Why Arrowroot Powder Is a Hidden Gem in Pet Food

Small ingredient. Big potential. 🐾

When you think about clever ingredients in pet food, pumpkin, sweet potato, probiotics and prebiotics might come to mind first.

But there's another ingredient quietly earning its place in pet nutrition: arrowroot powder.

Made from the rhizome of the Maranta arundinacea plant, arrowroot is a naturally grain-free starch with a mild flavour and excellent functional properties. It's commonly used to help bind, thicken and improve the texture of foods — but its role in pet food can go a little deeper.

At L'Barkery, we believe every ingredient should have a purpose.

And this humble little root is one worth getting to know.

🐶 1. Gentle on Sensitive Tummies

When your dog's tummy isn't happy, simple ingredients can be a good thing.

Arrowroot provides a relatively simple source of starch and can be incorporated into pet foods and treats without adding a long list of complicated ingredients.

Research in companion animals has shown that the type, amount and processing of dietary starch can influence digestion and gastrointestinal fermentation.

While arrowroot shouldn't be described as a treatment for digestive disorders, its mild flavour, functional starch and easy incorporation into recipes make it an interesting choice when creating foods and treats designed with digestive comfort in mind.

Sometimes, keeping things simple is the clever choice.

💩 2. Can Help Support Healthy Stool Quality

Let's talk about the subject every pet parent knows all too well...

POOP. 💩

Different types of dietary starch can influence faecal bulk, fermentation and stool characteristics.

Research published in the Journal of Nutrition examining resistant starch in companion animals found that certain resistant starches can increase faecal bulk and undergo fermentation in the large intestine, producing short-chain fatty acids.

Studies in dogs have also found that dietary resistant starch can influence faecal fermentation products and microbial activity.

So while we wouldn't claim that arrowroot "stops diarrhoea" or treats loose stools, its starch functionality can play a role in the overall formulation of foods designed to support normal digestive and stool health.

And let's be honest...

A good poo makes everyone happier.

🦠 3. Supports the Gut Microbiome

Here's where things get really interesting.

The gut isn't just about digestion — it's home to a huge community of microorganisms that interact with the food your pet eats.

Some forms of starch, particularly resistant starch, can pass through the small intestine and reach the large intestine, where they may be fermented by gut microbes.

A study in healthy adult dogs found that increasing dietary resistant starch altered faecal fermentation and increased Faecalibacterium, a bacterial group associated with gastrointestinal health.

Research in older dogs has also shown that resistant starch can alter fermentation products including butyrate, propionate and total volatile fatty acids.

However, here's an important piece of science:

Not all starch is resistant starch — and not all arrowroot will behave the same way.

Processing, cooking and formulation can dramatically change how much starch is digested in the small intestine versus reaching the colon.

In fact, a 2024 study in healthy dogs found that a particular resistant starch source changed the gut microbiota but did not support the idea that every resistant starch should automatically be considered a prebiotic.

So at L'Barkery, we'd rather say "supports a healthy digestive environment" than make exaggerated claims about feeding "good bacteria."

Because good nutrition should be backed by good science.

🌾 4. Grain-Free & Naturally Gluten-Free

Arrowroot is a root-derived starch, not a grain.

That makes it a useful ingredient for pet foods and treats formulated without traditional cereal grains.

For pet parents who prefer grain-free recipes, arrowroot can provide starch functionality while helping create the texture and consistency needed in treats, biscuits and other pet products.

But there's an important distinction:

Grain-free doesn't automatically mean hypoallergenic.

Dogs and cats can develop sensitivities or allergies to a wide variety of ingredients. Removing grains doesn't guarantee that a product will be suitable for every pet with a food allergy.

Instead, arrowroot is best described as a grain-free alternative starch that can be useful in carefully formulated recipes.

⚡ 5. A Simple Source of Carbohydrate Energy

Arrowroot is predominantly starch, making it a source of dietary carbohydrate.

And carbohydrates have a legitimate role in companion-animal nutrition.

