The useful question about a joint supplement is not really whether it works — nobody selling you one can honestly answer that — but whether your dog will eat it every day for months on end. A mini pellet that goes in with the food is a far better bet on that count than a tablet you spend the winter hiding in cheese.

Lillidale make Projoint in exactly that form. They describe it as providing omega 3 and a natural source of beta-glucans, and state that it is free from wheat, gluten and soya and is a 100% non-GM formulation. It is aimed at growing, ageing and active dogs rather than at any single life stage, which is a slightly unusual position and means one tub covers a young dog working hard and an old one slowing down.

• 200g, 500g or 2kg tub
• Mini-pellet form, fed in with ordinary food
• Free from wheat, gluten and soya
• 100% non-GM formulation
• Lillidale list omega 3 and beta-glucans among the actives
• Intended for growing, ageing or active dogs

What the label does not tell us. Lillidale publish no composition list and no analytical constituents to us, so we cannot say how much of anything is in a serving — which, on a supplement, is precisely the figure you would most want. Their claims about joint function and natural anti-inflammatory response are theirs rather than ours. And a dog who has started struggling on stairs or gone stiff after a walk needs a vet to look at them first; this is something you feed alongside that advice, not instead of the appointment.

Who it's for: owners of an older, growing or hard-working dog who want something daily that goes in the bowl without a fight, and who have already had the mobility conversation with a vet.