PIAA Updates Pet Grooming Codes of Practice: What Changes in 2026

The PIAA grooming code of practice is being updated with state and federal departments, and the peak body wants new grooming, boarding, daycare, walking, and pet-sitting entrants to complete foundation welfare training. Updated 25 June 2026.

That work is spelled out in the 2025 Pet Grooming Survey release and repeated in news.com.au coverage of the WA handling debate. Membership is still voluntary. A new draft is not a licence on your local shopfront.

What members already have to meet

The existing National Code of Practice binds PIAA members on ethics, welfare, and customer service. Standards are the must-do floor. Guidelines sit above that for businesses chasing accreditation schemes.

State pages on PIAA’s state-based codes list extra layers where legislation already exists. Non-members still sit under animal welfare law. They just don’t owe PIAA a contractual standard.

What the 2026 rewrite is trying to add

Consultations now include education, primary industries, and animal welfare departments. The pitch is foundational animal welfare training before someone takes paying dogs. That is aimed at newcomers, not a demand that every 20-year salon sit a full diploma again.

Surveyed operators already said skilled staff are hard to find and that they want better industry numbers. Code language will not staff a table overnight. It can make “trained to a named floor” something an owner can ask for.

Why this landed in the same week as whistleblower stories

Forced finishes and viral clips create demand for a rule you can point at. PIAA’s answer is self-regulation plus government consultation, not a single national licence next month. Salons that already keep intake photos, sterilisation logs, and training records can line up with draft language early. That file helps if a complaint arrives before a statute does.

If a shop cannot tell you who trained the person on your dog, the code update will not save that visit. Ask anyway. Don’t wait for a logo refresh.

What owners should watch, not assume

Ask about certificates, anxious-dog policy, and PIAA membership as one signal among several. Local reputation and a visible stop rule still matter more than a PDF on a peak-body site. Read how to choose a dog groomer for the booking list. Report cruelty to RSPCA regardless of whether a salon is a member.

Consultations run through 2026 beside Australian Animal Welfare Strategy work PIAA cites on its state codes page. Credentials will not appear in every window the week a document is signed. So keep using your own checklist.

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