Gut Feeling: How your pet's microbiota affects their health and behaviour

Have you heard about the recent discoveries of the gut microbiome and how it affects the health and behaviour of it’s host? If not, listen up. The implications of these findings not only effect us, they also effect our pets.

Did you know the gut microbiome of people and their pets overlap?

What is the gut microbiota?

Microbes are the smallest forms of life existing in every corner of the world, including inside the body of animals. Microbiotas exist throughout the body including on the skin and in the mouth but the gastrointestinal tract is the primary microbial habitat in humans and other animal species.

What does the research tell us?

In recent years, our understanding of the composition and functions of the gut microbiota, particularly in humans, has increased exponentially. Advances in technology, including next generation sequencing and metabolite profiling, have contributed to this new understanding.

This new frontier in scientific research is unveiling some extraordinary truths about the function and purpose of the gut microbiota in both humans and animals. Some of these discoveries include:

• The gut microbiota is host-specific and variable. Loss of diversity has a negative impact on health. 
• Diet significantly affects the composition of the gut microbiota. Research has found a link between long-term dietary habits and the structure of the gut microbiota. It also suggests that permanent adjustment of the microbiota may be achieved through diet (Marchesi et al., 2015) and that nutritional interventions may be useful for re-establishing a healthy micro biome. 
• Ingestible carbohydrates are the food of the gut microbiota and probiotics, prebiotics and polyphenols can promote gut health via the microbiota. 
• The gut microbiome plays a role in the development of obesity and associated metabolic disorders although the exact mechanisms remain unknown. 
• The gut microbiota can affect the permeability of the intestines. Increased permeability of the intestinal wall is often referred to as “leaky gut syndrome”. 
• Changes in the gut microbiota have been linked with the development of Inflammatory Bowl Disease, liver disease, obesity, diabetes, food allergies, Alzheimer’s, anxiety and depression.

Researchers are now comparing the gut microbiota to a new organ; a collection of cells working together with the host, able to promote health but also initiate disease. The gut microbiota is essential to the proper function and development of the host.

What do these discoveries mean for our pets?

To date, most of the research investigating gut health has focused on people. But what about gut health in companion animals? Given we are made of the same cells, organs and structures, do these new discoveries relate to our pets as well? 

The answer is YES! The canine and feline gut are similar to the human gut. Indeed, research shows that if you live with a companion animal, you share some of your microbiota with your furry family member! 

Although in it's infancy, research investigating gut health in companion animals has unveiled some interesting results so far. These include:

• Although domestic cats are obligate carnivores and domestic dogs are metabolically more omnivorous, research suggests their gut microbiota are relatively similar. The predominant phyla of canine and feline gut microbiome are similar to those of humans and rodent models which are dominated by Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes.
• A recent study showed that long term diet type affected the microbiota of dogs. Dogs fed a more natural diet had higher richness and diversity of gut microbiota compared to commercially fed dogs. This study also concluded that dogs fed a natural diet may be more prone to microbial infection.

Diet significantly affects the microbiome of dogs.

Factors affecting the human gut microbiota (e.g. age, genetics, region, diet, health status, living environment) probably also affect the gut microbiota of dogs and cats. To date, however, there are no published studies investigating the link between behaviour and the microbiome in companion animals. 

Research has looked at the effect on other animals. For example, one study found that microbes influenced mate choice in fruit flies with individuals preferring to mate with others that were reared on the same diet. Furthermore, recent experiments with mice showed that the gut microbiome can influence stress, anxiety and depression related behaviour and may also influence how animals behave towards each other.

Understanding the taxonomy, dynamics, and functions of microbial communities, the relationships between them, the substances produces and consumed by microbes, the influence of environmental factors (such as diet, drugs, housing), the interaction with the host and the differences between healthy and diseased populations is the focus of current research.

How can you support your pet's gut health?

The use of probiotics for supporting gut health is also the subject of current research. Recent studies show supplementing the diet with probiotics and prebiotics could be beneficial. For example, Lactobacillus has been shown to reduce anxiety and lessen the effect of stress. Prebiotics support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut and can assist in recovery from illness such as acute diarrhea in dogs.

