New discoveries continue to expand our understanding of the gut microbiome—that diverse community of bacteria and other tiny organisms that live in the digestive tract. Every year we learn more about how the microbiome affects the health of humans, animals, and the environment. For World Microbiome Day, we highlight some of the latest happenings in the exciting field of microbiome studies, where the complex ecosystem of the gut is proving to be a source of promising new treatments for humans and pets alike.

When your cat hacks up a slimy fur sausage of a hairball, you may be disgusted or annoyed. You may also wonder whether that’s normal. An occasional regurgitated wad of hair isn’t cause for alarm, but frequent hairballs might mean your cat has an underlying health problem, such as anxiety, allergies, or an imbalanced gut microbiome (the community of bacteria in the digestive tract).

World IBD Day takes place on 19 May each year and unites people worldwide in their fight against Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, known as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Today and everyday we want to raise awareness about this disease, and show support to the millions of people and pets worldwide that live with inflammatory bowel disease. AnimalBiome is proud to share a guest blog article by film director, Saffron Cassaday. Saffron is directing an upcoming documentary called, “Designer Shit” a film about fecal matters.

Kibble. Canned. Raw. Dehydrated. Freeze dried. Home cooked. With so many options available to feed your dog or cat, it can be really hard to know if you’re making the best choice. And even then, how do you know whether the ingredients are truly benefiting your pet, and making them healthier?

"All diseases begin in the gut." ~ Hippocrates What a smarty pants he was! But thankfully we’re slowly catching up to the secrets of the gut. Gastrointestinal disorders are at the top of the list of health conditions I see in dogs and cats at my holistic veterinary practice. Pet health and long-term quality of life is greatly affected by these diseases. In this article I will explain the underlying mechanisms such as leaky gut and imbalance of microbiome (the bacteria that live in the digestive tract) that are key to improving your beloved dogs’ and cats’ overall health and longevity and preventing all sorts of painful disorders.

Is it hype, or are supplemental digestive enzymes for your dog really important? Digestive enzymes break down your dog’s food into tiny pieces that are small enough to be used to fuel crucial life functions. Just like humans, dogs cannot survive without their own digestive enzymes.

Recent dog food recalls have sounded the alarm about the dangers of diets that contain too much vitamin D. In dogs, high levels of this vitamin can cause vomiting, joint issues, kidney failure, and even death. So how much vitamin D should your dog be getting? And why are large amounts so dangerous?

March is Women’s History Month! And while it’s important to recognize the achievements made by all women, we are here to highlight women scientists who made history with their scientific innovations and leadership. Despite facing gender-based discrimination, women in science have played a long and integral part of scientific history. They have made great strides in the pursuit of scientific knowledge and innovation. Women scientists have created and developed groundbreaking innovations such as stem cell isolation, caller ID, and even the first type of computing software.

Marigold is a sweet, middle-aged, orange tabby cat found as a stray and taken to the city shelter. Affectionate and easy-going, she had everything going for her, except for one critical flaw that threatened her adoptability -- she had constant liquid diarrhea. Even though she was a favorite at the shelter, her cage was constantly a mess, as was her bright orange fur, and it wasn’t long before Marigold was deemed “unadoptable.” Soon after, her digestive issues earned her a spot at the top of the shelter’s euthanasia list.

What if your cat loves dairy, but even a treat-sized dollop of milk or cream leads to unpleasant symptoms like gas, diarrhea, or vomiting? Actually, that’s pretty normal. Most adult cats have trouble digesting dairy products because they lack the ability to break down lactose, the sugar found in milk. Lactose makes up between 2% and 8% of milk.

Anxiety and aggression are common problems in dogs. In fact, it’s estimated up to 70% of behavioral problems in dogs can be attributed to some form of anxiety, according to the Journal of Veterinary Behavior. As strange as it sounds, the bacteria that live in your dog’s gut (digestive tract) may affect their mood, and therefore their behavior. Evidence suggests that the gut influences the brain, and these two are constantly communicating with each other.

Most dogs get all the vitamin B12 they need from their food. But dogs with digestive disorders or other health issues may not be able to absorb enough of it, and the resulting B12 deficiency can cause serious health problems, including diarrhea, weight loss, and even seizures. When AnimalBiome CEO Holly Ganz’s dog Yuki developed pancreatic cancer at the age of 16, for example, her B12 levels plummeted.