Research published in Animal Frontiers explains that dogs can efficiently utilise dietary carbohydrates, including starch, while cats have different metabolic adaptations and nutritional requirements.

Dogs have adapted to diets containing starch-rich plant ingredients, while cats remain obligate carnivores with nutritional requirements that make animal-derived nutrients particularly important.

For this reason, arrowroot shouldn't be thought of as a replacement for protein, essential fats, vitamins or minerals.

It's one piece of the nutritional puzzle.

🐾 Arrowroot for Dogs & Cats

Dogs and cats aren't nutritionally identical, so the same ingredient can have a different role in each species.

Dogs generally have a greater capacity to digest and utilise dietary starch. Cats can process starch too, but their metabolism and nutritional requirements are different. Research comparing starch metabolism in dogs and cats has demonstrated clear species differences in carbohydrate digestion and utilisation.

That's why the quality of the overall diet matters far more than any individual ingredient.

Arrowroot isn't a magic ingredient.

It's a functional ingredient that can have a useful role in appropriately formulated pet food and treats.

🥣 Why We Love Arrowroot at L'Barkery

At L'Barkery, we're big believers in ingredients with a purpose.

We don't want ingredients simply because they're trendy.

We want to know:

Why is it there? What does it do? Does it have a purpose?

Arrowroot ticks some pretty useful boxes.

🌿 Simple starch

Provides a straightforward source of carbohydrate.

💩 Digestive functionality

Can contribute to the formulation of foods designed to support normal stool and digestive health.

🦠 Gut-friendly potential

Certain forms of starch can reach the large intestine and participate in microbial fermentation.

🌾 Grain-free

A useful alternative to cereal-based starches.

⚡ Energy source

Provides readily available carbohydrate when properly incorporated into a balanced diet.

🥣 Excellent functional ingredient

Its starch properties make it particularly useful for binding, thickening and creating desirable textures in pet foods and treats.

The Bottom Line

Arrowroot might not be the flashiest ingredient in the bag — but that's exactly why we think it's a hidden gem.

It's not a miracle cure.

It's not a replacement for a complete and balanced diet.

And it's certainly not something we need to make outrageous health claims about.

Instead, it's a simple, versatile, grain-free starch with some genuinely interesting research surrounding the role of starch and resistant starch in canine and feline nutrition.

At L'Barkery, that's what we love:

Simple ingredients. Purposeful formulation. Happy pets. 🐾❤️

🧪 The Science Behind the Scoop

The research we reference here comes from studies involving dogs, cats and companion-animal nutrition, rather than human clinical research.

• Zentek J, et al. Resistant starch as related to companion animal nutrition. Journal of Nutrition. Research examining resistant starch, fermentation and gastrointestinal effects in companion animals.
• Beloshapka AN, Cross T-WL, Swanson KS. Graded dietary resistant starch concentrations on apparent total tract macronutrient digestibility and fecal fermentative end products and microbial populations of healthy adult dogs. Journal of Animal Science. 2021.
• Peixoto MC, et al. Effect of resistant starch on the intestinal health of old dogs: fermentation products and histological features of the intestinal mucosa. Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. 2018.
• Schmitz SS, et al. Microbiota of healthy dogs demonstrate a significant decrease in richness and changes in specific bacterial groups in response to supplementation with resistant starch. Access Microbiology. 2024.
• Jackson MI, Waldy C, Jewell DE. Dietary resistant starch preserved through mild extrusion of grain alters fecal microbiome metabolism of dietary macronutrients while increasing immunoglobulin A in the cat. PLOS ONE. 2020.
• Kayser E, Finet SE, de Godoy MRC. The role of carbohydrates in canine and feline nutrition. Animal Frontiers. 2024.
• Carciofi AC, et al. Effects of six carbohydrate sources on dog diet digestibility and post-prandial glucose and insulin response. Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. 2008.

A Little L'Barkery Science Disclaimer

This article is for general educational purposes and is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure illness or digestive disorders in dogs or cats. Research on resistant starch does not mean that arrowroot itself is a treatment for diarrhoea, allergies or gastrointestinal disease.