Volhold is at it again ! not only giving dogs coat volume but also doing it with out detection. Now direct from the far corners of Europe a regime of total volume for double coated dogs :- I wash the dogs a week before the shows with Pure Alternative shampoo.  1 hour before I am going into the Ring, the coat is fixed, first with a spray to dampen the coat with Coat Magic, then with Volhold, again spray with Coat Magic and more Volhold, until the dog has the maximum of his volume. He won and he was Reserve of Group. In the next Exhibition, the regime was the same and he returned to win, and  his coat was wonderfully voluminous, the Judge did not detect any grooming product at all, this is very important here. For my Poms and Spitz this Animal House is the best ! 

I have found a  new use for our fantastic new creamy Gel Volhold, it actually helps keep white hair staying white.  As many show people know, I have a red and white dog and I have had so much trouble in keeping his whites really white. Well I have found it, Volhold.   I apply Volhold to his white feet and under carriage and then apply a small amount of cornstarch and leave it in the coat, this keeps the white hair white, until I bath the dog next time.  Give it a try it really works, the very first time I did it, the Volhold actually whitened the coat and now keeps it whiter than ever before.

Toni in Brisbane sent this detailed email:

Ok....here is the list of Animal Products that I use...

Mighty White N Brite shampoo

There is no shampoo on the market at good as this one.  It really does whiten and is great for the coat.  I think it recommends dilution of 1:5, but I go much more than that.  I put about 2cm worth in a 750ml water bottle and then fill it up with water.  For stained areas I use it straight but you need to rinse well and once the stain is removed your can maintain it with your diluted formula in future.

Purely Silk Conditioner

This is a silicone free conditioner and once the coat adjusts to the change over the coat condition is great and I find that I hardly get any knots in the big coats my dogs have and if they do get the occasional knot under the arm it brushes out with ease.  Once again I dilute as above.  I would recommend though for about the first month (as your coats will be damaged by the silicone in other products) that you put conditioner on the dogs first, let them sit in conditioner for about 30minutes or so, then wash and shampoo as per usual.  This helps prevent the coats from going a bit off during the changeover period.

Leave in Lustre

This product is great between shows and keeps the conditioner penetrating the coat.  Now, I dilute this product by 50%, but am not sure if it should not be diluted...By diluting it I can put it in a spray bottle and spray it on during the week.  It contains no oils so will not bleach in the sun.

Coat Magic

This is a static free/detangling spray and comes neat, so you do not dilute this product at all.  It is the best product I have used for removing knots.  (I also use it on my daughters hair!)  You just spray it on the knot (even those ones you would usually cut out) and massage it and then brush them out with very little effort.  It separates the knot and your brush glides through, with no pulling/discomfort to the dog and less hair loss.  I use this spray a lot of dogs coming in for grooming that I would normally have to cut out or cut through their knots, but this stuff works and makes life so much easier.

Silk Finish

I have been using and trialling this for a couple of months now and it has been hard to let go of my Crown Royale spray, but this one does the trick.  I use it after I towel dry the dogs and spray it on to blowdry.  I also use it to spray and coat the dogs before a show.  I had it with me in Canberra and it is great.  I was worried after 4 days of showing that the spray build up would make the coats go limp, but this spray did exactly the opposite.  I did not have to wash my dogs at all and their coats looked lovely and clean all weekend.  Because it is water soluble it does not damage the coat...just add water and is washes off.  This is an amazing product and once on the market I would suggest you get your hands on it...I love it.

Volhold gel

I have trialed this for Animal House and found it to be a lovely product.  I was hesitant with using a gel because if you use too much the coat becomes tacky (which is what I found with PP Swishy Coat)  but I can put as much of this gel in as I want and it does not change the texture of the coat, it does make it fall beautifully and it still flows like a natural coat.

So, that is all the products I use at present and I am very happy with them.  Animal House has kept the prices down so that you can buy quality concentrated products for very reasonable prices, so the value for money is almost as good as the products.

Belcroft Cocker Spaniels & Animal House products

After over 25 years of showing, we thought we had figured out the ‘recipes’ and products for looking after our cockers coats and for show preparation.   Each dog has a ‘formula’ for show bathing and drying – use conditioner on this coat, not on that, use a gel during drying on this one and not that.  This was written down and referred to for each bath and show prep. 

Being sceptics as to how much ‘product’ went into show-day coats, and being worried about changing proven products, I didn’t bite the bullet until earlier this year. 

