Pet food

A complete and balanced diet for our pets has a significant impact on how long their lives are as well as their quality of life. In addition, the organoleptic properties of pet food become a relevant parameter to make them more attractive to their palates in order to deliver the prescribed amounts of food to our pets.

QuolioTM provides to our pets a fast (easy digestion process) and healthy energy source without interference in palatability tests.

There are different published scientific articles related to the study of canine and feline cognition through the study of mental processing in the areas of learning, memory and attention that conclude the following evidence:

  • Dogs have a circadian sleep/wake cycle, like humans, with higher levels of activity in the daytime than nighttime hours. Senior dogs still have circadian rhythms, despite reduced activity compared to adult dogs.

    [Zanghi, B. M,, deRivera, C., Araujo, J. & Milgram, N. W. (2008, November). “Circadian sleep/wake patterns and cognitive performance in adult dogs change with age.” Presented at Society of Neuroscience Conference, Washington, D. C.]

  • Similar to aged people, senior dogs are about 50% less active than early adult dogs; this may decrease their daily caloric needs and increase their risk of obesity unless their feeding is adjusted.

    [Zanghi, B. M., Kerr, W., de Rivera, C., Araujo, J. A., & Milgram, N. W. (2012). “Effect of age and feeding schedule on diurnal rest/activity rhythms in dogs.” Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 7, 339-347. doi: 10.1016/j.jveb.2012.01.004]

  • Senior dogs display alterations in nighttime sleep patterns, with more activity at night and earlier onset of daytime activity.

    [Zanghi, B. M., Kerr, W., de Rivera, C., Araujo, J. A., & Milgram, N. W. (2012). “Effect of age and feeding schedule on diurnal rest/activity rhythms in dogs.” Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 7, 339-347. doi: 10.1016/j.jveb.2012.01.004];[Zanghi, B. M., Kerr, W., Gierer, J., de Rivera, C., Araujo, J. A., & Milgram, N. W. (2013). “Characterizing behavioral sleep using actigraphy in adult dogs of various ages fed once or twice daily.” Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 8, 195-203. doi: 10.1016/j.jveb.2012.10.007]

  • Increased napping in dogs 11 years of age and older may be an early indicator of some memory loss.

    [Zanghi, B. M., Gardner, C., Araujo, J., & Milgram, N. W. (2016). “Diurnal changes in core body temperature, day/night locomotor activity patterns, and actigraphy-generated behavioral sleep in aged canines with varying levels of cognitive dysfunction.” Neurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms, 1, 8-18. doi: 10.1016/j.nbscr.2016.07.001]

  • Cognitive impairment may be present before behavioral signs are observed, emphasizing the importance of preventive approaches to mitigate the risk factors for cognitive impairment.

    [Zanghi, B. M., Gardner, C., Araujo, J., & Milgram, N. W. (2016). “Diurnal changes in core body temperature, day/night locomotor activity patterns, and actigraphy-generated behavioral sleep in aged canines with varying levels of cognitive dysfunction.” Neurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms, 1, 8-18. doi: 10.1016/j.nbscr.2016.07.001]

  • The areas in the brain responsible for memory appear to be at least partially independent from those responsible for learning and attention; if one type of memory or learning is affected, it doesn’t necessarily mean that other functions are similarly affected.

    [Zanghi, B. M., Araujo, J., & Milgram, N. W. (2015). “Cognitive domains in the dog: independence of working memory from object learning, selective attention, and motor learning.” Animal Cognition, 18, 789-800. doi: 10.1007/s10071-015-0847-3]

In the same way as for humans, several articles disclose that MCTs provide alternative energy sources for brain cells as well as direct anti-seizure activity of MCT metabolites:

  • Providing the neurons with an alternative energy source — such as ketone bodies, derived from the breakdown of MCTs — can help mitigate the glucose hypometabolism.
  • MCT oil supplementation can improve cognitive performance in dogs with age-related cognitive decline, including promoting memory, attention and trainability in as little as 30 days.

    [Pan, Y., Larson, B., Araujo, J. A., Lau, W., de Rivera, C., Santana, R., Gore, A., & Milgram, N. W. (2010). “Dietary supplementation with medium-chain TAG has long-lasting cognition-enhancing effects in aged dogs.” British Journal of Nutrition, 103, 1746-1754. doi: 10.1017/S0007114510000097]

  • Dogs with cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS), regardless of the severity, benefit from a diet containing a proprietary blend of MCT oil, omega-3 fatty acids, B vitamins, antioxidants and arginine. Signs of improvement may be observed within the first 30 days of feeding, with even more improvement noticed by 90 days.
  • Feeding CDS-affected dogs the proprietary MCT blend leads to significant improvement in 5 of 6 DISHAA (Disorientation, Social Interactions, Sleep/Wake Cycles, Housesoiling, Activity and Anxiety) categories of CDS-associated behaviors within 30 days, and in all 6 within 90 days.

    [Pan, Y., Landsberg, G., Mougeot, I., Kelly, S., Xu, H., Bhatnagar, S., Migram, N.W. (2017). “Efficacy of a therapeutic diet in dogs with signs of cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS): a prospective, double blinded, placebo-controlled clinical study.” Abstract N10: 2017 American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) forum. Available at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jvim.14778]

  • More than two-thirds (71%) of dogs with refractory idiopathic epilepsy showed an overall reduction in seizure frequency when fed a complete and balanced diet supplemented with MCTs, with almost half of those dogs showing a 50% or greater reduction in seizure frequency and 1 in 7 dogs becoming seizure-free.
  • More than three-quarters (81%) of dogs with refractory idiopathic epilepsy showed a reduction in the number of seizure days (the number of days in a month with seizures) when fed a diet supplemented with MCTs.
  • The effects of the MCT-supplemented diet were seen as early as the first day for some dogs.
  • The MCT-supplemented diet did not significantly affect the plasma concentrations of phenobarbital or potassium bromide.
  • In conjunction with anti-epileptic drugs, dietary supplementation with MCTs can reduce seizure frequency in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy.

    [Law, T.H., Davies, E.S., Pan, Y., Zanghi, B., Want, E., Volk, H.A. (2015). “A randomised trial of a medium-chain TAG diet as treatment for dogs with idiopathic epilepsy.” British Journal of Nutrition, 114, 1438–1447. doi: 10.1017/ S000711451500313X Erratum in: British Journal of Nutrition, 2016; 115:1696.]

  • Dogs with idiopathic epilepsy can also exhibit ADHD-like (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) behaviors – predominantly high excitability and chasing behavior, resulting in low trainability scores.
  • Feeding epileptic dogs a complete and balanced diet with 5.5% MCT oil reduced two ADHD-like behaviors (chasing behavior and stranger-related fear).

    [Packer, R. M. A., Law, T.H., Davies, E., Zanghi, B. M., Pan, Y., & Volk., H. A. (2016). “Effects of a ketogenic diet on ADHDlike behavior in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy.” Epilepsy & Behavior, 55, 62-68. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2015.11.014]

QuolioTM product complies with the highest quality standards and provides very useful health benefits to generate a wide range of specific veterinary formulas by type of breed, activity, age and/or pathology.