CANINE HEALTH RESEARCH— SOME EXCITING STUFF IS HAPPENING! by Jacquelyn Fogel
T wo weeks ago Purina sponsored a Canine Health Foundation (CHF) 2019 Conference for Parent Clubs in St Louis. It was the first time I had thought to attend, and I nearly didn’t make it this year. The sponsors wanted their writers to have a background in sci- ence, and lucky for me, I have a MA in Sociology—which in my mind qualifies as a science. I was offered a ticket, and excit- edly joined about 300+ other invitees to hear about the current status of research being done by researchers funded with CHF donations. All of the topics presented were infinitely interesting, but just as college professors have a knack for making the most inher- ently interesting subjects dreadfully bor- ing, some of the speakers did the same. The audience was an impossible mix of AKC Parent club lay-people, veterinar- ians and animal researchers, and a few writers. The topics were all related to scientific research currently being done on some really interesting topics. None of the presenters lacked passion, but some got so mired in minute detail that they left the audience to glaze over, pull out their phones or take extended bathroom breaks. Yet even with the complexity and depth presented, all sessions had some- thing of value for everyone in the room— not at all an easy task. The conference started on Friday after- noon with five presentations by special- ists in nutrition and disease. This was an outstanding opening to the conference. The speakers were informative and en- tertaining. You may think microbiomes in the gut and how they affect the immune system is not a particularly fascinating subject, but you would be wrong. I was mesmerized—especially consideringDar- lingHusbandwas recently diagnosedwith diverticulitis, I have a Basset that has long suffered from the effects of prolonged use of drugs to clear up chronic coccidia, and I recently took on three puppies that had been exposed to giardia. All three of these conditions affect the gut microbiome and require the use of the same antibiotics studied by these researchers. These are conditions that all breeders and most pet owners will have to confront at some time. Dr. Jan Suchodolski opened the session with an informative overview of the gut
microbiome. Don’t read his presentation abstract or you will become overwhelmed by his use of really big words. I was pre- pared to be bored silly and was pleasantly surprised at his ability to speak to a lay audience about the dangers and ineffec- tiveness of many antibiotics (including metronidazole—for me and every other person who travels with it when we go to dog shows), and the importance of main- taining gut stability with probiotics and nutritional diet changes. The newest re- search is showing some alarming results, eg., permanent changes in themicrobiome that can be caused by metronidazole, and a study in Germany showing Clavamox was contributing to an increase in drug- resistant bacteria, but was no more effec- tive at clearing up diarrhea than a placebo. Fecal transplants (yes, it is exactly what it sounds like) may become a common treat- ment in the future to restore colon bacte- ria balance, and are currently under con- trolled study. At least we can be assured that there will be no shortage or manufac- turing disruption for the product needed in this treatment. Dr. Michael Lappin from Colorado State University was highly informative and entertaining as he described his work with shelter animals and the chronic di- arrhea issues confronting them. We all know diarrhea isn’t really funny, and I so appreciate all of the supportive research being done on this issue that affects any- one with dogs, children or spouses with diverticulitis. Dr. Lappin reports very positive results from the use of probiot- ics, but cautions that we are still in very early stages of identifying which probiot- ics work best, and what the appropriate strains are to promote a positive result. He also cautions that more than a quarter of all probiotics on the market have no live organisms in them, and the research to support appropriatemixes of these organ- isms is in its infancy. His work is finding that some probiotics are also being found effective at turning on animal’s immune system to help mediate the bad effects of stress and disease. For those of us who deal daily with animal stress and anxiety, this is amazing news. Dr. Ragen McGowen spoke on the impact of a specific probiotic on anxiety in dogs. The issue is near and dear to my heart as
the owner of a boarding kennel that often sees dogs people claim have separation anxiety. I also have a couple of Bedlingtons who exhibit anxious behaviors like drool- ing and nervous peeing. Every speaker at this conference is re- quired to fully disclose their professional affiliations, and Dr. McGowan disclosed that she is a research scientist funded by Purina. This information is important on two levels. First, it discloses that there could be a conflict of interest between her research findings and the people who are paying her to do the research. This is very important because it can be relatively easy to report results that look favorable to the company providing the researchers’ pay- check. Everyone should have healthy skep- ticism when companies with vested inter- ests report findings from research they pay for. However, the flip side to this is that companies funding research are also more likely to use the results of the research in the development of their products. I am a huge fan of scientific research, but not al- ways a fan of how it is used for marketing a product. I believe that most researchers do good work, but I have also seen how results can be shifted to satisfy a marketing de- partment. Dr. McGowan studied a specific probiotic found in a Purina product, and she was very clear that her findings related specifically to that probiotic. It is possible that other probiotics will produce the same results, but her research could not verify that conclusion. Dr. McGowan’s results have been remark- able. She is proving that there is a direct link between gut activity and the nervous system. Manipulation of gut microbia can actually reduce anxiety levels in dogs, thus resulting in slower heart rates and fewer stress behaviors. Who knew that a simple pill or powder could reduce stress and anxiety! We may want to look at put- ting probiotics in human drinking water. Dr. Darcy Adin’s topic was about the im- pact of nutrition on Dilated Cardiomy- opathy (DCM). The presentation was extremely complex, but my takeaway was that nutrition can play a positive role in dogs with this diagnosis. Supplements like L-Carnitine, Taurine, COQ-10 and Fish oil with DHA provide supportive help and may be useful in managing symptoms of the disease.
38 • T op N otch T oys , D ecember 2019
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