A Leap for Dog Skin Health: The Making of Floof’s Gentle Essentials Line
First of all, I wanted to thank you for your interest in Floof and for checking out our blog. We spent the last year and a half working our tails off to create the highest quality, science-backed skin health formulas for dogs and words can’t describe how happy we are to share our products with you. We set out on this journey to truly make a difference in the lives of dogs and owners (their happiness is our happiness right?) and I’m so excited to grow our community of like-minded pup parents who prioritize the well being of our dogs. I wanted to take a moment to share the backstory of how we got here and what drives our passion for this cause.
When my French Bulldog Leo started suffering from itchy skin and constantly licking his paws, I tried using various shampoos, which fell into two categories.
First, there were the mainstream dog shampoos, the ones that most dog owners use. To my disappointment, these shampoos only made Leo's itching and irritation worse. After some research, I discovered that it was due to the harsh chemicals (particularly surfactants) like SLS, coco-betaine, and artificial fragrances in these products, which irritated his sensitive skin.
Next, I tried 100% all-natural shampoos, thinking that it would help with Leo's skin issues. However, it had no impact at all, and it was incredibly difficult to use. It didn't spread across his body or rinse off properly, leaving a residue on his skin after washing. It actually even developed mold within just 3 months of purchasing it.
One day, Leo's skin issues got so bad that his paws looked raw, so I rushed to our local vet (yes, I’m a nervous doggy dad!). But to my surprise, the vet advised using dish soap to relieve Leo's infection and allergies. Even though I had seen advertisements of baby ducks swimming in bubbles of this dish wash, I knew that there was no way I was using dish soap on my precious Leo’s sensitive skin!
One of the many photos of Leo being as flat as can be in public
That's when I started researching topical skin-health products for dogs. As someone who had suffered from various skin issues like acne, dry skin, and hair loss, I knew the benefits of using high-quality, clean products to treat my skin and scalp. However, I quickly realized that these types of products really didn't exist for dogs.
Through my research, I discovered some interesting facts. Dogs have three to five times thinner skin than humans, making their skin more sensitive to the environment and the ingredients in the products used on them. Additionally, the FDA doesn't regulate non-medicated grooming products for dogs, allowing big brands to use obscure language to hide harmful ingredients or claim they are "all-natural." It also turns out that skin-related conditions are the top three most common reasons why dog owners take their pets to the vet. I was shocked to find out that so many dogs worldwide were suffering from skin conditions due to their sensitive skin, and yet there were no proper products available to routinely care for their skin.
After recognizing the lack of high-quality, effective skin care products for dogs, I set out to create a transparent brand that would offer dog owners a proper care routine to maintain their dog's skin health. That’s why I partnered with Dr. Jennifer Schissler, our Resident Veterinary Dermatologist, to create Floof’s Gentle Essentials Line of skin health products for dogs. Together with experienced skin care chemists, we put our focus on the ingredients we used and, more importantly, the ingredients we didn’t use. We believe that not all chemicals are bad and that some gentle, safe chemicals are necessary for effective cleaning, moisturizing, and soothing of your dog’s skin. After spending over a year and countless revisions, we thoughtfully created 4 unique products that don’t use any of the harmful chemicals like sulfates, coco-betaine, or artificial fragrances, and use a whole bunch of impactful natural and gentle chemicals-delivering highly effective formulas to heal and maintain your dog's skin health.
At Floof, our goal is to be hyper-focused on grooming, hygiene, and skin health while educating our customers about how to care for their dog’s skin and hygiene. We prioritize transparency and believe owners deserve to know each ingredient that they are using on their beloved dog’s skin. We prioritize innovation and science as we believe leveraging science to create new and better formulas equips us with products that really make an impact on our dog’s skin and hygiene. We strive to change the health of dogs worldwide by improving their skin, which ultimately leads to their happiness and well-being. We believe that dogs deserve the same level of care and attention (maybe even more) as we do, especially when it comes to their skin health, and we are committed to providing the best solutions possible!
