We hear this question all the time– "what’s the difference between my shampoo and my dog’s shampoo?"

You may be surprised to learn that a lot is different. Of course, if you run out of Fido’s shampoo and you use your own to wash your dog a couple of times, nothing will happen. Your dog’s hair won’t fall out and life will probably go on as normal.

But there are areas in which human and dog shampoos differ. You may not notice the ill effects of human shampoo if used only a couple of times on your pooch, but after repeated use, you’ll start to see.

1. Ingredients. Dog’s have different problems that humans do. We usually don’t sit around and scratch our heads as much as dogs scratch. This is because dog’s eliminate toxins differently than we do. We can sweat them out. Since dogs really don’t sweat their toxins are eliminated through their kidneys and bowels. With this in mind, we add ingredients to help relieve itchy skin and soothe skin inflammations. The best shampoo to help relieve itchy skin is Comfy Dog Oatmeal Shampoo for Dry & Itchy Skin.

2. Ph Balance. A dog’s skin is about 7.5 while human skin is about 5.5 (to put it in perspective, water is about 7.0). Therefore, a dog’s skin is more alkaline so ideally a dog’s shampoo should be between 6.5-7.5 or it could be irritating to the skin. Highlyacidic shampoos may also diminish the hair’s protective qualities, removing valuable oil from teh coat and skin. the result is dry, irritated skin and a dull coat. Of course it’s a vicious cycle because the dog will scratch which only makes the problem worse.

3. Dog’s have sensitive skin- A dog only has about 3-5 cell-layers thick while we have about 10-15 layers thick. So, harsh shampoos with lots of chemicals and those that aren’t PH balanced will be irritating.

The case for conditioners - Shampoos by design are used for cleaning- removing unwanted grime from the skin and coat. But shampooing, without sealing the coat afterwords, leaves the hair shaft open– at that point residue can enter and oils and hydration escapes.

What you can do is use a conditioner after shampooing to close the hair cuticle and restore hydration, moisture and elasticity.

Conditioners also fill in the damaged hair that drying, brushing, dematting and rubbing causes. Just normal wear and tear chips away at the hair cuticle. Conditioners can help to remove the cuticle to a smooth state and one that gives a more lustrous appearance and feel.

The best deep conditioner I’ve used is Fur Butter (or Fur Worse). It’s an oatmeal based ultra rich conditioning treatment for dry, damaged and long coats. It’s the richest conditioner I’ve used and leaves the dog very soft & silky.

So know you know the difference– there really is one!

About three years ago I noticed that my Maltese was limping. She was only one at the time, so I thought it was strange for her to have these problems at such a young age. I took her to the vet and it turns out she had a luxating patella which is a problem with her knee, and apparently is common in small dogs.

The vet gave me some powder to put into her food and in about a month I really started to see results. I was amazed as you normally don’t expect for those things to really work so fast! What the vet gave her was collagen and ever since I have been looking for an application in which to offer collagen in a happytails product.

And so it comes to pass we launch Joint Resolution an all natural herbal elixir that lubricates sore, aching joints through our blend of BioCell Collagen II, herbal extracts, and chondroitin. It’s perfect for dogs suffering from degenerative effects of old age, arthritis or hip dysplasia

Some history on arthritis and joint inflammation:

Osteoarthritis, also called degenerative joint disease, is the most common form of arthritis in dogs. Weight bearing joints in hips, elbows and knees are most often affected and the result in often painful inflammation.

Inflammation is the body’s response to tissue injury, irritation or infection. It’s the rush of blood and immune cells to a site of injury for the sake of repair and to signal the need for help. Related symptoms include pain, stiffness, heat tenderness, swelling, fatigue, muscle aches and spasms, and loss of function.

The most common inflammation is joint inflammation and an underlying concern is the impact of inflammation on collagen. This connective tissue helps support blood vessel walls and forms the cartilage, tendons and ligaments. Collagen is diminished with inflammation. A study published in the Journal of Veterinary Pharmacological and Therapeutics showed that collagen had reduced pain and lameness in arthritic dogs and improved the overall activity of the dogs. Collagen Type II is the most abundant protein found in joint cartilage that helps promote new cartilage synthesis and reduces oxidative damage to the joints.

The formula contains a generous amount of Hyaluronic Acid which is an important joint and skin nourishing element which promotes healing and skin tissue rejuvenation. HA is essential in reducing joint friction caused by the joint’s degradation of its natural lubrication.

We’ve also included a blend of herbs in Joint Resolution to work synergistically with BioCell Collagen II including boswellia, devils claw and licorice which all work to reduce inflammation and pain while dandelion is a diuretic to eliminate toxins from the body.

Benefits of Joint Resolution

• Promotes healthy active joints*

• Helps improve joint mobility and flexibility*

• Promotes healthy strong connective tissue*

• Easy to administer

• Liquid absorbs faster into the body than tablets or pills

• All natural- herbs are organic or wild crafted

• A side benefit of collagen is that it promotes healthy skin so

  • A dog may grow a more luxurious coats*
  • healing of skin diseases may be faster*

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent any disease.

To learn more about Joint Resolution, click here

BioCell Collagen II® is a registered trademark of BioCell Technology and is the only Hydrolyzed Collagen Type II preparation supported by US Patents # 6,025,327 and 6,323,319 that cover the use and manufacturing of this ingredient. Companies or individuals using any Hydrolyzed Collagen Type II preparation within patented claims other than BioCell Collagen II® in their respective product formulations are infringing on BioCell Technology’s intellectual property.

