How to choose a dog groomer in Galashiels, Hawick and the Scottish Borders

Dog grooming is unregulated in the UK, so the checking is on you. This edition covers Galashiels, Selkirk, Peebles, Melrose, Lauder, Earlston, Hawick, Jedburgh, Kelso, Duns, Coldstream, Berwick-upon-Tweed and Eyemouth: seven areas across the Central and Eastern Scottish Borders. It was split out in September 2026 from a much larger combined edition that used to bundle this area in with Dumfries and Galloway; that edition, now renamed Dumfries and Galloway, no longer covers the Borders at all, so this is the current page for anyone here.

How the areas break down

Thirty-nine groomers are published: Galashiels and Selkirk (TD1, TD7) 11; Hawick and Jedburgh (TD9, TD8) 10; Berwick-upon-Tweed and Eyemouth (TD15, TD13, TD14) 9; Melrose, Lauder and Earlston (TD6, TD2, TD4) 3; Kelso, Gordon and Greenlaw (TD5, TD3, TD10) 3; Duns and Coldstream (TD11, TD12) 2; Peebles (EH45) 1.

Some of those areas are genuinely thin, and it's worth being plain about it rather than dressing it up. Peebles itself has one published groomer, Borders Dog Grooming Boutique, whose own owner says it is the only groomer in the town; every other search aimed at Peebles turned up businesses from the neighbouring EH43, EH44 and EH46 postcode districts instead, which are covered by other parts of this site, not here. Kelso, Gordon and Greenlaw has three groomers and all three are Kelso addresses; none is based in Gordon or Greenlaw villages themselves. Duns and Coldstream has two groomers and neither is based in Duns town itself: Maude & Eddie's is at Chirnside, near Duns, and Paws Dog Grooming (Birgham) is near Coldstream. Melrose, Lauder and Earlston has three, split between St Boswells and two Earlston-area businesses; nothing was found trading from Melrose or Lauder town centres themselves. If you live in one of these spots, expect to travel, or to book the nearest salon well ahead.

How well each business is documented

Of the 39, 18 are marked high confidence, meaning the address and phone were confirmed on the business's own website or on at least two independent sources that agree. Sixteen are medium confidence, usually a single listing plus a live Facebook page, or sources that disagree on a detail such as the address. Five are low confidence and say so on their pages, with a note to confirm by phone before travelling: Pet Alert and Rub-A-Dug-Dug in the Hawick and Jedburgh area, Heads & Tails in Galashiels, Short BARK & Sides in Kelso and Doggy Styles near Eyemouth. Each of those rests on a single online listing, a search-engine snippet, or an unreachable social media page, and nothing more could be confirmed.

Two phone numbers, two addresses

Four of the businesses here show a second phone number: Borders Dog Grooming Boutique in Peebles, Cuts N Cuddles in Jedburgh, Maude & Eddie's in Chirnside and Top Dog Grooming Parlour in Berwick. In each case the two numbers came from different sources that both looked current, and no phone call was made to settle which is right; both are shown, the first as the main line, so try the other if it goes unanswered. Two businesses also carry a genuine address conflict rather than just a second number: Heads & Tails in Galashiels appears at both 65 Magdala Terrace and 6b Island Street under the same phone number, which may mean it moved premises, and Doggy Styles near Eyemouth appears at both 11 Abbots Row and 6 Crosslaw in Coldingham; both listings use the more specific address and note the alternative. Krista's Doggy Services also has two candidate addresses (Old Kirkhope and West Lodge, Broadmeadows) and its own website currently returns an empty page, so the phone is the reliable route for now.

Who was left out, and why

Two businesses were found but are not listed here. Paws (Galashiels), a High Street salon, had no phone number or website on any source seen, so it could not be confirmed and is not published; a Google Places phone-fill pass may be worth trying on this address in future. Jen's Dog Grooming & Walking Service in Lauder was excluded on a different basis: it has a confirmed phone number, but its own website limits grooming to nail clipping and filing plus basic health checks, and the business is mainly a dog-walking and home-boarding service rather than a dog groomer, so it does not belong in a dog-grooming directory. The in-store salon of the national pet-shop chain in Galashiels is excluded as a chain, the same rule applied across this site. A handful of other businesses turned up repeatedly in searches for this area's towns but sit just outside its postcode districts and are covered elsewhere or not at all on this site: Head 2 Tailz (Walkerburn, EH43), Scallywags (Innerleithen, EH44) and Clip & Collar (West Linton, EH46) near Peebles; Harry's Hounding Around (Dunbar, EH42) near Eyemouth; and Paws Perfect by Janine and Meadowhill Dogs Grooming, both in Midlothian, near Peebles.

