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Food Allergies – FAQ
It has been almost a year since we won Apollo’s battle of the creepy cruddy ears. After a long and tenuous battle against a chronic ear infection that turned into a very serious gram negative antibiotic resistant pseudomonas infection. After countless consults, cultures and trials and error it was determined that this exaggerated problem had a simple, yet insideous root cause… Food Allergies! How could this be? He was 4 1/2 when the problem started. How could something like this develop in the middle of his life?
These are all too familiar questions many dog owners ask after chronic ear infections, intolerable itching, red sores, horrendous gas/diarrhea and/or patchy baldness crop up out of no where in otherwise healthy adult dog. So the symptoms have cropped up, now what? Dr. Susan Wright, DVM, resident veterinarian for Dog Fence DIY offers her advise and shed some light on food allergies.
Food Allergies
by guest author Dr. Susan Wright, DVM
Food allergy is a very common cause of skin inflammation in dogs. It can cause itching and reddening all over the body. Because these changes are happening on the skin, it allows the harmless bacteria that normally live there to multiply, causing infection. This makes the problem worse.
Here are the facts about food allergies in dogs.
1. It’s common, and it often occurs in conjunction with other allergies, such as flea allergy, or an allergy to plant pollens in the air. This means that if you manage the symptoms of one allergy, you often reduce the severity of the other.
2. Food allergy in dogs can be managed without drugs, providing you put the effort into finding out what he’s allergic to, and keeping it out of his dinner bowl. This sounds like hard work, and it is.
3. Dogs aren’t allergic to something new you’ve just added to his diet. The problem is something he’s been eating for several years. Wheat, beef, lamb or dairy products are often problem foods for dogs.
4. The only way to tell if your dog does in fact have food allergy is to perform a food trial. This means you need to figure out a source of protein and also a carbohydrate source he’s never eaten before. If he’s never eaten it before, he’s not going to be allergic to it.
5. Feed him this for 6-8 weeks. Nothing else. No treats, no kibble, no toast crusts. It’s hard, and he will look at you with his soulful eyes, asking for a treat from your plate. Don’t give in. Keep in mind that you’re doing him a favor. If his skin improves, you know his diet is playing a role in his itchy skin.
6. At this point, you start adding the components of his regular diet to his meal. However, you only do it one at a time. So, for two weeks, feed him beef. If he is fine, then you can keep feeding him beef. If he starts scratching again, then you know he can’t have beef any more. Do this with several foods, and make a note of the results. You’ll end up with a list of foodstuffs that don’t make your dog itch, and another list of foods that your dog just can’t eat any more.
7. Throughout this process, work closely with your vet, because there may be times that his skin develops an infection from the bacteria that normally reside on his skin. He may need antibiotics or medicated shampoos to clear this up.
For the rest of your dog’s life, only feed him foods that are on your safe list. That way, he’s less likely to have that constant itching and scratching that comes with food allergies. There’s no guarantee he won’t become allergic to one of his safe foods in the future, but you know what you have to do.
Managing our dog’s food allergy in this way is labor intensive and time consuming. However, it’s much safer than treating him with medication that can have side effects, and may not completely solve the problem. Your dog is worth the effort.
This guest post is brought especially to you by Dog Fence DIY’s staff veterinarian Dr. Susan Wright, DVM. Dog Fence DIY will help you choose the right underground fence system that you are looking for. They are wonderful with all the steps involved in the purchase, installation, and training of your new pet containment system. Be sure to visit Dog Fence DIY for all your pet containment needs and questions.
My cousin, Misha, has the food allergies. He used to get bad ears and itchies all the time and it took my sissy a really long time but she found the right diet for him and now he is right as rain. Still, it makes me sad that I can’t share my cookies with him when he comes to visit (OK, well, not really).
Slobbers,
Mango
[...] list. That way, he’s less likely to have that constant itching and scratching that comes with food allergies. There’s no guarantee he won’t become allergic to one of his safe foods in the future, but you [...]
Cute Apollo pic!
So glad to see you back, Lora. Miss you. LJL (BDP)
Great post! Biggie doesn’t do well with corn. Luckily, he eats a raw diet so we always know what’s going into his food and we can easily add/subtract things. Hope Apollo’s ears are clean and clear for good!
Biggie
I think some things in life are just unexplainable. Especially when it comes to your body or your dogs body and allergies of all kinds.
Happy New Year!!
Nala & Amber
It is very hard to figure out the best diet for your dog…..for more help check out “Deciphering your Dog’s Diet” in the Summer 09′ issue of http://www.NOVAdogmagazine.com
I wonder if there is a comprehensive allergy test for pets? I had a food allergy test performed on my blood and it revealed all kinds of sensitivities.
Apollo’s case is very interesting. I am glad you found the root cause of his problem. Thanks for sharing these important facts about food allergies!
