by Team WellJoy
At a basic level, vaccines train your pet’s immune system and prevent them from catching infectious diseases. However, we know that a good Pet Loyalist always wants to go the extra mile.
Introducing supplements, committing to regular exercise, taking the time to brush your pet’s teeth and getting into a regular bowl-and bed-washing routine all keep their immune system strong, and better able to fight off illness.
Factors that affect your pet’s immunity
Big changes and new routines can make a difference. Changing seasons, big life events and your pet’s age can all impact their immune system. They might experience more immune stress during:
- Boarding: Being away from their devoted Pet Loyalists can be confusing and worrying. And Pet Loyalists might be worried about their cat or dog picking up a respiratory virus.
- Travel: Cats and dogs are creatures of routine and love their familiar environments, so time away can create extra stress that impacts their immunity.
- Lots of socializing with other pets: Dog parks and doggie daycare, in particular, mean a lot of contact with other pets (and their germs!).
- Peak allergy season: Lots of pets suffer with allergies, and this time of year can put more pressure on their immune system.
- Aging: As pets age their immune system can weaken (known as immunosenescence) meaning they recover more slowly or experience more chronic conditions.
- Chronic illness: Many cats are exposed to viruses like FHV (feline herpesvirus) early in life. These viruses can lay dormant in the body and may reactivate during times of stress or when the immune system is challenged.
Cats and dogs are more alike than you think
Good news for all of the joyful multi-pet households: cat and dog immune systems fundamentally work the same. However, there are a few differences that it’s helpful to know about:
- Cats can be more sensitive to stress, which suppresses the immune response.
- Dogs can be more exposed to more things, as a result of their normal outdoor exercise routines and behavior.
- Cats are more susceptible to long-term or life-long viral infections, such as FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus) or FeLV (Feline Leukemia Virus).
How to support your pet’s immune system
Boost their immunity with nutrition by giving your pet a complete, balanced diet. It's one of the main ways to support their immune system. Even subtle imbalances in nutrition can affect their immune response over time.
Important nutrients include:
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High quality protein: this is essential for the production of antibodies, which help fight off infection.
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Essential Fatty Acids: these stop inflammatory responses in their tracks
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B vitamins: they give the body the energy it needs to create an immune response
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Probiotics, prebiotics, postbiotics: each of these plays a significant part in the immune system and the immune response
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Antioxidants: Ingredients like Vitamin E, Quercetin and Astaxanthin protect your pet's body from the damage of daily wear-and-tear, and support immune cells so they can keep working hard.
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Lysine: this essential amino acid supports normal immune function, including the production of antibodies – helping your pet fight off illness and infection.
Supplements can add some extra support
If you have…
- an extra curious pet that loves to investigate
- a cat or dog with long-term disease that weakens their immune system
- a pet that’s getting older
- or a pet that has a stressful period coming up
You can introduce a daily supplement to support their immunity and keep their immune system top notch.
WellJoy’s Immune+ treats and supplements for cats and for dogs contain a vet formulated blend designed to support year-round wellness.
As an extra bonus, all of our treats and supplements are powered by GutBoost™ – our signature biotic blend that targets the health of the gut microbiome so that key ingredients work at their best.
That’s essential, because 70% of your pet’s immune system is in the gut (you can read more fun facts like that in our mini manual to gut goodness), which means taking care of their microbiome also means supporting their immunity in a smarter way.
We’ve packed our vet-formulated chicken recipe with thoughtfully considered ingredients to help give your pet the support they need for year-round immunity.
Our Immune+ Supplements for dogs include Vitamin E, Colostrum and Astaxanthin, and our Immune+ Supplements for cats contain Vitamin E, Lysine, Quercetin, Astaxanthin and Colostrum.
Routines are good for immunity
Both cats and dogs love familiarity. They like to know where their bed is, what time dinner is being served, and when they can demand some attention from you (it’s all the time, obviously).
Getting into a routine isn’t a luxury for your pets, it’s part of the immune mix – and that's because stress raises cortisol, which can suppress their immune response. Less stress = better immunity.
Small hygiene habits have big impacts
Things like washing your pet’s bowl every day and rinsing any outside pet areas might seem like small jobs, but they mean your pet’s immune system isn’t tired from constantly battling low-level bacterial exposure.
Non-negotiables for your to-do list:
- Wash food and water bowls every day
- Clean their bed regularly
- Be strict on daily litter box cleaning
- Wash the outside pet areas after pees
- Clean outdoor poos up immediately
Getting into a good dental routine is essential
We can’t overstate how important it is to look after your pet’s teeth and general dental health.
We know, we know - they hate the toothbrush, but ongoing gum disease can create inflammation in the body, and expose your pet to harmful bacteria from the mouth.
When the immune system has to constantly fight these bacteria, it puts extra strain on the body and can divert resources away from other important immune functions. Over time, this ongoing inflammation and bacterial exposure can even affect vital organs such as the heart, liver, and kidneys.
And by the way, pet dental problems are widespread – with dental disease affecting over 70% of cats and 80% of dogs by the time they’re three-years-old.
For more advice on getting your pet into a good dental routine, we’ve written a guide to keeping their teeth healthy and gleaming.
Think of the immune system as a garden
Taking care of your pet’s immunity is like tending to a garden. Seeds will grow and flowers will bloom even if you just do the absolute basics. But pulling out the weeds (reducing stress) and fertilizing the garden (adding an immune supplement) can make it thrive.
So, watch out for the small signs that your pet needs some more immune support – like dull skin and coat, wounds that take a long time to heal, persistent ear infections, chronic illness or upset tummies. Adding a few things into your own routine – like that regular bowl washing, daily supplements and careful meal planning – can have a significant, lasting effect on your pet.
We’re proud to say that all of WellJoy’s content is fact-checked and verified by a Pet Loyalist team, including a veterinarian trained in companion animal nutrition and a PhD board-certified companion animal nutritionist.