Jai Rodriguez, one of the stars of the Emmy-winning TV show, “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy has two Yorkies, Nemo and Dori.

In an article released today on MSNBC he said, “I never leave home without the Sparkle and Shine Shimmering Mist from Happytails Canine Spa line. The product has a hint of glitter and moisturizes fur with silk proteins that also help to repel dirt and prevent doggie odors. I use it to brush out their coats several times a week. I do love a fragrance — I love them to look like dogs but smell like people.”

The article is titled “Groovy spots for gooming Fido on the Road.” Click here to read the entire article.

Jai is now hosting a new doggie reality show called “Groomer Has It” premiering April 12 at 9.00 p.m. (ET/PT), on Animal Planet.

It’s the perfect time to promote first aid products in your store so your customers can be prepared in case of an emergency.

Of course pet first aid came into the spot light during Hurricane Katrina when thousands of dogs had no access to medical care. While Katrina was an extreme case, we should still be prepared for the smaller, more common mishaps like dog park injuries, scratches, flea bites, ticks, thorns in paws, hot spots etc.

Walk around your store and identify the items that could be categorized as health and first aid and put together a display. You can also merchandise these packs as pet sitting packs- everything a dog owner would need to give their pet sitter.

You can purchase preassembled packs or you can create your own first aid kits by assembling the following items:

- Tweezers (to remove ticks)

- Antibacterial Ointment

- Bandages

- Dry Dog Instant Clean -a spray to use after the dog park to keep your dog clean and sanitized

- Flea the Scene- an all natural insect repellant and sunscreen. (yes, dog’s can get sunburned too!)

- Cotton Swabs

-Emergency Phone number list (As basic as it sounds, how many people really know where the nearest animal emergency hospital is? Or what about those customers who may not drive- do they know the number for the animal emergency vehicle?

- Assemble everything into a cute bag. Or you could purchase pre-assembled first aid kits like the ones from VSI

The Red Cross is also offering a pet first aid class. To find the Red Cross chapter in your area click here. You can let your customers know about this, or even organize a group and go together, make it a fun social group event!

In addition, the Red Cross assembled a skilled team of animal, emeregency and safety professionals to develop a guide which covers many aspects of pets’ physical and mental well-being.

Pet owners will learn other great tips, such as:

• Paying attention to what is normal for your pet so you can detect signals when something is wrong;
• Learning how to build a pet first aid kit;
• Labor and delivery – and what to do if there is a problem;
• Making your pet part of a Family Disaster Plan, including identifying hotels and shelters that accept pets before a disaster situation; and
• How to spot signs of depression in pets.

You can purchase the “Pet First Aid” guide at your local Red Cross chapter or by visiting www.redcross.org/store. Each purchase made through the Red Cross online store will help benefit the Red Cross chapter in your area.

digPETS is an online distributor that sells only high end products. Currently they distribute the complete product line of over 20 luxury pet brands. Unlike other wholesale online sites, digPETS actually warehouses all of the products they represent so you only pay one shipping fee. Not only is it one stop shopping for you but imagine what you’ll save in shipping costs and avoiding individual manufacturer minimum orders. “A retailer can order items from several manufacturers, if they want to,” said Andrew Kroll, digPETS’ director and founder. Since digPETS stocks the inventory, packs the order and ships it, the retailer pays only one shipping charge, all without any handling charges. “Our retailers can order online from our partners at www.gotorovers.com, fax their order in or call us direct during normal business hours.” Other benefits of digPETS are that they will drop ship to your customers at no additional charge and normally the order ships in 24 hours. digPETS is in

Tampa, FL and can be found at www.digpets.com or email info@digpets.com for more information. By the way, happytails spa is distributed by digPETS which is perfect for all east coast customers looking save on shipping (happytails ships out of Los Angeles).

Other online wholesale ordering services include www.wholesalepet.com. This company is by far the most established and well known. Like digPETS, buyers can enjoy one stop shopping but then orders for each brand are sent to that manufacturer to process and ship. In other words, Wholesalepet does not distribute products; rather they are a very effective conduit between the buyer and seller.

Currently Wholesalepet represents close to 200 manufacturers, including happytails Canine Spa Line Another unique feature to Wholesalepet is their message board. Store owners from all over the country post messages about inventory needs, what sells and doesn’t sell recommendations and more. Wholesalepet.com has developed into quite a community of loyal users.

The newest service around is Petmanufacturers.com. Based in New York Petmanufacturers.com is a new high tech, user friendly platform for qualified pet retailers saving them both time and money. From what we could tell there are about 142 lines represented on this site. The unique thing to PetManufacturers.com is that it allows manufacturers to post product training and tutorial videos. Visit www.petmanufacturers.com for more info.

Roversrepsonline.com has been around for about two years. In just a couple of weeks it will be changing its name to GoToRovers.com. This site was the brain child of three entrepreneurial pet sales reps who decided to add an online component to the sales they were already getting in the field. Like the other online sites GoToRovers.com is a convenient, one-stop, online web site where retail pet store owners and operators can find free industry related services and purchase from thousands of pet supply products and gifts, on line, 24 hours a day. GoToRovers.com also is the home of digPETS.com which was mentioned above. There are other wholesale ordering sites around but these are the main ones and all offer an easier way of ordering than going vendor to vendor. Keep your eye on digPETS.com. We think it’s really offering something unique and different to the pet industry.