Postbiotic supplement supports canine metabolic health

A peer-reviewed clinical trial published in the journal Animals has demonstrated that supplementation with a postbiotic ingredient can significantly reduce postprandial blood glucose in dogs during a weight-loss programme ‒ a finding with potentially important implications for the management of canine metabolic health.

The study, funded by global nutrition company ADM and conducted at Four Rivers Kennel in Missouri, USA, investigated the effects of Bifidobacterium animalis subspecies lactis CECT 8145 ‒ marketed by ADM as Priome Metabolic Health.

Forty-five adult Labrador Retrievers were enrolled in a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled design across two seven-week phases. During each phase, the dogs were divided into three groups: one received the live bacterial supplement (probiotic), another received the heat-treated version (postbiotic), and the third group received a placebo. The first phase induced weight gain through overfeeding, and the second promoted weight loss through feeding the caloric requirement for ideal body weight.

The most clinically notable finding came during the weight-loss phase. Dogs receiving the postbiotic supplement showed a 6% reduction in the area under the postprandial glucose curve compared with placebo-fed controls ‒ a statistically significant difference. No equivalent effect was observed for the live probiotic at the dose tested.

Additional effects were recorded during the weight-gain phase. The postbiotic group showed reduced serum levels of gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) ‒ a liver-associated enzyme linked to fat metabolism ‒ compared with controls, whilst fat digestibility was also improved. Sex-specific differences in gut hormone responses were observed, with female dogs in the postbiotic group showing reduced glucagon levels, and male dogs showing elevated GLP-1 concentrations.

With canine obesity now estimated to affect nearly 60 per cent of pet dogs in the United States, the findings add to a growing body of evidence supporting microbiome-based nutritional strategies for companion animal metabolic health ‒ and highlight the postbiotic form of this particular strain as a promising avenue for further investigation.