Early life programming by diet can play a role in risk reduction of otitis in dogs

Manal B M Hemida; Kristiina A Vuori; Nona C Borgström; Robin Moore; Sarah Rosendahl; Johanna Anturaniemi; Alessandra Estrela-Lima; Anna Hielm-Björkman

doi:10.3389/fvets.2023.1186131

Early life programming by diet can play a role in risk reduction of otitis in dogs

Front Vet Sci. 2023 Nov 6:10:1186131. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1186131. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Manal B M Hemida^{1

2}, Kristiina A Vuori¹, Nona C Borgström¹, Robin Moore¹, Sarah Rosendahl¹, Johanna Anturaniemi¹, Alessandra Estrela-Lima^{1

3}, Anna Hielm-Björkman¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
² Department of Nutrition and Clinical Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef, Egypt.
³ Department of Veterinary Anatomy, Pathology and Clinics, School of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechny, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Brazil.

Abstract

Introduction: Otitis in dogs is often chronic while local treatment primarily consists of flushing, antibiotics, and/or antifungals. We were interested in finding early life variables that associate with otitis later in life, preferably some that could be modified.

Methods: A cross-sectional hypothesis-driven study with longitudinal data was performed to search for associations between pre- and postnatal exposures, and the incidence of owner-reported otitis in dogs at over 1 year of age. The multivariate logistic regression analysis study included data from 3,064 dogs and explored 26 different early life variables at four early life stages: prenatal, neonatal, postnatal, and puppyhood. We compared two feeding patterns, a non-processed meat-based diet (NPMD, raw) and an ultra-processed carbohydrate-based diet (UPCD, dry).

Results: We report that eating a NPMD diet significantly decreased the risk of otitis later in life, while eating a UPCD diet significantly increased the risk. This was seen in different life stages of mother or puppy: The maternal diet during pregnancy (p=0.011) and the puppies' diet from 2 to 6 months of age (p=0.019) were both significantly associated with otitis incidence later in life, whereas the puppies' first solid diet, was associated in the same way, but did not reach significance (p=0.072). Also, analyzing food ratios showed that when puppies were consuming >25% of their food as NPMD it significantly decreased their incidence of otitis later in life, while a ratio of >75% UPCD in their diet significantly increased their risk of otitis. Also, if the dog was born in the current family, was exposed to sunlight for more than 1 hour daily, and was raised on a dirt floor during puppyhood, there was a lower risk of otitis development later in life.

Discussion: The findings only suggest causality, and further studies are required. However, we propose that veterinarians, breeders, and owners can impact otitis risk by modifying factors such as diet and environment.

Keywords: DOHaD; DogRisk; canine; ear; early; inflammation; nutrition; programming.

Grants and funding

Vetcare Oy Ltd. (www.vetcare.fi), the Swedish Cultural Foundation (www.kulturfonden.fi/in-english; Grant number 13/3307-1304), MUSH Ltd. (www.mushbarf.com), Moomin characters Ltd. (www.moomin.com/en/), Natures Variety Ltd. (www.naturesvariety.com), Muurla Ltd have partially funded the data collection and analysis for this study. The Brazilian “Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior”—CAPES-PRINT (Finance Code 001: PVSE scholarship n°. 88887.694500/2022-00 granted a scholarship to Alessandra Estrela-Lima. All other authors are on University salary or student grants. There has been no additional external funding received for this study. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.