Supplements, such as Inside-Out from Australian company Evolution Animal Care, contain pre and probiotics and are available to help you support the gut health of your pets. Inside-Out is especially formulated for companion animals (and horses) and can be added to daily meals.

A typical meal I feed my dogs, supplemented with Inside-Out

I've been using Inside-Out, for my two dogs Joseph and Lenny, for the past 6 months. Joseph has had chronic skin disease for several years now. He's been on numerous courses of antibiotics and steroids and is now doing much better on cytopoint injections. Supplementing his diet with Inside-Out has been an important component of restoring his gut health. If you'd like to learn more about Inside-Out or purchase it for your own pet, click here. Note: Inside-Out is currently available for shipping to Australian and New Zealand residents only.  

As research continues in this fascinating field we will, no doubt, learn more about the incredible links between gut flora, health and behaviour, in ourselves and our companion animals. This new understanding will help us improve the way we care for our pets to support their microbiome and optimise their health.

References

Deng, P., & Swanson, K. S. (2015). Gut microbiota of humans, dogs and cats: current knowledge and future opportunities and challenges. British Journal of Nutrition, 113(S1), S6-S17.

Ezenwa, V. O., Gerardo, N. M., Inouye, D. W., Medina, M., Xavier, J. B. (2012). Animal behaviour and the micro biome. Science, 338(6104), 198-199.

Gomez-Gallego, C., Junila, J., Mannikko, S., Hameenoja, P., Valtonen, E., Salminen, S., & Beasley, S. (2016). A canine-specific probiotic product in treating acute or intermittent diarrhoea in dogs: A double-blind placebo-controlled efficacy study. Veterinary microbiology, 197, 122-128.

Hang, L. (2018). The Gut Microbiome and Behaviour. International Association of Animal Behaviour Consultants (IAABC) Conference 2018.

Kim, J., An, J U. Kim, W., Lee, S., & Cho, S. (2017). Differences in the gut microbiota of dogs (Canis lupus familiarise) fed a natural diet or a commercial feed revealed by the Illumina MiSeq platform. Gut pathogens, 9(1), 68.

Marchesi, J. R., Adams, D. H., Fava, F., Hermes, G. D., Hirschfeld, G. M., Hold, G., ... & Tomas, L. V. (2015). The gut microbiota and host health: a new clinical frontier. Gut, gutjnl-2015.

Disclosure Statement: As an Inside-Out affiliate I earn commission from qualifying purchases. 

Environmental Enrichment Ideas for Your Companion Parrot

Welcome to my latest blog post in a series looking at environmental enrichment for companion animals. The previous posts looked at ways to provide enrichment to pet dogs and cats. In this post I will discuss the importance of environmental enrichment for parrots and the best ways to enrich your companion parrot's life.

From the relatively small (and more common) budgies, lovebirds and cockatiels all the way up to the larger Cockatoos and Macaws, parrots come in an amazing range of sizes, colours and personalities. Unlike cats and dogs, companion parrots have not undergone thousands of years of captive breeding for the purpose of domestication. This essentially means they remain wild animals in terms of their behaviour (Hoppes & Gray 2010).

A Green Winged Macaw foraging

In the wild parrots live in flocks with a sophisticated social structure and complex interactions, the basis of which is the pair bond. Parrots can fly hundred of kilometres per day and spend hours of their day foraging for food and interacting with other members of their flock. Contrast this to the life of a companion parrot confined to a cage, alone for much of the day. The captive parrot shares the desire to perform the same innate behaviours as their wild counterparts, however their ability to do so is limited within the constraints of their cage and the home environment (Mornement, 2018).

Why do companion parrots need enrichment?

Companion parrots need enrichment to provide them with opportunities to perform species specific behaviour, which is critical for their mental and physical well-being. Even though many pet parrots are provided with everything they need to survive (i.e. food, water, shelter and human social interaction), they must be provided with opportunities to engage in normal parrot behaviours, including foraging, bathing, flying, problem solving, preening and socialising, regularly in order to thrive.

In my work as an applied animal behaviourist, I see many companion parrots who have developed behaviour problems because they are unable to be parrots. Some common problems I encounter are feather picking disorder, excessive vocalisation (screaming) and aggression due to fear, territorial behaviour or mate defence.

