What to know about probiotics and keeping your dog well
Nutrition is probably the biggest leverage point we have as dog parents to help our dogs live longer and live healthier. (Plus exercise, check-ups, and love, of course.) But how do you get nutrition right for your dog? For most of us, by asking lots of questions.
One often-asked question now is, "Should I be giving my dog a probiotic?" Followed by... what are probiotics exactly, how do they work in dogs' bodies, what are the benefits, and more.
Let's dive into what you need to know about probiotics to make the best choice for your dog!
What are probiotics for dogs?
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Probiotics for dogs are live beneficial microorganisms that provide a range of important health benefits: key among those are supporting your dog's immune system and aiding digestion.
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Probiotics contain beneficial bacteria, often called the "good bacteria," such as Bacillus Coagulans, that help maintain the all-important balanced gut microbiome.
Helpful bacteria in probiotics have gained significant attention in recent years for human health and now for the health and longevity of our dogs as well. For dogs, probiotics can be a valuable addition to their diet, especially when their gut microbiome is imbalanced due to factors such as illness, stress, or inability to break down and absorb needed nutrients in food.
Probiotic bacteria are naturally found in your dog’s gut. This network of bacteria is called the microbiome. These bacteria work together to help digest food, strengthen the immune system, and make vitamins and other nutrients accessible to your dog's body systems.
How a healthy microbiome works to keep your dog well
A dog's gut houses trillions of microorganisms, including beneficial gut bacteria and some harmful bacteria. These microbes play vital roles in producing digestive enzymes, synthesizing vitamins, and modulating the immune system. A healthy gut microbiome contributes to the production of fatty acids, which are crucial for intestinal health and reducing intestinal inflammation. An imbalanced gut microbiome can lead to digestive issues and a range of other health concerns.
Beneficial microorganisms in the gut help train and regulate your dog's immune system, preventing overreactions that can lead to everything from diarrhea and food allergies to seasonal allergies to autoimmune diseases. Probiotics contribute to this process by enhancing the population of healthy bacteria like lactic acid-producing bacteria, which compete with harmful bacteria and pathogens. This competition helps prevent gastrointestinal infections and supports your dog's immune system in fighting off disease. Probiotics can also help reduce inflammation in the gut, often linked to immune system disorders and metabolic disease.
Overall, probiotic supplementation supports a healthy dog by improving digestive health, strengthening your dog's immune system, and reducing the risk of metabolic disease. Incorporating probiotics into your dog's diet can help restore and maintain the microbial balance your dog needs for digestive health and overall physical and mental well-being.
Why a healthy gut matters for your dog
The microbiome is a complex community of intestinal bacteria in a dog’s digestive tract, playing a crucial role in maintaining gut health and preventing disease throughout the body. A balanced gut microbiome is essential for a dog’s overall health, and probiotics can have a major role in supporting that balance.
A few of the key roles a healthy gut plays in keeping your dog well:
Boosting your dog's immune system
About 70% of a dog's immune system is housed in the gut. Probiotics help balance and boost the gut's immune response by increasing the production of immune cells, helping defend against toxins and pathogens to keep your dog well.
A healthy gastrointestinal tract can naturally tackle and stop toxins and bad bacteria from entering the bloodstream, helping to prevent infections, allergic reactions, and disease. A healthy gut facilitates the absorption of vital nutrients from food and supplements and maintains your dog's digestive health.
Warding off allergies
Much like us, many of our dogs struggle with allergies. Whether that's occasionally, seasonally, or more constantly, and whether caused by the environment or food allergies/sensitivities, it stems from your dog’s gut microbes. Your dog's gut and immune system are inextricably linked: having a healthy, balanced gut can encourage your dog's internal, natural tools to be a barrier to these irritants.
Reducing inflammation
As they modulate and balance gut flora, probiotics can help reduce systemic inflammation, in turn helping reduce chronic inflammatory conditions. As we know now from various studies, a healthy gut microbiome contributes to the production of fatty acids, which are crucial for intestinal health and reducing intestinal inflammation. They help produce short-chain fatty acids that nourish the cells lining the gut, enhancing gut barrier function and reducing intestinal inflammation.
An imbalanced gut microbiome can lead to digestive upset and inflammation that goes beyond its useful, healing role to become chronic. That's when inflammation becomes unnecessarily triggered and contributes to disease, including heart disease, diabetes, cancer, cognitive and autoimmune disorders. Probiotic bacteria help replenish and fortify the healthy bacteria and maintain a stable gut flora for your pup.
Reducing and preventing infections
Overall, probiotics strengthen your dog's immune system and reduce the risk of infections. Probiotics can help prevent and manage yeast infections by controlling the growth of harmful bacteria and yeast in the gut, along with other too-common issues such as urinary tract infections.
