Probiotics: Do Pets Need Them?
What do pets actually gain from having probiotics? The truth is that these by-products are very essential to your pet’s body. They impact their gut health in multiple ways that we already know and in many other ways that we are yet to discover.
The current state of pet care consists of feeding pets mainly with a highly-processed diet. If pet owners continue doing this, their pet’s gut environment may never stand a chance to find a positive balance for long-term health effects.
Let’s find out more about probiotics and their impact on your pet’s gut ecosystem.
What are Probiotics?
Probiotics are live microorganisms that naturally live in your pet’s digestive tract. They occur naturally but can be given to pets as a supplement. These healthy gut bacteria are responsible for preventing diseases and promoting overall health in pets.
Generally, pets have good and bad microorganisms in their bodies. When a pet gets an infection, more bad bacteria knock his system out of balance. Probiotics, which act as good bacteria, get rid of the additional harmful bacteria; therefore, returning the balance.
What Benefits Can Probiotics Provide?
Probiotics consist of beneficial bacteria that help keep your pet’s body healthy in the following ways:
- Boost Immunity
Probiotics secrete protective substances that make your pet’s immune system stronger. These protective substances prevent pathogens from taking over and creating major diseases in a pet’s body.
- Enhance Digestion
Probiotics introduce many healthy bacteria into your pet’s body, which in turn supports the tissues and microorganisms in the digestive system. When probiotics are out of balance, it introduces many bad bacteria into the gut leading to constipation and diarrhea.
- Facilitate Absorption of Vitamins and Minerals
Probiotics increase the number of good bacteria, which improves your pet’s nutrient status by making vitamins and minerals more available for efficient absorption. Therefore, the presence of probiotics should not affect the effectiveness of other nutritional supplements.
- Reduce Allergies
Probiotics treat allergies in pets by maintaining the intestinal epithelial barrier integrity and inhibiting intestinal inflammatory responses. Apart from eliminating the source of an allergic reaction, probiotics also reduce itchiness by making your pet less likely to scratch.
- Reduce Bad Breath
Probiotics play a vital role in eliminating bad bacteria; hence, decreasing the risk of developing oral diseases such as tooth decay and plaque that lead to bad breath in pets.
- Enhances Better Skin and Coat Appearance
Probiotics promote good bacteria that help balance the skin pH and protect it against damage from the free radicals. Probiotics also eliminate bad bacteria that were initially responsible for the itchy and inflamed pet skin and coats.
- Reduce Intestinal Gas
Probiotics restore balance to the pet’s gut. A sufficient amount of good bacteria in the digestive tract reduces intestinal gas. Probiotics also speed up digestion, which means things don’t get backed up enough to cause gas and bloating.
- Prevent or Treat Diarrhea
Probiotics have special microorganisms like yeast and good bacteria in them, which help suppress the bad bacteria causing diarrhea and help your pet’s body fight them.
What Can an Unhealthy Pet Gut Lead to?
An unhealthy gut may trigger the following conditions in pets.
- Diarrhea
Poor gut health is likely to blame if your pet suffers from diarrhea or nausea. Bad bacteria irritate and damage the lining of the intestines allowing toxins to enter the intestines, which in turn triggers diarrhea.
- Food Allergy
Poor quality of bacteria in the gut results in food intolerances. Your pet may be having an undesirable reaction and difficulty digesting particular foods. This may lead to vomiting or chronic diarrhea.
- Gas
Frequent production of gas may be a sign that your pet’s gut is having a hard time during food digestion and waste elimination.
- Cramping
Poor gut health leads to the inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, which in turn causes painful muscle contractions in dogs.
- Bloating
Bloating is often related to the swallowed air in pets. An unhealthy gut results in the build-up of protein in the gut, which in turn causes foam.
- Bad Breath
Bad bacteria trigger oral infections like gingivitis and plaque, which produce a very smelly gas that your pet exhales as a bad breath.
- Obesity
When your pet has an imbalanced gut, his body may struggle to regulate blood sugar, store fat, and absorb nutrients. This doesn’t mean excessive fats around his stomach, but also within his neck, limb, and tail.
- Liver Diseases
The intestinal tract and liver are connected. Therefore, an unhealthy gut may result in the onset and progression of liver diseases in pets.
- Skin and Coat Disorders
Skin conditions in pets may be related to bad bacteria in the gut. An unhealthy gut stimulates allergies that may lead to skin inflammations and irritation, which pets cannot resist scratching; therefore, damaging their skins.
So, How Do You Balance Your Pet’s Gut Health?
It’s simple- supplement probiotics! Beneficial bacteria and yeast for pets come in several forms including pills, powders, paste, or solutions. Remember to always use a product that is specifically formulated for pets.
Here are some of the different forms of probiotics available for pets.
- Probiotic Treats
Providing your pet with probiotic treats is one of the easiest ways to supplement these beneficial bacteria. Some products like Vetark Pro-C and Marukan Honey Probiotics play a significant role in enhancing your pet’s digestive health and immune system.
- Pills
Probiotic capsules or tablets such as Dom Cleo and Ozloo are also convenient for supplementing your pets with good bacteria. You can hide the pill in your pet’s treat if he doesn’t like taking the tablets directly.
- Food-Based Probiotics
Some pet food such as Fruitable Greek with additional coconut and yogurt supplements are a good source of probiotics for pets and they are free of harmful artificial sweeteners.
- Solutions
Other probiotics like the adored Beast Yeasty come in liquid form. It’s very efficient in maintaining a healthy microbiome balance in your pet’s body.
The digestive tract plays a vital role in digesting food and absorbing nutrients. This is why it is important for pet owners to make sure their pet’s digestive health is taken care of.
If a pet’s digestive health is not optimal, it will be difficult for them to absorb the nutrients from the food they eat. This is why it is important for pet owners to take the steps to make sure their pet’s digestive health is optimal.
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