By providing daily enrichment opportunities, companion parrots can express species-specific behaviours in an appropriate way. This can help to alleviate problem behaviours and even prevent them in the first place.

An African Grey parrot exhibiting feather picking disorder
Image by JoelZimmer (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Types of enrichment

If you've read my other posts in this series, you'll remember that environmental enrichment can be Animate (social) and Inanimate (physical). Animate enrichment is the provision of social stimulation from interaction with other birds or people. Whereas inanimate enrichment involves interaction with objects including toys, feeding enrichment, olfactory and auditory stimulation.

Enrichment ideas for your parrot

The best enrichment for companion parrots facilitates behaviours seen in the wild and provides opportunities for mental stimulation (problem solving), social interaction and physical exercise.

Social enrichment

Parrots are highly social flock animals and need social enrichment every day. Many species are long-lived and most form strong attachment bonds to their caregivers. Having two (or more) companion parrots can help provide much needed socialisation with other birds, which is very beneficial if the owner works full time. If you only have one bird, it's critical to allow your companion parrot time out of its cage every day to be with you. Spend time talking and playing with your parrot daily. Training is a great way to share time together in a productive way (see below).

Wild Rainbow Lorikeets flocking

Feeding enrichment

Parrots are no longer considered the "bird brains" of the animal world. Rather, the latest science is shining a light on the incredible intelligence and problem solving abilities of parrots (Milewski, 2015). Wild living parrots spend a good proportion of their day finding and foraging for food. This requires thinking, problem solving and physical activity. For this reason, companion parrots should be fed from foraging toys, rather than eating ad lib from a bowl.

Parrots also have complex and varied species-specific dietary and nutritional needs. The diets of many wild parrot species remain poorly understood. An appropriate diet it critical to your companion parrots health and well-being. If you're unsure whether you're feeding your bird an appropriate diet, check with a knowledgeable breeder or avian veterinarian.

Training

Many people have unrealistic expectations of their bird's behaviour. Parrots are naturally loud, messy, destructive and mischievous. However, these normal parrot behaviours in a home environment can be problematic for many people. Companion parrots need to be taught appropriate behaviours, such as chewing on appropriate items, vocalising in desired ways (i.e. not screaming loudly) and toileting in certain areas, when living in our homes. Positive reinforcement training is the most effective way to teach parrots desired behaviour. Here is an introduction to positive reinforcement and its benefits for companion parrots.

Food can be used to reinforce a pet parrot for flying to your hand

Physical enrichment

Allowing your bird daily flight opportunities is extremely enriching. Flight facilitates physical exercise and problem solving. It also allows for a quick get away if the bird is frightened. The downside of allowing your bird to fly is that our homes are full of potential dangers (e.g. windows, open doors, electrical cords, stoves etc).

The practice of clipping one or both wings of companion parrots to reduce or prevent their ability to fly, although controversial, remains popular today. Most people clip their birds wings for safety reasons or to make the birds easier to handle. I am now firmly against this practice in most cases for a number of reasons. My knowledge and experience to date clearly suggests that preventing parrots from their right to flight severely compromises their welfare. That's all I'm going to say about it for now and will write about the topic in depth in a future blog post.

A Moluccan Cockatoo with wings clipped

Other ways to provide physical enrichment include toys that promote your parrot to use its beak and feet to manipulate them as well as items that encourage your parrot to climb. Things like parrot play gyms (made out of natural timber), swings and ropes work well. Daily opportunities to bathe is another way to enrich your parrots life. Bathing is not only enjoyable for birds but it's vital for their skin and feather health, helping to promote preening.

Parrots are highly sensitive creatures who need their physical and behavioural needs met (and ideally exceeded) to live a happy life in captivity. Problem behaviours are common in companion parrots, particularly when one or more of their biological needs are not being sufficiently met.

If you'd like to learn more about how you can provide your parrot with enrichment download these FREE parrot enrichment activity books, written by a parrot enrichment specialist HERE.  I'd love to hear about other ways you enrich your parrot's life. Feel free to share your ideas in the comments section!

Dr Kate :)

References

Hoppes, S & Gray, P. (2010). Parrot rescue organizations and sanctuaries: A growing presence in 2010. Journal of Exotic Pet Medicine, 19(2), 133-139.

