Tharos reports calming effect of a malt extract supplement in dogs

British supplement maker Tharos has published the results of a two-phase professional trial of CaniNectar, an enzyme-rich malt extract supplement for dogs. In total, 63 UK veterinary professionals, trainers and behaviourists tracked 129 dogs representing more than 110 breeds and crosses over at least five weeks per phase.

The central finding concerns a subgroup. Of the 42 dogs that entered the trial with elevated anxiety scores, 38 improved and one was rated worse. Mean scores fell from 4.29 to 3.23 on a five-point scale, a drop of about 24.7 per cent, at p < 0.0001. The two phases used different dogs and different assessors months apart and produced near-identical reductions of 1.04 and 1.10 points; Tharos puts the probability of that replication arising by chance at roughly 1 in 1.6 million. Assessors' confidence in the product rose from 31 per cent in week one to 73 per cent by week…