
An introduction to the canine microbiome
The community of organisms that live within the digestive tract are known as the gut microbiome, and there are literally trillions of them.
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Does your dog go through bouts of itching, or seem unwell after meals, and you aren’t sure if it's an allergy or intolerance? Knowing the difference between the two may be the key to your dog’s comfort.
Many dog owners often confuse intolerances with allergies, but they are distinct conditions with different causes and treatments. This can lead them to entirely rule out a food in their dog’s diet that they aren’t actually allergic to, and not look at the root cause of the problem. Spoiler alert: it’s often to do with the gut…
So what is the difference?
Allergies in dogs involve the immune system’s response to otherwise harmless substances. Common allergies include pollen, dust mites, bug bites and gluten. Typical responses to allergies present themselves as itching, redness and inflammation. This is due to histamines being released to attack the substance or ‘allergen’. Allergies are often identified in dogs using blood or skin tests, and are dealt with through elimination diets or antihistamines.
Whilst allergies are an immune response, intolerances are fundamentally a digestive issue. They do not involve the immune system, but rather highlight a digestive or metabolic difficulty to break down certain substances. Typical intolerances include proteins, lactose and certain additives. Intolerances may cause diarrhoea, flatulence, bloating and vomiting.
Unlike allergies, which involve the immune system and an instant histamine reaction, intolerances are often the result of enzyme deficiencies, imbalances in gut bacteria, or damage to the lining of the intestines.
Due to people confusing intolerances with allergies, they react by eliminating the intolerance from the dogs diet and think the issue has been dealt with.
However, it is important to get to the root cause of the intolerance, as the cause (GI health issues) may get worse if not dealt with, and can be reversed if dealt with accordingly. By treating an intolerance as an allergy, the cause of the issue is not confronted and future intolerances are not prevented.
With over half of the dogs on our database suffering from food intolerances, we know just how important preventative treatment is when dealing with them: such as good gut health care. A healthy gut, with a balanced microbiome and fully functioning digestive enzymes is vital in preventing intolerances and ensuring your dog can properly digest and absorb nutrients.
You can maintain good gut health through a varied and balanced diet, pre, pro and postbiotics, and avoiding processed dog foods with too much sugar, refined carbohydrates and additives.
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