Supporting joint and bone strength
In many pet parents' minds, probiotics promote stronger bones and joints simply because the healthier your dog’s gut is, the less excessive weight your pup will carry, and that takes strain off their bones and joints. That's true... and there's so much more.
By making it easier to break down harder-to-digest foods, probiotics help your dog access nutrients like calcium, crucial to bone development and maintenance. Arthritis is an inflammatory disease and inflammation is a key driver behind painful, stiff joints; thankfully, inflammation can be prevented or reduced by probiotic dietary supplementation.
Promoting calm, positive behavior
Gut bacteria produce chemicals the brain recognizes as messages transmitted via the nerves. Too many “bad” bacteria in your pup’s gut interfere with these important messages and they won’t be received as calmly or positively by the brain. That interference can trigger a lower mood and poorer brain functioning.
A healthy gut microbiome, supported by probiotics, can positively affect mental health through the gut-brain axis, potentially reducing anxiety and cognitive issues.
Signs your dog may need more good bacteria
Keeping your dog's digestive and immune system in balance and optimized with a probiotic is always a good idea. There are times when your dog especially needs a boost when life changes and stages happen. Changes in the microbiome sometimes disrupt the balance between healthy and harmful microbes in your dog’s gut. This can cause or contribute to common health problems that signal your dog needs support, such as:
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Diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome
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Gas, cramping, bloating
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Bad breath
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Allergies
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Obesity
Some of the things to be aware of that can cause changes in your dog's microbiome:
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Aging
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Antibiotic treatment
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Long-term use of steroids
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Infections
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Sudden changes in diet
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Emotional stress
Dog probiotics vs human probiotics
Dog probiotics are specifically formulated for dogs and contain strains of beneficial bacteria tailored to dogs' needs. Most probiotics for humans may not be suitable for dogs, since they can contain artificial sweeteners and other ingredients that are toxic to dogs.
Dog-specific probiotics are designed to support the unique needs of dogs, including their digestive health and immune system. A dog's gut microbiome differs significantly from that of humans. Dog-specific probiotics help maintain a desirable intestinal microbial balance and support your dog's immune system more effectively than human probiotics.
Do probiotics in commercial dog food work?
Probiotics for dogs are available in various forms, including dog foods, probiotic powders, and probiotic supplements.
While some dog foods include probiotic bacteria, the survival of these beneficial microorganisms through processing and storage can be highly limited. The amount of healthy gut bacteria in dog foods that may survive before it gets to your dog may not always be sufficient to provide therapeutic benefits.
What about prebiotics?
How are they different? What do they do?
Prebiotics (sometimes confused with probiotics) essentially “feed” and nourish the beneficial bacteria that naturally reside in your dog's gut. Prebiotics act as fuel for good bacteria and set the stage for probiotics to flourish to help maintain your dog's balance of friendly bacteria for a healthy microbiome. A few examples of prebiotic-rich foods are papaya, bananas, and flaxseed.
Choosing a probiotic supplement
The key criteria for choosing a good probiotic supplement are exactly what we had in mind when we formulated Mighty Probiotic with veterinarians specifically for what dogs need. They're tasty chews your pup will love like treats, created with a powerful blend of probiotics (such as Bacillus Coagulans that helps generate more lactic acid bacteria), prebiotics (flaxseed, papaya, and more), and digestive enzymes to ensure healthy digestion and nutrient absorption.
Connecting all the wellness dots for your pup's best life
Maintaining your dog's gut health requires more than just probiotics, of course. It starts with ensuring your dog's diet is balanced and rich in fiber and nutrients that support healthy bacteria. The more fresh prebiotic/probiotic foods you include in your dog's diet, the better! Regular exercise and stress reduction also contribute to maintaining a balanced gut flora. By combining these lifestyle factors with the right dietary supplementation, you can help prevent digestive problems and so many other health issues.
Ultimately, a healthy gut microbiome supported by probiotics is essential for your dog's immune system to function optimally, leading to improved overall health and longevity and your pup's best, happiest life.
Here's to your dog living truly well and enjoying every adventure!
Simply put, we're dog people here at Mighty Paw. We want our dogs and yours to live their best life every day, feeling truly well and up for enjoying every adventure large and small. We know you feel the same way.
That's why we're single-mindedly focused on finding ways to make it easier for you to give your dog the long, healthy life we all want for our pups.
And why we're committed to creating high-quality products that are healthful, safe, and practical for everything you need: from healthful supplements like our Mighty Probiotic, to long-lasting chews dogs love, to durable, comfortable equipment for all your adventures together.
