The benefits of using natural grooming products on pets

In recent years there has been a massive boom in the natural pet grooming industry. More and more pet parents opt for healthier and more sustainable solutions such as natural and organic shampoos and conditioners for their most loyal friends. 

In this blog post, we are discovering all the benefits of using an all-natural organic pet grooming product and how to choose the right one. 

What is a natural dog grooming product?
As discussed in our previous blog post, many dog grooming products claim to be natural and organic. But how do we know which of these claims are true, and how do we choose effective and safe grooming products for our dogs?

After significant research, we believe that an effective dog grooming product that is natural and organic will have the following properties:

• Natural ingredients which are processed using simple methods to maintain their natural properties,
• Certified organic ingredients, which are produced without the use of certain chemicals such as pesticides or growth hormones,
• Other compounds needed to make an effective shampoo or conditioner such as cleansers, emulsifiers, emollients, and preservatives. These should be derived from natural ingredients or come from an approved list of synthetic ingredients.

Unfortunately, just because a pet grooming product is labeled as "natural" or "organic" does not mean that it meets these criteria. A lack of regulation in the pet grooming industry means that a product that contains a high proportion of processed and potentially toxic chemicals can be labeled as "organic" or "natural". Many manufacturers will include just a small portion of organic ingredients in their products and claim that they are all-natural. This misleading advertising is known as "greenwashing".

"Producing dog grooming products that are all-natural and organic is hugely important to us here at Doglyness, and we want our customers to feel confident that we are doing precisely this. Our products are certified organic by ECOGEA Institute with more than 98% natural and 25% organic ingredients. We also need to meet other criteria to obtain this certification, including the use of environmentally friendly packaging, sustainable production processes, and adherence to strict limits regarding synthetic additives."
— ANKA HANA SLADOLJEV, Founder and CEO of Doglyness

Why are chemicals in dog grooming products harmful?
Most commercial dog grooming products such as shampoos and conditioners contain a high level of potentially toxic chemicals. These chemicals give an instant result when used, leaving your dog with a smooth and shiny coat and pleasant fragrance, but at what cost to your beloved dog's health? And what long-term harm are they doing to your dog's coat?

The purpose of the chemicals used in pet shampoos and conditioners is to make them into effective and easy-to-use products, but often to the detriment to the condition of the skin and health of your pet. The most desirable shampoo properties are ones that cleanse the fur effectively, rinses easily, and leaves the coat shiny and bouncy. Pet grooming products also often boast specific qualities such as soothing, detangling or volumizing.

A lot of the cosmetic manufacturers still look for the simplest way to formulate a product with these properties is by using chemicals. The problem with these chemicals is that although they may be effective for their intended use, they have other long-term undesirable effects.

Here are the few of the things that make Doglyness the first genuinely sustainable pet care brand

Firstly, let's look at the problems they may cause for your dog's skin and coat. Cleansing chemicals in shampoos may "strip" the natural oils from the hair, leaving the skin dry and coat lifeless. You then use a conditioner to give the hair some luster and shine, but this may well contain synthetic products to provide an artificial shine rather than repairing your dog's coat. In short, chemicals are used to bring about results in the cheapest way possible, rather than focusing on the long-term health of your dog's coat.

Dog grooming products such as shampoos and conditioners with a high chemical concentration level can leave your dog's skin irritable, red, itchy, and prone to diseases. These products' long-term side effects may also include health conditions such as allergies, cancer, or hormonal imbalances. One example is the use of parabens, commonly used as a chemical preservative. Parabens have been shown to disrupt the hormonal cycle by mimicking estrogen and potentially increasing cancer risk. Commercial conditioners also commonly use silicones, which "coat" the hair follicle giving a false appearance of smoothness and shine. This is just an illusion – it is the silicones that are shiny and smooth, not your pet's coat. Over time these silicones accumulate on the hair, masking damaged and brittle hair underneath and clogging the skin's pores.

Benefits of using natural grooming products for dogs

1. Effective skin and coat care
So, if these chemicals are harming our pets, what is the solution? The secret lies in understanding what is required to make effective pet grooming products and then finding natural and non-toxic alternatives to the chemicals commonly used elsewhere in the industry.

For example, we mentioned silicones earlier – they are used to give artificial smoothness and shine to the hair follicle. A natural alternative to using silicones is a substance derived from Guar beans – a natural, very safe, and non-irritant hair conditioning agent. Instead of sulfates that strip the natural oils from the coat, we can use gentle cleansing agents derived from natural substances such as coconut oil and fruit sugars. As a preservative, we have alternatives such as one derived from Mountain Ash Tree Berries, meaning we can avoid using potentially toxic ingredients such as parabens in natural organic dog shampoos and conditioners.

Our IMMORTELLE Rejuvenating Shampoo is certified organic, vegan and made with more than 98.5% ingredients from natural origin

Once these natural ingredients have been correctly formulated and prepared, they are far superior to their chemical alternatives. Rather than the cycle of stripping the oils from the coat and replacing them with synthetic conditioners, using natural options gives you a gentle but effective cleansing action and conditioning properties which enhance your dog's coat. Over time, natural shampoos and conditioners will repair the damage caused by chemically-based products, and your pet will benefit from a naturally thick, shiny, and lustrous coat. 

