The Beaphar FIPROtec stand attracted many breeds of dog from Leonbergers to Dalmatians and from Clumber Spaniels to Pugs - even the internet sensation, Tuna, paid a visit.

The road to success continues as the ‘FIPROtec Bug Bus’ will be making its way to the Suffolk Dog Day shortly, which takes place at Helmingham Hall this weekend.

It’s not too late to enjoy the rewards of stocking Beaphar FIPROtec. With higher margins than other over-the-counter Fipronil products, Beaphar FIPROtec, which contains the well-known active ingredient Fipronil and is manufactured in-house by Beaphar, is able to offer the best margin for retailers and fabulous consumer value.

For more information, contact your local Beaphar Sales Executive or call 0333 0066236. Visit fiprotec.co.uk

Eukanuba is continuing to explore the contributing factors to achieving healthy ageing and exceptional longevity in dogs, and has found that the fundamentals are very similar for our canine counterparts as we would consider for ourselves.

Eukanuba’s ‘Longevity Council’ highlight the similarities between dogs and humans in promoting healthy ageing. From nutrition and exercise, to regular medical care and general well-being, almost all factors that affect our health, can also be considered for man’s best friend.

The Longevity Council (Professor Stuart Carmichael, Dr Penny Watson, Dr Vicki Adams, Professor Steve Dean and David Morgan) are a group of internationally renowned vet and industry experts, representing opinions from fields across veterinary medicine including orthopaedics, genetics and nutrition.

EXCEPTIONAL LONGEVITY IN DOGS & ‘ESCAPING’ DISEASE

We live in a society with an ageing population; with nearly one in five people3 in the UK will live to see their 100th birthday. Eukanuba has discovered that dogs are also achieving ‘exceptional longevity’ through a careful balance of nutrition, exercise, appropriate care and veterinary treatment.

Professor Steve Dean, Veterinary Surgeon and Former Chairman of the UK Kennel Club explains the similarities with the Eukanuba long life dogs and human centenarians: “The 11 dogs that reached exceptional longevity have demonstrated what we see in human centenarians - they have managed to compress into their last few years of life all those diseases that would typically have affected them as younger dogs. We can consider these dogs as “escapers” in that they have somehow escaped serious disease as a younger animal, or that they are able to cope with the disease in a better way.”

Professor Stuart Carmichael, Managing Director at Fitzpatrick Referrals in London and Professor of Veterinary Science at the University of Surrey, speaks of how certain diseases are often considered as being age related rather than considering the disease independently.

He said: “it’s important to separate ageing from disease because as you get older you have a higher risk of disease due to the ageing of your immune system and organ systems, but ageing and disease are not the same. If you use dementia as an example, in the past we thought that dementia was normal human ageing which impacted badly on research into how to deal with it.  It’s only when you get someone with early onset dementia you realise that this is a disease, it isn’t just people getting old. And yes it’s commoner in older people but it is not normal ageing.

“Essentially, it isn’t just about living long; it’s about the quality of life as well.  Dog owners want more than a dog that lives for 16 or 17 years, but a dog that lives for 16 or 17 years with a high quality of life.  It’s an important mind set to get into.  We’re not just talking about living longer; we’re talking about living healthy.”



BODY CONDITION AND OBESITY

The number of overweight and obese pets continues to rise in the UK, with almost 45% of pets treated by veterinarians consider overweight4. Excess weight increases the risk of conditions such as osteoarthritis, hypertension, diabetes and cancer, and can also significantly reducing life expectancy.

According to recent research by Wellcome Trust, the Medical Research Council and the Dogs Trust,  Labradors are more likely to become obese than other breeds partly because a gene, important in controlling how the brain recognises hunger and the feeling of being full after eating, is thought to be affected. Dr Giles Yeo, a human geneticist from the University of Cambridge said “What we have found is that some Labradors get fat because they have a deletion in a gene within their brain and this particular gene plays a role in sensing how much fat they have in their body - so some Labradors don't know how much fat they have and so keep eating to try to get fatter.”

Eukanuba’s Veterinary Training Manager, Kellie Ceccarelli exams the causes of obesity: “The parallels between canine and human obesity can also be considered as part of a healthy lifestyle. For example, we know it’s important to get regular exercise and eat a healthy diet; the same applies for dogs to allow them to maintain an ideal weight and body condition.

“There are some times in a dog’s life when weight gain becomes more common, such as later in life or after neutering.  Keep in mind that typically from the age of 7 years many dogs begin to show signs of middle age spread. For this reason we recommend changing to a lower energy diet such as Eukanuba Mature & Senior to help prevent weight gain during a dogs ‘more mature’ years.”

Kellie summarises: “Similar to people, the secret to having a healthy dog is maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle.  Of course we mustn’t forget about genetics as they play an important role but I think it’s important to realise that we as pet owners really can make a huge difference with diet, exercise, appropriate care and good veterinary care.”



NUTRITION

It is the responsibility of pet owners to keep their dogs as close to an ideal body weight and condition as possible to maintain good health into old age. This requires more than high quality nutrition, as Dr Vicki Adams, Veterinary Epidemiology Consultant explains: “For dog owners, it’s down to them to give their pet good nutrition. This means the right kind of food in the right quantity, appropriate for their life stage and life style i.e. how active or inactive their dog is. What’s more, we need to provide regular exercise to keep that lean body mass as long as we can, as this is vital to giving a dog a long, healthy and happy lifestyle.”

