Ask any pet owner what he enjoys most about his relationship with his pet and you’re likely to hear things like, “We love to play and go on adventures together,” or “She follows me around the house and keeps me company.”
As much as owners may enjoy playing with their pets, many don’t give joint comfort and flexible movement a second thought. That is, not until their pet begins to slow down.
Support for flexibility and comfort tends to be something owners think is reserved for older pets. Recent studies prove different.
Newer research tells us that one in five dogs, especially larger breed dogs, could use support for optimal hip and joint health throughout life. Meaning your dog could benefit from additional support way before his senior years.
However, the need is just as great with cats, if not greater. Nearly one in three cats over the age of eight could use support for his joint function and comfort.
Later, I’ll reveal how you can take advantage of the latest breakthroughs in joint and connective tissue support to help make your pet’s life more comfortable and enjoyable.
Thankfully, gone are the days of just slow-acting glucosamine and chondroitin supplements for support.
How Cartilage–Supporting Agents May Help Support Your Pet’s Joint Function
Cartilage-supporting agents help maintain hip and joint health and support your pet’s cartilage health as she ages, but what exactly is cartilage?
It’s the firm elastic living tissue that lines the two bone surfaces in a healthy joint.
Cartilage cells produce long chain molecules called glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). When they combine with water, they provide cushioning to help protect your pet's bones during movement and exercise.
The most common GAG is chondroitin sulfate. Chondroitin is naturally present in healthy connective tissue and cartilage.
Another GAG naturally found in normal cartilage is hyaluronic acid, or HA. HA helps cartilage maintain its flexibility, elasticity and strength.
Cartilage is unique in that, it has no blood or nerve supply, so it can’t survive on its own. It must get all its nutrition and oxygen from your bone and joint fluid.
With each new year, cartilage can begin to lose water and become dry and less elastic. Joint fluid production may decrease, and your natural production of GAGs slows, and it gets tougher to replace lost cartilage.
This is the same for pet.
She could reach a point where her body may not be able to replace lost cartilage fast enough to maintain optimal hip and joint health.
Special cartilage–supporting agents may help maintain the health of cartilage cells and enhance your pet’s joint function and performance.
Why Most Joint Formulas May Not Provide the Benefits Promised
Over the years, I’ve had many pet parents express frustration with joint health formulas that contain only glucosamine and chondroitin.
I agree – benefits can come slow with these formulas, if they happen at all. Many pet owners simply give up using them when they don’t appear to be helping.
Additionally, there are three potential problems with giving your pet formulas that only contain these two.
- Much of the glucosamine on the market is derived from shellfish, specifically crab, lobster, and shrimp shells – a common allergen
- Chondroitin molecules are large, making it a challenge for your pet to digest
- Glucosamine may affect your pet’s metabolism
For all these reasons, I’m frequently asked about a replacement, especially one that works quickly.
The good news is, we now have a whole new generation of effective – and fast-acting – ingredients to choose from.
Let’s take a closer look at how these new ingredients may help support a healthy range of motion and joint health by aiding in the delivery of joint supporting agents to cartilage and soft tissue in and around your pet’s joints.
Nature’s Gift for Your Pet’s Healthy Joints
Eggshell Membrane is an ingredient derived from the protective barrier that remains in the shells of broken eggs.
What makes eggshell membrane so unique?
It contains a number of naturally derived substances including:
- Collagen – A fibrous protein that supports cartilage and connective tissue strength and elasticity.
- Elastin – A protein that supports skin, cardiovascular, cartilage and spinal health. Elastin gives tissue its elastic tension and ability to resume its shape after stretching.
- Desmosine and isodesmosine – Two amino acids that are responsible for elastin’s elastic or “rubbery” properties.
- Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) – Includes glucosamine, chondroitin and hyaluronic acid – vital polysaccharides that are structural components of connective tissue, interstitial fluids and skeletal structure.
- Transforming growth factor-B – A protein that plays a crucial role in cellular differentiation and immune function.
Eggshell membrane, with all these valuable components working together, helps:
- Support a healthy range of motion.
- Promote a healthy inflammatory response.
- Promote enhanced skin health.
How This Eco–Friendly Eggshell Membrane Matrix Came to Be
Straight from real, freshly cracked eggs, Natural Eggshell Membrane, or NEM® brand eggshell membrane matrix offers the important building blocks collagen, elastin, GAGs and other proteins to support the stability and flexibility of your pet’s joints and to help maintain his joint cartilage. *
NEM® is an eco-friendly product, with a fascinating story behind it.
Watching truckload after truckload full of discarded shells departing from a local Midwestern egg-breaking facility, NEM’s founder wondered how he could help save 600,000 tons of egg shells from being discarded into American landfills each year. Made by Mother Nature, this waste had to have a better purpose.
After extensive research, he discovered eggshell membrane had been used for many years in Japan and offered countless health benefits, including joint health.*
Experiencing a eureka moment, NEM’s founder launched his company’s mission to transform this wasted resource into a powerful, naturally sourced joint health supplement.
Today, this forward-thinking company is contributing to consumer wellness and preventing thousands of tons of eggshells from becoming environmental waste.
The process they use to manufacture NEM is equally as environmentally friendly.
The FDA inspected, NSF–certified GMP facilities leave no detrimental ecological footprint. Using an all-natural, patented process, the eggshells and attached membranes are separated from each other. The isolated membrane is then partially hydrolyzed and dry-blended to produce 100% pure eggshell membrane powder.