Meehan, C. L. Garner, J. P. & Mench, J. A. (2004). Environmental enrichment and development of cage stereotypy in Orange-winged Amazon parrots (Amazona amazonica). Developmental Psychobiology, 44(4), 209-218.

Meehan, C. L. Millam, J. R. & Mench, J. A. (2003). Foraging opportunity and increased physical complexity both prevent and reduce psychogenic feather picking by young Amazon parrots. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 80(1), 71-85.

Milewski, A. (2015). New intelligence on Australian parrots. Wildlife Australia, 52(4), 28.

Mornement, K. (2018). Animals as Companion, In Animals and Human Society (pp.281-304).

Wild at Heart: Why Enrichment is Essential for Your Pet's Well-Being

You've probably heard of the term "environmental enrichment". Most people associate environmental enrichment with captive animals, such as those living in zoos and aquariums, but did you know that environmental enrichment is important for your pet's well-being and welfare too?

A body of research from ethology, animal science and veterinary science has clearly demonstrated that animals have behavioural needs and that certain innate behaviours, such as nest building in birds, are highly motivated. In addition, neuroscience shows us that animal brains have complex emotional systems that serve as motivators for behaviour. The core emotional systems include seeking (novelty), fear, panic (e.g. separation stress), rage, lust, caring (e.g. nurturing young) and play (Morris et al 2014).

Chew toys are a great form of enrichment for dogs

What is Environmental Enrichment?

Broadly speaking, environmental enrichment involves the practice of increasing the physical, social and temporal complexity of captive environments (Carlsbad & Stepherdson, 2000).

Wild at Heart

Our modern day companion animals are relatives of wild species and, more recently, breeds originally developed to perform work such as herding, hunting guarding and retrieving. Despite this fact, when choosing their next animal companion, many people do not consider the breed or species-specific behaviour of the animal, rather their choice is made on the basis of appearance or the perceived status the pet will bring them (Whelan, 2010).

What are "species-specific behaviours?" Species-specific behaviours are actions and behaviours that animals have evolved to perform or carry out. They include things like foraging or hunting for food, establishing and maintaining a territory and protecting their territory from intruders. To provide appropriate environmental enrichment it's crucial that the natural history and behaviour of the breed or species is well understood. Cats and dogs are both members of the order Carnivora and they share species-specific behaviours similar to their wild counterparts. Similarly, companion parrots also share the same species-specific behaviours as their wild living relatives.

Many wild-living cat species are arboreal (live in trees)

As with captive exotic animals, laboratory animals and livestock, our pets are also captive animals living by the constraints we place on them. Even though we provide them with everything they need to survive (i.e. food, water, shelter, vet care etc) we often don't realise they retain the instincts and desires to perform, and need outlets for the expression of, these behaviours in order to thrive. When we fail to provide ample opportunities for our pets to express natural behaviours or exercise as they normally would, unwanted negative behaviours can result (Whelan, 2010).

Dogs:
When considering the natural history of dogs, it's important to recognise breed differences. With over 150 different breeds in existence, originally developed to perform specific jobs, genetic differences in the strength of the core emotional systems are likely. For example, one dog may be a high seeker, constantly motivated to chase a ball, compared to another which is a low seeker, happy to live a more sedentary life. These days pet dogs are not required to perform the jobs they were originally bred for however those selected behavioural traits still remain. For example, the Border Collie that herds small children or the Doberman that barks at people walking past the home. These are normal behaviours for these breeds but are often considered problematic by dog owners (Morris et al, 2014).

This dog is highly motivated to fetch the ball

Cats:
Increasingly, pet cats are confined to the home with many not having regular access to the outdoors. Although this keeps them safe from cars and other animals, many can spend long periods of time in isolation unable to exhibit hunting or social behaviours. Consequently, these cats often develop problem behaviours.

Species-specific behaviours of the cat are very similar to that of it's relatives, the African wildcat and to free-roaming cats, and include social family rankings, elimination and feeding behaviours (Overall et al, 2005). When owners understand these normal behaviours and provide appropriate outlets for them, the behaviours are less likely to be expressed in a problematic way.

