Review scope

This summary is based on the published abstract. We have not appraised the full methods, tables or supplementary material. Details absent from the abstract remain unverified.

Question and design

12 healthy adult Beagles; replicated Latin square with 28-day periods. 1 or 5 billion CFU daily of B. subtilis ATCC PTA-122264. Comparator: Kibble plus maltodextrin placebo.

What was measured?

Digestibility, blood and stool measurements, and faecal microbes.

Main findings

Most outcomes were unchanged. Lower-dose supplementation reduced three measured bacterial taxa. Some digestibility results were statistical trends, not significant effects at the study’s 5% threshold.

Study strengths

Placebo comparison and repeated measurements in the same dogs.

Limitations

Small healthy population; no treatment test in dogs with diarrhoea. Taxonomic changes do not establish health benefits.

Researchers’ conclusion

The authors reported tolerability at the tested amounts and called for further investigation.

Evidence.pet interpretation

This is strain-specific evidence. It neither proves better digestion nor validates all Bacillus-containing products.

Funding and conflicts

Some authors list Kerry affiliations. Full funding and conflict declarations were not appraised.

Source and review date

Oba PM et al. Study of Bacillus subtilis ATCC PTA-122264, digestibility and faecal measurements in healthy dogs. Journal of Animal Science. 2025;103:skaf038. Title shortened; DOI identifies the paper.

Read the primary source · DOI record

STU-013. Reviewed 25 September 2026. Next review 25 December 2026.