Do Dogs Resemble Their Owners? The Microbiome May Hold the Answer
- Marcelline Goyen
- Dec 12, 2025
- 3 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
Table of content
Introduction: dog, owner and their microbiome
People often joke that dogs start to look like their owners — or the other way around. But beyond the funny resemblance, science suggests there may be a deeper truth to the idea. When humans and dogs live together, something remarkable happens at the microbial level: they begin to share parts of their microbiome.
In other words, your dog may influence your skin microbiome, and you as the dog owner may influence theirs — simply through everyday physical contact. So you and your dog share a similar (part of the) microbiome.
What Research Reveals About Humans, Dogs, and Microbial Exchange
A fascinating study by Song et al. (2013, U.S.) explored how close contact with pets shapes the microbial communities of people living in the same household. The researchers investigated the microbiota of 60 families — some with children, some without, some with dogs, some without — and analyzed samples from the skin, mouth, and feces. LINK Pubmed
Their findings were striking:
People who live together share more similarities in their microbiome than people from different households.
This overlap was the strongest on the skin, and less pronounced in the mouth or gut.
Dog owners showed the highest degree of shared skin microbiome, especially between couples living with a dog.
Interestingly, the microbiota of dog owners and their dogs also resembled each other more than they resembled microbiota from other dogs.
Although we still don’t fully understand how these shared microbes influence human health long-term, one thing is clear: regular contact with pets can meaningfully shape the microbial landscape of our skin.
This supports the broader idea that the microbiome — whether in the gut or on the skin — is not formed in isolation. It is constantly interacting with our environment, our lifestyle, and even the animals we love.
What This Means for Skin Health
Your dog may be contributing to your skin’s microbial diversity in ways we are only beginning to understand. For some, this may be beneficial — especially if diversity in the skin microbiome supports resilience and barrier health. For others with sensitive skin, allergies, or chronic skin concerns, the exchange of microbes may play a more complex role.
Either way, it highlights just how interconnected humans, animals, and microbes truly are — a theme central to the skin–gut axis and the broader ecosystem of health.
I’d Love to Hear From You
Do you notice similarities between you and your dog — in behavior, appearance, or maybe even health? Have you ever wondered whether your pet influences your skin or wellbeing? In my book you can read much more about the microbiome of humans and the impact of their environment (work, friends and family, animals, habits, hobbies, food etc.). I'm also writing about this because I've been a "must love dog" person for many years and live with a dog!
Share your thoughts, questions, or personal experiences. I always enjoy reading your reflections.
And if you found this blog valuable, feel free to share it within your network — your support helps others discover how the microbiome shapes both skin and health.
“Healthy skin — from the outside and from within.”
Warm regards,
Marcelline Goyen, BSc Skin Therapy & Skin-Gut-Axis Author ... and dog lover!
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