Why Healthy Dogs Have Healthy Guts
A famous greek philosopher once said, “bad digestion is the root of all evil”. Remarkably accurate for 400BC! Modern science has since confirmed: your dog’s health is closely linked to their gut.
With 70% of the immune system residing in their gut, having a properly functioning digestive system is our #1 priority. We’ve been saying it for years, healthy dogs have healthy guts!
It’s something we take super seriously at Whoa Nelly!
It’s why we make our “Nelly Belly” and “Baby Belly” fermented foods which go into all of our recipes. We want your dog to have wonderfully healthy digestion so that they live a long, happy life. And the key to a healthy gut is looking after the bugs that live in it.
It all comes down to the “gut microbiome”.
What is the gut microbiome?
The gastrointestinal tract (we’ll just call it the gut for simplicity) is the organ which takes food and turns it into nutrients through a process called digestion. Living in this organ is an incredible diverse collection of bacteria, archaea, viruses, and eukaryotic organisms. All together this is called the “gut microbiome”.
Fun fact: there are more foreign bacteria cells than “dog” cells in your dog! The microbiome’s genome is about 150 times larger than it’s host. It’s the same in people too.
All these organisms living in the gut have a symbiotic relationship with your dog. For example, some of the bacteria produce short-chain fatty acids, which feeds the intestinal epithelium, which in turn produces mucus which then feeds the bacteria. It’s a delicate ecosystem which directly impacts the quality of life of your dog.
The link between the gut and immunity
The immune system has one very important function: to protect against outside harmful substances. It’s an essential process because without an immune system there would be no way to fight against external invaders like bacteria or viruses. It literally keeps your dog alive!
As you can imagine, the immune system is fantastically complicated. It’s a network of white blood cells, antibodies and other substances that acts to fight off infections and reject foreign proteins. And the front line of the immune system is the gut and the microbiota that live in it. The gut is the barrier between your dog and the external environment. For this reason, gut microbiota has a central role in the suppression of inflammatory and allergic responses.
The gut can act simultaneously as pro-inflammatory (responding to pathogens) and anti-inflammatory (reducing excess inflammation). There is a mucus barrier between the gut microbiota and host immune cells which is designed to prevent conflict between the two. When the immune system is functioning optimally this works correctly, and when it doesn’t we see inflammation - and potentially related health issues.
Interestingly, microbial diversity decreases with age and is associated with increased frailty and reduced cognitive function. While this hasn’t been studied extensively in dogs (yet), there is a similar study of an exceptionally long living species of bat .
The researches found that the healthy old bats have a microbiome virtually indistinguishable from juvenile bats. These old bats live 10x their expected life span, which is quite remarkable indeed! The study concludes that a healthy, unchanging microbiome is likely to play an important role in health and longevity.
What happens when it gets out of balance?
The gut is a complicated and sensitive organ, which is easily altered by diet, drugs, stress and infection. Your dog’s immune system must adapt to this changing internal environment in order to protect itself from the external environment.
Intestinal epithelial cells mediate the crosstalk between gut microbes and host immunity. This crosstalk creates a balance of bacteria, ensuring the gut remains healthy and pathogenic bacteria is kept in check. If this is disrupted, it causes an imbalance in microbiota called dysbiosis.
When this occurs there is either not enough beneficial bacteria, not enough bacterial diversity or too many pathogens. Dysbiosis can lead to toxins and pathogens crossing the intestinal wall into the blood stream - often called “leaky gut” syndrome. The body then works hard to get rid of these foreign invaders, which can cause chronic inflammation and health problems for your dog.
These conditions include: allergies, arthritis, auto-immune disease, cancer, cognitive problems, diabetes, gastrointestinal issues, heart disease, kidney disease, liver disease, obesity, skin & coat disorders and urinary tract disorders.
Diet is the key to a healthy gut!
Dogs are by nature carnivorous scavengers. They are designed to thrive on meat but are able to adapt and survive with the food that is available. We want our dogs to thrive, and as you can imagine diet has an enormous impact. Feeding a species appropriate diet is the best way to ensure that your dogs microbiota are healthy and happy.
For dogs, this means feeding a predominantly meat based diet that meets NRC “optimal” nutrient guidelines (or AAFCO “complete and balanced” at minimum). Important factors are mineral and fat balances, as well keeping chemicals out of the food chain by feeding organic (if you can). Avoid synthetic vitamins and minerals as they are not easily absorbed.
A 2017 study shows that dogs eating a raw, meat based diet for over a 1 year period have a significantly more diverse and abundant microbial composition than dogs fed kibble.
This study also suggests a potentially higher risk of diet related infection, highlighting the need to feed human grade meat. Quality is important - if you wouldn’t eat it, it’s probably not great for your dog either.
We believe the Biologically Appropriate Raw Food (BARF) model to be the best way to nourish our dogs. It is composed of mostly high quality meat (70-80%) combined with fruit, vegetables and other foods which which have beneficial functions.
For example, adding food rich in probiotics (beneficial bacteria) is a great way to keep the balance of the microbiome healthy. And adding dietary sources of prebiotics (soluble fibre) will nourish these essential bacteria.
A properly formulated diet using organic whole ingredients is the best food for your dog, hands down.
WE LOVE GUT HEALTH!
This is why we put so much effort into supporting the digestive system with our Whoa Nelly! Dog Food. Having a healthy gut means less trips to the vet and the best conditions for a long happy life.
Whoa Nelly! is good for the gut:
Raw & Balanced (NRC & AAFCO)
Made with quality organic ingredients
Fermented “Nelly Belly” and “Baby Belly” for probiotics & enzymes
Anti-inflammatory ingredients like organic turmeric, coconut oil and spirulina
It’s delicious!!