Speaker 1: This is pet Life Radio, Let's Talk Pets.
Speaker 2: Hello, Katon, Doug Levers, Welcome to Best Beets for Pets.
I'm your show host Michelle Fern. So you think your catfall,
your dog, ball or feeder sounds very basic. Well it's not,
and it's very important that it's the correct fit. The
eating vessel for your pet should be the correct fit
for your verbab My guests today created a product that
is amazing. I can't like to tell you about it.
Stay tuned, we'll be right back.
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Speaker 4: Let's Talk Pets on Petlifradio dot com.
Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone. I'd like to welcome Debbie Mastic. She
is the founder and creator of luck Trump. Welcome Debbie,
thank you for having me. I'm very glad to have you.
So let's hell everyone. What is fluff Trough?
Speaker 5: Okay, So fluff Trough is something that I invented for
my pug back in twenty eighteen. So I noticed that
he struggled to eat from traditional feeders, and I tried
a different variety of feeders with him, and none of
them really made it easy for him to eat. So
I was trying to think, what can I do to
make this easier for him? And I got a three
D printer and just started creating these like different types
of bowls and came up with the fluff Trough. So
it's the only feeder that has an open front design.
So what makes it different is when a dogg or
cat goes to eat from it, they can keep their
neck and backstraight and that enables them to eat in
the most comfortable and natural position possible.
Speaker 2: Okay, let's go back to your pug. Is your pug
still with us?
Speaker 5: No, he passed away. He was quite old.
Speaker 2: I'm sorry to hear that. Well, in memory of him,
we'll talk about how he liked it. So, pugs are
flat faced, and they definitely any kind of a flat
faced dog or cat can have special issues and definitely
needs a special feeder because of the fact that they're
flat faced, and they could have I hope your dog
didn't have this, but they could sometimes have respiratory issues
because they're flat faced. Was that any of your concern
when you designed the flat Chop.
Speaker 5: Yeah, So pork Chop was getting older, and of course
he was called pork Chop because he loved to eat.
That was his favorite hobby and he struggled to get
every single morsel in his mouth. So, you know, being
a pug, he had the flat face which makes it difficult,
as well as a short neck. And then he also
got vestibular disease and that is a disease of the
inner ear that impacts their balance. So you know, couple
that with having a flat face, it was very difficult
for him to eat. So with the fluff trough, it's
got the open front and it's got a wide, flat,
shallow surface area, so it made it much easier for
him to access the food with a bowl. Whether your
pet has a flat face or a regular snout that
they are still sticking their face in a dark base
and it's hard to like you know, eat around the
corners of the bowl. So not only is it hard
to access the food, it's really uncomfortable for their neck
and it's hard to eat and breathe at the same time.
And when they have their face kind of stuck in
a bowl, they can't keep an eye on their surroundings
and animals when they eat. They naturally like a safe
environment and be able to look out for predators or
anyone who may be, you know, trying to steal their food.
So with por chop, this design really helped and it
made it much easier for him to eat.
Speaker 2: Okay, let's touch on the different types of dogs, because
it's funny. In my household, we had one with a
beard to have an ease and then I didn't know
why dawn on me for a little while. Why My
boy by now husband used to call my dog snout boy.
But he grew up with dogs that had beards and
their snouts are not as long. And mister Zeus was
a flat hair Retriever border calling mix, so long snout,
so you have I guess those are about the three
types of dog faces. Cats, of course don't like their
whiskers to touch the edge of the bowl, so there's
a challenge with cats as well. Now the fluff trough
is also good for cats, and keeping that in mind
that it's a wide trough, so it's not going to
hit their whiskers.
Speaker 5: Yes, absolutely so. While I originally designed this product for
pork chop and it started becoming really popular in the
pug community, the French bulldog community. What what happen is
someone would buy the fluff trough for their pug, but
then they noticed that their Golden retriever tried to eat
from the bowl and ended up preferring to eat from
the bowl, or the cat enjoyed eating from the bowl,
So all the animals in the house would show a
very strong preference for the fluff trough because it's actually
much more ergonomic and comfortable for all breeds. You don't
have to have a flat face to enjoy the benefits
of the design. And then that's how it's really grown
is people are buying it for their pugs, but then
it works really well for all breeds. And now we
have the standard sized fluff trough, which is good for
small to medium dogs. And then we have our fluff
troffic cell which is for larger dogs.
