Clinical efficacy of probiotics for dogs (Sponsored by Iams)

New research demonstrates that probiotics may improve gastrointestinal health in dogs. Recent studies have shown that feeding probiotics to dogs can improve the quality of the dogs' stools (Unpublished data, 2007). In one study, dogs between the ages of 14 to 16 months old were fed either the probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis or a placebo before traveling to a training kennel. Of the dogs that received the probiotic, fewer experienced loose stools during the transition to the kennel compared to the dogs that received the placebo.

Another study compared the effects of feeding Bifidobacterium animalis to a placebo in dogs experiencing acute diarrhea. The time to resolution of diarrhea was approximately 40% less in dogs that received the probiotic. Note that a common antibiotic was used in both groups at the discretion of the attending veterinarian.

Figure 1: Time to resolution