Microbiota of healthy dogs in response to supplementation with different dietary fibers. Microbiota of healthy dogs demonstrate a significant decrease in richness and changes in specific bacterial groups in response to supplementation with different dietary fibers in a randomized cross-over trial

Even though dietary fibers are often used as prebiotic supplements in dogs, the effect of individual types of fibers on canine microbiota composition is unknown. The objective of this study was to assess changes in fecal microbiota richness, diversity and taxonomic abundance with 3 different fiber supplements in dogs. These were psyllium husk, resistant starch from banana flour and methycellulose. They were administered to 17 healthy dogs in a cross-over trial after transition to the same complete feed. Fecal scores and clinical activity indices were recorded and fecal samples collected before and at the end of supplementation, as well as 2 weeks after each supplement (washout). Illumina NovaSeq paired-end 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed on all samples.