An estimated 50 percent of dogs over the age of eight start to develop arthritis in various joints. Now, it appears that veterinarians may have harnessed the power of New Zealand green lip mussels to produce a dog food that can help to relieve the pain of arthritis.

The dog food, which is expected to be available through veterinarians later this year, includes an extract from the flesh of the mussels that has been processed in a special way. The mussels are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids which have strong anti-inflammatory properties.

Four out of five canines given a supplement of the extract in the dog food showed an improvement in arthritic symptoms after six weeks. Independent veterinarians assessed the flexibility and mobility of dogs before the trial and six weeks afterwards. All of the dogs were on the same diet but half received a supplement of the extract.

The Best Friends Pet Resorts in San Diego and Indianapolis have both received recognition as outstanding for their service to dog and cat lovers.

Best Friends San Diego Resort was honored as one of San Diego's Best, after receiving more than 650,000 votes by pet lovers in San Diego. The Resort is now listed on the BEST OF website at www.bestof.com.

Best Friends Indianapolis Resort was awarded a Consumer Choice Award, after that organization conducted a telephone survey of 1350 people in Indianapolis to identify to the top business in each of 100 different business categories. Best Friends was singled out as "Best Kennel" by the survey's respondents.