[Liz S]

LM-

Thank you for the website and advice on the allergies. I don’t know what I’d do if it were allergens such as.. ferret or cat dander…or…well cleaning products are easy to ditch! ( like vinegar and h20 ) …

Haven’t taken anyone to be tested yet but I will soon.

[Anonymous]

I like Wysong, but my dog that has a sensitive stomach seems to do the best on Nutrisca dry (fish) with a little water added and a bite of cooked chicken or lean meat.
She has never been diagnosed with pancreatitis, however, she has allergies and can’t tolerate frozen beef marrow bones either. Consider what the homeopathic vets have to say too. http://www.vitalanimal.com

[Dori]

I’d be more concerned that she’s not drinking than I would that she’s not eating. Often just like us, if they’re not feeling well or have gastro upset they will know enough to fast themselves and, in my opinion, that’s a good thing. Right now it’s more important to get liquids into her.

If she greeted you at the door today tail wagging even just a little or even just the fact that she greeted you at all means that she’s feeling a little better. When she does start to eat, please just give her very small meals every few hours for a few days. You can add a little bit of canned pumpkin (not pie filling) into each of other very small meals.

As to the original problem or what started this particular episode: It could very well be that the vaccines upset her system but I doubt that the stress of going to the groomer would have her vomiting and with diarrhea so long after her grooming. And, her problems started a long time ago. As others may have mentioned, I believe she has a food intolerance/sensitivity. You need to get to the route of what ingredient in the food you are feeding is bothering her. I don’t believe switching her to a low fat diet is going to be a “cure all”. This really does sound like food intolerance issues to me and until you figure out what she is “allergic” to this is going to continue to happen. If you’re going to keep her on kibble or canned try a limited ingredient food with a protein that you have never fed her before. See how she does on that. If you’ve been feeding chicken, or beef or whatever protein, just avoid them for a while. Make sure that on the ingredient list there is no chicken or turkey fat or any beef or whatever else you’ve been feeding her. Sometimes because a food says it’s Venison on the package doesn’t mean that there aren’t any other animal proteins in the food. It’s a difficult task finding what food intolerances a dog has but it is well worth it in the end for your dog most especially but also for yourself.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by Dori.

[Anonymous]

My dog with allergies and a sensitive stomach does well on Nutrisca dry (fish), my other dogs like Wysong, both combined with a homemade diet.

PS: Are you leaving the food down, free feeding? If so, not a good idea (imo) offer the food twice a day or 4 small meals per day, if she doesn’t eat it after 10-15 minutes pick it up and put it in the fridg, offer it at the next mealtime. Add water to the food, most dogs don’t drink enough. How about plain homemade chicken broth added to the food? Ask your vet if this would be okay.

[Taek K]

My beagle became allergic to everything a little after the age of 1. I knew of the consequences of feeding him cheap kibbles and bits so I started him off with Orijen then blue buffalo, etc…basically, anything that’s grain free, high in protein, etc…but at the end, it didn’t matter. It couldn’t have been couple of months after the age of 1 when constant itching, scratching, ear infection, eye infection, skin infection, etc started to plague my poor baby. Like most, I took him to vets after vets. Went to an allergist/dermatologist and paid over $700 for testing and allergy shots. I even got him testing for food allergies!!! Thank God I got him pet insurance, otherwise, I probably would have had to fork over over 10k out of pocket within the first year.

I’m just going to assume your dogs problem is associated with food and nothing more. My dog not only suffers from environmental allergies but also yeast infection. But I’ll just give you the run down for food. Otherwise, this post would be too long.

The best thing you can do for your dog is feed him REAL food. I don’t care how great a bagged dog food is made. At the end of the day, it’s all processed. Think of it this way. When Purnia, Pedigree, Blue buffalo, etc type of food companies didn’t exist, what did we feed our dogs? Exactly. We fed them real food. Long story short, I’ve done years of feeding my dog this and that type of real food and I FINALLY narrowed it down to what WORKS FOR MY DOG. And now, no ear or eye infection. He does get skin infection during the super hot months but it’s more like an instance vs a prolong battle. I think last infection lasted like couple days and it went away on it’s own. When infections creeps in, I suggest giving him a bath with antifungal shampoo like 2-3 times a week. But I digress.

Cut out everything that is starchy and sweet. That in turn will starve the yeast. The problem with bag dog food is there will always be starchy fillers. This is so the food company can keep the cost down. Ziwipeak is a brand that doesn’t contain starchy veggies or fruits. But its very expensive. Whether it’s sweet potato, peas, fruits, etc..bottom line, its starchy and will feed the yeast. STARVE THE YEAST!!!

This is what I give my 45lb mixed beagle.

-Salmon/Tuna (This is his staple protein source. This never changes)
-boiled beef/organ meat (I switch this up. One week, I give him beef. The following week, I give him organ meat. All boiled.)
-non starchy vegetables (green beans, romaine lettuce, cabbage, etc)
-plain greek yogurt (read the label; less the ingredient the better)
-berries (only during colder months; I wouldn’t even give him any the first 2 years to wipe out the yeast)
-Dinovite (its a supplement, google it)
-if my dog wasn’t allergic to anything chicken, I would give him a crushed boiled egg with the shell.

