Animal Biome - Your Dog and Cat's Microbiome Best Friend!

At Pet Grocer™ we are excited to have Animal Biome Gut Restore products available for our customers in both cat & dog varieties. 

We love Animal Biome so much because they are on a mission to revolutionize animal health! They are using microbiome science to create products that improve the lifespan and quality of life of companion animals. More than half of cats and dogs will suffer from a microbiome-related health condition at some point in their lives. Understanding and supporting a pet’s gut microbiome throughout their lives can help prevent the development of digestive, skin, and immune system related conditions.

Your pet’s gastrointestinal (GI) tract hosts a unique community of hundreds of different types of bacteria and other microbes (such as viruses and fungi), referred to collectively as the gut microbiome. A diverse, well-balanced gut microbiome is essential for digestion and nutrient absorption. Each bacterial group in the gut plays an important role in your pet’s body, so a healthy gut microbiome is also crucial for overall well-being and longevity. 

When some key beneficial bacteria are missing from the microbiome, or the different bacterial groups aren’t present in the right amounts, the resulting imbalance can trigger inflammation. And constant inflammation can lead to chronic illnesses, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), skin issues, immune system reactions, diabetes, and even depression.

Their scientists have studied the gut microbiomes of more than 30,000 cats and dogs and have developed science-backed solutions for pets suffering from a range of symptoms. If your pet suffers from health problems like diarrhea, vomiting, or itchy skin, the cause could be a microbiome imbalance.

The DoggyBiome™ and KittyBiome™ Gut Health Test kits for cats and dogs contain everything you need to collect a small sample of your pet’s stool and send it to the AnimalBiome laboratory.

When they receive your pet’s sample, they will first extract DNA from all the bacteria. A fecal sample about the size of a pea contains roughly one billion bacterial cells. Using DNA sequencing and powerful analytic software, they can identify all the types of bacteria living in your pet’s gut. 

Then, AnimalBiome will compare your cat’s or dog’s results to their large and growing database of healthy pets to determine how closely the types and amounts of bacteria in your pet’s gut match that healthy reference set. They can detect any bacterial imbalances, identify any key groups that are missing, and flag any harmful bacteria that may be causing troublesome symptoms, like diarrhea or itchy skin. 

In addition to a detailed explanation of your pet’s microbiome test results, the report you receive also includes personalized recommendations—such as dietary adjustments, supplements, and lifestyle changes—to improve your pet’s health and relieve symptoms. If your pet has been diagnosed with a chronic digestive or skin issue, the test report will provide actionable information for you and your veterinarian or your local Canadian nutrition experts.

Restore

If your cat or dog suffers from diarrhea, vomiting, or itchy skin, their symptoms may be related to an imbalance in the gut microbiome. Approaches to balance, support, and strengthen the gut microbiome of pets include diet, prebiotics, probiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT). Your pet’s Gut Health Test report will tell you whether you need to add key bacteria that are missing, remove harmful bacteria (pathogens) from the mix, or rebalance the existing populations to achieve better proportions.

So What Exactly Is a Fecal Transplant?

Also called fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), a fecal transplant is the process by which stool from a healthy donor is transferred to the intestines of a sick recipient. The stool from the donor contains a healthy community of bacteria that can take up residence in the sick recipient’s gut. In human medicine, for example, FMT is used to treat C. difficile (aka C. diff) infections. 

Both DoggyBiome™ and KittyBiome™ Gut Restore Supplements (fecal transplant in an oral capsule) provide a whole community of healthy cat- or dog-specific bacteria, sourced directly from carefully screened donor animals. By seeding your pet’s microbiome with all the right microbes in the right proportions, this supplement can help reestablish balance and resolve symptoms.

In a study, AnimalBiome gave 72 cats and 40 dogs with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) a 25-day course of Gut Restore Supplement. After finishing the course of capsules, 83% of the cats and 80% of the dogs had improved symptoms. Appetite also increased for a quarter of the cats and half of the dogs. Researchers continue to learn about the therapeutic benefits of FMT for many different health issues, and this study showed that even for pets with chronic conditions like IBD, FMT can improve symptoms and increase quality of life. 

Curious and want to know more? 

Check out these great Gut Restore products available at Pet Grocer HERE

References: AnimalBiome website https://animalbiome.com/our-science