We were going away for 10 days before a major show.  As a trial, each cocker was bathed and prepped using Animal House products in heavy duty style for their time in boarding.  This included a heavy spray of ‘Vita-Riche’ whilst wet before drying.  The dogs looked fabulous !  So much so the friend who was boarding the dogs commented they looked like we were about to take them into the show ring rather than board them – not their usually ‘oily’ selves !

Coming back after the holiday we were facing a major show with a specialist judge from the UK.  We prepared each and every dog with Animal House products – quite a major decision for our house !  On a steamy and hot Melbourne day we won Best in Show, Baby Puppy in Show, Puppy in Show and Australian Bred in Show.   I know it wasn’t entirely due to the Animal House range – but it didn’t hurt to have the coats shining and in great condition and drape as the finishing touch.

Gone are the ‘recipes’ for each dog – they are all bathed and prepared the same way, with the same great results, using only the Animal House range.

P.S. Don’t tell anyone our secret !

It was a cool 2nd July in Brisbane, the airport was fogged in and planes were delayed by a mere 20 minutes.  I had packed my dog and my bag for a flight to Townsville. The main reason for going was to meet and socialize with our latest distributor Michele Miles, as well as getting acquainted with some of the locals.  As I landed in Townsville I could see the day was bright and sunny, as I peered out of the plane window I saw fire trucks and an ambulance along the run way, not a good sight as you are landing, fortunately they were not for us.  As I departed the plane and headed to the luggage collection area, I was met by Michele Miles and I was so relieved to see a dog person amongst the huge football crowd.  We collected my luggage then off to collect the dog, not a luggage trolley in sight, so it was the pack horses of old to the rescue, yes our arms.  Michele was so helpful in organising me, my luggage and my dog, what a relief. We chatted as she drove me to her home, Michele was preparing me for the events of the next couple of days, including the 75th anniversary of the Townsville Kennel Assoc. Inc. but there was one unexpected event!  Upon arrival at Michele’s home I noticed her lovely Labrador bitch was heavily pregnant and almost due to give birth. Michele had arranged a baby (pregnant dog) sitter so that she could be free to drive to the dog show and participate in the evenings events.  However nature has a strange way of waiting for no man, as we relaxed, chatted and had coffee I noticed that her bitch was actually baring down to give birth.  Being a dog breeder myself, I insisted that Michele stay with her baby and I suggested she just give me the car keys, point me in the right direction and I shall get there myself.  I was fortunate enough to be able to follow another exhibitor out to the show grounds and left Michele to play midwife.  Upon arrival at the show grounds I met Ashley, Michele’s husband and Casey, Michele’s son, I was so surprised to find that they have a lovely set up, with a huge amount of shade and cover, with many items for sale on display as well as every dog food you can imagine (well maybe not every dog food). We had the perfect vantage point to view both rings at once.    I met some very nice local dog exhibitors as well as some from afar, I enjoyed getting to know some people and handing out samples of our new Volhold. During the evening we received constant updates on our new mum and her babies, 7 in total 4 girls and 3 boys, all very healthy and fat.  The dog show was a great success with the lovely American Cocker (Bliss) going Best In Show. I returned to Michele’s home with her son Casey to enjoy a good nights rest and catch up on the days happenings both at home and at the dog show, Ashley camped out at the show grounds.  The new day dawned and it was shaping up to be a glorious day, we all headed off early to the show grounds and Michele left her brood to be cared for by mum, who was doing an excellent job. On arrival at the show grounds  I was called left, right and centre as many of the exhibitors were curious about our new Volhold, wanting to know how it works, what it does, how they should use it, I was given a greyhound to make look wonderful, Michele asked “ shall I spray him with a coat spray?” I said “wait a minute, he is greasy, flaky and dirty, we do not want to add any more shine to him, we want to take some flakiness out and bring his color up” so I grabbed a sample pot of Volhold, I smeared a 10 cent piece size on my hand and smoothed over the top half of the greyhound, the jaw of Michele and the dogs owner hit the ground, I continued and finished the dog.  The greyhound looked a million dollars, he shone he had lost all his flakiness, his color was rich and clear, he lost all his greasiness, yet to touch him he felt totally natural.  As the day continued I was asked to do more product demonstrations, I noticed a Sibe with patchy coat loss, I applied some Volhold the only the top coat of the dog (guard hairs) he came up so well that he went through to RUBIG, he felt totally natural and yet looked as if he was carrying a full even coat, not patchy at all and not out of coat either.

Volhold can be used in so many different ways, I have only given a couple of examples of this truly amazing product, it will give volume, naturally, it will give hold, naturally and it will give drape, certainly. Volhold will be available in 3 weeks and orders are being taken now.

Thank you Michele, Ashley, Casey and all the Townsville dog people for a great weekend.