Qualifications and experience

Grooming itself needs no licence, so look for what a groomer says about training. City and Guilds is the most common claim here: CC Grooms in Selkirk (a Level 3 diploma, gained 2023), Joni's Dog Grooming Studio in Galashiels (part A of the Level 3 introductory qualification) and Maude & Eddie's at Chirnside (City and Guilds trained). Buddy's Dog Grooming in Hawick holds a dog grooming diploma and is a registered microchip implanter. K9 Groomers Ltd in Selkirk is a registered Scottish limited company (Companies House SC383366). Experience and history worth noting: Little Dog Cabin has groomed since 1998, Precious Paws in Jedburgh since 2008, and Happy Hounds Scottish Borders has run grooming and licensed boarding in the Yarrow Valley since 2014; Borders Dog Grooming Boutique in Peebles opened in 2023 as a sister salon to a Midlothian business. Where boarding is offered alongside grooming, it is licensed by the council: Happy Hounds and Krista's Doggy Services, both near Selkirk.

Nervous dogs and one-to-one settings

Six groomers here specifically say they work with anxious or nervous dogs: Joni's Dog Grooming Studio, Borders Dog Grooming Boutique, Hairy Bairns, Top Knots & Trims, 4 Paws Grooming and Wot A Clip!. Little Dog Cabin grooms one-to-one and says owners may stay during the appointment, and Wot A Clip! works with no cages and gives dogs breaks in an enclosed garden. CC Grooms runs fear-free desensitisation sessions as a separate service from a standard groom. If your dog struggles with grooming, mention it when you book; several of these businesses plan a longer or calmer slot rather than rushing a nervous dog through.

Mobile grooming and hand stripping

Only two confirmed mobile services cover this area: Wendy's Wag & Wheels, a van with a heated salon and hydrobath based in Tweedmouth working seven days a week, 8am to 7pm, and Pet Alert in Hawick, listed as mobile but otherwise unverified. Hand stripping, the slower hand-pulling technique used on wiry coats, is listed by 15 of the 39 groomers here, including Little Dog Cabin, Pawfection in Selkirk, Pixie Dogz, Dogs Body Design, Maude & Eddie's, Norfolk Terriers North East and Strip 'n' Go; if your dog's breed needs it, check the groomer offers it rather than a standard clip.

Cats and other extras

If you have more than a dog, six businesses groom cats too: Suds N Scissors near Stow, Hairy Bairns and Pixie Dogz in Hawick (Pixie Dogz also takes small animals), Precious Paws in Jedburgh, Dogs Body Design in Kelso and 4 Paws Grooming in Berwick. Beyond grooming itself, Buddy's in Hawick offers registered microchipping with home visits, Whitglen outside Hawick adds canine hydrotherapy and a secure exercise paddock, K-9 Grooming in Galashiels adds canine dental care, and Canine Designs in Eyemouth is a combined pet shop and grooming salon.

Hours

15 of the 39 publish opening hours; the rest do not, so ask when you call. Where hours are shown, the pattern is short weeks and part-time openings rather than a standard nine-to-five: Top Knots & Trims and Wot A Clip! are weekday-only or morning-only on some days, and several salons close entirely on Sunday and Monday. A handful buck that pattern: Little Dog Cabin offers evenings to 8pm and weekend appointments, Suds N Scissors stays open to 7pm on Thursdays, Happy Hounds Scottish Borders and Wendy's Wag & Wheels both operate seven days a week. Where no hours are shown, the business has not published any; ask.

Reviews

19 of the 37 groomers listed here show a Google rating, taken from the business's own Google profile and linked from the listing; the others have no rating from a source this directory can link to. Ratings on this site come only from independent review platforms, such as Google, with a verifiable link and at least three reviews; no page meeting that bar was found for any business in this batch, and directory sites are never used as a source for a star rating here regardless of what they show. Ask a neighbour, or ask the groomer whether you can stay for the first session, as Little Dog Cabin says owners may.

Before you book

• Check the area chip: this directory spans a wide area, from Peebles to Berwick-upon-Tweed, so a Galashiels salon is a long way from Eyemouth.
• For the five low-confidence entries, ring before you travel.
• Where two numbers or two addresses are shown, confirm which is current.
• Peebles, the Kelso area and the Duns area are thin: expect one or two options and book ahead.
• Say if your dog is nervous, elderly or reactive; seven businesses here list that as a speciality.
• Ask what the groom includes and whether hand stripping, dental care or microchipping is extra; only one groomer here publishes any prices, and even that excludes the full groom, covered in the prices guide.
• Several businesses' own websites have gone dead or stopped resolving while their Facebook pages stay live; the phone is the reliable route.