Brizza's Inedible Flip Flops Help Protect Dogs Lives

An innovative new flip-flop is soon set to hit shelves, which will not only appeal to humans but also protect the health of our canine companions. The Inedible Flip-Flop, created by Mirum Brazil, a Wunderman Thompson company, for Arezzo's Brizza, in partnership with PEDIGREE, has been developed to tackle a serious issue – dogs’ enduring love for chewing on footwear.

While the videos on social media of dogs stealing (and destroying) their owners’ shoes may make us laugh, there’s a dark side to the humour: chewing on rubber can cause major harm to, and even kill, our beloved dogs. In fact, the most common emergency gastrointestinal procedure performed in veterinary hospitals is the removal of foreign objects from the intestines of dogs, and around a third of those need surgery because they ingested rubber from flip-flops. 

With this in mind, along with Brazilians’ well-documented love of the ubiquitous flip-flop, Brizza and Mirum Brazil came together to collaborate on a new project – a sandal which even the most undiscerning dog would turn its back on. Thus, the Inedible Flip-Flop was born, containing denatonium benzoate, the most powerful bittering agent on the planet, in its base composition. Just a single dose of this chemical could make an entire Olympic-sized swimming pool taste bitter, while still remaining safe for dogs to have an exploratory first lick. The product is a safe, effective, and widely used compound in the pet industry that is often used as a discouraging agent to deter dogs from biting and licking things they shouldn’t, as well as training them not to go near these items in future. 

Maria Toledo, Brizza brand director, said, “When we were looking at ideas to create this dog-friendly flip-flop, we wanted to find something which would create a repulsive taste for them. Something inedible. That’s where the support and expertise of PEDIGREE came in. And it was by including this extremely bitter (yet very safe) compound at the beginning of our production that we delivered the perfect results.”

Filipe Matiazi, creative director at Mirum Brazil, said, “The idea of this project goes beyond a product. We want to spread this cause throughout the market and soon share this production standard with all brands in the sector. This problem exists and needs to be promoted and recognized. With creativity, responsibility, and action, we can change this.”

The Inedible Flip-Flop proposal aims not only to reduce accidents with dogs but to establish a new standard for footwear production. The project made its debut on the brand's social media in April and will hit stores soon.