Speaker 2: And how about for cats? Is it the same size
for cats? Is there a smaller one for cats?
Speaker 5: Yeah? So good question. The small dog the standard one.
It actually works perfect for cats as well, and like
you said, because it has that wide, shallow shape, it
prevents them from getting whisker fatigue, so it works fantastic
for cats.
Speaker 2: Okay, so it can be elevated. How much can it
be elevated?
Speaker 5: So currently we have the standard size and the fluff
traffic cell, and in order to elevate the bull to
be the perfect height for your pet, if it's not
already the perfect height, we have stackable lift kits. So
these are little lifts that you can attach to the
bottom of the fluff trough legs and the lift kits
fit both sizes, so you can raise the fluff trough
to be the perfect height for your pet. Right now,
the standard size works really universally for cats and small dogs,
but some small dogs you know, are a little taller,
have longer legs, so you might want to add some
lifts to that. And then the fluff traffic cell that
works really good for like English bulldog size. And then
if you have a taller dog, then you know, I
suggest adding more lift kits.
Speaker 2: How high can it go up?
Speaker 5: It can go as high as as many lift kits
as you want to add to it. I mean, I've
seen people use them for their great gains.
Speaker 2: Even's wintering Irish wolf found a great day because they
can be very large. And then my nephew dog Blue,
he's a hound that I cannot recall the name of.
He is about one hundred and fifty pounds huge, but
he would probably be a good candidate for the fluff truff.
Speaker 5: Yes, with the fluff Traffic cell, it's really wide, so
those dogs that kind of have bigger faces, they're not
squeezing their big head in a bowl. It's much more
comfortable for them. And with the wide surface area, you
can spread the food out and that helps prevent them
from taking big gulps of food because in a bowl
the food tends to pile up, you know, when they're
taking these gulps of food, But when you spread it
out along the wide surface area, it's just healthier for them.
Speaker 2: I think you might have answered my next question, But
what makes it that recommended. Now, we talked about that
they can eat better, you know, better digestion, So that's one.
Speaker 5: Yes, it promotes better digestion. It helps reduce risk of
choke and coughing while they eat because they're not getting
a lot of extra air when they eat, and they're
not eating with their neck at a ninety degree angle
typically with a bowl, whether the bowl is elevated or not,
the dog or cat is bending their neck down to
eat out of this bowl. And what's happening is the
food is fighting gravity as it goes, you know, up
the dog's esophagus instead of them being eating at a
straight angle with a straight neck. They're fighting gravity when
they eat. The bowl also is made with premium materials,
so we have different insert options. You can get a
FDA silicone insert, a three or four grade stainless steel insert,
or a FDA silicone slow feeder insert and they're all
those that recommended materials.
Speaker 2: Okay, we're gonna talk more about the inserts and the
colors choices as soon as we get back from our
rak Well we write back.
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Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone. We're talking to Debbie Masti. She is
the creator of the fluff trough. So, Debbie, we talked
about the different inserts. Does it also come in different colors?
And can you have more than one insert? Is it
a good idea to have an extra insert on hand?
Speaker 5: Yeah, So the standard sized fluff trough, which is the
original one that I had designed for my pug, that
comes in black, gray, teal, and purple, So we have
those two fun colors, and then you know, the standard
color is the black and gray that would match any household.