Mr. Darcy is a dashing dachshund-beagle-terrier mix dog who lives in New York City. When he started having bloody diarrhea on the sidewalk every day, it was a nightmare for poor Mr. Darcy and his family as well. His veterinarian couldn’t figure out what was wrong. He became lethargic. His people were worried. But luckily Mr. Darcy got help from the people who know all about gut health and digestive disorders in pets.

In dogs and cats, diarrhea is an extremely common occurrence. But did you know that many diarrhea cases are caused by a bacterial pathogen called Clostridium difficile (which is commonly called C diff for short)? If you take your sick pet to the veterinarian with a report of frequent diarrhea, your vet will likely run a test on their stool that looks for the presence of particular bacterial pathogens, including Clostridium difficile. If C diff is detected in your pet’s stool, it’s very likely the culprit for causing their diarrhea.

Itch, itch...scratch, scratch and repeat—persistent dog scratching can consume your dog’s life, along with causing your pet to feel miserable. Since pesky itching affects many dogs and their pet parents we asked Dr. Michael Sterns of 4Paws Mobile Veterinary Services in Mountain View, California to offer some of his thoughts regarding how to help itchy dogs. Many people don’t realize that allergies are just as common in our pets as they are in us. A common skin disorder in dogs that causes itchy skin is atopic dermatitis. In fact, it is the second most common allergic skin disease in dogs.

Did you know that vitamin B12 (also called cobalamin) is crucial for your cat’s health? But if your cat suffers from a chronic digestive disorder like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or pancreatitis, their body may have trouble absorbing or retaining enough of this nutrient. In a sick cat, symptoms such as lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation may be partly due to B12 deficiency.

Halloween is almost here—many of us enjoy this haunting holiday but our pets often find it truly scary. The things that make Halloween fun for us humans like frightening sounds or trick-or-treaters at the door may overwhelm our furry companions. And some elements of Halloween can pose safety risks for our pets. Below we’ve provided a few tips to help your pet have a safe, and stress-free Halloween.

Though they can come with negative side effects, antibiotics can be a crucial tool for helping your dog or cat fight off dangerous infections. Fortunately, there are ways that you can support your pet, during and after antibiotic treatment, to help them and move towards improved health. We’ve gathered a few important tips that any pet parent can use to help support their furbaby.

Brushing your pet’s teeth may seem a bit over the top to many of us. But there is growing evidence that for dogs and cats, just as for humans, oral health is directly related to digestive health. In this article, we’ll cover the oral microbiome, the link between oral health and gut health, and how to keep your pet’s mouth healthy.

You may have seen news reports warning that a diet containing peas, lentils, or potatoes may increase your dog’s risk of a heart disease called dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). We spoke with veterinarian Dr. Aubrey Tauer about this issue to learn what you can do to protect your dog from this deadly disease.

Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas) is a gastrointestinal disorder that can affect cats. While it’s reported to occur in only 2% of cats, it may be much more common than we think and a recent veterinary study suggests that more than 40% of all cats may be affected. Symptoms in cats are subtle and can be easily overlooked, making it hard to diagnose this silent killer.

To celebrate National Holistic Pet Day we offer some great (trustworthy) pet health tips to consider when thinking about the wellness of your fur-baby.

Fecal transplants can help dogs with chronic digestive problems recover their health, by helping them build an improved microbiome.

If your dog suffers from chronic inflammation, the reason could be an immune response gone wrong. When, instead of correctly fighting off harmful invaders, the immune system reacts to the body’s own cells or to something in the diet, the result can be chronic inflammation, which can wreak havoc with your dog’s digestive system.

We live in an era of discovery, especially as it relates to the microbiome and how microbial diversity influences our world, our health--and even our pet’s health. AnimalBiome is pushing scientific exploration to new levels in the world of cat and dog health. Now, with the help of one of the internet’s most famous cats, AnimalBiome is working to uncover new bacterial species in the most unusual of places—cat poop.

As a loving pet parent you provide your cat or dog with food, water, exercise and lots of affection--but do you keep in mind the importance of a healthy gut as well? From digestion to mental health, your pet’s gut health affects almost every aspect of their health and happiness. Countless bacteria living in your pet’s gut, collectively called the gut microbiome, provide a variety of life-supporting functions that can help your pet live a healthy life.

Congratulations— you have a new puppy! But what should you do the first time your bundle of furry love gets sick with something unpleasant like diarrhea or loose stool? While most episodes of gastrointestinal distress are not cause for extreme alarm, there are a few things you can do to help ease the symptoms and make sure your puppy’s long-term health is protected.

