TrimDog, a Wilmington, North Carolina company, aims to provide a product for helping dogs living a healthier and merrier life. In October 2010, a product called 'Trim Dog' was launched, described by its caption as 'Helping your dog stay fit and healthy'.

According to Ike Kinlaw, developer and founder of TrimDog, “The TrimDog Weight Loss System is the viable solution for dog weight loss that society currently needs. As an Exercise Physiologist, BS, I utilized proven methods to help people lose weight for over a decade. When my own dog, Lily, was diagnosed as overweight; it was only natural that I adapted the same weight loss principles to benefit dogs. “Failure is not an option when your best friend’s life is on the line.”

Ike Kinlaw and Anna Kinlaw, are the proud and responsible parents of 4 year old Shih-Tzu named Lily. She is the inspiration behind TrimDog Weight Loss System. We got a chance to interview Ike, who took the time to answers couple of our questions and share the story behind their invention "TrimDog".

My name is Ike Kinlaw; I am the founder and CEO of TrimDog, a Wilmington, NC based company devoted to helping dogs get fit and healthy. I have a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Physiology with 10 years experience in health care. My wife Anna is a registered Dietician with a Master’s Degree in Nutrition.

The TrimDog System involves three parts. First, all clients are instructed to walk their dog with the TrimDog Exercise Belt which enables dogs to burn more calories per walk and increases their dogs lean muscle mass. The more lean muscle mass they have, the more calories they will burn throughout the day. Clients then submit a sample diet to us for review. We then send them a personalized diet based on their veterinarian recommendations, allergies, etc. to promote weight loss. Finally, we follow up with clients regularly to determine if diet or exercise changes are needed to maximize their success.

The TrimDog Exercise belt is the only product in the market that allows your dog to safely burn up to 4 times more calories per walk by moderately increasing the intensity of the walk.  TrimDog is the only product where dogs can walk less and lose more. It is veterinarian approved for all dogs who do not suffer from any preexisting conditions preventing them from walking regularly

The TrimDog exercise Belt was created out of necessity after our veterinarian, Dr. Michele Rohrer, informed us that out our 4 year old Shih-Tzu Lily was overweight.  We adopted the same concepts we used with people to create the TrimDog Weight Loss System for Lily. Lily’s weight went from 18.7 pds to 15.4 pds in 3 months. Dr. Rohrer was very impressed and after we told her about the TrimDog Exercise belt she recommended we do a clinical trial to see if it would help all dogs. It did. She then wrote a paper about the results, and it is expected to be published by a major veterinary journal in the coming months.

We are currently offering a 20% commission to all of our affiliates. We also offer our customers FREE domestic shipping to make our product even more desirable to potential buyers. We have many forms of promotional materials at our affiliate’s disposal such as: an online brochure, published articles about our product, blog posts, video, and testimonials.

A therapeutic product like ours needs the backing of the veterinarian community. This means, we have to do a great deal of promotion directly to the veterinarian community for direct referrals; however, the convience of the internet as allowed us to reach many more proactive pet owners who seek out their own methods for dog weight loss. The internet is now the first method people use to find answers for all common life problems, including problems with their pets. The online exposure is also helping us to communicate with veterinarians thousands of miles away who heard about us from one of their patients. Hands down, product promotion is much easier on-line.  

Absolutely! If you have an idea you can search the patent office to see if it’s original, you can search the market potential, you can search for a manufacturer on another continent, and set up a point of sale with your own website all in just one day. You can start your own business for little money and little risk. E-commerce is in my opinion, the ideal method to test your business idea to see if it is viable.

We encourage all pet parents to join the fight against dog obesity. Try the TrimDog Weight Loss System today so that your dog can get fit and healthy for life.  

Visit TrimDog.com.

Nikki