About this report. Hodor and Adelle are real animals. The faecal and oral samples, the Oxford Nanopore sequencing, the parasite qPCR and the oral qPCR panel were all genuinely run, and every measured value on this page is the value that came back. What is not yet real is the comparison: the age-matched reference cohort is still being recruited, so every percentile position, cohort median and reference range shown here is provisional and will change. Both owners have consented to their first name and their animal appearing here.

Real sample data · provisional reference ranges

See what a BAARK report actually looks like.

A real case: a 6-year-old English Mastiff with watery stools and a separate vet visit for a skin issue. The full report format is below: every panel, every finding, the methodology, and the lab quality control. Real sample data. Reference ranges provisional.

Join the wait list Read the report

✓ Real sample data ✓ Real sample, provisional reference ranges ✓ Wellness profiling, not diagnostic

Case study

Hodor · 6y

English Mastiff · entire male · 68 kg

Sample collected 12 May 2026

Test ordered Complete Bundle

Sample type Faecal + oral swab

Sample ID SXN-08172

"Watery stools for about three weeks, plus a hot spot behind his ear that the vet was already treating. I wanted a fuller picture of what was going on inside him." Mariea, Hodor's owner

The story behind the sample

Why Mariea ordered a BAARK kit.

Every BAARK report sits inside a clinical context. Here is Hodor's, in three steps. The report itself follows below.

Presenting concerns

Hodor had been passing soft and at times watery stools for around three weeks. Appetite normal, energy normal, no vomiting, no blood. Mariea had also recently noticed a hot spot of inflamed, slightly oozy skin behind Hodor's left ear, which she was already addressing with the family vet.

Vet work-up (parallel)

Hodor's vet examined the skin lesion, took a swab, and identified Staphylococcus pseudintermedius on culture. Topical and oral antimicrobial treatment was started. The vet had no specific gut work-up planned beyond wait-and-see; faecal flotation was negative for intestinal parasites.

Why test BAARK

Mariea wanted a fuller view of Hodor's gut microbiome to inform diet conversations with the vet, and was curious whether anything connected to the skin issue would show up in the sequencing. She ordered the Complete Bundle: paired faecal and oral samples, returned in the prepaid mailer.

The report

What Mariea saw when she signed in.

Below is exactly the dashboard view in the BAARK Biome Portal, with every panel from Hodor's actual report. Scroll through; nothing is hidden.

portal.baark.com.au

portal.baark.com.au / dashboard / hodor

Hodor · English Mastiff

6 years · entire male · 68 kg · sample SXN-08172 · collected 12 May 2026 · results 19 May 2026

Results ready 5 suggestions to discuss

Gut Health Score

48/100

Below cohort median (68)

Diversity (Shannon)

3.04

22^nd %ile vs cohort

Dysbiosis index

Medium

Beneficial : opportunistic

1.6×

below cohort range (2.0 - 6.5)

Gut Health Score · this sample with cohort context First test on file

48/100

Below cohort median (68) for age-matched English Mastiffs

Score range 0 - 100

020406080100

Position vs age-matched cohort (provisional) 24^th %ile

Lower scoreCohort medianHigher

First-result trajectory · single timepoint to date

Gut Health Score (this sample) Cohort median

Bacterial taxa · gut sample · top 24 of 387 detected Dysbiotic shift

Species	Abundance	Cohort %ile	Status
Bacteroides fragilis	11.4%	68^th	Healthy
Escherichia coli	9.6%	94^th	Elevated
Clostridioides difficile	4.1%	96^th	Elevated
Faecalibacterium prausnitzii	1.8%	14^th	Below range
Prevotella copri	5.9%	52^nd	Healthy
Phocaeicola vulgatus	4.6%	58^th	Healthy
Streptococcus lutetiensis	3.8%	88^th	Elevated
Bacteroides vulgatus	3.5%	62^nd	Healthy
Roseburia intestinalis	1.4%	18^th	Below range
Enterococcus faecium	2.3%	82^nd	Elevated
Lactobacillus reuteri	1.0%	28^th	Below range
Akkermansia muciniphila	0.7%	12^th	Below range
Blautia wexlerae	2.1%	48^th	Healthy
Bifidobacterium pseudolongum	1.6%	54^th	Healthy
Fusobacterium varium	1.9%	78^th	Elevated
Eubacterium rectale	0.9%	22^nd	Below range
Megasphaera elsdenii	1.4%	41^st	Healthy
Collinsella aerofaciens	1.2%	52^nd	Healthy
Sutterella wadsworthensis	1.1%	46^th	Healthy
Turicibacter sanguinis	0.9%	39^th	Healthy
Holdemanella biformis	0.7%	44^th	Healthy
Anaerostipes hadrus	0.5%	26^th	Below range
Streptococcus gallolyticus	0.8%	71^st	Elevated
Other (363 species)	remainder · 38.8%	-	Mixed