Anything that’s not protein based are fillers. Protein should be the base of his food so provide enough of it. There’s going to be a lot trials to see what works best for your dog. But this will work. It just takes time. Integrate REAL food with his food slowly. Once you completely change over to real food, you’ll see huge improvements. FYI…when you start changing his food, he’ll have couple instances of infections. This is expected. Its like the yeast trying to fight back. Keep hold and I promise, it’ll get better.

The only treat your dog should eat are no filler jerky. Read the ingredients. Again, say no to starch/sweet/carb!!! I give my dog BIXBI beef liver jerky.

If anyone needs more info or have any questions, please ask. From one owner who suffered, I wish nothing but the best and will help anyway I can.

[Joanne T]

Hi

i’m helping my sister to research some possible dry dog foods to switch her dog onto. she has a mixed breed, 8.5 years old, with no known allergies

i’m considering between Taste Of The Wild and Canine Caviar. some reasons for this:
– 2 of the few available higher quality dry dog food that i can get my hands easily on
– grain-free
– no rosemary extract

some others that i did consider were Addiction, Timberwolf and Natural Balance but they either have questionable ingredients, or seem to have not so good reviews from users.

would appreciate any comments and advise on either of the 2 mentioned food, or options for other brands.
thanks!

[Anonymous]

My poodle with allergies receives immunotherapy and does well on Nutrisca dry (fish) as a base combined with a homemade diet (see the link I provided in the Homemade Dog Food thread). She gets a fish oil capsule daily, too.
Her allergies are environmental (as most are) but she does have a sensitive stomach.
Often food sensitivities are referred to as allergies when they are not.
Allergies often show up around this age and tend to get worse with age.
I found helpful information here. http://www.allergydogcentral.com/

[Dori]

Marie, so glad Boone is back to “normal”. Good news. Let’s hope Ginger starts acting more like her self soon.

Weezerweeks. The little black one is Lola, 5 1/2 year old Yorkipoo that I’ve had since she was 9 weeks old. She weighs 5 lbs.

It is seriously ridiculous when there is a loving home that is willing to give a young dog a home and yet, the rescues, seem to be living in the dark ages when 60’s was considered old. I’m 66 years old with three small dogs. One 15 1/2 years old and two that are 5 1/2 years old and I got the two younger ones at the same time. Yes, I’d initially thought I was going to go insane having two 9 week old puppies and all it entails at the same time but, guess what, this “old lady” survived. I really do think that it’s just old fashioned out of date thinking. Or they know that the puppies can always be rescued and they’re trying to find loving homes for the older dogs? I certainly wouldn’t consider a 3 year old dog too hard to handle and, unfortunately, a lot of these rescues and placements are run by much younger people so I guess instead of their thinking of us as experienced, with lots of time on our hands, they think of us as old. Just wait till they catch up to us and see how old they think mid 60’s really is.
I love having the little toy dogs. I couldn’t possibly handle larger dogs and since I’m allergic to animals it’s usually the toy or small breed dogs that have hair as opposed to fur.

[Susan]

Hi Tracey, has she had an Endoscope & Biopsies done? then you’ll know what your dealing with…..I really understand as my boy has IBD & IBD also affects the stomach & skin allergies to food…try low fat diets, when they have acid reflux… I also use Mylanta 3mls, I find the Mylanta really helps Patch more that the Zantac (Ranitidine) you could use the Liquid Pepto as it has Bismuth salts that kill stomach bacteria but the Taste of the Wild is too high in fat for stomach acid, you need a limited ingredient, low fat diet, Have you tried the “California Natural” Limited ingredient Lamb & Rice it has just 4 ingredients or Kangaroo & Lentils or the “Natural Balance” Limited ingredients Kangaroo & Potatoes or the Rabbit or the Duck as these are the only flavours that have the least ingredients….
I was doing home cooking, it was toooo much I was using Turkey breast mince (grounded) 99% fat free & adding 1 egg & making rissoles in the oven they were beautiful, then adding boiled sweet potatoes as an elimination diet but Patches Poos were awful, he’d only poo every 2nd day & it stunk of baby poo & was real yellow, So now I’m feeing Sunday Pets Deliganics only 5% fat & all organic….My boy had the Helicobacter infection & they need triple theray of antibiotics (Metronidazole, Amoxicillin & Losec) to kill the Helicobacter that lives in stomach acid… Losec is an stronger ant acid, she may need something stronger then Famotidine…. also there’s a really good group if you need help, it’s on Face Book “Dogs With Inflammatory Bowel Disorder” most of the dogs are on ant-acids & Enzymes for their stomachs..