Behavioural issues are a common reason for relinquishment of companion animals to shelters. As such, we must recognise the core emotional systems affecting behaviour and do our best to provide appropriate outlets for these systems through enrichment. This will help to reduce problem behaviour and the subsequent relinquishment of pets to animal shelters.

Benefits of Environmental Enrichment

Much of the research on the benefits of environmental enrichment to date has been performed on mice in a laboratory setting. These studies show that an enriched environment can provide numerous benefits including improved learning and memory, increased brain weight and size and enhanced activity of the opioid systems in the brain (van Praag et al, 2000). Research on captive exotic animals shows that enrichment can decrease aggression, increase activity, reduce the expression of abnormal behaviour and improve health and reproduction (Carlsbad & Stepherdson, 2000).

Enjoying some environmental enrichment!

As our pet's guardians it is our responsibility to maintain not only their physical health, but their emotional health as well. Adequately providing for the mental health of our companion animals through environmental enrichment before the development of behaviour problems is key. Furthermore, the concept of environmental enrichment should be considered an essential component of pet husbandry rather than an optional addition.

Good enrichment should provide pets with opportunities to express behaviours driven by positive emotional systems of seeking, caring and play. Some examples include foraging, play, positive social interactions and grooming. Enrichment should aim to increase positive emotions and reduce the time animals experience negative emotions such as fear and panic (Morris et al, 2014). When applied correctly, environmental enrichment promotes optimal animal welfare.

Stay tuned for my next few blog posts which will focus on the most effective ways you can provide environmental enrichment for your dog, cat and companion parrot!

References

Carlstead, K. and D. Shepherdson. "Alleviating stress in zoo animals with environmental enrichment." The biology of animal stress: Basic principles and implications for animal welfare (2000): 337-354.

Morris, C. L., T. Grandin and N. A. Irlbeck. "Companion Animals Symposium: Environmental Enrichment for companion, exotic and laboratory animals". Journal of Animal Science 89.12 (2011): 4227-4238.

Overall, K. and D. Dyer. "Enrichment strategies for laboratory animals from the viewpoint of clinical veterinary behavioural medicine: Emphasis on cats and dogs." Ilar Journal 46.2 (2005): 202-216.

Van Praag, H., Kemperman, G. and Gage, F. H. "Neural consequences of environmental enrichment." Nature reviews. Neuroscience 1.3 (2000): 191.

Whelan, F. "Environmental enrichment for pets." Veterinary Nursing Journal 25.3 (2010): 27-28.

When your dog dies: Coping with the loss of a canine companion

It's a time every dog owner dreads. And although it's inevitable at some point, most of us push the thought of our beloved dogs no longer being with us to the very back of our minds. This is not surprising, considering the close relationship most of us share with our companion animals.

Golden Oldie (Source: chriswsn on Flickr)

Pet attachment, loss and grief
Pets are considered family members and significant attachment figures, especially in Western culture. Characteristics of our relationships with pets mirror those of our relationships with people and include unconditional love, acceptance and distress at separation (Brown & Symons, 2016). Not surprisingly, the loss of a beloved pet, especially an unexpected loss, can be profound with complicated grief, depression and trauma commonly experienced. 

Symptoms of grief can include loss of sleep and appetite, decreased social activity, difficulty concentrating, loss of motivation, stress, depression, anxiety, worry, anger, loneliness, guilt, sadness and feelings of emptiness. It has even been suggested that the passing of a pet can evoke the same level of grief as the passing of a spouse or family member and that people move through the same stages of grieving for pets as they would people. Perhaps not surprisingly, people who lose a pet suddenly (e.g. car accident) tend to experience more severe grief than those whose dog dies from an illness (Brown & Symons, 2016; Kimora et al., 2014).

Research has found that our attachment style (the way we form social relationships) significantly influences the way we deal with the loss of a companion. Attachment theory addresses how infants and children form social relationships and, depending on the individuals experiences, can be secure or insecure. It is proposed that these early relationships with caregivers influence future social relationships throughout life.

