I'm gonna talk to you about the mobility products as Claire just said, so I'm just gonna share my screen. And so We do have an ageing pet population, as you are all aware. There's 12 million pets, 12 million UK households contain pets.

So these are UK figures, and I understand this is quite an international event, so this is obviously pertaining to the UK, but there's 9 million dogs and 8 million cats. And obviously, to that, we do have a very ageing pet population and due to the increased lifespan, it's great that our pets are living longer than they ever have done. We know that age associated disorders are becoming much, much more prevalent.

And we know the problems that are associated with ageing. So we've got the cognitive changes, obviously, which affects our cats and our dogs and affect them in slightly different ways, really. So cats, we know it affects their social interaction a little bit more and makes them more sensitive to stress.

One of the common things that we hear from owners, and you probably do too, is that Cats become much more vocal as they get older, and it's crying at very different times of the day. Whereas for dogs, it can just lead to sort of disorientation or or aggressive behaviour or other behavioural changes. Obviously, muscle wastage is an issue when it comes to our ageing pets too.

It's a real vicious cycle. Once the there's a loss of the muscle mass and strength, weakness in the muscles then leads to very reduced physical activity, so that's sort of the spiral continues really. Weight changes as well.

So a lot of owners think that cats and dogs are more likely to be overweight as they get older. And this is certainly true with dogs, but actually with cats, they're more likely to be underweight. And that's because they have a reduced ability to digest fat and protein.

That's why it's really even more important that they're fed a diet that's suitable for ageing cats as it will help to support their digestion of these macronutrient groups. And obviously, as cats and dogs age, their sense of smell starts to decline too. So, it's harder to get them to eat and, and that can really have a, a, a bad impact too, and a negative impact on their appetite.

And now for the big ones, obviously we're talking about vital support today, so we're thinking about mobility, kidneys. We've, we've spoken an awful lot about that, cardiac, dental disorders. So there, you know, there, there's some minor things going on and there's some potentially major things going on as well.

Risk. Age is a big risk factor for joints sensitivities, as it's over that time, the cart cartilage's ability to regenerate decreases, which is why there seems to be an increased rate of joint problems in senior cats and dogs. Researchers suggested that 20% of dogs over the age of one already suffer with osteoarthritis, and up to 80% of dogs over 8 years of age suffer with it.

And 22% of cats over 1 and 90 90% of cats over 12 had changes on X-rays or examinations of their joints. So there seems to be an overwhelming body of evidence that age is a risk factor for joint disorders. But early intervention with these cases will help to support healthy joint function from an early age.

Size is also a risk, so resulting in an overload and therefore excessive forces on the joints. And it's no surprise that bigger dogs and overweight dogs are at a much higher risk of joint problems. In fact, research has indicated that 45% of large breed dogs are prone to joint sensitivities, and some of the more common breeds are German shepherds, Labradors, and rotties.

Well, however, small breed dogs are also affected by joint sensitivities, 27% in fact, but in small breed dogs, it tends to be things like the luxating patella or cruciate ligament rupture. And the ligament in the knee is obviously quite common for professional footballers, but it is quite common in our smaller breeds too. And when it comes to cats, patella luxation has been reported more commonly in Abyssinian and Devon Rex cats as well, and Scottish folds are particularly prone to severe arthritis affecting multiple joints due to an abnormality of cartilage that occurs in the breed.

So there are breed and size factors at play here. But obviously, the importance of ideal weight cannot be stressed enough. I know we've already discussed the body condition score this morning.

And Royal Canon have developed body condition scores for different sizes of animals, with cats and dogs, and it's the 9 point score. And it's really about getting owners to recognise where their animal fits on that body condition score. We know that owner compliance is the key to maintaining ideal weight, but those owners really have to be, in touch with the animal in front of them and realistic about the animal in front of them too.

For numerous reasons, but obviously, there's been studies to show that overweight or obese dogs are over 2 times more likely to be diagnosed with osteoarthritis. On cats are 2.9 times more likely.

To be seen for lameness than cats at an ideal weight. For us, it's a no brainer. We know the effects of weight, but the, the incidence of overweight animals is increasing and it's really about making owners aware of this.