[Anonymous]

I have a dog with allergies, nothing worked until I went to a dermatologist and had my dog skin tested and she started immunotherapy, wasted time and money going back and forth to the regular vet for a year and received some incorrect information. There are times when it is best to just go to a specialist.
I found this site helpful. http://www.allergydogcentral.com/

Also, consider a homeopathic approach http://www.vitalanimal.com

PS: Environmental allergies are more common than food allergies, actually people tend to refer to food sensitivities as allergies
The dust mite, microscopic and on the skin of all living things (dander) is a common one…impossible to avoid.

[Gordon R]

Hi Liz,

We have a Golden six month old puppy with ear yeast and bacteria infections. Allergy testing showed he was allergic to chicken, turkey, tuna, peanuts, corn, rice, and wheat. Chicken was mentioned to us as a common cause of ear problems among dogs with that allergy.

The recommendation was to try Nutri Source Large Breed Lamb Meal Grain Free Formula, which I supplement with lamb based grain free canned food of various brands. That formula is rated at 4.5 stars, but it is an adult formulation, so I am still not sure it is the most perfect solution for our pup. We’re only into this one week, still in the transition period, so I can’t give you any results yet.

[Anonymous]

My dog with allergies and a sensitive stomach does well on Nutrisca dry (fish) combined with homemade (see my post in homemade for link)

[tracy b]

I have a 5 year old pit mix that has constant tummy trouble. she is on famotidine with each meal (acid reducer) but still has ongoing issues. she is currently on taste of the wild grain free (no poultry) as she also has skin allergies (these seem to be ok at this time). I am looking for the best choice dry food choice for her – wonder if anyone has any suggestions…. otherwise, I may be having to go to homemade (and that is tough with 2 big dogs!!)

[Naturella]

Dr. Tim’s RPM Grain Free is within your price range. You can look at the Dr. Tim’s Kinesis GF too, but it’s $10 more at chewy.com. Does the food have to grain-free?

Also, Earthborn Holistic Grain Free are 28 lbs for less than $50.

But I would rotate between all Victors and all Earthborns, and the two GF Dr. Tim’s (if it has to be GF) and not stick with just one flavor unless there’s allergies.

[Akari_32]

I’ve never even heard of that brand. Just looked it up, and what concerns me is how cheap it is. Makes me wonder how they source their meat. Could be 4D meat, or something like that. Seems a bit strange for a premade raw diet to be so inexpensive. However, they could just have a really good relationship with local farms and ranches. Who knows for sure, with out actually contacting them and asking where they source their meat from.

That said, dogs don’t need veggies in their diets. They simply lack the ability to fully digest plant matter. It’s not very expensive at all to do a home made, balanced, prey model diet, of 80% meat, 10% bone, 5% liver, and 5% other organs. Pretty comparable to the price of a good kibble, and usually a bit cheaper when there are good deals. I use the Raw Dog app for iPhone to help me calculate it all, however, I do not balance every since day like the app does, but over a few days. The dog I’m feeding is so small it would be nearly impossible to give him such a small amount of bone and organ every day lol

Raw helped my yeasty dog a lot. Unfortunately, a good deal of his allergies are environmental as well, so he is not 100%, but is still doing much better on raw than he was on any kibble I ever tried him on. The thing with yeast is you don’t want to give it any fuel, which is carbs. Carbs are found in veggies and plant products, which Allprovide has. It’s best to just make your own diet if your dog have yeast problems. There are several groups on FaceBook that are really great resources for beginners, such as Raw Feeding Community, Prey Model Raw (PMR) for Dogs, and Raw Feeding FRIENDS. You should definitely check them out 🙂

[Zach M]

C4C, I just use kefir for the wide variety of friendly bacteria it contains. There are also some studies that show kefir fights against salmonella, and I supplement with raw so I feel if this is true it will help. Even more benefits include helping protect against allergies, helping the digestive tract, and defending against bloating and heart burn. I feel like there are noticeable differences in her health. And i am glad you like this topic guys!
Nice choices too, Dori and Bobby Dog!

[Wicks Ma]

I have seen a few articles that say that research shows probiotics as a puppy helps decrease allergies later on in life! I personally have a 12 week old puppy (large breed) that gets them due to chronic diarrhea but wanted to use them even if that hadn’t been the case, especially since he had been given antibiotics. Just like humans they can have imbalances… although you can also feed them yogurt and kefir (if they are not lactose intolerant!) Look it all up first bc I obviously am no expert:)
Ps can anyone tell me how to add a picture to my profile and also please update us on your pups status and what you ended up doing if you don’t mind!!

[WhimsicalChaos]

The best dry food we have found is Acana ‘Grasslands’. Depending on your location it may be difficult to find, as it is more of a specialty pet shoppe product. But, all of our pups have loved it, and we have had no problems with Acana. Label wise is a very healthy, organic food. But, having issues of my own with ‘Blue’ canned food, so can’t help you with a can selection.