And the inserts are interchangeable. So some people choose to
have two fluff troughs and they have one with the
silicone insert and then they use one with the stainless
steel insert for water and the silicone for food. Or
some people are like, I want to have a stainless
steel for both fluff troughs, and they get two stainless
steel fluff through sets. They use one for food and
one for water. The great thing about the FDA silicone
inserts is those are microwave safe, so if you do
like to heat up your pets food a little bit,
it can go in the microwave. They're all dishwasher safe,
and a lot of people do like having an extra
insert because they can feed their pet breakfast. Their pet
is then eating, they throw the insert in the dishwasher,
and then they have a backup insert for dinner. The
fluff traffic sel right now, that only comes in black
and gray, and we currently have the FT silicone insert
for that and the binge blocker slow feeder insert, and
we're working on releasing the stainless steel insert for that one.
Speaker 2: Okay, wonderful. And I was curious about cleaning it and
heating it. This might be a whammy question, but that's
where my head goes. What about sanitizing and keeping it
safe if you don't have a dishwasher.
Speaker 5: Yeah, that's a good question, so you are able to
hand wash it. The great thing about the materials that
we use, even though they are dishwasher safe, if you
don't have a dishwasher, there's still non porous. So a
non porous means they're not going to harbor bacteria. So
what we recommend is if you can't put it in
the dishwasher, just you know, washing it with hot water
and soap on a daily basis.
Speaker 2: Well, that's good to know because sometimes you have more
than one for a babe, and even though they have
their own feeders, you know, their own fluff trip, they
sometimes will mix or sometimes cats like dog food, dogs
like cat food. It happens. I've seen it happen. So
it's good that it's non pores and that it can
be cleaned if you're traveling or something, or if you
just don't have a dishwasher, it can be easily cleaned.
What about do you have any special customer stories you
can share with us?
Speaker 5: Yeah, so we actually get a lot of special customer stories.
We get them on a daily basis, and I enjoy
reading all of them. They keep me very motivated, you know,
when we're having the more difficult parts of running the business.
But you know something funny that has happened over time
is someone will get a fluff trot for their pet
at home and then they go on vacation and they
don't bring the fluff trough. They just think, I'm just
going to use the bulls that we have at our
vacation home or at the hotel, and what ends up
happening is their pet refuses to go back to our.
Speaker 2: Regular That makes a lot of sense because the dog
is getting used to eating a certain way and it's
more comfortable for your dog. And I'm saying dog, it
can for cats too, but it sounds like you have
a little bit more of a dog clientele than a cat.
Speaker 5: Yes, right now. You know, this product really started with
the dog community, but we are starting to get more
awareness in the cat community. But you're right, kind of
once they get used to it, it's really hard for them.
Like something I tell people is when you feed your
dog from a bowl, I want you to imagine eating
a bowl of spaghetty with your hands tied behind your
back with no silverware. Like that is the equivalent of us,
you know, putting food in a dog bowl or a
cat bule and setting it on the ground and expecting
them to eat that way. It's very difficult, definitely a challenge.
From what you described and what I've experienced with the
fluff tuff is it seems very easy to travel. It's
easy to travel with. It's not the smallest bull. The
fluff trough, you know, it's larger than a traditional bull.
Because you want to give your pet more space to
eat from. You don't want them, you know, squeezing their
face in a dark space to eat. So a lot
of people have either started traveling with them, or they
buy a second set to keep at their vacation home
or keep it in their RV. We had one customer
email us she had gone on a road trip with
her dog and they stopped on the side of the
road just to take your break and feed her dog,
and she set the fluff trough on top of her
car and she forgot it, so she drove off the
road and didn't realize the fluff trough had flown off
of her car on the highway. And then as soon
as she got to her next destination, she ended up
ordering a new one right away because her dog wouldn't
eat from a regular bull anymore.
Speaker 2: Oh my gosh, that's a funny story. But being a
pet parent, we do get distracted with them, so, especially
when they're in a strange environment that is a funny story.
What about do people sometimes buy like the Excel fluff
trough and maybe take the smaller one when they travel
or it's not feasible to do that because it's if
your dog needs extra large, your dog needs the extra
large size.
Speaker 5: Yes, that's typically the case, but some dogs could go
between both. So some people do that where they keep
the XL at home and then they do get the
standard size to travel with.