Very interesting post! This is the kind of post that all dog owners would surely benefit from, Thanks! By the way, love the dog pics as well
Wanted to thank Dr. Wright for a great article. I appreciate your insights on this and know i will be able to put this into practice with my own pooch.
One of my dogs has a nasty allergy to a particular plant. She tears herself to pieces for days anytime she has gone near it.
Great article, thank you for posting this. Not much worse than your beloved pup getting a rash and not knowing how to help. And is it me, or does the St. Bernard look a bit like Stanley from The Office?
Great information! Very specific recommendations. I have heard that rotating their brand of food periodically may avoid persistent food allergies. I believe in living as close to nature as possible in all aspects of a dog’s life. The healthier their immune system, the less occurrence of flea infestation, disease and allergies. Thanks.
Wow, I feel really lucky to have never had to deal with food allergies; the diagnosis process would drive me nuts. Thank you Dr. Wright for an informatve article!
Wow. What an article you have here. It was brilliantly written. All the information on Dog food has been superb. Thanks for the info once again. Next time when I need more knowledge about Dog food, I know where to look for.
Hi it is nice reading your article, it is very important to select dog food. Your article states very nicely. Thanks for the information. I will use it as I bought a puppy last month (on 1\1\10). Do update more post I will come here for more information I may need it as I am new pet owner.
If my dog has even the slightest bit of wheat (say in a dog cookie), he’ll break out with bumps all around his gums within a few hours.
Our ridgeback has had skin allergy symptoms for about 6 months. We’ve done the food trial method – limiting all food to a hypoallergenic food recommended by our vet – then when the skin clears up (about 2 months) we started to add other foods (organic, low filler treats). It seemed to improve over time, but I also suspect that the improvement was a result of her ‘growing out of the allergy’. She was 2 1/2 years old when the skin problems started (on her back) and she’s now almost four years old and is able to eat more food varieties without allergy symptoms!
This spring my 1 year old dog started to have some skin color changes and some dry skin on its stomach…I wonder if it has to do with some allergies or some “normal” reactions (losing baby skin)….Any ideas ?
Our dogs used to be really allergic too until we started putting them on probiotics. I learned about it after reading this: http://heypuppies.com/probiotics-and-your-dog/
Ugh! I hate nasty ear infections. Poor Apollo…
Love licks & Hugs,
Solid Gold Dancer
I had to watch my dog endure an nasty ear problem one time. That was one too many! The medicine and ear wash treatments worked. We applied them outside!
This is good information. It’s not really an allergy, but my vet says that chocolate is very dangerous for dogs, because of the caffeine. My doberman ate an entire bar of it and was OK, but honestly, that wasn’t the worst thing she ever ate.
At any rate, I just wanted to let dog fans here know a great, no strings attached way to get money for the dog charity of your choice. It’s adogspurpose.com. It’s a website for a book, but they are doing a contest on there. My friend Georgia entered and won money for her Denver dog rescue Nikeno’s Second chances (nscrescue.org).
You nominate your dog for “Dog of the Week” and if you win, they donate a free spay or neuter (value $65.00) to your charity. You also get a copy of the book.
It’s a pretty cool thing. Not a scam like so much internet stuff.
We had a Bernese mountain dog with chronic ear problems and ultra sensitive ears. We found a natural cleanser with soothing oat extract that really helped sanitize without all the stinging – it was called avenapro I think the website was http://www.avenapro.com
Thanks and good luck with Apollo
L
Wonderful article! I have a couple of allergy dogs myself.
Having 17 years of veterinary medicine experience… I can attest that this article is right on!
It’s great when you have ability to make reserches, analysis and at least getting consultation with qualified doctor, but what should do people who live in small town and it’s about 200 miles to big city and veterenary. Humans medicine is growing every day, but there are almost no forwarding in vet medicine.
Second Dog photo is really cute!!!
Thanks for this article, my cocker has itch stinky ears, and never once have I thought food allergy! I am going to have to try out and see if it is perhaps the food she is eating.
Thanks for the info,
I really liked the comments about one condition being connected to others as this is so true for people as well as dogs. Of course our bodies work as a series of systems and functions all collaborating together!!
I also wanted to echo the last statement that the dogs are worth it! If we do the work up front we will reap the rewards down the road. We believe you need to think of the “Whole Hound” to achieve total health which includes things like quality foods free of allergens as well as vitamin and mineral supplements.
If you want more info on this stuff click on the Whole Hound Link. Thanks again for the detailed article.