After using Blue Canned food, I am having to find another food today as the Blue has begun to give my dog serious ‘Gassy’ issues. We tried changing him over to Merrick last week because it seemed he had become bored with the Blue (even though we get him various flavors), but the Merrick Canned food gave him serious diarrhea and more gas. We could actually hear his tummy twisting noises. I felt so guilty…so we went back to Blue. Although he is eating the Blue, his ‘Gassy’ issue seems to have gotten worse. So, going to go find a different organic canned food. If you research, you will find a lot of people having gas issues that are using Blue. So, if you choose to try Blue, you’ll know rather quickly if your pups cannot tolerate it – for sure your nose will tell you.

He also began pacing all night, last night and the night before. My husband and I took him out 6-8 times both night, but he didn’t have to poop, and obviously no diarrhea – he would just urinate. But when being back inside, would continue the pacing. I hear no tummy noises, but there is definitely gas…no doubt about that! I just do not want him having any pains. I have a feeling his stomach has become intolerant to the ‘rich’ foods such as Merrick and Blue. Or possibly has acquired an allergic reaction to one of the main ingredients. So, gonna try yet another type of food.

[Susan]

Hi, My boy had colitis & was put on the Eukanuba Intestinal low residue kibble, being a low residue kibble its easier to digest & lets the stomach/bowel rest & heal….. If you can try & get the Eukanuba Intestinal instead of the Iams Intestinal as the Eukanuba Intestinal has no by-products & the ingredients are just a bit better ….I had to keep Patch on the Eukanuba Intestinal for 1 year to let everything settle & rest & get better… I found with Colitis your dog can be allergic to a protein or ingredient that is making his bowel inflamed, I had to do an elimination diet & found Patch cant eat potatoes, wheat, peas, boiled rice or boiled oats as the rice & oats have ruff edges & can irritate the bowel but he can eat grounded rice & grounded oats in kibbles…I’m very busy at the moment but I do have a list of 1 protein limited ingredient kibbles… your best off trying a protein that he hasn’t yet tried & don’t use all your proteins up….
You’ll need to look for a gluten free, low fat, limited ingredient kibble also look at the fiber% on the Iams Intestinal… I have to get low fiber diets for Patch 4% & under but only once his bowel was all healed & settled about 6months is when I started trying new premium diet, We have always gone back to the Eukanuba Intestinal, when the kibbles didn’t work & you sooooo slowly introduce a new kibble, I take 2-3 weeks using the new kibble as a treat for about 4 days, then I start to slowly introduce, each dog is different with Colitis there’s a really good & friendly Face Book group called “Dogs With Inflammatory Bowel Disorder” you can get heaps of help & what diets people are feeding for their dogs with Colitis, I just have been looking & looking for a kibble for a older dog with Colitis & now the owner wants her off the vet diet as she been on the vet Diet now 4-5months & is doing really well but she too wants a better ingredient kibble for her girl..

[Becky H]

Should I introduce each ingredient of my supergreen mixture separately to make sure there are no allergies? I’m thinking back to when I gave my kids new food, I didn’t give them all at once. The supergreen mixture I’m going to give has alfalfa, kelp, chlorella, wheat grass, and spirulina. My newfie is 14 weeks old and is getting Fromm’s Large Breed Puppy Food, but I want to supplement some greens.
Thanks for any advice!

[Autumn]

Hanna,

Thank you SO much! That was very helpful. He has always been on a grain free so you may be right, he could be allergic to some of those ingredients!

[Marietta B]

I have a white Shih Tzu and the same thing happened once. The vet told me it was an allergic reaction. She prescribed steroids and antibiotics and it cleared right up. I probably wouldn’t go that route again, though. I try feed dehydrated or air dried “raw” food now and use natural products and it has never happened again.

[GSDsForever]

I would appreciate suggestions & thoughts re shampoo and conditioner for very dry skin, with dry white scaling and non-greasy dandruff.

I’m dealing with a dog that has come through the kill shelter & breed rescue. She is also very itchy and will try to scratch and bite herself. Affected areas are neck, top of back, backs of ears mainly — some by shoulder divides and hips. No paws/legs involvement, behind/anal or top of rear or groin, no underside/belly, and no ear infections. When I part her fur, in some areas it is white skin with fine scales and dandruff.

We are ruling out atopic allergies (outdoors), food allergies soon via novel protein/carb diet & elimination trial, and treating another serious temporary medical condition that may be causing itchiness (or I suppose *could* deplete nutrients). No external parasites of any kind, no round/whip/tape worms etc. No bacterial or fungal infection signs.

She has been eating quality foods, with 1500 mg added of Omega 3 EPA/DHA via wild salmon oil and virgin organic coconut oil.

I’ve used coconut oil on her external body and fur, even parting longer fur and placing it directly on her skin. Unfortunately it does make her fur greasy & attract dirt, making her dirty (which I hate). And coconut oil is VERY hard to remove from fur. I have also applied avocado oil & olive oil, as coconut oil hardens & turns waxy in colder temperatures which I figured it could do in the fur.

She has had two generously donated “spa groomings” with special skin moisturizing and aloe treatments. She looked and felt to the touch fantastic afterward, glossiest dog on the planet lol! But after a few days she still itched.

