The gut microbiome of companion animals influences health, behaviour and wellbeing - dietary and environmental factors affecting the microbiome have welfare implications that are becoming better understood.
Microbiome welfare connects gut health to physical and mental wellbeing in ways that are increasingly well-documented. Dogs and cats with dysbiotic microbiomes experience chronic digestive discomfort, mood dysregulation and immune problems that affect daily quality of life. Protecting microbiome health requires thoughtful antibiotic stewardship (using antibiotics only when genuinely necessary and for appropriate durations), dietary diversity, and probiotic support during known microbiome disruption events. This is an emerging area where welfare and health science are converging - understanding that how we feed our companion animals affects not just their gut but their behaviour, immunity and emotional state is changing best-practice recommendations.