2. Reduced risk of skin irritation

Many pet owners are stuck in an endless cycle of bathing, conditioning, visiting the vet, and trying different products to improve their pet's skin and coat problems. What if all it took was a simple switch to a natural organic pet shampoo and conditioner to break this cycle and improve your dog's health?

Every day our dogs are exposed to potential skin irritants, whether in the home or the local environment. Examples of these include air pollution from traffic and cleaning products used in the house. Chemical-based shampoos and conditioners add to this toxic overload, often causing dry, irritated skin, potentially leading to long-term skin conditions such as allergies and dermatitis.

Using a natural pet product helps you reduce your dog's exposure to toxic chemicals and help reduce the damage done by other unavoidable toxins encountered in their daily lives. Natural dog shampoos will provide a gentle cleansing action to remove dirt, chemicals, and allergens from the skin without stripping the beneficial oils from the coat. Following this up with a natural conditioner will help hydrate and repair the damage caused by toxins, improving hair and skin elasticity and overall coat health.

   Effective natural dog shampoo must provide a gentle cleansing action to remove dirt, chemicals, and allergens from the coat without stripping the beneficial oils from the skin

3. Reduced exposure to chemicals
Using a certified natural organic shampoo and conditioner means that you do not have to worry about unnecessarily exposing your pet to toxic chemicals. When bathing your dog, you expose skin and coat to the ingredients that soak directly into the bloodstream! Once absorbed into the body, these chemicals can cause significant long-term health issues that may not manifest themselves for some time. Substances such as parabens will be stored by the body, building up over time in what is known as a cumulative effect.

Using a non-toxic dog shampoo and conditioner takes away the worry of causing long-term health problems such as allergies, skin conditions, and cancer. You can also rest assured that you do not have to be concerned when washing near sensitive areas such as the eyes, nose, and mouth.

At Doglyness, we have created effective natural dog shampoos and conditioners which are safe for humans, pets, and the environment.

4. Improved immunity
Did you know that the skin is the largest organ in the body? This vital organ serves many functions, such as heat control and protection from damage. Just like in humans, your dog's skin also plays a huge role in immunity, creating a natural barrier to viruses and diseases. Chemical-based shampoos and conditioners cause damage to this vital barrier, potentially exposing your pet to pathogens that may cause skin disease or other disorders. When using natural and organic dog shampoos and conditioners, you are protecting and strengthening your pet's natural immune system.

5. Cruelty-free
As pet lovers, we are all horrified by the thought that animals may have been subjected to chemical testing during the production of pet shampoos and conditioners. Here at Doglyness, we commit to being cruelty-free, and you can rest assured that our products' manufacturing process did not include any activities that harmed or killed animals. Our products are also certified as vegan by the ECOGEA Institute, meaning that no animal extracts or by-products are used in the ingredients or manufacturing process.

Doglyness is ECOGEA certified organic and vegan pet grooming line

6. Environmentally-friendly
We find that many people interested in using natural and organic products are looking for more than just a product and are looking to live a more environmentally conscious and sustainable way of life. Using natural and organic dog shampoos and conditioners brings about environmental benefits through the strict regulatory standards for organic farmers. Avoiding products with potentially harmful ingredients also reassures you that you are not rinsing toxic residue down the drain every time you bathe your pet.

For us here at Doglyness, sustainable living means using natural products and thinking about the bigger picture. Choosing to live sustainably means that we try to consider our purchases' entire environmental effects – a chemical-free product that comes in a bottle made from petrochemicals does not make sense to us! To help our customers achieve sustainability, we have removed any plastic or non-sustainable materials from our products' production, packaging, shipping, and storage. All our natural dog shampoos and conditioners are supplied in a patented Veganbottle, made with 100% raw compostable materials.

We are sending nasty chemicals to exile!

Here at Doglyness, we want our customers to feel safe knowing that they are choosing the best and most effective all-natural dog shampoos and conditioners free from harmful chemicals. This reassurance we have committed to a NO Nasties Pledge commits us to ensure that no toxic or harmful chemicals are used in our natural dog grooming products.

Many of the chemicals we pledge not to use, are commonly found in commercial pet grooming products and may also be included in products that claim to be ''natural'' or ''organic''. We have developed pet grooming lines that we believe are not only equal to but better than their chemical-filled counterparts.

Specifically, we're proud to say that all Doglyness products are free from any of the ingredients listed here, which are instead common in most commercial pet shampoos and conditioners and that can turn out to be harmful in the long run.

We love to be transparent and honest about ''how'' we do what we do!

By harnessing nature's power and using certified organic ingredients, our customers can be confident that Doglyness products deliver fabulous results, leaving your dog's hair and skin healthy, glowing, and radiant.
As you can see, high-quality, all-natural, and organic dog shampoos and conditioners can outperform chemical products while also bringing colossal health benefits to your dog.

Why not make the switch today and see the benefits for yourself? If you have any questions or comments, you can always write to us at any time.