Her dry scaling skin and dandruff have remained throughout all of this. So, since she has to be bathed regularly anyway, I would like to find a shampoo & conditioner that will help.

Ideally, I would like to find a moisturizing shampoo with an extremely MILD cleansing agent (like what I would pick for my own hair) that will NOT be DRYING or irritating + natural oils or moisturizing ingredients. And then I would like a VERY RICH moisturizing conditioner, perhaps that will some soothing and moisturizing residue behind to coat the skin — without making her fur greasy! Or if it rinses cleanly I could leave it on for a while maybe. I don’t know, as I am taking her to a self-wash place and would probably have to explain why I need to be there a long while or do a two part session!

I’m looking at trying this skin TREATMENT, in addition to shampooing and using conditioner to combat scales/dandruff & soothe the skin:

http://tropiclean.com/products/itchy-skin/oxymed-treatment/details/oxymed-treatment

Ingredients: Water, Colloidal Oatmeal, Beta-Hydroxy Salicylic Acid, Vitamin B5, Vitamin E, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Alpha-Hydroxy Malic Acid, Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids and Vitamin A

Since I know GSD show people, this was recommended to me also as a conditioner/shiner. The GSD show kennel that makes it also says it has been effective on skin sores and conditions. It is expensive though, especially with $15 added shipping cost:

http://www.nakedcare.com/

So does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts? Please help me to help her.

A groomer told me to avoid oatmeal containing shampoos & conditioners — which all of Tropiclean products have (I have their shampoos & conditioners) — as the colloidal oatmeal would disperse in the liquid and soak up/cling to all the oils, not allowing oils/moisturizing ingredients to moisturize or shine the fur. She also said it could be a problem in a dog allergic to oats, but I think that is less likely to be this dog’s issue or allergy even if she does have an allergy or allergies. In fact, perfumes and optical brighteners used in some grooming shop brands, I think are more likely to irritate or cause a reaction. I think they used Nature’s Specialties last time, with the owner recalling the Bluing one (which contains both).

• This topic was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by GSDsForever.

[Ryan K]

Hi crazy4cats! I have honestly just stayed away from anything with potato period. I took my vet’s advice and just avoided potato in general. I don’t know if Sweet Potato causes the same reaction as a standard white potato with yeast? It might be something I have to experiment with. :\

My older dog actually eats California Natural Kangaroo and Red Lentils and my little guy (the problem pooch!) LOVES it and always wants to get at it but it just doesn’t have enough fiber and the protein is so low in that formula. I give it to her because of her age and her allergies. She does great on it. I wish there was more fiber in it though so I could feed them both the same food. That would save on my pet-food cost a lot.

[Barbara C S]

Zignature (Limited Ingredient Formula) We use both the can & dry
Trout & Salmon

** This is one of the few brands that I have found that works for dogs with a sensitive stomach and allergies ** The Trout & Salmon is their favorite formula

[Ryan K]

Does anyone know of a great dry food that has helped their dog with anal gland issues? My 5 year old terrier mix has suddenly become prone to his sacs filling up and bothering him and I want to get him on a diet that will help relieve some of those symptoms. I know Acana has a high fiber count but he really hasn’t liked any of their food as well as the price being a little steep. What other grain-free (he has allergies to chicken) dry foods have pretty high fiber count (over 4%)? Please help! 🙂

[Dori]

Hi GSDsForever. Very coincidental. Anyway, my question is purely for my education. Why is it that German Shepherds don’t digest foods as well as some other breeds do? I’m just always trying to learn. Never too old to learn something new. I’m 66 years old by the way. I’ve never owned German Shepherds nor will I ever. I’m allergic to all animals that have fur, hence my having toy breeds with hair, no fur and low allergens.

[Dori]

Hi John. Firstly I just wanted to post about Marie’s suggestions. She want be upset with me as she’s a friend of mine and is fabulous at helping others with their canines.

California Naturals does have a Kangaroo grain free but the protein is incredibly low. 21 % to AAFCO standards.

Natures Logic Rabbit contains turkey meal, chicken fat, chicken liver, dried egg product and egg shells (for calcium).

Grandma Lucy’s Pureformance (their grain free line) is freeze dried food. Their foods that do not have any poultry or beef are: Rabbit, Goat and Lamb. (Be forewarned…fairly large poops on Grandma Lucy’s but it does have a good reputation with a lot of feeders).

