OUR STORY

The story of Phleaz began almost 25 years ago when we, Carol and Dennis Kelley, were raising puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind (www.guidedogs.com). We love animals so much that it was difficult to give up the puppy after 18 months. But what was sadder was applying the “poisonous” toxic flea control on puppies once a month. The warning label said, “wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after applying”, and “seek emergency care if there is a bad reaction”. I realized I was putting a very strong toxic pesticide on my puppy to control fleas. I thought, “there has to be a better way”! I have to find something safe and organic. I began researching all the ingredients in flea control products and found that they all contain some nasty stuff!

Careers and Interests

Growing up in Southern California, Carol's first job was at Disneyland as a Tour Guide. Having a travel itch and an interest in other cultures, she moved to Mexico City to learn the language and more about the culture.

After a time in Mexico, Carol moved to Silicon Valley to join the big "dot com" explosion, where she had a successful career in several high-tech companies.

Being a single mom for several years, she was thrilled to meet and marry Dennis Kelley. Dennis, a graduate of West Point, moved to Silicon Valley after leaving the Army. With his career also in high-tech, together they enjoyed parenting Christi, raising Guide Dog Puppies, and traveling to Europe to explore several cultures and languages.

Between travels, Carol and Dennis moved to the Black Hills of South Dakota. There they bought a small ranch on a mountaintop overlooking the National Forest. They raised and trained a few horses, enjoyed raising chickens, and hiking the beautiful mountains of the Black Hills.

Natural Versus Organic

I know you love your pets too and want to give them the best care - I know that deep, warm loving feeling we all get when we hug our pets. So, I decided to listen to my heart and let my passion and love for my dogs and cats drive my research to find a better way - a way that uses natural, organic materials.

What I discovered is that some of the “natural solutions” aren’t as safe for animals as we’d like to think – essential oils, vinegar, salt, boric acid, brewer’s yeast, garlic, baking soda, etc. Just because something is natural or organic doesn’t mean it’s safe for our pets.

Problem Solves

This passionate love drove me for years until I found a non-toxic organic solution – diatomaceous earth (DE)! DE has been used worldwide for years in a lot of different applications and has been known to be amazingly effective in fighting fleas! DE is a fine dust, and we were determined to make it into a lotion that is easy to apply. Our persistence paid off. After years of experimenting in our own kitchen, we developed a solution – PHLEAZ! I was so excited to share this non-toxic organic PHLEAZ solution with family and friends. . .they all love it!

What is Phleaz?

Phleaz Organic Flea and Tick Control Lotion is for anyone who has a dog or cat and wants to give their furry friends the absolute very best care! We blend and bottle Phleaz in our own kitchen on the Central Coast of California and ship it nationwide. As a *family-owned business we are able to keep tight control on where we source our food-grade ingredients and each bottle gets our mark of approval and love.

How Does Phleaz Work?

The main ingredient in Phleaz is organic food-grade diatomaceous earth. DE is a fossilized algae found across the world in oceans and fresh water lakes. Under a microscope you can see the sharp spikes that puncture the outer shell of the flea cause it to die.

Phleaz lotion, harmless to pets, humans and the environment, is applied all around the neck and on the belly near the back legs. Since it is harmless, you cannot apply too much. When the lotion dries it turns into a powder and goes to work! When a flea passes over it, its outer shell is punctured and it dies.

Phleaz lotion should be applied once a week to ensure it is always on your pet to get rid of fleas and ticks.

Giving Back

We’ve recently rescued a 10-month-old German Shepherd, whom we call Jackie. Of course,

she is our biggest and most loyal customer.

Since developing Phleaz, we have continued to follow our passion and drive into other ventures. We started a non-profit organization focused on helping women create positive and sustainable life patterns for themselves and their families. Passage’s, Women’s Transitional Living (www.passagesliving.com) has a mission to help families. . .and it is doing just that. To continue to follow our hearts to help animals and now women, we donate a portion of our proceeds to Passages to ensure they can continue doing the great things they are doing for women and their families.

*Our daughter, Christi Martinelli, has had a major influence on the development of the Borvedo company. When she’s not working in TV production, she’s coaching entrepreneurs in small business development. Realizing that over 63% of women in one study said they'd never had a coach/mentor, Christi wants women to feel safe talking about importance guidance they're seeking. The proof is in the promotion: **Employees with mentors are 5X more likely to receive a promotion compared to those without a coach, according to research.