MANUFACTURING

MANUFACTURING NATRIXONE LETS THE DOGS OUT IN OAKLEY

The pet supplement manufacturer creates a healthy and sustainable formula from plants. — SARAH M. MULLINS

As with human healthcare, interest in natural and alternative medicine continues to soar for pets, and agrobusiness entrepreneur Sam Huttenbauer caught on to the trend early. Supplements have worked their way into pet care over the years from anxiety-relieving remedies to digestive cure-alls, but he found a sustainable way to develop an anti-inflammatory formula specifically geared for horses and dogs and to manufacture it in Cincinnati.

Huttenbauer worked in the food and healthcare space for more than 30 years and was introduced to the camelina sativa plant while with a biotech company. Since the resulting oil included anti-inflammatory compounds and what he calls “the big three” fatty acids (omega 3, 6, and 9), Huttenbauer dug deeper to see how the crop could rival unsustainable options like fish oil. He initially tested its efficacy on horses, and the results were overwhelming positive. “A lot of these horses were on their last legs, and owners had already tried conventional medicine and been recommended to put the animals down, so they were willing to try our camelina oil,” he says. “We knew there was something special with it right away.”

Huttenbauer eventually was inspired by his dog, Cammy, a Great Pyrenees who was 130 pounds with two knee surgeries and struggling to get up as she aged. After taking the camelina oil, Huttenbauer says Cammy’s quality of life greatly improved, with a decrease in shedding as a side benefit. Horse owners using the oil also started asking if they could use it for their dogs, so Huttenbauer’s team researched and tweaked the formula for dogs’ specific needs, including a 100dog, six-week study at the local Four Paws Animal Hospital in Lebanon, where veterinarian Rich Coleman looked at 50 dogs that had skin issues and 50 dogs with joint-related issues. He found improvement in coat quality and activity levels.

The camelina oil formula supports joints, muscle recovery, and immune system as well as the dog’s coat. With two separate formulas, Huttenbauer split his company in two: Excel Supplements for horses and NatrixOne for dogs. Their camelina sativa is grown, picked, and squeezed in Spain, and the byproduct is shipped to an Oakley warehouse for bottling and shipping. The plant is native to Europe and Central Asia and traditionally has been cultivated to produce vegetable oil and animal feed. Huttenbauer says he’s inching closer to being able to grow the crop locally, and he wants to become a greater part of the community by hosting ownerNatrixOne’s and-pet “yappy hour” events and camelina facility tours. “We want something oil is an that has more of a local vibe to it,” he says of the decision to focus all anti-inflam- production in Oakley after consolmatory idating warehouse functions from treatment St. Bernard. “We’re hoping to be able to expand that over the next for dogs six months.” and horses. NatrixOne is currently sold by Kroger, Amazon, Pet People, and Tractor Supply, and it recently became available at the online pet supply store Chewy. A puppy-specific formula blend is expected to be released soon.