An Interview with Canine Expert Zhang Song

By Xu Kuang

Translation by Zhu Yaguang

An Interview with Canine Expert Zhang Song

By Xu Kuang

Translation by Zhu Yaguang

When I visited Zhang Song at Peer Kennel,a pet store at Han Street, a bustling, modern cultural zone in Wuhan, China, he was shaving a poodle and trimming its nails…

Zhang Song’s career in the pet industry can be traced back to a dog game in the late 1990s.

One day, Zhang Song and his wife, Fan Dan, both of whom were dog lovers, watched the dog game.From the huge enthusiasm of the audience, Zhang Song perceived a great potential in the pet grooming industry. “The industry was unbelievably primitive at that time,” sighed Zhang Song,now Vice President of the Wuhan Kennel Union, when he was ref l ecting on the past.

After the game, Zhang Song and his wife made up their minds in developing a career in pet dog industry. They opened a kennel,and, day by day, their business was thriving. Gradually, Zhang Song realized that he needed to do more than just raising and trading dogs in order to meet the needs of dog lovers all over the city. At that time, supermarkets didn’t even sell dog food, and Baota Lozenges were the only worm medication for dogs.

Zhang Song decided to open a pet store to expand his services and provide convenience for his customers. Unexpectedly, he found another excellent business opportunity—that is, to run a training school, as talents were really scarce in the industry. He then founded a training school for pet groomers.

Although he didn’t win much applause from his friends, Zhang Song himself believed that there would be stronger market demand when the industry grew.

In 2014, his wife Fan Dan became the first professional pet groomer accredited by China Kennel Union (CKU) in Hubei Province. “I still remember the first time I touched a dog’s paws and the fi rst time I shaved a dog…Too many first times!” Fan Dan couldn’t help shedding tears while recalling the past.

Nowadays, a lot more customers have specific needs depending on the dog’s breed and lineage,and they’re willing to pay more to get a good dog. In 2008, a friend of Zhang Song bought a Golden Retriever named Cooler from the United States, which cost him 150,000 dollars.

In the 21st century, the pet industry in China has enjoyed rapid development. China was qualified to host the 2017 FCI Asia Section Dog Show. Two years after that, China will host the 2019 World Cup Dog Show, which will be the fi rst time for China to host an international top-level competition for dogs. Although the industry is developing with sound momentum, Zhang Song has great concerns for its future in China.

“My biggest concern for the industry is its lack of sustainable development. Persistence,patience, and devotion are the key factors for people to thrive in it.It seems easy for new businesses to entry, but it’s even easier for them to be eliminated when the industry gets upgraded.”♦

金毛酷乐 Golden Retriever - Cooler

贵族宠物汉街店里，张松正给一只贵宾犬剪毛、修指甲……

张松执着于宠物犬行业，要从上世纪90年代末的那场宠物犬比赛说起。

一天，出于喜欢，张松和太太范丹去观看一场宠物犬比赛。现场众多观众的热情使张松觉得，市场有潜在宠物犬需求。“那时，这个行业只能用‘原始’两个字来形容。”回忆当年，已是武汉犬业协会副会长的张松感慨万千。从那以后，他们建犬舍，决心发展宠物犬事业，生意越来越红火。慢慢的，张松觉得光养狗卖狗还不能满足养狗爱好者。超市没狗粮卖，家庭给宠物的驱虫药也只有宝塔糖。张松决定开家宠物店，拓宽宠物服务。原本是想方便顾客，却发现这个行业又一大商机——这个行业人才奇缺，得办校兴业。于是他办起了宠物学校。

朋友都不理解，但张松认为，这个行业要良性发展，以后的需求会越来越多。

2014年，范丹考取中爱联合纯种犬文化发展中心（CKU，China Kennel Union）导师级美容师资格，成了当时湖北省唯一CKU导师级美容师。“第一次摸狗爪，第一次给狗剪毛，……”回忆往昔，范丹眼眶湿润了。

越来越多客户对宠物犬品种、血统产生个性化要求，投入也越来越大。2008年，一个朋友从美国购回一条金毛酷乐，一掷就是15万美元。

新世纪以来，中国宠物犬业发展势头迅猛，已经取得2017年亚洲杯犬展和2019年世界杯犬展的举办国资格，这是中国首次取得国际最高级别犬类比赛的承办权。行业不断发展，张松却对中国宠物犬业的未来充满忧虑：

“我对行业最大的担忧是后继乏力，这个行业需要坚持和耐心，需要付出更多才有收获，看上去门槛不高，实际上更新换代的几率非常高。”♦

2017年FCI亚洲杯犬展（中国·上海） 2017 CKU Groomer Team Competition

访宠物犬专家张松

文/许旷 译/朱亚光