This study investigated the effect of a commercially available digestive enzyme and probiotic preparation on fecal microbiomes of 11 healthy, client-owned, pet dogs. For the first 3 weeks, all dogs were fed the same test diet (test 1), which was then supplemented with a digestive enzyme during the next 3 weeks (test 2) and probiotics/digestive enzyme over the last 3 weeks (test 3). Next-generation sequencing showed significant increases in the proportions of the Firmicutes phylum, Clostridia class, Clostridiales order, Clostridiaceae family, and Clostridium and Blautia genera in fecal microbiomes from test 1 to test 3. We have found that a digestive enzyme and probiotic preparation can influence the fecal microbiomes of healthy, client-owned, pet dogs. Future studies should determine whether these types of drugs can prevent intestinal disease.

For malignant mammary gland tumor (MGT), the risk of metastasis to other organs increases as the stage progresses, making it difficult to cure. For this reason, early detection and treatment are extremely important. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether L- and D- free amino acids can be biomarkers for MGT. Plasma and urine samples were collected from normal and MGT dogs. Randomly obtained samples were subjected to L- and D-amino acid analysis. In L-type plasma free amino acids, L-arginine was lower in MGT dogs than in normal dogs. It was suggested that the plasma content may have decreased because Larginine was taken up by cancer cells. As for D-type plasma-free amino acids, the D-alanine level was lower in the MGT dogs than in the normal dogs. Our investigation suggested that identifying changes in specific free amino acids in the plasma and urine might work as a method of diagnosis.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), one of omega-3 fatty acids, has been reported to be partially effective for reduction of seizure frequency in human with refractory epilepsy. However, it is unclear whether DHA could be also useful in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy. In this study, the efficacy of additional administration of highdose DHA to the dogs with idiopathic epilepsy was investigated. Here, one case which were treated and observed for 6 months is reported as a case study. A three-year-old male Chihuahua, 2.0 kg BW. While he had multiple antiepileptic drugs, she had 4 seizures and 8 prodromes per month. After DHA was added at 83 mg/kg twice daily, the number of seizures tended to decrease. Consequently, no seizures or prodromes were observed 5 to 6 months after the start of administration. No adverse events were observed during observation period. It is suggested that high-dose of DHA could be effective in improving the frequency of seizures in idiopathic epilepsy of dogs. Accumulation of more cases should help clarify the usefulness of this treatment.