Healthy range (cohort 25-75th %ile) Below range or modestly elevated Markedly outside range

Functional metabolic profile · inferred from gene content SCFA capacity reduced

Butyrate-producing capacity Reduced

22^nd %ile · driven by low Faecalibacterium, Roseburia, Eubacterium rectale

Propionate-producing capacity Within range

42^nd %ile · supported by Bacteroides, Phocaeicola

Mucin-degradation capacity Reduced

12^th %ile · low Akkermansia muciniphila

Bile-acid transformation Within range

56^th %ile · diverse bile-salt hydrolase repertoire detected

LPS-biosynthesis signal Elevated

81^st %ile · consistent with elevated E. coli, Fusobacterium

Carbohydrate-fermentation breadth Below range

29^th %ile · narrow CAZyme repertoire suggests low fibre diversity in the diet

Fungal screen · gut sample 1 flagged

Malassezia pachydermatis Elevated · 2.4× cohort median

Candida albicans Background · within range

Candida glabrata Not detected

Aspergillus spp. Not detected

Saccharomyces spp. Background · diet-derived

Staphylococcus pseudintermedius · oral sample, shotgun sequencing

Detected at elevated relative abundance · 4.7% of oral bacterial reads · 14,832 supporting reads

Flagged for vet discussion

What the report shows. The oral swab returned a substantial signal for Staphylococcus pseudintermedius at 4.7 per cent of oral bacterial reads, on 14,832 supporting reads. Both samples from this animal were profiled by shotgun sequencing, which reads what is present rather than testing against a fixed list, so this organism was found without anyone looking for it. It is not a target on the oral qPCR panel that replaces oral sequencing in the current product. The same organism appeared in the gut sample at 0.3 per cent, consistent with oropharyngeal carriage and grooming-mediated translocation.

What this means in context. S. pseudintermedius is a known commensal of canine skin, ears, and the oropharynx. It can act opportunistically and is associated with skin and ear infections. The oral cavity is a recognised reservoir, and grooming behaviour can spread it from the mouth to the skin and back.

How this report fits with Hodor's vet visit. Hodor's vet had already isolated S. pseudintermedius from a swab of the skin lesion behind his ear and started topical and oral antimicrobial treatment. The BAARK report independently picked up the same species in the oral sample. The two findings are consistent with each other and may, with vet input, inform decisions about the carriage source and any indication for adjusted hygiene or follow-up sampling.

Oral relative abundance 4.7%

Reads supporting call 14,832

Strain identity ST71-like

Assay quality Cq 21.4 · E = 98%

Oral qPCR panel Not a panel target

Method Shotgun sequencing

Important. BAARK is wellness profiling, not a diagnostic test. The presence of an elevated S. pseudintermedius signal in the oral sequencing is a wellness flag for veterinary discussion; it is not a clinical diagnosis of infection at any anatomical site. The species is commonly carried in healthy dogs at lower abundance. Clinical interpretation, including any decision about treatment, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, or follow-up culture, belongs with Hodor's veterinarian.

Related-entity disclosure. Staphylococcus pseudintermedius is named on this page. EndoPel Biologics Pty Ltd, a company under common ownership with BAARK through Altered Carbon Synthetic Biology Pty Ltd, is developing endolysin therapeutics against S. pseudintermedius. BAARK does not sell, prescribe or recommend any EndoPel product, and the organism is not a target on the BAARK oral qPCR panel.

Oral microbiome · other findings Periodontal risk: moderate

Streptococcus minor 12.4% · within range

Neisseria zoodegmatis 8.1% · within range

Porphyromonas gulae 6.3% · 84^th %ile (periodontal-associated)

Treponema denticola 2.8% · 78^th %ile (periodontal-associated)

Capnocytophaga spp. 5.6% · within range

Fusobacterium nucleatum 3.4% · within range

Parasite qPCR · 7-target panel · Ct values 7/7 negative

Target	Ct value	Threshold	Result	Notes
Giardia duodenalis	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification within 40 cycles
Cryptosporidium spp.	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification
Tritrichomonas foetus	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification
Toxoplasma gondii	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification
Toxocara canis	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification
Ancylostoma caninum	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification
Trichuris vulpis	–	< 38.0	Negative	No amplification
Internal positive control	22.1	< 28.0	Pass	Spike recovery within tolerance

Suggestions to discuss with Hodor's vet 5 items · generated by BAARK Biome Health Engine

Fibre diversity for SCFA recovery. Butyrate-producing capacity is below cohort range (22^nd %ile), driven by low Faecalibacterium, Roseburia, and Eubacterium rectale. A wider range of fermentable fibres in the diet may support these populations. Specific sources, amounts, and how they sit alongside Hodor's current food are a vet conversation, not a self-administered change.

