These Are the Best Probiotics for Dogs (They Actually Work)

Your dog has billions of gut-friendly bacteria in her intestines and stomach that aid digestion, make the immune system stronger, help fight infections, and create vitamins and nutrients. This is called the microbiome, and a healthy microbiome keeps your dog energetic, healthy, and happy.

Signs of an unhealthy microbiome include symptoms such as:

• Allergies
• Diarrhea
• Obesity
• Flatulence (Gas)
• Loose stools
• Lethargy
• Bloating
• Upset stomach
• Bad breath

Your dog’s gut health impacts their overall health. Probiotics are commercially produced versions of gut-friendly bacteria. The best ones can help restore a positive balance in your dog’s digestive system. However, it’s not as simple as using any probiotic product because these powerful little microorganisms have to take up residency, thrive, and divide in order to actually impact your dog’s well-being. Some products will pass right through without benefitting your pet.

Sometimes our dog’s gut bacteria can get out of balance because they simply got sick. For example, antibiotics are known to kill some of the good gut bacteria while eliminating the bad bacteria causing infections. Even if your pet has no obvious digestive troubles, giving them the best dog probiotics after a round of antibiotics helps restore a healthy balance.

Our list includes high-quality probiotics for dogs that are the most likely to make a difference in your dog’s health.

Top Picks: The Best Probiotics for Dogs Today

#1. Best Overall: Nature’s Farmacy Dogzymes Probiotic Max Dog Supplement

The overall best probiotic for dogs is Nature’s Farmacy Dogzymes Probiotic Max Dog Supplement. This is because it is microencapsulated to protect the live organisms from the acid in your dog’s stomach. This means that it has better viability to give your pet the results you want. Plus it tastes great.

Nature’s Farmacy Dogzymes includes the good bacteria you look for in a probiotic with 10 billion CFUs. Plus, it adds enzymes and prebiotics to further aid your pet’s digestion. Enzymes are the active ingredients in live foods that help your dog’s cells absorb nutrients and perform important chemical reactions. Prebiotics are the fibers that feed the good bacteria (probiotics), so they can survive and thrive inside your dog’s digestive tract and do their job.

There are two basic types of best dog probiotics, treats and powders. Nature’s Farmacy gives you a powder you can mix into any liquid or your pet’s food. It’s also made in the USA. The biggest downside we found with this probiotic in reviews is that a few dogs didn’t take well to it and had a lot of gas. In this case, pay close attention to your pup when you begin adding this to their routine and monitor them to make sure it is not upsetting their stomach.

Pros and Cons of Nature’s Farmacy Dogzymes Probiotic Max Dog Supplement

Best Overall

Nature's Farmacy Dogzymes Probiotic Max Dog Supplement

• Microencapsulated supplement protects the live probiotic organisms from stomach acid
• Great taste makes dogs happy
• Adds probiotics as well as enzymes and prebiotics to aid digestion
• Available in treat and powder form
• Made in the U.S.

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2. Best Probiotic Chew: PetHonesty Digestive Probiotics Duck Flavored Soft Chews

Chews are a great way to get your dog their probiotics and the tasty flavor of PetHonesty Digestive Probiotics Duck Flavored Soft Chews make it even easier. If your dog prefers a soft chew over a powder, PetHonesty produces a soft chew that is a duck flavor. These tasty treats include probiotics, enzymes, and pumpkins. All of these ingredients are great for your dog’s digestion and act as a prebiotic to feed the healthy bacteria in your dog’s intestines.

Made in the USA with natural duck flavor, these chews are free of GMOs, wheat, corn, soy, or chemical preservatives. These vet-recommended chews will help keep things running smoothly for your dog. However, it is important to mention that they can get pretty expensive over time, This is because you’ll need to serve up several chews for each serving. Especially if your dog is larger, as they might need three chews per day if they’re 75+ lbs.

Pros and Cons of the PetHonesty Digestive Probiotics Duck Flavored Soft Chews

Best Probiotic Chew

PetHonesty Digestive Probiotics Duck Flavored Soft Chews

• Soft chew features an enjoyable duck flavor
• Formula includes probiotics, enzymes and pumpkin to aid digestion
• Made in the USA
• Free of GMOs, wheat, corn and soy
• Vet-recommended supplement

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3. Best Value: PointPet Digestive Health & Probiotics Dog Supplement

If you’re looking for the best value for your dollar, then get the PointPet Digestive Health & Probiotics Dog Supplement. With this supplement, you’ll get 120 chews for just under $25 when you buy from PointPet. They boast a high concentration of bacteria — containing two billion CFUs per chew. They also use a no-heat preparation to keep the probiotics and prebiotics viable. As other quality probiotic supplements, these treats may help reduce allergies, improve skin issues, relieve itching, or stop diarrhea and constipation.