Firework displays during the Fourth of July can be highly stressful for dogs and cats. The loud bangs, whistles and explosive sounds can hurt their ears and frighten even the bravest of pets.

Anxiety can be a part of life even for our dogs and cats. It's not all chasing tails, smelling catnip, and playing with toys. Our pets are as susceptible to anxiety as we are. Just like in people, each pet handles stressors differently. When anxiety is ongoing and interferes with daily life, left untreated it can lead to behavioral and health problems.

We recently spent a lovely Saturday in Walnut Creek, California at a fundraiser for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, the “Take Steps for Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation Walk.” AnimalBiome helped sponsor the event to build awareness for these debilitating diseases and to raise funds to find cures.

Meet Emmy, a young pit bull mix who began her life on the street as a tiny, immunocompromised puppy with undiagnosed Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). Against all odds, she survived and today is an energetic, healthy young adult. After a long, difficult struggle to determine this pup’s complex digestive issues her resourceful pet parent found health solutions with a fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) along with making some important dietary changes.

Yesterday we received a call from a trainer friend who was out working with my recently adopted dog, Darwin. Kathy said that the dogs had identified an injured baby raccoon on the UC Berkeley campus. Because she was out with four dogs, she needed help rescuing him. The dogs were very good and didn't try to harm the poor kit.

When your dog has diarrhea, you need solutions quickly. However, figuring out what the underlying problem is difficult, and it may take some time to arrive at a proper diagnosis. We spoke with Dr. Michael Sterns of 4Paws Mobile Veterinary Services in Mountain View, CA about some questions that come up frequently when dog parents and their pups are facing this stressful situation.

Pet parents are passionate about keeping their fur babies happy and healthy at all times. Between veterinary care, gourmet pet food and treats, dog walking services, engaging new toys and the latest pet technology, there are endless ways to care for your pup.

Many dogs suffer from uncomfortable skin disorders like atopic dermatitis -- in fact, it is the most common reason dogs visit their veterinarian. The skin is a great indicator of what’s going on inside your pup’s body - especially their gut health. Skin conditions may be indicative of poor gut health and function. This seems to have been the case for poor Zuki, a sweet 6-year-old Shiba Inu pup who suffered from a severe case of atopic dermatitis and was transformed through dietary changes and balancing her gut microbial community.

About five years ago, we made the decision to enroll our elderly dog, Yuki, in a pet insurance plan. Yuki has already had a long history of health issues, and we decided that having pet insurance might help take the bite out of her next urgent care visit. We chose Trupanion because it was recommended by our veterinarian.

Many dogs that use AnimalBiome products have food sensitivities and allergies that require very restricted diets. We know that their pet parents are incredibly committed to their dog’s health and are doing everything in their power to give them happy lives.

Forty-nine percent of all pet dogs will eat poop at some point in their lives. Poop-eating, also known as coprophagy, is usually not well-accepted with the dog’s human family. Theories abound as to why dogs engage in coprophagy, and curiously, it is rarely observed in feral dogs living apart from humans. Dozens of commercial products exist on the market to stop this behavior in our furry friends, but unfortunately few have been shown to be successful.

Parvo in dogs is a common, highly contagious disease that’s one of the most severe infections a young puppy can get. Fortunately there is an effective vaccine, but some puppies need to have several boosters of the vaccine before they are fully protected.

This is Power, a seven-year-old purebred Border Collie who up until recently has continuously suffered from both environmental and food allergies. As a result, he would experience rapid weight loss and frequent vomiting. A friend of mine found out about AnimalBiome's unique therapies. I consulted with my vet and she approved of Power making use of AnimalBiome's Gut Microbiome Restoration System. Three days into the treatment, Power became incredibly happy and his food allergy problems disappeared.

I was still utterly heartbroken ten days after saying goodbye to my girlkitty of 19 years, Evi, when Bo and his sister Ellie came knocking at my door with their little travel bags. My new cats. Did I want new cats yet? No I did not! I wanted live in my grief, honor the memory of my Evi, then do some traveling which hadn't been possible while I was administering intensive TLC in the last couple years of my Evi's life. I needed a break from taking care of others.

We started AnimalBiome just a little more than one year ago. In the past year, we've been fortunate to learn from many of you about your pets and how our efforts to understand the gut microbiome has contributed to improve your pet's well being. I've had the opportunity to reflect on my own experiences with my dog, Yuki.

