The Science

Serious Science

At Happy Scratch, we like to have fun. But despite our silly name, the science behind our products is serious. Our products are invented by university researchers and supported by veterinarians. The innovation behind Happy Scratch was developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and is backed by four U.S. patents. Learn more about the research and studies below.

Benefits

Supports healthy skin for canines and felines
Promotes a healthy immune system
Pets love the taste!

How it Works

Happy Scratch is Rich in IgA
Our product is made from pork mucosa, which is known to naturally contain large amounts of IgA. [1]
Reduced IgA is linked to dermatitis
IgA is known to be an anti-inflammatory antibody. Scientific literature demonstrates that pets with reduced amounts of IgA are more susceptible to skin and gut problems, recurrent infections, and dermatitis. Certain dog breeds do not make enough of their own IgA. [2, 3]
Daily Immune Support
IgA is an essential element of your pet’s immune system. Supplementing IgA to your pet’s diet ensures that the right antibody interacts with the right allergen at the right time. Daily supplementation is highly recommended.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand ‘Woofs’!

Before and after comparison photos of canine dermatitis

SIgA antibody deficiency commonly affects many pure and mixed breeds.
Scientific literature indicates SIgA antibody deficiency may cause dermatitis.
Replacing the missing SIgA antibodies with naturally-occuring SIgA antibodies in pork mucosa may be a way to improve your pet’s quality of life.
Happy Scratch is made up of a dried pork by-product, specifically pork mucosa that contains SIgA antibodies, and is a cost-effective way to improve companion animal health
And they love the taste too.

Animal Products Become Valuable for Pet Health

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr. Sand had a mission to create new and valuable products from animal agriculture.

Up to 70% of the animal is consumed as meat
The 30% that is not used for human consumption is largely what keeps the animal alive and are called by-products

Dr. Sand’s hypothesis was that meat by-products would contain bioactive molecules that could be used in human and animal health.

After years of testing, our CEO, Jordan Sand, PHD, discovered the untapped potential of “dried pork by-product” as a source of bioactive molecules, specifically pork mucosa, naturally rich in IgA antibodies. By meticulously processing this particular part of the pig into a powder to preserve the bioactivity of the antibodies, Happy Scratch can be used to promote a healthy immune response and support skin health.

CLINICAL STUDIES

Scientific Trials:

Feeding Happy Scratch to Animals with Ulcerative Dermatitis

Animals diagnosed with Ulcerative Dermatitis were fed Happy Scratch (1g/Kg diet).
Clinical symptoms were monitored for six weeks during Happy Scratch administration.
Over the six week period of Happy Scratch administration, the severity of the Ulcerative Dermatitis disease was reduced.

Animals with ulcerative dermatitis consuming Happy Scratch were monitored daily for ulcerative dermatitis score. The chart above reports the average of the weekly total ulcerative dermatitis score per number of days per the number of animals. With Happy Scratch administration, there is a significant decrease in ulcerative dermatitis score during weeks 2, 3, 5 and 6 of administration compared to the animal’s ulcerative dermatitis score before Happy Scratch administration.

In another trial, a trial was performed using an animal model for ulcerative dermatitis disease. In this trial, animals either consumed 1/3 dose of Happy Scratch or a full dose of Happy Scratch, and were monitored daily for scratching. Each animal was watched for one minute to determine how frequently they were scratching. Numbers in the chart above are an average of the weekly total number of scratches per the number of days and the number of animals. There is a significant decrease in scratching with the animals consuming the recommended daily amount of Happy Scratch during weeks 3, 4, and 5 of administration.

Make Your Pet Happy!

Buy Happy Scratch!