Pet Nutrition and Health

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, the bond between humans and pets has become deeper than ever. Pets are no longer just animals kept at home; they are considered integral members of the family. This shift in perception has led to a corresponding increase in the attention paid to their overall well-being, with pet nutrition and health emerging as crucial aspects. As pet ownership continues to rise globally, so does the prevalence of various health issues among our furry companions. For example, many diseases, such as obesity, intestinal bowel diseases, and metabolic disorders, have become common problems in pets, which is partially attributed to inappropriate diets and a lack of proper nutrition knowledge among pet owners. These trends highlight the urgent need for in-depth research to better understand the relationship between pet nutrition and health. In addition, various extrinsic stresses, such as heat, cold, pathogen infections, and environmental change, are pivotal stimuli for pets to induce pathophysiological alterations and gut barrier disruptions based on the gut–liver axis, leading to reduced growth performance and even increased mortality. The precision nutrition and functional feed additives are becoming the two major methods used to decrease the adverse influences of detrimental stresses and promote the health of pets. This Special Issue will focus on describing the interactions between the nutritional strategies on the health of pets from the perspective of intestinal microbiota, antioxidant capacity, immune responses, metabolome, and other biomarkers. Moreover, a number of research strategies have been applied for a deeper understanding of nutrition and health, including high-throughput sequencing, metabolome, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), animal models, etc. Different green feed additives, including probiotics, plant extracts, organic acids, etc., have been paid much attention in pet industry applications. However, understanding how these novel ingredients interact with pet metabolisms, immune systems, and growth is essential for formulating balanced and healthy pet foods. In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcomed. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: pet nutrition and health, new feed additives and host haemostasis, the evaluation of the quality and safety of pet foods, and multi-omics analysis for gastrointestinal health and metabolism.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Xiao Xiao
Prof. Dr. Caimei Yang
Dr. Guangtian Cao
Guest Editors

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• pet
• nutrition and health
• feed additives
• multi-omics
• intestinal homeostasis
• animal models
• metabolism