Connecting cat owners and scientists to unlock feline health insights!

Thank you for your interest in the ZüriCats citizen science project! With your help, we aim to better understand cat health by analyzing DNA from your cat’s poop. As part of the project, we ask you to complete a detailed survey about your cat’s diet, health, habits, and living environment. With your permission, we will analyze your cat’s fecal sample to study their diet and gut microbiome – the community of microbes that plays a key role in maintaining can health. Using the same sample, we may also screen for potential pathogens and parasites.

These analyses will help us understand how lifestyle affects diet and the gut microbiome, and how these factors influence cat health and well-being. By comparing samples from indoor and free-roaming cats in the Zürich area, we aim to explore the following important questions: what do cats eat, what other animals do they meet, and how healthy are they?

The ZüriCats project is developed by the Laboratory of Food Systems Biotechnology at ETH Zürich, with proud support from the Citizen Science Zurich.

Your participation will provide valuable insights and samples that are essential to this scientific research. Let’s explore the gut microbiome of ZüriCats together!

Sign up NOW by filling out the ZüriCats Interest Form!