Two dimensions, anxiety (i.e. excessive worry, distrust and concern a partner will not be available when needed) and avoidance (i.e. discomfort with closeness, depending on others and emotional intimacy), have been described in adult attachment in romantic relationships (Brown & Symons, 2016). These same dimensions have been found by Zilcha-Mano et al., (2012), who developed the Pet Attachment Questionnaire, in our relationships with pets. People who are anxiously attached to their pet may be predisposed to trauma and complicated grief if they tend to fixate and worry about their relationships. Furthermore, bereaved pet owners may suffer from more severe grief symptoms if they've experienced a number of stressful events (e.g. changes in family structure, illness, work issues) in quick succession (Kimora et al., 2014).

What can you do to ease the pain?
Everyone deals with grief a little differently. Acknowledging that you've experienced a significant loss and taking time for self care is important. Some people help heal the wound by getting another dog and this has been found to have a positive impact on emotional adjustment and coping with a loss (Brown & Symons, 2016). Whereas others may prefer to take time to grieve and recover from their loss before they are ready for a new companion.

I asked my very good friend and pet bereavement specialist, Dr Vanessa Rohlf, for her top three tips for coping with the death of a pet. Here they are:

1. Accept your feelings for what they are and accept them with kindness and without judgment. 
2. Grief can comes in waves. It can be triggered by reminders of things (e.g., collars, pet beds), places (e.g., veterinary clinic, a favourite place your pet used to lie), people and sometimes there is no trigger. Ride with the waves. They provide us with an opportunity to process our loss. 
3. Seek support from friends and family. Talk to your friends and family. Support from significant people in your life can be so important to the healing process.    

When we lost our Boxer Archie in 2015 and our Labrador Joseph just this week, I certainly found that spending time with family and friends helped to ease the pain, as did talking about our memories of them, looking at photos and watching videos. Archie had lymphoma and we knew that his time was limited and Joseph was 12 and had been battling health issues for a while. This was a blessing in a way because we were able to make the most of the time we had left with them. We were also able to plan how we would say goodbye.

We had both Archie and Joseph euthanised at home, where they were relaxed and comfortable, and both were cremated afterwards. As hard as it was to say goodbye to our boys, choosing the way we did it helped us cope better with their loss.  There are some really amazing compassionate people and services available to assist and they make saying goodbye that little bit more bearable. Dr Emma from My Best Friend - Home euthanasia service and Eden Hills Pet Cremation both offer beautiful services.

I miss those beautiful big Boxer paws

Joseph and baby Lenny (soon after we adopted him)

Having Lenny, our adopted Border Collie, also helps ease the grief. So far he seems to be coping well without Joseph. I'm not seeing any signs of stress or anxiety or concern for where he's gone. However it's still early days and we are conscious to spend as much time with him as we possibly can. We have been a two dog household since moving out of home and having our own dogs. Although we'd love nothing more than to welcome another dog into our home, with two toddlers, the timing just isn't right. For now we looking forward to watching Lenny and our boys grow together.

"The pain of their loss is the price we pay for the joy they bring and the pleasure of their company."

In my own experience with pet loss and grief I've found that acknowledging that life is short for our canine companions helps me to be prepared for the inevitable. When we're not in denial about this we can truly be with our dogs in the moment and soak up the precious time we share with them. Having experienced both sudden and expected losses, I did find that the expected losses were easier to cope with. That said, loss is loss and it's hard. I always say that the pain of their loss is the price we pay for the joy they bring and the pleasure of their company.

Although the grief associated with the loss of a beloved companion does ease with time, if you find yourself struggling to cope it's important you seek help. Talking to family and friends is a good start and speaking with a counsellor who specialises in pet bereavement, such as Dr Vanessa Rohlf, is even better.

Dr Kate x

References:

Brown, O. K., & Symons, D. K. (2016). “My pet has passed”: Relations of adult attachment styles and current feelings of grief and trauma after the event. Death studies, 40(4), 247-255.

Kimura, Y., Kawabata, H., & Maezawa, M. (2014). Frequency of Neurotic Symptoms Shortly after the Death of a Pet. The Journal of Veterinary Medical Science, 76(4), 499.

Morley, C., & Fook, J. (2005). The importance of pet loss and some implications for services. Mortality, 10(2), 127-143

Zilcha-Mano, S., Mikulincer, M., & Shaver, P. R. (2012). Pets as safe havens and secure bases: The moderating role of pet attachment orientations. Journal of Research in Personality, 46(5), 571-580.