On to the questions you just asked of me. Since you are already feeding your dogs a raw diet, transitioning to a commercial raw diet will be very easy for you and your dogs if, in fact, that is the route you want to take. Transitioning to raw is much simpler and quicker especially with dogs that are already eating raw. Also because you already feed grain free that will make it a bit easier as their guts are in better and healthier conditions than dogs fed their entire lives on foods that contain massive amounts of carbs and lower quality foods. Now, I’m assuming at this point that the only known allergens are poultry and beef. I would stay away from any and all poultry (all fowl….anything with feathers). Since you say that Bella reacted violently to Bison after only a few hours you’ll be able to tell fairly quickly if a new food is going to bother her. Typically when I first started out with rotation feeding I could tell within 3 days how Katie was doing on it. If she was going to have loose stools or vomitting, scratching, gas, bad breath and everything else that goes along with food sensitivities it would happen fairly quickly so I stopped feeding that food and went on to the next. In your case I would probably tell you to start with one food and if they do well on it then feed only that food for two or three months just to give their guts a bit more healing time and “detoxing” as it’s called. At that time you will already have bought the next food you want to try within that brand if there is another protein without any allergens that your dogs may have. If that brand doesn’t, then move on to the next brand. If all goes well I would then feed that food and start looking for the next protein within that brand you want to try. Every time you are done with one bag you move on to the next. Every time with a different protein within the same brand. Keep a detailed list of the foods you have tried and what, if any, reactions they had. Once you’ve exhausted the different proteins in your first brand then you move on to the next brand and start rotating through their proteins that your dogs can eat. Then you move on to the next brand. Before you know it you may be able to have 4 or 5 foods that your dogs can eat and do well on. You can then continue to rotate within these brands and proteins every time you have to buy a bag of food. You can then start rotating with the different foods you have in the freezer every day, every couple of days, every meal as I do, whatever. I rotate as often as I do because Katie can’t tolerate anything for more than a meal or two. She probably can at this point but since I’ve been doing it this way for so long and they’re all just fine with it and because I wouldn’t eat the same thing for breakfast and dinner I figure why should they. I also can’t afford for her to become allergic to anything more than she already is. In rotating foods if some ingredient bothers her a little or there is a pro-inflammatory ingredient in the food (which I try my best to avoid but not always possible) then she’s only getting it for one meal. Rotating foods for all dogs is, in my opinion, the healthiest way to feed canines but especially for canines with food intolerances.

Please keep in mind that the log (list) is very very important. In keeping a list it will also better inform you if your dog is having an issue with the protein or is it another ingredient in the food. If you feed rabbit and Bella has issues with it and then you move on to goat and the same thing happens, then you have to compare the ingredient labels of both those foods and see what other ingredients do both foods have in common other than the protein. When starting to gather foods for dogs with allergies it’s easy to assume that it’s the labeled protein in the food and keep moving from food to food thinking your dog is intolerant of every single protein. Typically that’s not the case. It’s that we forgot that they could be allergic or intolerant of any other ingredient in the foods. So it’s important…..keep a log of foods you feed and the ingredients in the foods. You can print out the ingredient list from their web sites or you can take a picture of the ingredient label on the bag itself for reference purposes.

“Toppers” by the way is just a term that’s used meaning anything that you would put on top of the food you already have in their bowl. I would suggest you not use any of them at all until you have some foods that you can easily feed to your dogs with no allergy symptoms. You’ll confuse the issue if you start adding other things. You won’t know which or what is causing the symptoms. I do add things to my dogs foods but I did not in the beginning. Had to find the foods first. Then started adding little things to see what the affect would be.

Plain Kefir (you can buy it in grocery stores) acts like plain yogurt in that it contains friendly “probiotic” bacteria that helps the gut. I will add here that my allergy girl, Katie, cannot have kefir, yogurt or cheese. Actually I’ve yet to find a probiotic that doesn’t contain something (yeast, or whatever) that she doesn’t have issues with. She’s too intolerant of them and the craziness starts all over again. Not saying that your dogs will react, but owners of dogs with food sensitivities have to be very careful of every single thing that eat. Their immune systems are pretty much in a weakened state especially until their immune system improves on better foods, less toxins and carbs to deal with. 70% of the immune system is in the gut.

Allergy symptoms can be skin issues and/or digestive issues as is the case with Katie. Once I cleared up all her food issues her digestive and skin issues all disappeared.

Once on line please check out all pro-inflammatory foods, fruits and veggies. Allergies are an inflammatory based issue so you need to avoid those foods as best you can. It’s not always easy to eliminate each and every single one but do your best to avoid as much as possible. That’s also a good reason for rotation. If one of your foods does have pro-inflammatory ingredients your dog will not be getting them for too long a time.

If you find, eventually, that your dogs are not allergic to sardines then you can give them sardines packed in water with no salt added (canned in the grocery store) two or three times a week (as a “topper”) on top or mixed in with the food in their bowls. Sardines are an excellent form of Omega 3 which most foods are lacking. Most foods have plenty of Omega 6’s and not enough Omega 3’s to balance them out. That is true most especially in kibble foods. On the days that I don’t give my dogs sardines I keep a bottle refrigerated of Nature’s Logic Sardine oil. Oils go rancid fairly quickly so it’s best kept refrigerated and also says it on the bottle I believe. Anyway, once I’ve put their meals in their bowls, and on the days I don’t add sardines, I splash a little of the sardine oil on top of their food in their bowls and promptly put the bottle back in fridge and immediately give the dogs their bowls of food. I believe the oil has the dosing on the bottle. Please do not give your dogs salmon oil as we already know that they had issues with the salmon food. Also, salmon and tuna have the most amount of mercury in them due to their long lives. I don’t feed either because of those reasons. Sardines and krill have the least as they have very short lives and very short digestive tracks.