They can be used daily to support health or after a round of antibiotics to restore good bacteria in your dog’s digestive system. There is also no added corn, wheat, or soy. Overall, this is a great option for the price. The biggest con mentioned about these supplements is that some dogs refuse to eat them because they don’t enjoy the duck flavor.

Pros and Cons of the PointPet Digestive Health & Probiotics Dog Supplement

Best Value

PointPet Digestive Health & Probiotics Dog Supplement

• Affordable pricepoint at $25 for 120 chews
• High bacteria concentrations
• May help reduce allergies and itching
• Can help improve skin issues
• Can help control diarrhea and constipation
• Approved for daily use

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4. Best Variety of Strains in a Powder: NWC Naturals Total-Biotics Probiotic Dog & Cat Powder Supplement

NWC Naturals Total-Biotics Probiotic Dog & Cat Powder Supplement offers your dog the most diverse blend of probiotics. Probiotics is a general term that encompasses many different types of helpful digestive microorganisms and bacteria. Some products contain a few different types or strains. NWC Naturals boasts 14 live and stable probiotic strains. They also include prebiotics in each scoop of their powder.

NWC also makes the extra effort to ensure their probiotics are easy to absorb by combining them with live enzymes to help activation. This supplement is made in the USA and is also GMO-free. The powder supplement is available in either a 2.22-oz or 8-oz jar with a scoop included. It is important to note, however, that some reviewers found that the powder clumps over time. Once it clumps, it becomes almost impossible to break them apart.

Pros and Cons of the NWC Naturals Total-Biotics Probiotic Dog & Cat Powder Supplement

Best Variety of Strains in a Powder

NWC Naturals Total-Biotics Probiotic Dog & Cat Powder Supplement

• Contains 14 live and stable probiotic strains
• Also contains prebiotics
• Probiotics absorb easily
• GMO-free
• Made in the USA

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5. Best Powder for Travel: Tomlyn Pre & Probiotic Powder Digestive Supplement

Traveling with a probiotic just got easier thanks to the Tomlyn Pre & Probiotic Powder Digestive Supplement. A container of powder is not easy to take on trips. So if your dog doesn’t enjoy probiotic treats, it can easily complicate keeping them healthy when you’re not at home.

Tomlyn’s prebiotic and probiotic powder comes in 30 individual packets for easy transport and use. Each packet of formula contains over eight billion CFUs of probiotics. They cultivate the beneficial microorganisms in their digestive powder by directly feeding special microbial cultures that match what you would find in the intestines of a healthy dog. The powder is flavorless, so you can add it to your dog’s favorite foods, even if they are picky.

However, some owners left negative reviews stating that the supplement can get pretty expensive over time. This is especially true if you have a larger dog as they’ll need a bigger serving. Because of this, we recommend this supplement as a travel option and not for everyday home use.

Pros and Cons of the Tomlyn Pre & Probiotic Powder Digestive Supplement

Best Powder for Travel

Tomlyn Pre & Probiotic Powder Digestive Supplement

• Packaging makes for easy transport
• Digestive powder contains beneficial microorganisms
• Flavorless powder makes it easy to mask in your dog's favorite food

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6. Best for Dogs With Gas: Wholistic Pet Organics Digest-All Plus Dog Supplement

If your dog has been struggling with lots of gas, then give them the Wholistic Pet Organics Digest-All Plus Dog Supplement. Wholistic Pet Organics combines a potent probiotic formula with pineapple and papaya enzymes. The enzymes help your dog better absorb nutrients and improve his digestion. This may be particularly helpful for dogs with flatulence because the enzymes will help break down the food that is causing the stink bombs.

The enzymes from pineapples and papaya are commonly used in human digestive enzyme supplements because they work. These natural, tropical fruits have the ability to help a digestive system break down food, and it works for dogs too! This supplement is made in the USA and is free from fillers, synthetic ingredients, GMOs, or artificial flavorings. It is made into a powder that you can add to your dog’s food.