Speaker 2: Okay, well, you've explained the fluff truff so well and
I love the stories. Is there anything coming up that
you're adding on to besides the different inserts on the Excel?
Speaker 5: So, yes, we want to also release an attachable licking
that for the Excel. It's something that we currently have
for the standard fluff trough. And are you familiar with
licking Matt's Michelle? Oh yeah, okay, So what makes the
fluff trough licking that so different is we have this
stand that you attach to the fluff trough and then
you set the silicone licking mat on it, so it's
actually it's sitting on the fluff trough, so your dog
or cat can lick on it in a very ergonomic angle.
They're not bending their net typically licking mats. People either
set them on the floor so their pet is bending
their neck down for a prolonged period licking the mat,
or they suction them to the wall and then the
pet is bending their neck up for a prolonged period
licking the mat. This one sits on the fluff trough
in an ergonomic way so that the pet is standing
there in a very natural position licking the mat. And
you know, we're starting to come up with more like
licking matt recipes that we've been sharing with customers just
to help people get creative give their pets something different.
But for the Xcel product, we also want to you know,
release that product in the future.
Speaker 2: Okay, thanks for sharing that about the lick mat. Could
you also and I've done this because I live in
a very warm climate and I know right now it's
a little and where most of the people here are
switches the US, but could you also put maybe a
liquid in the lick mat and freeze it.
Speaker 5: Yes, we actually have a lot of customers they'll even
freeze like a yogurt, or they'll make like a watermelon
puree and they'll set it on the lick mat and
they freeze it and then that just ends up prolonging
the dog's time, you know, licking the mat. And I
think it's interesting because I get feedback from a lot
of customers that they work remote and when they need
to go into like a zoom meeting where they're not
they need to not be disturbed, they get their frozen
licking mat out and they set it out for their pet.
The other way people use it a lot is if
they have to take their dog to some sort of
therapy or grooming appointment, they will take their fluff trough
with the licking mat and put a snack on it,
and it keeps their dog occupied when they're getting like
acupuncture or laser therapy or some sort of grooming. And
we actually it's have been requested from some veterinarian hospitals
to get fluff troffs in licking mats because it's working
really well for their hospital patients.
Speaker 2: Oh that's great news. Yes, okay, Debbie, thank you so
much for coming on Best Bets for Pets and telling
us all about the fluff truff. I'm excited to check
out that lickmat. Where can people buy their own fluff
truff And when will the lick mat attachment be out approximately, So.
Speaker 5: The best place to purchase our full range of products
is fluff trough dot com. That's our website and we
do ship to all countries. We have a store locator
at the top of the page because we are locally
distributed in about twelve countries now, so if you are
in another country, check that store locator. We also are
in local retailers in the US, so you could just
check to see if you know we're in one of
your local retailers. The attachable liking mat is already available
on the web site for the standard sized fluff Truck,
and we're hoping to release the attachable looking mat for
the excel you know by this fall.
Speaker 2: Okay, that is wonderful. Well, thank you so much for
creating the fluff Truck and all it does to help
our ferbabes with aiding digestion, being ergonomic, and just making
them more comfortable overall, because that's important. We want our
dogs and cats to be comfortable. So thank you again
for coming on Best Bets for Pets.
Speaker 5: Thank you so much for having me. This is really fun.
Speaker 2: Glad you had a good time. We're woofs in me als,
you know. What's not to love, right, I hope you
all enjoyed this show. The Fluff Truck is a really
fabulous feeder. I hope you have the chance to check
it out at fluff truck dot com. I want to
thank Debbie Mastic for coming on Best Bets for Pets
thanks to my listening audience. Wow, almost fifteen years of
Best Bets for Pets incredible. I want to thank my
producer Mark Winter for working magic and making Best Bets
for Pets sound amazing for all of my listeners. And
of course thanks to my tester Cooper and Bailey for
checking out the fluff trop And thanks to my cat
crew that they assisted, Charlie, Molly and Dennis. And remember
you never know what will happen next on Bestpects for Pets.
Speaker 4: Let's talk Bets every week on demand only on Petlifradio
dot com.