Just for your info I realize that I didn’t tell you what type of dogs I have or anything other than Katie’s allergies. So, Hannah (my avatar) is my 15 1/2 year old Maltese. Katie is my 5 1/2 year old Maltipoo and Lola is my 5 1/2 year old Yorkipoo.

One more thing. I no longer have my dogs vaccinated. I do the titers on the core vaccines. Rabies vaccine in my area is only required every three years. Though recently I’ve learned that the county I live in will accept rabies titers. Very few counties in the country are on board with titers for rabies. I don’t believe that any dog should be vaccinated unnecessarily. Dogs with allergies shouldn’t be vaccinated. Of course, I am in favor of doing all the initial puppy vaccinations spaced out as they should be. Each vaccine should be done separately and not the three in one type. It’s too much of an overload on their systems. After those initially puppy shots which, if memory serves me, ends when they are about a year old. After that having your vet do titers to check their antibodies to the core illnesses will let you know when and if they have to be vaccinated again.

[Jon h]

I think the reason you are receiving so much negativity is you are seeming to conform to a lot of the stereotypes of vegetarian feeders (ie: lack of knowledge of canine nutrition, lack of canine medical knowledge, lack any sort of formal nutritional training and yet propose that they know more than their vet and people with PhDs in the field canine nutrition). Vegetarian diets should only be imposed on a dog if there are medical reasons to do so (ie: some sort of allergy) and I personally haven’t read any cases of dogs allergic to all meat sources so I highly doubt that is a legitimate argument in your case. Now if you are switching your dog to a vegetarian diet because of your own moral reasoning or some ill founded notion that vegetarian diets are healthier than diets that include meat then I would strongly reconsider being a dog owner.

Lets take a quick look at your arguments. First (in regards to your dog being obese before), a dog becoming obese is almost always the direct result of an owner not properly managing their dogs caloric intake to activity level ratio. Not because meat was magically making their dog fat. Switching to vegetarian meals most likely significantly reduced the dog’s caloric intake therefore attributing their obesity to meat is a really poor argument. Second, in regards to your dog always being sick. If their sickness was food related your dog may have had an allergy you were not aware of and switching to a vegetarian diet eliminated that allergen. Saying that this means that vegetarian diets are better than diets that include meat is a poor founded conclusion from your observations.

Third (and this one really concerns me), no… coconut water is not some magic fluid that will cure all ailments, to draw the conclusion that coconut water is such a strong medicinal product that it cured your dog overnight is logic I’d expect to see on late night infomercials, not from someone who claims to know more than their vet about canine medicine.

I understand that this doesn’t directly answer the question you originally asked but I am a strong proponent of making medical and nutritional decisions using science and always in the best interest of your dog (even if it goes against something you believe in).

Some of things you’ve said really concern me. At the end of the day if you can’t have a science based discussion with your vet on why you chose a vegetarian diet for your dog then that should be a flashing red light for you that you haven’t done the proper research and don’t have the knowledge/qualification to be making such a drastic change to your dogs nutrition source….

[John P]

Dori:
I think rotational food might be my best bet at this stage in the game, but I have a few questions/comments for you:
1) How would you recommend introducing the new foods I’m researching to make sure Iggy (and Bella, my other Wheatable) can tolerate them before I rotate in a second, third, and fourth food (and so on)? It usually takes a little while for the itching to show up in either Iggy or Bella. On the other hand, I learned very quickly that bison was too closely related to beef for Bella (she has violent reactions to beef). Within hours, she was incredibly sick. So, I guess my question is how long would you wait before introducing each food and how many foods would you feed at a time when you’re trying out a new one? Would you switch to it exclusively for a short period?
2) I have always made my own treats. This started when I rescued Iggy as a puppy. He was extremely malnourished but wouldn’t eat much of his puppy food at a time. Bella, who is two years older, has never had any problems eating (especially if it’s bad for her — haha), so I had to find ways to get get nutrition into him throughout the day when he felt like eating without necessarily leaving food out all day long. I worked with my super awesome vet to come up with some “recipes”, I played with them to Iggy’s liking, and Iggy and Bella have been enjoying them to some extent ever since. They have always been anti-inflammatory, grain-free, and high-protein, with a good fat-to-protein ratio. I don’t use treats very often, but when I do, they’re always from my own kitchen.

crazy4cats:
Pardon my ignorance, but what is a “topper”?