As far as downsides go, the main one we came across was that the powder can sort of crumble up in your dog’s food. Reviewers mentioned that because of this, the powder made their dog’s food dry and crumbly, which their dogs didn’t like.

Pros and Cons of the Wholistic Pet Organics Digest-All Plus Dog Supplement

Best for Dogs With Gas

Wholistic Pet Organics Digest-All Plus Dog Supplement

• Tropical fruits help break down food and aid digestion
• Formula includes pineapple and papaya enzymes
• This particular formula is beneficial for dogs with gas
• Made in the USA
• Free from GMOs, artificial ingredients and fillers

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7. Best Variety of Strains in a Chew: Zesty Paws Ancient Elements Probiotic Bites

Zesty Paws Ancient Elements Probiotic Bites is an excellent choice for a wide variety of live, probiotic strains in chew form.  Zesty Paws puts six strains of probiotic bacteria into a tasty bison-flavored soft chew. All of these come together into a healthy treat for your dog! Inside each chew is DE111. This is a clinically studied bacillus subtilis that supports proper digestive function and also strengthens the immune system.

The ancient grain base also adds prebiotics to feed the beneficial bacteria once your dog eats them. This supplement includes digestive enzymes from pineapple and papaya, which are bromelain and papain. These enzymes add to the digestive benefits of this chew and can reduce your dog’s gas if it’s a problem. However, there were some reviewers that found that their dogs refused to eat them because they did not adjust well to the bison flavor. They did mention that covering up the probiotic with some chicken or other treat helped their dog take it down without notice.

Pros and Cons of the Zesty Paws Ancient Elements Probiotic Bites

Best Variety of Strains in a Chew

Zesty Paws Ancient Elements Probiotic Bites

• Six probiotic bacteria strains
• Bison-flavored chew is appealing to dogs
• Pineapple and papaya enzymes

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What to Look For in the Best Probiotics for Dogs

Our dogs are a part of our family. With that in mind, as dog owners, we are always looking for ways to keep our dogs healthy. If your dog has been suffering from digestive issues, providing them with a probiotic can help counteract these. However, finding a worthwhile probiotic can be pretty overwhelming. That’s why it helps to know what exactly to look for when deciding on purchasing one. 

When it comes to choosing the best probiotic for dogs, there are three main factors to look out for: 

• CFUs (colony forming units)
• Variety of microorganisms 
• Other beneficial ingredients 

We’ll take a look at each of these factors in more detail below:

CFUs (Colony Forming Units)

The number of CFUs on your dog’s probiotic package tells you the number of viable microorganisms in a probiotic supplement at the time of production. Depending on how they are produced, transported, and stored, that number may be less by the time you feed them to your dog. Also, not all of the microorganisms and bacteria in the supplement will actually take residence in your dog’s stomach and intestines — which is what they need to do to deliver the health benefits. For these reasons, more CFUs are better.

Variety of Microorganisms

A healthy dog will not just have one kind of active probiotic bacteria in their gut. One study found at least 17 active strains. If your probiotic supplement just has one or two types of probiotic bacteria, that can still benefit your dog. However, you’ll want to change the brand you frequently buy to introduce a variety of probiotic strains. If you can get a product with multiple strains, you are doing a better job of replenishing your dog’s healthy microbiome.

Other Beneficial Ingredients

Stomach acid is powerful and can destroy probiotics before they ever get a chance to benefit your pet. Some products aren’t viable enough and go out with the food your dog ate yesterday. When a probiotic product adds things like prebiotics to feed the new microorganisms and enzymes to aid digestion, you are improving the odds of seeing the benefits you want from the supplement.

The 2 Different Types of Probiotics for Dogs

As you can see, there are different ways in which you can add probiotics to your dog’s diet. In fact, there are two main types of probiotics for dogs. You can choose between probiotic treats and powders. As with any product, there are specific pros and cons of each type. Since it is so helpful to know the difference between these two, we’ve gone over them below.

The most common pros and cons include: 

• Soft chews/treats — Replaces other treats with a healthy supplement. Easy to store. Easy to serve. May include unnecessary ingredients to form the soft chew. 
• Powders — Can mix into your dog’s food. Simple, focused supplement formula. Very low calorie. May be hard to use with kibble depending on your dog and how much they like the powder.