And here's, I've got a few videos here just to, I mean, you obviously see cases, in practise, and, but these are some of the worst cases that come through to University of Liverpool weight Management clinic, . I'll play all of the videos at the same time because there's not really much sound over them, but you can see the, the walking, there's head bobbing, there's lameness on the front legs, the tails down. The head position isn't perhaps where you would want it to be.

So it's really obvious, to clinicians, the problem here, but again, it's about making owners aware of the impact of obesity on joints. And it's always nice to see the happy ending as well. So these patients were successful in their weight loss and you can see again.

The videos here and the improvements. It's, it's vastly improved. So, you know, a, a good success story and a real visual way of showing the impact of weight loss on joints here.

In order to help support pets much earlier, we need to intervene much sooner, really. And you can help to do this just by identifying those pets that might be prone to joint sensitivities and recommend a nutritional solution to help support healthy joint function. So pets you may want to target are ageing cats, dogs, very active pets, agility, fly ball, any of those types of pets, or maybe even working dogs, .

They would be particularly prone, large breeds, overweight pets, and, and maybe specific breeds that we've discussed that have predispositions to joint sensitivities. And with our nutritional aims, as every diet that we make, we are looking to offer a complete and balanced solution for the animal in front of you. So we want to make sure that everything is in the right levels and the right ratios for the, for the animal that is in front of you.

We want to address any weight issues because that's a key concern when it comes to any, Any joint sensitivity as well. So you really need to have a two-fold, two pronged attack on this, really. And include adequate levels of nutrients to help support the healthy joint function.

So you can see and I'll, and I'll show you the products that we have with mobility and the nutrients that we have in there and how they support that animal. Our mobility range is formulated to support healthy joint function for cats and dogs. To start with, we've obviously got some new packaging, so people might not be too familiar, with the new packaging, but you can see it here in front of you.

It's for supporting healthy joint functions in cats and dogs, and it's to support healthy joint function after orthopaedic surgery or trauma. We're introducing a mobility small dog as well for those dogs whose ideal body weight is less than 10 kg, but I'll talk more specifically about those claims in just a minute. But we want to start by covering the new claims across the whole range here.

So the first transversal claim for the dog range is the innovative C2P joint complex, which, which describes the nutrients that we include in the diet to help support healthy joint cartilage. So the C2 is the cumin and hydrolyzed collagen, and P is the green tea polyphenols, and, and it's plus because they all work together to support healthy joint cartilage. So tough bundles of collagen and made up of long fibrous proteins, which form a structural support for the collagen matrix, and these are integral to the stability and regeneration of cartilage.

Therefore, by including collagen in the diet, this helps to support the regular rebuild. Of cartilage, which is a natural part of maintaining joint health, and the hydroization process means that it has a low molecular weight and the collagen is almost pre-digested, ensuring that as much of it is available for the body to utilise as possible. And then we have our green tea polyphenols, which are antioxidants.

We know that antioxidants support the body's natural defences and help to neutralise free radicals, which free radicals are highly reactive and produces part of everyday life as we know. But because of their instability, they react with the cell membrane and also the DNA contained within the cell nucleus. So this means that in the worst case, the cell may die or it might be damaged.

So including antioxidants which help to work to neutralise those free radicals, is really, really critical and helps, support the healthy joints. So there's two antioxidants as part of our joint complex. So the curcumin is turmeric is the raw ingredient, so it's kind of the, the, it's, it's from that family really and and the the the curcumin is the active compound or nutrient which is extracted from it really.

And the reason it's called C2P is because we've got curcumin and collagen. There's two of those and there's polyphenols, which is one, so we've got C2P and plus because they all work together basically. We have got, scientifically proven, studies, which you could have access to if you speak to your business managers.

And there are some, they are free access, and we've got some really good results with it, so do get in touch with your veterinary business manager who will be able to point you in the direction of those. And the third claim I want to talk about is supporting patients that are overweight or prone to weight gain as well. As I said, we know that in the UK 65% of adult dogs are classified as overweight or obese, and 39% of cats are overweight or obese.

