Dog Gut Health: Why it's important and top vet tips to improve your adorable dog's digestion 🐶

Many factors, including the foods our dogs eat, can affect their gut health.

What your dog eats - and doesn't eat - has a huge bearing on its gut health.

Dog owners are often unaware of the importance of a good digestive function in their pets, and its link to the overall health and wellbeing of our four-legged friends. In fact, poor gut health can directly impact many parts of the dog's body, including the immune system, dental health, brain, heart, joints and more. By ensuring your dog has a healthy gut, you can help make all these systems work properly and keep your dog on top form and in the best condition for a long, healthy life.

To help out, Dr Samantha Ware, Lead Nutritionist at dog food delivery service tails.com, has provided insight into how you can recognise the signs and symptoms of poor gut health, as well as some tips on how to naturally improve it, after consulting with your vet.

Here's what she had to say.

Why is it important that my dog’s gut remains healthy?

Like for us humans, a dog’s gut is responsible for several important roles in their body, and is often referred to as the foundation of their health. The gastrointestinal tract is a complex and dynamic series of organs that help to prevent parasites, toxins, and bacteria entering into the bloodstream, alongside helping them to digest food and absorb nutrients that they consume.” So why is it so important that our dog's gut stays healthy?

Helps your dog to maintain energy

Our dogs are often big balls of energy, that play and run around at any given opportunity, and one of the main reasons is because of their gut health. A healthy gut supports your dog's energy levels by helping to absorb nutrients from food. These nutrients have a wide range of roles in the dog's body, but one key need is energy to keep your dog active throughout the day. As our furry friends get older, their digestion, energy and nutrient needs slowly change, so it's important that their gut health remains a priority as they age.

Helps recovery from digestive discomfort

Another reason it is important to keep your dog’s gut healthy, is because it may help with recovery from digestive discomfort they may be experiencing. Issues like overfeeding, change in diet or scavenging can all upset their digestion, but a healthy gut can recover quickly and get your dog back on track.

Helps to balance blood sugar levels

A healthy gut can also help to manage and regulate your dog's blood sugar levels which, in turn, can prevent after-meal glucose spikes and keep energy levels even throughout the day.

Signs there's something wrong with your dog's gut or digestion?

If you are worried that your dog is experiencing poor gut health, there are a number of signs to look out for that could indicate something is wrong. Recognizable symptoms can include but are not limited to, a bloated stomach, their coat is dry or they appear to be itching their skin more than normal, bad breath, appearing lethargic or sleeping more than normal, and showing signs of anxiety and stress. Other symptoms such as changes to their stool, like persistent diarrhoea, constipation or passing more gas than normal can also be signs your dog is experiencing issues relating to gut health. It's important to pick up on these symptoms, as early as possible, as leaving gut problems untreated can lead to more severe or chronic issues.

How can you naturally improve your dog's gut health?

If you think there might be something wrong with your dog’s gut health then it's always important to contact your vet first, as the above symptoms could be signs of something more serious that needs specialist treatment. However, after consulting with your vet, there are plenty of things you can do to improve your dog’s digestion.

Try Introducing a variety of ingredients

One thing you can do to help improve your dog’s gut health, is by considering the variety of ingredients that make up your dog's diet and if they are getting everything they need. A nutritious balance of meats, offal, fish, vegetables and healthy oils alongside whole grain or complex carbohydrates will often help to optimise or restore gut health. A good diet can also contribute to improved coats, healthy teeth, and stable energy levels.

Consider introducing prebiotics and probiotics to your dog’s diet

Prebiotics are high-fibre foods that encourage the growth of healthy, beneficial bacteria in your dog’s gut. You can introduce this into the diet through a prebiotic supplement, or by choosing a food designed to support digestion with prebiotics. However, it’s important that when adding new food to your dog's diet, you monitor their behaviour for food allergies and intolerances, so look out for skin irritation, diarrhoea, lethargy and upset stomachs.

Pay attention to what ingredients are in your dog's food

Improving your dog's gut health can also be as simple as paying attention to what ingredients go into your dog's diet and monitoring what effect these have. Balance is also just as important, some ingredients like fruits and vegetables are healthy and tasty additions to your furry friend's food, but too much can affect their digestion and nutrient absorption. Some dogs will need more restrictions to their diets to keep their gut healthy, for example, hypoallergenic or grain-free recipes can help support dogs with intolerances or allergies.

Reduce stress in your dog's day-to-day life

One of the biggest offenders when it comes to your dog's gut health can actually be the result of stress. Just like us humans, when our dogs suffer from stress it can result in all kinds of health problems including, diarrhoea, vomiting, and other gastrointestinal issues. In order to improve your dog’s gut health as well as their overall well-being, it is important you try and reduce any stress they may be feeling. This could include creating a peaceful and comfortable environment, playing fetch or giving them a tasty treat to gnaw down on.