Prior to the 1980’s most people would have balked at the idea of putting “bugs” into our bodies on purpose. Indeed, the realization that some microorganisms are beneficial, even imperative, to our gut health is fairly recent. We have much to learn about which are the most helpful, though preliminary evidence points to the efficacy of several particularly friendly groups, including Lactobacilli, Enterococci, Bifidobacteria, and the yeast, Saccharomyces bouldardii.

A diagnosis of a disorder like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in your cat can be challenging to deal with for you, your veterinarian, and of course your feline companion. Unfortunately, inflammatory bowel disease is a common disease veterinarians see in practice. Below we’ll cover what a diagnosis of IBD in your cat means, possible causes, other diseases that might need to be ruled out, and possible treatments or therapies to ask your veterinarian about.

A fecal microbiota transplant involves the transfer of fecal material (including beneficial bacteria and fungi) from a healthy donor to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of a recipient.

You can’t see them, but you know they’re there. Bacteria are all around and within your dog’s body (and yours as well). Don't panic! The vast majority of bacteria on earth are either harmless or helpful for humans and their companions. In fact, scientists are just beginning to discover that bacteria actually play vital roles in shaping many aspects of health. Read on to learn about the role of these bacteria in your dog’s health.

Probiotics are one of the most popular supplements for dog and cat health. But do you know why probiotics are supposed to be good for your pet? They are often fed to dogs and cats with digestion problems, and are also growing in popularity as a daily food additive. Unfortunately, there is not much scientific evidence to support the popularity of probiotics. At AnimalBiome we want to help you understand what probiotics can and cannot do, so you can decide if they are right for your companion.

For both humans and our pets, everywhere modern processed foods go, chronic illnesses like obesity, diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease are soon to follow. To aid in your search for the best diet to feed your cat, below we discuss the links between cat food, inflammation and how it impacts your cat's health.

Your dog has a unique collection of hundreds of different types of single-celled microorganisms (bacteria and other microbes) in its digestive tract, referred to as the gut microbiome. Gut bacteria are crucial for digestion and obtaining nutrients from the food your dog eats. From weight to mental health, the microbiome affects almost every aspect of your dog’s health and happiness.

The first publication from our research on the bacteria associated with cats came out today! We sequenced the genome of a bacterium called Enterococcus faecalis that was isolated from a feral cat in California. This bacterium is commonly found in the gut of mammals and is known to be a symbiotic bacterium.

A microbiome is a microbial community (bacteria, fungi, viruses and other tiny things) occupying a discrete habitat, such as the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of cats. We are just beginning to explore the roles played by bacteria and other microbes in maintaining the health of domestic cats (e.g., Inness et al. 2007, Janeczko et al. 2008, Suchodolski 2011). The GI tract of domestic cats supports a diverse bacterial community that directly influences cat health and nutrition (Simpson 1998, Jergens 2002, Guilford and Matz 2003, Weese et al. 2004). The feline duodenum (the part of the gut that the stomach empties into) harbors up to 100 million cells per gram of poop, and is dominated by bacteria that live in environments with low levels of oxygen (e.g., Johnston et al. 1993, Papasouliotis et al. 1998, Johnston et al. 2001).

From digestion to mental health, your cat's gut health affects almost every aspect of their health and happiness. Your cat has a unique collection of hundreds of different types of single-celled microorganisms (bacteria and other microbes) in its digestive tract, referred to as the gut microbiome. Gut bacteria are crucial for digestion and obtaining nutrients from the food your cat eats.

Demand for probiotic supplements has skyrocketed, both for people and for their pets. With hundreds of cat and dog probiotics on the market, it can be rather daunting to choose one. Here are a few suggestions to help you choose a safe and effective probiotic for your cat or dog. Remember that it’s always a good idea to speak with your veterinarian before adding any new treatments to your pet’s regimen.

Meet Marigold: From a shelter cat with chronic diarrhea and on a euthanasia list, to present day – a happy, healthy and well-loved cat. Fierce love from her person lead to a long search for gut health solutions, which included dietary changes and fecal transplant (FMT) capsules to restore Marigold’s gut health. Without the community effort of the rescue operation, Cat Town, veterinarians, AnimalBiome and most of all her pet parent, Tracy; Marigold would not be here today. Discover Marigold’s story told by her dedicated person, Tracy.