We just spent over $1000 on vet bills for Henry to get a tooth removed with anesthesia. We knew we needed to change our habits, but finding a cat toothbrush turned out to be harder than we thought...
We spent several hundred dollars on Amazon trying to find the perfect toothbrush for our cats. But we quickly ran into MANY problems.
The first "brushes" we tried was the finger brush kind. Originally we thought this would be the best & most mobile solution for a squirmy cat.
There were two massive problems with the finger brushes. The first, was that we personally couldn't get them ON or OFF our finger!!
The second problem, was that our finger (and by default the finger brush) didn't fit into our cats mouths. At the time, Rylie was only 4 months old and it felt cruel to even try to shove our large fingers into his mouth.
The next toothbrushes we tried were a variety of ones on Amazon but the theme in general, was that they were just too big. As involved cat parents, we can tell when our cats are in pain & these giant brushes were so large in their mouths!
The best analogy we could come up with was trying to brush your teeth with a hockey stick. It simply doesn't work.
Eventually, we did find a somewhat smaller Japanese sized kitten toothbrush that seemed to be better. But it still wasn't great.
The bristles were very thin, too short and not enough of them on it. It was also hard to hold, and it only came in one colour. WHITE.
And then it hit us like a truck... WE NEED TO MAKE OUR OWN.
"If this is such a problem for us," we thought, "it MUST be a problem for every other cat owner too!!"
So we got to work.
We analyzed everything we liked/didn't like about the current market.
The biggest thing was the size factor, but there was a few other things we had learned since brushing our cat's teeth.
First - Straight brushes don't work well for cat anatomy. If your brush doesn't have a specific curve, you risk bumping/rubbing their front teeth.
Why is that a problem? Well, Cat's have VERY sensitive front teeth.
Have you ever looked behind a cats front teeth? Go take a look! There is a giant round nerve bundle right behind the cat's teeth and it's extremely sensitive.
This is why you will see a designated curve in our brushes. It's the curve of the average cat's skeletal anatomy.
We also designed it so it's about the average length from the back tooth to the front teeth, so there's less of a chance you'll hit them.
On our toothbrushes, you'll also notice our duel design. A brush, and then also a pick tool. This is because there is a deep groove in cat's back molars.
Often, food & bacteria will sit in this back groove and be the start of many plaque, tartar, and gingivitis issues. We found it very difficult without a pick tool to get this spot clean - and good luck trying to use 2 separate brushes!! Talk about FuMbLiNg!
On top of all these features we also wanted our toothbrushes to look modern. Cool. COLOURFUL! If you came over to our house, you would see how much we love colour. We love the joy bright colours bring to us & we wanted to express that through our brand.
Not only that, but every cat in the house should have their own toothbrush. This helps stop the spread of dental issues between cats. But the worst part about this for us, was every time we found a brush we thought might work... it only came in 1 colour!!
Real cat lovers know... you can't just have one cat. LOL!
Our vision is to have a designated colour to match the personality of every cat in your household. And we are super excited that this concept can grow over time & we can always release new & exciting colours for replacement brushes.
You'll notice when you order our cat toothbrushes... They will have a matte feeling to them. This is because the handles are made from bio-degradable cornstarch and they will feel so smooth and nice in your hand!
We wanted to ensure our toothbrushes were also earth friendly so that we can feel proud of what we put into the world.
Black bristles? YES! These are charcoal infused bristles (which is safe for cats of course) and they are really soft. We wanted to keep an anti-bacterial element in the bristles to help reduce the spread of bacteria.
SO WE GOT THE DESIGN! woot woot!!
But that's only half the battle.
Next up... Sourcing!! We have to find a factory to make it.
Not only that, but we have to have a custom mould made for our new design and that costs some big bucks!!!
Currently we are exploring our options & doing factory audits on a variety of places to ensure we choose the BEST PLACE (Clean & Sanitary) to create our toothbrush. We also want to ensure the working conditions are optimal for the workers.
We are soooo excited to have this ready soon for everyone, and we appreciate your support & patience!! This is a massive project & we want to get it right the first time!
If you've read this far... Thank you. You are awesome and you're the reason we are doing this crazy & wonderful idea!!