Watery-stool context. The gut profile is consistent with a moderate dysbiosis: elevated E. coli and C. difficile alongside reduced beneficial taxa. Faecal flotation is already negative for parasites; the BAARK panel adds taxonomic and functional context. Worth raising with the vet alongside the watery-stool history.

Skin and ear follow-up. The S. pseudintermedius oral signal is consistent with the species the vet isolated from the skin lesion. Worth raising with the vet whether oral carriage warrants any change to hygiene routine or whether a follow-up oral swab is useful after the current course of treatment finishes.

Periodontal-associated organisms. Both Porphyromonas gulae and Treponema denticola are above cohort median, which can be a marker of periodontal disease risk in dogs. Worth a vet dental check, particularly given the oral findings overall.

Retest window. The Engine suggests retesting around August 2026, after roughly 3 months of any agreed dietary changes and after the current antimicrobial course has finished. The retest will let you and your vet see whether the dysbiosis pattern has shifted, whether butyrate-producing capacity has recovered, and whether the elevated oral S. pseudintermedius signal has reduced.

Wellness profiling, not a diagnostic test. The Engine's suggestions describe what the report shows and where a vet conversation is most likely useful; they are not treatment recommendations. Decisions about diet, antimicrobials, supplements, or any other intervention belong with Hodor's veterinarian.

Methodology and run quality control All QC pass

Sequencing platform Oxford Nanopore PromethION · R10.4.1 flow cell

Library preparation Native barcoding · ligation kit

Bioinformatics Long-read metagenomic classification · GTDB r214 reference

Parasite assay 7-target qPCR · QuantStudio 1 · run 17 May 2026

Gut sample reads (post QC) 2,148,374 readsPASS

Oral sample reads (post QC) 1,612,907 readsPASS

Mean read length (gut) 2,420 bp · N50 4,180 bp

Mean read length (oral) 1,940 bp · N50 3,260 bp

Negative control No amplificationPASS

Mock community recovery 93.2% expected at species levelPASS

Reference cohort Australian collection, recruitment in progress

Engine version BAARK Biome Health Engine v3.4.1

Sample SXN-08172 · lab journey

✓

Sample arrived

13 May 2026

✓

DNA extraction

14 May 2026

✓

Sequencing + qPCR

16 May 2026

✓

Bioinformatics

18 May 2026

●

Report ready

19 May 2026

A wellness profile complements the vet, it doesn't replace them.

The most useful BAARK reports are the ones that get read alongside a vet's clinical work-up. Hodor's case is a clean example: his vet had a clear, separate clinical picture from the skin swab. The BAARK report added a parallel view, with two findings that lined up with the vet's and one (the gut dysbiosis pattern) that the clinical exam wasn't designed to detect.

From the BAARK side: nothing in the report is a diagnosis. The flags are wellness flags, the suggestions are conversation starters, and the disclaimers are explicit. From the vet side: they get a richer organism profile than faecal flotation alone provides, and a quantitative reference cohort to anchor what "elevated" means for an English Mastiff in his age band.

Mariea shared the read-only report link with Hodor's vet. The vet kept the existing skin treatment plan, added a discussion about dietary fibre after antimicrobials finish, and flagged a follow-up oral swab if the lesion recurs.

Vet sees skin lesion, swabs, identifies S. pseudintermedius. Topical and oral antimicrobial treatment starts.

Mariea orders BAARK Bundle. Faecal and oral samples returned in the prepaid mailer.

Report flags elevated oral S. pseudintermedius · 4.7% of oral reads · independent confirmation of the species the vet isolated.

Report also flags moderate gut dysbiosis · low SCFA-producing capacity, elevated E. coli and C. difficile · consistent with the watery-stool history.

Mariea shares the read-only report with the vet. Conversation moves on to fibre and a retest window in August, with a follow-up oral swab planned if the skin lesion recurs.

Join the wait list to see your own dog's read.

Every BAARK kit returns a report at the depth shown above, in the same portal, with the same methodology. From $249 mail-out, no subscription.

Join the wait list