Analysis of Digestibility, Glycemic Index and Gut Microbiota in Vitro Activity in Different Formulations of Complete Dog Dry Food

The pet food industry for dogs is making considerable progress in the selection of raw materials; the quality of a feed is certainly dictated by the list of ingredients, but other variables for proper nutrition such as the digestibility of macronutrients, the activity of the gut microbiota of an organism fermenting dietary nutrients, and how much the carbohydrates contained affect peak glycemic index are to be considered. In addition, pet food production processes affect the final quality of the feed and its digestibility. In this study, we compared 4 dry dog feeds from the same manufacturer (A), including one suitable for puppies and three for adult maintenance, to other six dry foods (two for puppies and four for adults) from competing companies by analysis on: starch, protein, dry matter digestibility analysis; glycemic index and load; in vitro fermentability and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) activity. The main purpose of this analysis was to highlight how digestibility in comparison with the activity of the gut microbiota, representing a very reliable picture regarding the metabolic utilization of the nutrients. The results showed that feeds formulated with appropriate production technology and containing fresh ingredients are preferable for the parameters taken into consideration and for the effects on metabolism, digestibility and positive modulatory effects on gut microbiota. Feeding an animal with less digestible dietary principles will not only result in greater excretion of them through the feces but also in dangerous deficiencies with negative health consequences. It is therefore evident that only from an in-depth analysis of the digestibility of a food it is possible to understand what the intestinal fermentation trend may be from a nutritional point of view