Animal Nutrition
Pet Arthritis Supplement found in Chicken Sternums?
So as vets we recommend that pets suffering from joint conditions be fed a daily joint supplement. These usually contain Glucosamine and Chondroitin sulphate and then a few other ingredients for example green lipped mussel extract, MSM, Vit C.
These joint supplements contain products that provide the building blocks to form new cartilage and some also have mild anti-inflammatory properties.
Many pet owners question whether these supplements are effective and necessary every day. Joint supplements are part of the long term management of Osteoarthritis. Together with muscle strengthening, rehabilitation, therapeutic exercises and hydrotherapy they will help slow down the progression of your arthritic pets condition.
Now what about these chicken sternums? Well, Scientists at the University of Nebraska have discovered that Type II collagen found in chicken sternums helps to deactivate the inflammatory process in the joint, and prevent the breakdown of joint cartilage.
Now, it’s not as simple as just feeding your pet some chicken soup everyday. Heating the chicken sternums denatures the collagen and this causes it to loose its anti inflammatory abilities. So its important that un-denatured collagen is used.
Clinical studies were done looking at 100 dogs that were given a Glucosamine and chondroitin combined supplement and another group Collagen Type II only supplement.
The studies revealed an improvement in overall pain by 62% with the Collagen type II compared to 26% with the Glucosamine/Chondroitin group.
Lameness improved by 78% in the Collagen Type II group compared to 42% in the G/Ch group. And pain on limb palpation improved by 91% in the Collagen Type II to the 42% in the G/Ch group
Another study looked at giving the Collagen type II for 90 days. All dogs showed significant improvements in physical activity and pain. They then withdrew the Collagen Type II for 30 days and there was a relapse in the overall pain and lameness in all dogs. This proves that daily supplementation is vital to achieve lasting results.
Its well tolerated in both humans and people and has no reported side effects.
So how do you give it to your pet?
Well there are a few products on the market that contain it already. For those of you in the northern hemisphere Vetoquinol has a product called flexadin. In the southern hemisphere there is only one veterinary joint supplement that I could find that contained Collagen type II of chicken sternum origin and that was GCS joint care advanced made by Ciplavet. I searched the wellness shops websites but could not find an over the counter collagen type II supplement that was un-denatured and of chicken sternum origin.
If you do manage to find it the dose for small dogs (<20kg)is 20mg per day and the dose for large dogs (>20kgs) is 40mg per day.
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