About Jason Kirkpatrick

Hi, I’m Jason A.K.A. Jay — founder of Zen Paws Pet Spa.

 

Zen Paws was created from a lifelong belief that healing happens through connection — connection to ourselves, to each other, and to the animals who share our lives.

My journey into wellness began through my own health challenges.

In 2008, I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease after undergoing an emergency hemicolectomy. That experience completely changed the way I viewed health, healing, and the relationship between mind, body, and spirit.

 

Rather than seeing healing as purely physical, I began exploring more holistic approaches to wellness, lifestyle, emotional regulation, energy work, and nutrition. Through intentional lifestyle changes and nutrition, I’ve managed my Crohn’s disease without medication for nearly two decades.

Shortly after surgery, I began training in Reiki and eventually became a Reiki Master — what I jokingly call my “gateway modality.” From there, my path expanded into studying both traditional and spiritual healing methodologies, including several years studying Curanderismo under a maestra.

 

That journey eventually brought me to Southwest Institute of Healing Arts in Tempe, Arizona, where I became certified and licensed in massage therapy. During that time, I also studied cranial unwinding, polarity work, reflexology, and other mind-body healing practices. I later helped coordinate SWIHA’s “Gifts & Graces” community wellness events, which deepened my understanding of healing as something that happens through presence, compassion, education, and connection.

 

Over time, I realized I naturally filtered life through the lens of mind, body, and spirit.

When I eventually moved back to Vermont, life unexpectedly brought me back to another important part of my story: dogs.

Years earlier, I had helped open the local PetSmart, where I worked in nearly every department, including as a pet stylist assistant — what many groomers know as a bather/brusher. That was my first true introduction to working hands-on with dogs professionally. I immediately felt a deep connection to them.

 

Later, I also worked at River Cove Animal Hospital at the front desk, where I gained even more exposure to the relationship between animal wellness, owner education, behavior, stress, and healthcare.

Over time, everything started connecting together.

 

My background in holistic wellness…
My understanding of nervous system regulation…
My experience observing behavior and emotional states…
My lifelong connection with animals…

 

It all led to the creation of Zen Paws.

 

I believe dogs and humans have evolved alongside one another in profound ways. Our emotional states affect them. Their emotional states affect us. Healing, trust, regulation, comfort, and companionship flow both ways between people and their animals.

 

That philosophy became the foundation of Zen Paws Pet Spa.

 

At Zen Paws, grooming is not approached as simple vanity or cosmetic maintenance. We see grooming as part of a pet’s overall wellness experience — supporting comfort, mobility, hygiene, emotional regulation, trust, and quality of life.

 

Everything we do is rooted in:

 

• calm handling
• observation
• education
• routine
• compassion
• respect for the animal in front of us

 

Because when a pet feels safe, supported, and understood, the grooming experience changes entirely.

 

Zen Paws exists to bridge grooming, wellness, and the human-animal bond in a way that honors both pets and the people who love them.

 

Holistic Grooming & Wellness
Where Grooming Meets Mind, Body & Spirit
#HumanityOverVanity