Keeping the connection

Pet aging

Pets’ life spans have been continuously increasing over the past years. From 2002 to 2012, dogs’ life expectancies increased by 0.5 years to 11 years, while cats reached 12 years, an increase of 1 year.

Advanced age in companion animals is frequently associated with a number of changes: mobility loss, digestive disorders and behavioural changes, for example. 

Unfortunately, they are not always detectable and are sometimes difficult to understand by the owners, like those affecting cognitive functions, such as memory, movement coordination and learning capacity impacting pets’ behaviour. 

Providing innovative and natural nutritional solutions visibly improving pet health and wellness, Vivae, part of Diana Pet Food, has looked further into solutions to limit these changes and maintain the bond between the pet and its owner.

Preserving the brain 

Brain damage has dramatic consequences on its structure and functionality, at cellular and molecular levels, as damage lowers the efficiency of the connection systems between neurons. This is why senior pets undergo various behavioural modifications called Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome (CDS), impacting orientation, socio-environmental interaction, sleep-waking cycles, house soiling and general activity. 

The CDS frequency is noticed in 22.5% to 50% of dogs over the age of 7, while it is seen in 28% to 50% of cats older than 15 years. Declining pets’ cognitive performance, such as memory, learning ability, attention or spatial abilities is perceived as problematic by pet owners. Thus, preserving the brain is key to maintaining the bond between the owner and his aging pet.

Polyphenols: molecules of great interest

Nutritional strategies to limit cognitive decline in pets consist of reducing neuron loss and managing brain aging by correcting early metabolic changes and then minimising risk factors such as oxidative stress. Polyphenols are well-known for their antioxidant functions, and include flavonoids, phenolic acids, stilbenes, lignans, and phytochemicals – natural compounds existing in plant products such as fruits (e.g. grapes, apples and various berries), vegetables, nuts, cereals and tea.

Supplementation with polyphenols has revealed a protective effect in brain tissue involved in the development of CDS. It has also been demonstrated that combining polyphenols creates synergies supporting greater brain functionality.

Together with ten industrial and academic partners from France and Canada, Vivae has evaluated the benefits of synergistic polyphenol supplementation in the prevention of canine cognitive decline. As a result of this research, Phenomind is the new solution, mixing grape and wild blueberry extracts and providing a strong synergistic effect.

A scientific solution

Phenomind has been scientifically proven to be safe, bioavailable, able to improve the antioxidant status, and efficient on the cognitive functions in dogs. The efficacy of Phenomind supplementation on dogs’ cognitive abilities, particularly on learning and working memory, has been evaluated on 35 aged dogs. Evaluation of the learning abilities showed that dogs fed with Phenomind during eight weeks displayed significantly greater cognitive improvement than those which did not receive any supplementation. These results support the conclusion that the brain protection offered by Phenomind is significant in modifying a dog’s cognitive functions and behaviour. This offers pet food manufacturers a new opportunity to position their product in a dimension fully aligned with pet owners’ expectations.