Made completely in the U.S., every lot of eggshell membrane undergoes testing to verify it is low in toxic heavy metals and free from pathogenic bacteria.
Plus, it’s guaranteed to be free of any genetically engineered material.
How Eggshell Membrane May Benefit Your Pet’s Joint and Cartilage Health
Because eggshell membrane naturally contains many of the same key substances found in healthy joint cartilage, including glycosaminoglycans (chondroitin and hyaluronic acid), collagen and peptides, it offers:
- Support for your pet’s joint comfort and flexibility
- Easing of joint stiffness due to normal daily exercise and activity
- Maintenance of cartilage and connective tissue
- Fast and continued support for your pet’s overall joint health
There are a number of positive human studies on eggshell membrane, and now a canine study shows similar results.
A recent six-week study with 51 dogs at eight different veterinary clinics was set up to evaluate changes in joint function after weeks one and six. Researchers looked at pain, quality of life, mobility, lameness and a serum biomarker for cartilage degradation.
The results proved supplementing with eggshell membrane created positive changes in joint function and joint comfort within one week of use.
Profound cartilage support and improved quality of life were reported by pet owners and veterinarians following six weeks of supplementation with eggshell membrane.
Certified Organic, This Beef Collagen Comes from a Trusted Source
Collagen is naturally found in your pet’s joints and connective tissue. It makes up as much as 90% of muscle, tendons, ligaments and other joint supporting tissues.
Through its ability to create a fibrous network of collagen, your pet’s cartilage can entrap circulating joint building blocks and provide strength to the surrounding tissue.
As your pet ages, her capacity to produce collagen fades, making her more susceptible to injuries and painful bones and joint conditions, as well as poor skin and coat health. Age-related joint and tissue pain is largely due to the loss and breakdown of her body’s collagen.
The collagen from organic beef bone broth in Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support offers types I, II and III of collagen, providing support for both cartilage tissue and bone health.
Recent testing reveals popular non-organic collagen products contain potentially hazardous contaminants, including antibiotics, steroids, prescription drug metabolites, parabens and even insecticides.
This suggests that much of the non-organic collagen is coming from factory-farmed animals or animals raised in CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations). If collagen is an ingredient in any supplement you give your pet, it must be Certified USDA Organic, for your pet’s well-being.
How Hyaluronic Acid Helps Protect Your Pet’s Joints During Movement
Hyaluronic Acid (HA) is present in every tissue of your pet’s body. One of the most important functions it performs is to retain water, second only to providing nutrients and removing waste from cells that lack a direct blood supply, such as cartilage cells.
As we discovered earlier, cartilage is a specialized form of connective tissue, lending strength and flexibility to your pet’s body. A key component of cartilage is HA.
Your pet’s joints are surrounded by a membrane called the synovial membrane, which forms a capsule around the ends of the bones. This membrane secretes a liquid called synovial fluid into the joint cavities, which serves as a lubricant and shock absorber.
Synovial fluid functions to protect your pet’s joints and bones during normal movement. Cartilage is immersed in and fed by this fluid, giving you an idea why it is so important to joint health. Without HA, nutrients can’t move into these cells, and waste can’t be moved out.
Unfortunately, the process of normal aging in your pet reduces the amount of HA produced.
That’s where HA may help.
The HA in Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support is a special, patented low density form, which is more easily absorbed into joint tissues than traditional HA.
MSM, Bromelain, Vitamin C and Black Pepper for an Added Measure of Comfort
Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) is a naturally occurring compound found in many foods in very small amounts. Published research shows MSM to be safe and effective in promoting joint comfort and supporting a normal range of motion in animals.
MSM provides two essential substances:
- Sulfur – a vital building block of your pet's joints, cartilage, nerve tissue, skin, hair and nails and more
- Methyl groups – supports many vital biochemical processes in your pet's body, including energy production
The sulfur in MSM helps promote flexibility and elasticity of body tissue, and helps maintain cell membrane permeability. MSM also acts as a powerful antioxidant, scavenging free radicals and aiding in muscle function and joint fluid production.
Adding MSM to my formula was a must, but we didn’t stop there. We added three more ingredients to support your pet’s joint health:
- Bromelain – a proteolytic enzyme from fresh pineapple, helps promote a normal immune response in humans and animals
- Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) – a powerful antioxidant to help reduce free radical production, and because it's pH balanced, it's gentle on your pet's stomach
- BioPerine® Black Pepper – a patented extract obtained from black pepper fruits (Piper nigrum) standardized minimum to 95% Piperine to help your pet absorb the beneficial compounds in the formula
Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support – Active Ingredients for Comfortable Movement and Healthy Joint Function
With fast-acting ingredients, Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support goes beyond traditional, slow-acting glucosamine-chondroitin pet supplements for ultimate joint flexibility, stability and comfort.
To summarize, here’s what you'll find in Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support:
- NEM® eggshell membrane
- Collagen from organic beef bone broth
- Low density hyaluronic acid
- MSM
- Bromelain Extract
- Vitamin C
- BioPerine® Black Pepper
Plus, you’ll be pleased to know there are no artificial flavors, colors, fillers or steroids in my formula.
With Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support, you're providing your favorite canine or feline with support for a comfortable and functional life.
Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support helps:
- Supports comfortable healthy joints and flexibility
- Support healthy cartilage
- Stimulate joint lubrication fluid production
- Maintain joint mobility
Provide your pet with the support she needs by giving her Bark & Whiskers™ Joint Support, and order your supply today.