Patented And Trademarked Ingredients
Our canine supplements make extensive use of patented and trademarked ingredients for several reasons.
Quality
There are huge variations in the quality and price of ingredients found in most pet supplements.
Listing the ingredients doesn’t tell you anything about the actual quality of the ingredients used.
Example: Two joint supplements have hyaluronic acid listed as an ingredient. One company bought HA that has a low molecular weight, while the other has a high molecular weight. One comes from rooster combs, while the other is fermented. One is $60.00 a kilogram, while the other is over $600.00 a kilogram. The ingredient list doesn't tell you anything about the quality of the ingredients.
Bioavailability
Several compounds have been shown to have very low bioavailability. Meaning your dog is just pooping or peeing it out. Curcumin is one of the most well-known for its poor bioavailability (which is why, despite all the research, it’s never truly been considered a drug candidate), but there are many other compounds with poor bioavailability. Some of the more innovative ingredient formulations address this issue.
Consistency
By using patented and trademarked ingredients, we have a much greater level of consistency in the ingredients than just sourcing a generic ingredient, which will always have a certain level of variation. While the small variation might not seem like a big deal, it can make a world of difference for some ingredients.
Backed by Research
The ingredients in our supplements have been extensively studied and are backed by 100’s of clinical trials and peer-reviewed studies, many of which are double-blind placebo-controlled (Gold Standard). The studies range from mice, dogs, cats, humans and even horses. Our supplements are only intended for dogs though.
K9 BioActives Differences
There are thousands of supplements on the market. So why join a crowded market?
One of the biggest problems besides ingredient quality is dosing. At least half of the supplements, if not more, don’t have dosing consistent with what the scientific literature supports, and that goes for NASC, Veterinarian Formulated, and Veterinarian Endorsed supplements.
The second issue is that a lot of supplements are vastly overpriced for what you are getting.
For example, If we look at many of the ingredients that go in most joint supplements, many of them are relatively cheap (Glucosamine, Chondroitin, and MSM).
We aren’t going to name the brand, but they charge 80 dollars for their relatively “generic” joint supplement. The total cost for their active ingredients is at best a couple of dollars, 60% of their supplement is inactive ingredients. Even if we multiply it several times for packaging, inactive ingredients, and having it manufactured and packaged, they have an insane profit margin on their supplements.
This is why comparing the quality of the ingredients in addition to the amount of active ingredients is essential.
We truly value transparency in our products and strive to be open with our customers. However, the specific amounts and ingredient suppliers in our formulations are proprietary due to the extensive research and development that went into selecting each ingredient and determining the precise dosing.
We’ve invested significant time in studying the optimal combinations to ensure maximum effectiveness and safety. Our supplements are not simply white-labeled from a company you have likely never heard of.
Additionally, we’ve faced requests from distributors and pet stores to create treats specifically to replace competitors’ products, including instances involving individuals currently affiliated with multiple pet food and supplement companies. This is against everything we stand for and we will never accept these requests.
To protect our unique formulations and suppliers (we reviewed 20 different suppliers just for curcumin), we must keep these details confidential. Your trust in our brand is paramount, and we assure you that every ingredient is chosen with the utmost care for your pet’s health and well-being.
The placebo and caregiver effects are very real, and their impact has even been observed in canine epilepsy research.
It can be challenging to determine if a supplement is genuinely beneficial. While we all hope that the supplements we provide are making a difference, it’s important to assess their actual impact.
That’s why we offer questionnaires with some of our supplements, designed to help you evaluate their effectiveness. Believing a supplement is helpful is not the same as knowing it truly is.
While there is no official definition, The NIH, at one point, did propose the following.
Bioactive food components are constituents in foods or dietary supplements, other than those functioning to meet basic nutritional needs that effect changes in health status or changes in the structure or function of the body.
- Essential = Preventing Deficiency
- Bioactives = Promoting Health
Most supplements make extensive use of fillers aka inactive ingredients. Some supplement companies advertise no fillers, and then you see 15 inactive ingredients. which make up 92% of the supplement. This is another reason why our supplements seem to be more expensive, and that’s because our supplements are all active ingredients, not garbanzo beans or glycerin.
If your dog is picky, we offer several healthy and delicious Flavor Enhancer Dog Food Toppers such as Krill, Freeze Dried Goat Yogurt, Freeze Dried Single Protein Dog Food Toppers, Freeze Dried Duck Organ, and Freeze-Dried Boar organ, that can be mixed in with the supplement to entice your dog.
Canola Oil, Citric Acid, Dried Potato Product, Glycerin, Maltodextrin, Natural Flavoring, Sorbic Acid, Tapioca Starch, Vegetable Oil, Coconut Flour, Garbanzo Flower, Flaxseed, Palm Oil, Pea Flower, Powdered Cellulose, Tapioca, Vegetable Glycerin, Safflower Oil, Natural Bacon Flavor, Mixed Tocopherols, Natural Preservative.
The above is by no means an exhaustive list.
BioActive Compounds
