Everything You Need to Know About Faecal Transplant

Here at My Pet Nutritionist, we love to look at every avenue when it comes to pet health. There are various support options available for most disease within the body, from drug therapy to dietary tweaks to supplements. One fairly new therapeutic method on offer is Faecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT). A huge number of common diseases in pets are largely down to an unhealthy gut microbiome composition.

The gut microbiome consists of good and bad bacteria, fungi and viruses; the difference between the health gut microbiome and the unhealthy gut microbiome is the balance of these microbes. In a healthy gut microbiome, the ‘good guys’ outweigh the ‘bad guys’, however when the microbiome composition becomes richer in ‘bad guys’ than ‘good guys’, the body is severely vulnerable to disease.

During FMT treatment, the stool of a healthy donor animal is processed to be safe, and given to the pet with the poor microbiome composition, where it settles in the gut, repopulating the unhealthy gut microbiome into a healthy one.

Findings Here

There are multiple uses for FMT, so let’s explore these!

Uses of Faecal Transplant

While FMT is a relatively new support option on the market, it has been shown to have some incredible benefits and uses!

• Antibiotic resistant infections: the original and intended use of FMT was to help the individual recover from antibiotic resistant bacteria called Clostridioles difficile. Outcompeting the bad bacteria with the good bacteria of a healthy donor animal can help combat this nasty, often recurring infection.
• IBD/Colitis: research is ongoing into the treatment of IBD and Colitis using FMT.
• Liver Disease: the treatment of hepatic encephalopathy using FMT is being investigated! A healthy gut means other organs can remain healthy.
• Autoimmune disease: researchers suggest FMT could play a role in the treatment of autoimmune disease such as arthritis.
• Metabolic disorders: some metabolic disorders, including poor digestive capabilities and insulin sensitivity may be helped by FMT.
• Neurological health: as FMT improves gut health, neurological health is directly aided due to the gut-brain axis.
• Recovery from parvovirus: FMT can be used to repopulate the gut following parvovirus; this is an essential part to recovery, so FMT could be something to discuss with your veterinarian.

Findings Here
Findings Here
Findings Here

Production and Administration

Many people are curious to know how a FMT sample is made, and how it is administered to the pet. Read on to find out!

Prepping the gut to be as healthy as possible using a gut health supplement like our Gut Guardian is an excellent first step. for your pet to get the most out of FMT, the gut needs to be in at least a semi-healthy state. Our analogy is:

When you have a premium car with a rusty engine, putting the best oil in won’t necessarily help the car to run better!

Due to the nature of FMT, the sample starts life in a healthy donor. Before a sample is taken from the proposed donor, the donor receives a comprehensive examination, and their health history is thoroughly examined. If that donor animal has any history of gastrointestinal issues, they cannot donate faecal matter. Similarly, if they have any ongoing parasitic infection or infectious disease, they will not be able to donate. The use of antibiotics is also not permitted in a donor animal.

Once an appropriate donor is selected, a sample of faecal matter is collected, which is then blended into a slurry like liquid with saline solution or any other sterile pure liquid. This solution is filtered, creating a smooth liquid.

There are 4 main ways FMT is administered to pets:

• Oral capsules: the mixture is encapsulated, which allows the pet to swallow the capsule as they would any medication. This method of administration is done while the animal is awake.
• Enema: using a catheter, the liquid is administered directly via the rectum. This approach is carried out under anaesthetic or sedation.
• Endoscopy: a tube is inserted into the mouth, and fed through to the gastrointestinal tract. The prepared liquid is pushed through the tube, and deposited into the intestine. This procedure is carried out under anaesthetic.
• Colonoscopy: a tube is inserted through the rectum and into the gastrointestinal tract, where the prepared liquid is deposited directly into the intestine. This procedure is carried out under anaesthetic.

Following the procedure, the pet will be kept at the vet, on strict crate rest to ensure they do not defecate for at least 2 hours. Their condition will be monitored to ensure there are no adverse effects. Probiotics are often recommended as a long term supplement.

Findings Here
Findings Here

How Effective is Faecal Transplant?

The big question is: is FMT really that effective? According to studies, FMT appears to be very effective at treating some of the aforementioned health issues!

Some small studies suggest a 70-90% improvement in chronic diarrhoea cases after the use of FMT. Those with pets previously suffering with IBD report moderate to significant improvement. In cases where FMT is used as part of a patient’s recovery from parvovirus, it has been noted that recovery tends to be faster, the patient has a better appetite, and stools are firmer, when compared to cases relying purely on conventional treatment.

We can also look at the diversity of one’s gut before the transplant and after, which is often done in cases of antibiotic resistance. 1-2 weeks post transplant seems to be the typical length of time for normal healthy gut balance to be restored.

What might affect the effectiveness of FMT? Of course, as with any treatment or therapy, there are factors at play that may affect how effective the results of the planned treatment are. Factors which may may FMT less effective include:

• Quality of the donor sample
• Quality of screening and filtration of the sample
• The type of condition being treated, and how severe it is.
• Method of administration; it is not currently known if the different methos of administration of FMT may differ in effectiveness.
• The patients’ own immune health and microbiome health status.

Why can’t we just give probiotics and mucilage herbs? Frequent readers will know that gut health is one of our hottest topics, and that we frequently recommend giving mucilage herbs and probiotics to dogs suffering with any of these chronic diseases. While gutwork is essential for overall health, and can massively benefit almost every health concern in our pets (and in us!), if the gut is particularly imbalanced/in a state of severe dysbiosis, mucilage herbs and probiotics can take a long time to repopulate the gut. If the good bacteria of the probiotics is continuously outcompeted by the overwhelming amount of bad bacteria, the gut will remain in dysbiosis. A huge amount of probiotics would be required in cases of antibiotic resistance too!

Findings Here
Findings Here

Receiving FMT treatment could truly be a lifeline for many. Given it’s complete overhaul of the microbiome, and it’s fast action following treatment, it may be the ideal therapy option for many, especially those with ongoing, recurring, or severe gastrointestinal problems!

As FMT is still in it’s early days, most vets won’t suggest this as a therapy, however with the amount of information available on FMT, it is well worth suggesting this as a course of action to your vet – they may well look into it, and offer it to your pet! If your pet is suffering with a gastrointestinal disease and you feel you could use some help, please don’t hesitate to book a consultation with us!



Team MPN x