When Rooted first launched back in February, a calming supplement was one product that we planned to include in the first collection. After developing the product and allowing the tincture to extract, we weren’t happy with the final outcome so we made the choice to postpone this product launch. This tincture's had a total of 7 months in development now, a lot of research, formulating and trialing has gone into it, and we believe this really shows with the quality of the product.
Most dogs that we know of suffer from some form of stress or anxiety, and this was the initial inspiration. We wanted to create a product that would help support anxious dogs along their journey with training and becoming a more relaxed dog. The most recent inspiration came from one of my own dogs, who we adopted in April this year. He massively struggles with switching-off, displays a lot of displacement behaviours such as barking, gets frustrated and overstimulated very easily, and just generally finds everything in life a lot to deal with. His world was very small and sheltered before coming to us, so it’s a lot for him to adjust to. This is when we decided that we need to launch this product so it can help our dog, and all the other dogs that it could also help too.
The product will be available for pre-order from Sunday 21st July 2024, at 7pm.
What Dogs Will Benefit From This Product?
If your dog displays any of the following behaviours, habits or feelings, the Calmness Potion could help:
- Restlessness - struggles to settle in the home, in other peoples homes, when visitors come over, change of routine, or not able to switch-off
- Stress - finds certain situations, places or people stressful
- Anxious - this can translate to many things, such as anxiousness around people/dogs, vet visits, being left alone, loud noises
- Displacement Behaviours - can display certain behaviours like barking or chewing when they feel stressed, frustrated or anxious
- Separation Anxiety - struggles to be left alone at home or for longer periods of time
- Dog/People Reactivity - reacts to either when out on walks or when they visit your home
- Hyperactivity - can be hyperactive, making them harder to manage when it comes to training or being calmer in the home
- Overstimulation - gets easily overwhelmed by situations, leading to displacement behaviours or giving big, difficult reactions
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Lack of Focus - struggles to focus on you or think with a clearer mind
How We Trialled The Product
All our products go through trialing to ensure they give the results we want the product to achieve. The product was trialled on dogs of different ages, weights, breeds and type of concerns. We had dogs who suffer from separation anxiety, restlessness, overstimulation, general anxiety, dog reactivity, anxious of strangers, bad sleeping routine, and many other concerns.
We allocated each sampler with a custom dosage and direction plan. Some trialled the product consistently for 4 weeks, some had a cycle of 3 weeks on/5 days off, 1 week on/1 day off, they all varied. Dogs who suffer from more singular incidents like going to the vets or being left alone, trialled the product by giving just on the day of these events. Trialing it this way has helped us decide on the best dosage instructions for the final product.
What Is The Tincture Made Of?
Like all our products that we launch, we keep the ingredients clean, minimal and don’t include any fillers. This tincture is made up of only four ingredients:
- Apple Cider Vinegar - the base we use for all our tinctures, it’s the most natural and comes with many benefits, such as being anti-bacterial.
- Valerian Root - a potent herb that affects the way chemical messages are sent to the brain. It regulates and slows the nervous system, which massively helps dogs who are stressed and anxious. It calms, lowers stress, and can lower high blood pressure. It also helps the body relax in other ways, such as easing tension in the muscles.
- Chamomile - known as the ‘soothing herb’, it relaxes the mind and eases anxiety. It includes flavonoids, terpenoids, and antioxidants, which contribute to its therapeutic effects. It’s gentle on the gut and helps with other concerns such as an upset stomach, which can be an added problem for stressed dogs.
- Ashwagandha - brings down the dogs stress hormones due to compounds that it contains, which are similar to steroid hormones produced by the body. It reduces anxiety, increases focus and concentration, and general well-being. This herb can also be great at bettering sleep.
The Results We Gathered
The success rate has been extremely high for this product, it has benefited all the dogs that trialled it. All feedback included that anxiety levels massively reduced, the dogs were able to handle their triggers better, and they were able to relax and switch-off. Other feedback included improvement in sleep, less fearful, able to focus better and think with a level-head, and behaviours like barking has reduced. A number of the samplers summed up the effects by saying “it’s taken the edge off”.
We will be sharing an Instagram post ahead of the pre-order date with testimonials, this will give more in-depth feedback. Our instagram is @rootedherbalpets
Dosage & Direction
The product can be given in two ways:
- Daily (with a minimum of 1 day break per month)
- As needed (singular dose on the day of an event)
Giving Daily:
More suited for dogs who have more ‘severe’ cases of stress or anxiety, this gives consistent support to help them everyday. We advise if you choose this way, you give your dog at least one day off a month. If you can manage more days than this, such as 5, that’s even better. We recommend this so your dogs body has a chance to reset and reduce the chance of building tolerance. Please bear in mind that the effects will wear off when taking the break, so it’s best to consider your timing when giving the break to ensure you’re not doing it when they’re more likely to encounter their triggers.
Giving As Needed:
If you leave your dog home alone on the odd occasion, they struggle with car journeys or vet visits, you can give the supplement in singular, one-off doses. Give an hour before the event to allow the herbs to work into the system. Up to two doses can be given within 24 hours.
Dosage:
The dosage is 1-2 drops per kg in weight. We advise starting with 1 drop and building it up if needed. We always promote that less is more, it’s best to give as little as possible to stimulate the body in healing, rather than overloading with product and suppressing. Starting small also allows you to ensure your dog doesn’t have any reactions to the supplement.
Splitting the dose across two times a day is best for the body to absorb the supplement, it's easier on the body to process it compared to the one bigger dose. We did have samplers trial both ways, and neither seemed to differ in effects on the dogs behaviour though. We still advise splitting across two doses to make it easier on the body. It can be given with their meal or given directly in their mouth (if they are happy with the taste of vinegar!)
Disclaimer
This supplement is not a quick fix for behavioural issues. This is to be used alongside a healthy, well-balanced diet, training, breed fulfilment, and outlets for their energy. The tincture is an added support to help relax your dog, lessen stress, make them think more clearly and have better focus and sleep. The combination of these things will make training and their approach to triggers much more manageable, and improving your dogs well-being.
Pre-Orders
If you’d like to order a bottle of the Calmness Potion, it will be available on our website to pre-order from Sunday 21st July 2024 at 7pm. Pre-order will open up again once the first batch is sold out, after this, we will have a constant supply which will always be available to buy.
If you have any questions about this product, please reach out to us on instagram @rootedherbalpets or email hello@rootedherbalpets.co.uk