WH
Problems do not always appear when your dog is still a puppy. They can even appear in his middle age. Apollo is a very lucky dog, because you find the root of his problem. By treating the root of a health problem instead of its symptoms, you too can help your animal to regain and maintain its own health, as nature intended. I recently read a book, a Holistic Medicine Guide, that gave me a knew perspective about my dog’s health. I am attaching the link for you.Natural Animal Healing
One of my dogs has problems with rawhide. Go figure…
Hi! Hope all is well with you and your crew!
Lots of good info in this post (love the photos too, as always). I sometimes suspect Ace might have a food allergy. He often has itchy skin and tends to get ear infections. He does do better on natural dog food, and I do recommend that people switch their dogs to a higher quality brand with no by-products. Ace tends to do better on grain-free food.
This is a great article. I had a dog that was incredibly allergic to all sorts of things, including corn. If I took care to feed her a high-quality dog food, she felt better and her impact on the environment (quantity of stool) was diminished. Not only did her health improve, but she went “Ma href=”http://www.petsgonegreen.com”>green” at the same time!
I can say Dog food allergies are common throughout the United States. Don’t give your dog pet food that will shorten his life.
Very informative read. Thanks! Cute dogs you have too.
I recently created a poll to find out what people think is the best dog breed for a family with children. Follow the link below to cast your vote and help us out. Thanks!
http://www.silverliningherbs.com/blog/
I think a natural diet is fantastic but sometimes we just can’t keep up. I always feed mine on hypo-allergenic foods no matter what. Interestingly my flat coat has allergies but not to food, when we start sneezing with hay fever so does he and his eyes water and get gooey. Luckily with eye drops this calms down a lot but i think lots of people overlook allergies of any kind in dogs, so thanks for highlighting the issue.
I was just wondering if allergies were consistent with not adding wheat, corn or soy to dog food
Wow, it’s been a while since you’ve posted… I miss your blog! Hope all is well with you.
TerraNik + Jedi, Ahsoka and our new addition, Fable.
I love dogs too but can never understand why a couple would take one to their wedding. I even wrote a post about it on my blog:
Why is There a Dog Here?
Hi, I love your blog. Great article on allergies. I just started a dog blog because I just started an in home boarding business and I now have endless fodder for my blog. One of my first dogs had chronic ear infections and when he was with me (I had him for a month) I changed his food. This seemed to help a lot. I am going to send your article to the dogs owner. Thank you. Keep writing.
I’ve been involved in dog rescue for 17 years now and nearly every case of icky ears/skin/coat I’ve seen were caused by what they’ve been fed. Read some labels and you’ll be shocked! I was. Good quality food and treats are so important to overall health and well-being, which is why the only treats my dogs get are Blue Bakery biscuits (for the Rottie) and Softies (for the little ones) … they’re all natural, no artificial colors or preservatives, and they’re made in the USA!
Wow, that is amazing. My dog has suffered with the same thing for years and we still have not been able to figure it out. This may be what Molly’s issue is – thank you for posting this!! Very insightful!
Great post! Food allergy is a very common issue among our dogs, its for posts like these that keep us informed and updated! thanks for sharing!
Thanks for letting people know about this. My dog had red, itchy skin until we eliminated commercial dog food. When we switched to home-made, not only did his skin clear up, but his sense of smell became much more intense. Amazing what food additives can do!
Food allergies are a tough issue. They can affect the dog’s eating habits which then also effects their health and performance. Worse, the dogs can’t tell you they are having an issue with the food making it harder for people to diagnose. The good news is posts and articles like this help get out the word so people can really see what is going on. I have also been impressed with several of the comments here too. Seems like you have a pretty knowledgeable readership here.
This is great information sharing us. It’s difficult to find out what food a dog is allergic to. My sister has a dog and he is allergic to food and my sister is so worried about him. She takes time to find cause of this allergy, but now seem like she can’t find the answer. Maybe best way for her now is to take him to a vet more often and I and my sister must notice closer to what we feed him.
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Hi, thanks for this article, my cocker has itch stinky ears, and never once have I thought food allergy! I am going to have to try out and see if it is perhaps the food she is eating.
Maybe this doesn’t apply, but Cooper has a terribly nasty left ear. Thank goodness no infections but I wonder if it’s a matter of time. Plus, we live in the city that is number one on the pollen allergies list. I wonder if that can affect him too. So this has me thinking and I believe it’s time for a vet visit. I don’t think Coop is going to like having to have such a strict diet (even though he doesn’t eat any junk).
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Hi. I have a couple of allergy dogs myself. Having 18 years of veterinary medicine experience. I can attest that this article is right on! Thanks!
Great info. on food allergies. Unfortunately, long eared dogs are susceptible to ear infections. Some breeds more than others. Combined with food allergies, you have a double whammy. I agree with @Caius Fiorentino that this information is spot on. Thanks!
our pets are very prone to allergies because they tend to eat anything they feel to eat. that is why we need to take care of them and look out for everything that they are doing.
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