Probiotic has been the latest buzzword in the human supplement world and they are even being added to foods. As you would guess, this new healthy trend has now trickled over into the pet industry. It seems that a host of brands are adding probiotics to their food and new probiotic supplements for pets are showing up all the time. But what are they and does that necessarily mean our pets can & will benefit from them? The answer is absolutely! Probiotics  are and always will be an essential supplement for improving the overall health of our pets.

So what are Probiotics?  They are live microorganisms AKA “good bacteria” that live in the digestive track where 75 % of our immune system support develops and lives. There are more than 500 different bacterial species that keep intestinal linings healthy and assist in breaking down food. Beneficial organisms are also believed to help regulate healthy immune response.

The balance of this friendly bacteria can be disturbed by such things as simple aging, poor diet, stress or antibiotic use. For these reasons and many others it’s important to complement your immunity system with a probiotic supplement. Although some pet foods have now started adding probiotics, I’m still recommending that we give and or take them in supplement form. Reason being, probiotics are live microorganisms that begin dying immediately after they are manufactured. This process also exposes them to a high degree of heat, which also takes away from their effectiveness. So, if they are added to the food before the cooking process, most if not all will  die. Some companies will spray the probiotics on after the cooking process. This procedure is better as long as the company allows the food to cool before hand. So, depending on the ethics of the company it’s essentially a marketing ploy. Not to mention that the probiotics would have to pass through hostile stomach acid and bile to get to the intestine. The intestine is where the probiotics need to plant in order to seed the dog’s intestinal tract with healthy flora .

One more thing to consider when shopping for a good probiotic is to see if prebiotics are added. “Pre”biotics are the nutrients that act as the energy source or food for the “good” bacteria that live in the intestinal tract. They help the beneficial bacteria thrive. Prebiotics are a specialized form of fiber that occurs naturally in foods such as chicory, asparagus, artichokes, garlic, honey, wheat and oats. One of the most common prebiotics is FOS or fructooligosaccharides. These, unlike “pro”biotics, are not vulnerable to heat and have a stable shelf life.