Gut microbiome and heterogeneity of responses in healthy household dogs transitioning from an extruded to a mildly cooked diet

The gut microbiota (GM) is associated with canine health and can be impacted by diet. Dog owners in the U.S. have increasingly shown an interest in feeding their dogs a mildly cooked (MC) diet, also known as a fresh diet. However, its impact on canine GM and health remains largely unknown. Healthy household dogs were tracked upon switching from various brands of extruded to MC diets for four weeks. Stool samples were collected before (day 0) and after the diet transition (day 28). Shotgun metagenomic sequencing was performed at both time points to characterize the GM.