Obviously, being overweight puts some a much higher risk of developing mobility problems. These are some photos of cases from again, the University of Liverpool weight management clinic, and you can really see the amount of pressure that's being put on the dog's joints here, very sadly so. Therefore, the diet is formulated with a moderate calorie content, adapted micronutrient profile to help these dogs maintain an ideal weight and shape.

So as well as the three main claims, the diet also has similar moderate phosphorus levels as before in order to support the kidney function of older patients. We have a wet product available to help support the mixed feeding recommendations and the dry product also has the SO index claim in it too. And this is our new product, so this is it, it's formulated to be fed for dogs whose body weight is 10 kg or less, and it has the same two main claims as the main product, but also has an adapted formula to meet the specific digestive, dental, and urinary sensitivities of small dogs as well.

So that covers our dog range. And then we have our one product for, feline mobility. And the first claim of the, cat range is obviously the, the joint complex claim.

Feline mobility includes a joint complex that, has New Zealand green lipped muscles and high levels of EPA and DHA in there. And this came about many years ago because the World Health organisation looked at the demographic of diseases around the world, including cancer, heart disease, and arthritis, and they found that the indigenous population of New Zealand had a very low incidence of arthritis, and it was linked to their high intake of green lip muscles, which can be found on the shores of New Zealand. And when they examined the green lip muscles, they found they contained naturally occurring nutrients which help to support joints including glucosamine and chondroitin.

Glucosamine is a base component of joint cartilage and contributes to the elasticity of it, and it helps to stimulate the formation of new cartilage and chondroitin is a carbohydrate, which, as well as supporting the elasticity of cartilage, inhibits the enzymes that cause cartilage damage. So it complements glucosamine as one inhibits and one supports growth. And we have our antioxidants in there as well as you saw with the, the dog product too.

And then we have our EPA and DHA which are both omega 3 fatty acids. And there is something else in green mussels, which is in nothing else, and it's called. ETA, which is eosatoic acid, which has been shown to be beneficial for joint health as well.

And as I mentioned with our canine mobility, we do have some really good trials, and studies published. So do speak to your veterinary manager who will point you in the right for those things there. The first claim, as I said, for the cat ranges, obviously the joint complex and that includes the green lip muscles, high levels of EPA DHA, glucosamine and chondroitin.

Our previous source of glucosamine, and this is a really interesting part, was from a crustacean source, but due to existing pressures on the fish within the ocean and in line with our commitment to sustainability, I'm not sure if you're all aware, but Mars as a whole business had an ambition to use fish. Had been sustainably sourced in 100% of its supply chain by the end of 2020, and they hit that target last year, which is fantastic. So in line with that commitment to sustainability and resourcing of our ingredients, we've updated the formula to include a new source of glucosamine, vegetable glucosamine actually, which will now replace the animal glucosamine in all our diets containing glucosamine, including this one.

As with all the diets, we took the opportunity to review formulation and ensure that it meets current guidelines. And therefore, in practise, you might see minor changes in the order of the ingredients list and slight additive changes, but the Be assured we're always constantly reviewing our products. We've also included our synergistic antioxidant complex, the Celt complex, vitamin C, vitamin E, lutein and taurine, which again, work as a really powerful antioxidant.

And the diet has a moderate phosphorus and calorie content as well and has been awarded the SO index. And as we discussed this morning, if your patient has multiple conditions, we know that some do. And you would have to choose one or the other, but luckily our multifunction range means you no longer have to.

So for dogs that require an active weight loss programme, as well as support for healthy joint function, we have the mobility and the satiety diet. And for dogs with stage 2 to 4 chronic kidney disease, who also require support for healthy joint function, we have renal and we have mobility. So mobility and renal.

I indicated to support dogs with CKD as well as as well as supporting healthy joint function. It's available in 3.5 and 10 kg bags, and they're sort of the main claims that you can see there.

And when it comes to our mobility in our society, multifunction product, that's also been updated. So both the packaging, which is now in line with the rest of our range, you can see the new claims, reflected on the front of the bag. There's been no major formula changes here.

So again, you know, we can help to support healthy joints and help to manage the weight of dogs too, because we know the two really do go together. Thank you very much.