How prebiotics and postbiotics support dogs’ and cats’ gut health

Caitlyn Getty, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), explains how prebiotic fibers in the diet become biologically active postbiotics in the gut. Through microbial fermentation, fibers are converted into short-chain fatty acids that support colon health and overall energy metabolism in pets. Additional postbiotics can provide antioxidant protection, helping reduce free radical damage associated with inflammatory processes.

Below is the transcript, which has been edited for clarity.

dvm360: How do postbiotics and fatty acids come into play after prebiotic fibers are introduced to the gut?

Getty: Prebiotic fibers, again, this another like confusing word, right? We got prebiotics, postbiotics, probiotics, all the biotics. The prebiotic fibers are those soluble, fermentable fibers that we're eating in the food, or the dog or cat is eating in the food, and then the bacteria, other organisms in the gut, ferment that food and they turn it into things like postbiotics, like short chain fatty acids.

And so those short chain fatty acids, for example, things like butyrate or butyric acid, you've probably heard about way back when, like from animal sciences or maybe even like first year vet school, right? Those are energy sources for the colonocytes, the the cells of the colon. Other ones like acetate, propionate can go into the body and provide an energy source for the dog or the cat, and then other postbiotics can provide things like antioxidant benefit to really help with any of that free radical damage that's going on from any kind of inflammation.

Caitlyn Getty, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Nutrition), is a board-certified veterinary nutritionist and PhD Scientist working to improve the health and wellbeing of dogs and cats through nutrition.