We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Darrah Roberson-sapp. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Darrah below.

Darrah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

When I was in my undergrad years in college, I bounced around a lot. I couldn’t quite grasp what I wanted to do exactly from the beginning. I switch majors and even schools to try and follow my “passion” at those moments. I soon realized I liked a diverse group of things, but I was unsure on where I would want to settle long term. It wasn’t until my junior year of college that I realized Art should have been my main focus. Academic always came naturally to me but I’ve been a dancer and a lover of all things art for as long as I can remember. It never dawned on me that I could truly make a career out of art until I was in my third year of college. I took a leap of faith and finally switched my major to visual art, and my world become so much more meaningful.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

After finishing my art major in undergrad, I took on some commission projects for the city of Greensboro where I was able to build a sculpture for our community which is now a permanent installment in Greensboro North Carolina. I then started my journey with animals and working in the animal and pet industry. I started working in a grooming salon where I was a bather and a receptionist. I moved on to doing some training with some dogs and also managerial work at a boarding kennel that provided daycare services as well as boarding, training and grooming. After doing that for about 3 to 4 years, I made my way back to a grooming salon where I was brought on as a new groomer. Pet styling was something that I always wanted to try, but was always nervous to start. It brought together my two passions, which were animals and art. It was here that I started getting really serious in the craft and understanding more of the science in the art behind it. In pet grooming you have to be well aware of your energy and how you bring that to the pets you’re working with. All animals are very intuitive with feelings, given the fact that they cannot speak. I learned a lot about my patience and the way I present myself once working with them one on one. It was much different than training an animal to behave. In pet grooming you have to work up close in personal with a pet as well as as integrate using sharp instruments that are potentially dangerous if not handled correctly. Not only are you training them to tolerate grooming they are technically learning manners and how to cooperate with another living being. It has a lot to do with your energy as well as the animals energy and comfortability with you. I soon found out that I was very good at it and actually really enjoyed the process of taking a dirty unkept little pup and making it into a beautiful work of art and allowing them to feel good in the process. Besides just giving them a bath and a haircut, I am able to cultivate an experience where the dog is enjoying their time with me. We treat it as a “spa day” which some of them may not be fond of all the time, but you can tell how good it makes them feel after they get a good wash and a nice little haircut, some nice cologne and even an accessory like a bow or bandanna. During the process, I give them a thorough bath where I bathe them twice with premium shampoo and conditioner specified for their coat texture and their skin needs, blow dry them to the point where they have no inch of wetness on them and give them an a styled haircut that suits them each individually sometimes I am able to add on small things like things to help with inflammation of the feet or specified ear cleaning even sometimes helping maintenance their teeth. My favorite is when I can incorporate creative grooming techniques, which are non toxic hair dye, nail polish and other cute ways to bring out the dogs personality. I think the biggest thing That I’m proud of is that I was able to obtain my Masters of Science degree in Anthrozoology, which is the study of human and non-human animal relationships. Pretty much it is how humans are shaped by non-humans in their world and vice versa. It gave me a different outlook on relationship that I am building between me and my clients. I want them to be excited to come back to me for a scary experience because they know that they’re comfortable and loved in the process. I hope that people realize how important grooming needs are to their pet especially the ones that they treat as family already. It really does make a difference in their overall attitude and appearance, and it just gives them more love. Pet grooming has taught me a lot about my patience and how animals can become extremely misunderstood just because people aren’t paying attention to them the right way. My biggest take away from this industry is that I can educate pet parents and even non-pet parents on proper hygiene and things to look for in their pet that is important for their overall health and it can bring them closer to their companion animal in the long run.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative for me, is that I’m able to ultimately express myself while creating something that others will and can enjoy. All creatives should be able to be happy with their own work but if brings even more joy knowing that other people can enjoy it too. Sharing your creative spark and passions with the world is a beautiful thing.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media is something that people are still getting used to even though it’s been around for a little while. Given the fact that there is always something new worth learning or implementing can always be a little daunting. I think the best thing that you can do is just start. Start posting everything! Pictures, videos, questions, comments, interacting with those that share the same passions as you. I will say that my social presence isn’t the biggest but those who interact with me have been very important to my growth and learning. You can always learn from others and social platforms have made that connectivity a lot easier for us.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @theedopepaw_
• Facebook: The dope paw by darrah

Image Credits

Myself – Darrah Roberson-Sapp