Dragons' Den deal took two hours to negotiate

Louise and Ian Toale appeared on the show last week

A Dragons' Den competitor has told how her winning deal on the BBC show took two hours of "rigorous" questioning to complete.

Louise Toale from Much Wenlock in Shropshire appeared with husband Ian, touting their nutritional shakes for dogs.

They came away with a £50,000 investment from Dragon Touker Suleyman.

Ms Toale said it had been hard keeping the details of their appearance a secret for nearly a year between filming and broadcast.

"What you see on the telly is this fast-forward, condensed version. There's so many questions eking out where the business is going," she told BBC Radio Shropshire.

"I'm really pleased with the result, to be honest - so over the moon."

Ms Toale had been working in the food industry making protein drinks for humans when her 18-month old beagle, Phoebe, fell ill with a bladder issue related to her food.

Given the difficulty in maintaining the right levels of nutrition and hydration to help the dog recover, she put her skills to use - in consultation with vets - making Phoebe meat-based drinks.

The success of her innovation gave her the idea to create the business, Furr Boost, and scale up production.

Transform the business

The appearance on the show, which matches small businesses with advice and investment from a panel of established experts, was not all plain sailing.

Another Dragon, Deborah Meaden, challenged the couple on their brand name, and the amount they spent on market research to create it.

However, Mr Suleyman told the couple he would offer a cash investment, support and contacts with the big supermarkets.

"If they like it, they will buy it, and that will transform the business," he said.

The businessman eventually agreed to fund the firm's full £50,000 request in return for a 30% stake in the company, reducing to 20% if it was repaid within a year.

• Watch Louise and Ian Toale on Dragon's Den on BBC iPlayer