning solutions for dog urine have saved my sanity more than once.
Your home can still look Pinterest worthy…and survive golden retriever energy. Which couch is yours?🐾
Amr Mohsen is a software engineer who traded his keyboard for a leash — at least on weekends. His love for dogs inspired him to share what he learns as a dog owner and enthusiast, bringing a detail-oriented, research-driven perspective to every article he writes. If it’s about dogs, he’s probably already looked it up twice.