Highlighting the role that nutrition plays in health and well-being, Kellie says: “Nutrition plays a key role in helping dogs alleviate symptoms related to conditions such as diabetes and intestinal issues or control weight gain from being less active. By assessing a dog’s wellbeing we are able to prescribe a diet rich in key ingredients and anti-oxidants to support strong natural defences enabling pet owners to enjoy more time with their dog.” 

Eukanuba’s longevity council collectively agreed that the secret to healthy ageing in canines is a careful balance of nutrition, good husbandry and effective veterinary care. David Morgan comments on the longevity observation: “The ultimate goal of the Eukanuba Long Life Observation is to give owners the best advice on how they can care for their dogs so that they achieve what we call healthy longevity. There are so many variables involved in ageing; we wanted to make sure that we gave the dogs a consistent and high level of exercise, husbandry and care, allowing us to really focus the results of the observation on learning about healthy ageing.”

As one would expect the new tortoise enclosure encompasses many practical and essential features to ensure the wellbeing of its inhabitants, but it’s the incredible aesthetics which really puts this new housing into a league of its own, for it has been ingeniously designed and manufactured to resemble a large mother-tortoise.

Vividarium, the company responsible for its creation, believe the lifelike polyresin animal is sure to be a real crowd pleaser when it’s showcased to thousands of potential customers at the PATS Telford in September.

And it would appear that the reptile industry seem to agree, with the editor of the Practical Reptile Keeping Magazine recently waxing lyrical of its unique features, benefits and exquisite fine details, in a two page review of the product.

The clever and innovative thinking, which the Practical Reptile Magazine review eloquently portrayed, has obviously been at the forefront of the product’s design at every stage, and has enabled the housing to boast several unique features, benefitting both the hobbyist and the inhabitants alike.

• Features include an in-built hide, formed out of the inside of the head of the enclosure, so baby tortoises can retreat and hide out, reducing stress levels.
• Internal oval shape, reducing the risk of young tortoises toppling over on to their backs, which they often do when trying to shimmy up right-angled perimeter walls in more traditional rectangular vivariums.
• Inbuilt cable tidy makes a neat and tidy job of the lighting.
• Made from lightweight resin which means its waterproof, it won’t rot, it’s easy to manoeuvre and easy to clean and disinfect.

The Vividarium Tortoise Home is the very first product to come off the production line for the fledgling company, but they already have plans in place to introduce a further six similarly striking designs to their portfolio next year. These will include snakes, lizards and amphibians.

With design patents already fully granted in 28 countries worldwide and a 160,000 square foot factory able to handle any amount of orders, Vividarium may start to see the biggest shake-up in the reptile housing industry within the last four decades. 

For more information on the Tortoise Home visit www.vividarium.co.uk

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Lily’s Kitchen has bolstered its team with the appointment of Emma Wrigley as New Product Director.

Emma will help to accelerate the company’s innovation in products which shake up the pet food category and support the company’s ambitious growth plans.

Lily’s Kitchen is set to tap into the experience of Emma Wrigley to oversee its new product development when she joins the company at the beginning of August.

Prior to joining Lily's Kitchen, Emma spent 18 years at John Lewis working in retail and buying before moving to Fortnum and Mason where she held the role of Trading Director. She then moved and spent six years at Hunter Boot as Product Development and Sourcing Director.

Emma says: “This is such an exciting time to be joining the company. Lily’s Kitchen is a hugely innovative, dynamic and engaging challenger brand.

"It has just won a Queen’s Award for its innovation and I am so excited by the fantastic opportunity to take this company to the next stage of growth as more and more consumers become aware of what really goes into pet food, and actively choose more nutritious food for their pets. 

"There is so much scope for the brand with new product development and I can’t wait for my two dogs to be Lily's Kitchen product testers… along with Lily and her granddaughter Lulu of course!”

Henrietta Morrison, Founder and CEO of Lily’s Kitchen, said of Wrigley’s appointment: “We are delighted to have been able to attract and recruit such a high caliber candidate as Emma who we know will bring much experience to the team.

"Lily’s Kitchen is already renowned for its groundbreaking, innovative products and exciting times lie ahead for Lily’s Kitchen and consumers. We very much look forward to welcoming Emma into the Lily’s Kitchen family.”

• Carnilove contains 70% meats of wild-origin  
• Carnilove is grain-free and potato-free
• Carnilove contains no common allergy containing ingredients
• The ingredients list is clear and leaves no room for misrepresentation

In addition, at 67p per day to feed a 16kg dog, Carnilove Duck & Pheasant offers the best value of all the similarly rated dog foods on the site. 

Carnilove dry dog food is available in bag sizes, 1.5kg & 12kg.  Prices start at £7.95 & £47.95 respectively.  Carnilove is also available as a wet food in 400g cans, which retail at £2.25.

With such great accolades, great retail price points in line with the mainstream brands, fantastic margins and great in-store marketing support, no wonder it’s a growing favourite amongst pet speciality retailers and dog lovers alike.

Contact BSB Products Limited on 01737 488400 or email sales@BSBProducts.co.uk to find out more about the Carnilove product range and the fantastic introductory stocking deals available.