A 2019 report in Psychology Today found 77 percent of dog and cat owners report that their pet is a member of the family. This close bond that humans share with our companion animals inspires us to strive for best choices when it comes to our pet’s health and longevity.

When Lauriston Crockett III lost Joe Cocker, his beloved 8-year-old cocker spaniel, to cancer, he became determined to help both people and animals maintain good health and longevity. His research led him toward the importance of peptide hormones, the short-chain amino acids that are naturally found in all mammals. “Every function in the body—humans, dogs or cats—acts and communicates through peptides and bioregulators. Peptides and peptide communication is how we live longer, healthier lives,” Crockett explains.

Crockett founded Genostim Performance Labs in 2006 with a line of peptide products for humans. That same year, he formed Genostim’s The Gift for Life pet division, with products for dogs and cats. The line includes The Gift for Life Canine, The Gift for Life Feline and The Gift for Life Equine anti-aging formulas with Hexatide Peptide Complex. The Gift for Life K9 Prime supplement contains pure, human food-grade beef liver and 60 milligrams of peptides per serving for all dogs, creating a superfood when added to a pet’s daily diet.

All of Genostim’s The Gift for Life products are made in America with U.S.-sourced ingredients that are top-tier, food-grade quality, Crockett notes. Peptides can slow down or reverse progressive aging that all pets suffer from, he says. “When you spay or neuter a dog, you break their endocrine loop by altering the pets’ ovaries or testicles. They nearly stop producing hormones that communicate with other organs.”

While spaying and neutering helps control unwanted litters and pet overpopulation, there is ongoing research pertaining to the link between the loss of gonadal hormones at a young age and long-term health effects. Studies published by the American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation and Frontiers in Veterinary Science cite case studies showing links between spaying or neutering pets at a young age and increased risks of joint disorders, some cancers and other health issues.

Crockett consulted with Western medicine and homeopathic veterinarians to formulate a peptide supplement for animals that stimulates a pet’s endocrine system which has been altered through surgical spaying or neutering.

“What peptides do is stimulate the adrenal cortex. That adrenal cortex then produces, in small amounts, these hormones that were lost when you sterilize the pet through elective surgery. Therefore, it boosts the endocrine system to start producing hormones again,” Crockett explains. “By doing this, we’re signaling life again within these pets without side effects from cancer, Cushing’s disease, hyperthyroidism, diabetes, ligament tears or hip dysplasia.”

In addition, many commercial brands of dog and cat foods lack the proteins, vitamins and nutrients required to maintain a pet’s health, Crockett adds. “Many brands contain synthetic vitamins and ingredients not akin to what these carnivores would naturally eat. Dogs need organ meat. When a wolf packs attacks an animal, the alpha dog eats the organ meat first. Liver is the most nutrient-dense food for dogs and cats.”

Crockett hosts a podcast, Your Pets Radio, and has appeared as a pet health and longevity expert on programs broadcast via FOX, iHeart Radio and Cumulus Media local affiliates nationwide. He uses peptides to support the health of his current canine companion, Howie, an Anatolian shepherd dog.

For more information, visit TheGiftforLife.com.