The first citizen science project using the latest DNA sequencing technologies to explore the microbes that live in and on kitties.
Stretch goal
Discover your cat!
You are invited to join kittybiome, a citizen science study of the kitty microbiome to better understand how microbiomes differ among cats, whether those differences reveal insights into cat behavior and biology, and how the kitty microbiome depends on and may shape the health of your cat.The microbiome is all the bacteria, fungi and other tiny things that live in and on us and on our kitties. These microbial communities differ between ears and noses and mouths and tummies. This project focuses on characterizing bacteria living in the microbiome of kitties.
There are many questions that can be answered using today's DNA sequencing technologies to characterize the microbiome of your kitty.
- How do grumpy cats compare to happy cats?
- How do athletic cats compare to couch potato cats?
- Does it matter if you feed your cat a paleo-mouse diet?
- How do indoor and outdoor cats compare?
- What happens when your cat goes on antibiotics?
- How does the microbiome change during your cat's nine lives?