Pam P:
This is great information! Like I said, I’m new to this site and new to the dog food world beyond what I have found in the aisles of my local pet supply warehouses. Please bear with me as I bombard you with questions/comments as I did with Dori. Here goes:
1) What is kefir? I’m afraid to leave this page in my tablet to go Googling for fear of losing everything I have typed so far, plus I’m betting your summation will be far more knowledgeable than anything I can find on Wikipedia.
2) How exactly do you find out if a company uses synthetic vitamins and minerals? Does a limited-ingredient brand such as Acana use them? I’m guessing something like that would be on the ingredients list, but is there a separate list as one might find on a cereal box? I tried to play around with Editor’s Choice the day I joined, but I couldn’t find the purported ingredient benefits of membership. That could be both a limitation of my browsing device and a limitation of the short amount of time I had available for browsing.
3) Do you mix the oils directly onto the foods before feeding? How do you know how much to give per kg/lb — does someone have a guide somewhere online? Again, this might be something I could search online. My Wheatables both have the soft blonde hair of the Wheaten breed, but it doesn’t have the luster it had when eating the Organix. I realize that could be due to many things besides just what I fed them at the time. I know when I first rescued Bella and before I got Iggy, my old vet introduced me to Dr. Udo’s pet line of holistic products. Do you have any experience with those? I believe he has a vegan oil blend (with several of the oils you mentioned) designed to do just what you said. The only reason I bring it up is it would have dosing guidelines. My worry comes from the fact that Iggy is at risk of being underweight (always has been), and Bella is at risk of being overweight (always has been), so I want to be sure and dose exactly according to what they should be getting.

InkedMarie:
Thanks for the hints! You saved me a lot of headache and searches by pointing me in the right directions. If I can use Dori’s rotational recommendations, I’ll need some novel proteins because so many have already been eliminated due to established allergies and intolerances (mainly poultry). I really appreciate the help!

Melissaandcrew:
Okay, I own several books on Wheatens. They are adorable, but that very adorableness is their downfall, which is why I have rescued two. However, I haven’t ever encountered specific literature on (nor have any of my vets told me about) skin conditions due to intestinal problems. I know about the inheritable digestive enzyme-related diseases. Do those also cause skin problems? If so, what kind? I will Google this further as soon as I can. However, your first-hand perspective would probably help me more than anything else.
Also, thanks for telling me you are also a proponent of rotational feeding, although to a more relaxed extent than Dori. This helps me decide that some form of rotational feeding is the next move for our pet family. I wish I had thought to do this sooner.

Pam P:
Nice to see you again! Thanks for the advice on the vaccines. Iggy and Bella missed their last routine vaccinations because they were extremely inflamed at the time, and the vet didn’t want to risk it. I will mention everything you said to my vet, and we will go from there. She has been extremely good to work with me so far. She got out of vet school right about the time Iggy joined our family, so she knows our history well, and she seems to be more flexible than some older vets.

Thanks again to everyone! I’m sorry I wasn’t more concise. I just have so many questions. If you don’t feel like answering but just want to send me to a website, a link is fine too. I’m off to do all of that Googling I promised to undertake. This community is amazing!

[Christine A]

Our pup’s best buddy has been on a three year food challenge to rule out allergy triggers. Only recently has he started trying small amounts of Natural Balance limited ingredient foods; they have a venison option as well as a few fish options, I think.

We have it relatively easy, our pup has severe food allergies only to lamb and wheat. He has been doing very well (read: no hives or explosive diarrhea) on the Salmon and Sweet Potato based grain free formula from Taste of the Wild….until we figured out that he tests off the charts for storage mite allergies which means no more dry food for him….and that Yours Truly is learning the ins and outs of making his food at home. With a little luck, I’ll be able to stop telling people that he’s a “mix of stubborn and anxious held together with itch” when they ask about his breed. It’s an adventure!

Best of luck, fingers crossed that you find something

[Naturella]

Hi, Autumn, and welcome to DFA. I don’t know much about kangaroo-based foods, but I can’t imagine them being extremely affordable… I think Natural Balance and California Naturals both offer kangaroo formulas, why don’t you check them out? Also, you don’t mention having tried venison as a protein. If your Dane is not specifically allergic to venison, that may be a good option with more affordable choices.

[dana i]

Hi! I’ve been reading this forum all day today, but am overwhelmed by all the choices. I’d really love to hear people’s actual experiences and thoughts– what is on paper does not always match what makes the dogs happy and healthy.

I have two lab mix dogs– both rescues.
Diesel is a 1 year old Lab/Shephard mix who has allergies. 65# dog
Dudley is a 1 1/2 year old lab/Greyhound mix who has gas issues when he eats ANYTHING other than the current food… (even treats) 83# dog

They were both given horrible diets before they came to me.
I have them on Science Diet Lamb and Rice Large Breed formula.

At the time, it’s the ONLY thing that I found that helped Diesel’s allergy symptoms (they are completely gone on this food but when I try anything else it comes back) and Dudley’s gas is now a very rare thing on this food.

However, reading it seems that people don’t like this one and that there may be better out there… And the fact that when I went to buy it today I found it went up in price AGAIN. uugh. Maybe now is a good time to switch…

I want what is best for them, with budget kinda on the mind at the same time.

Right now, it takes us 11 days to go through a 33 pound bag of Science Diet Lamb and Rice large breed formula dry food and used to cost us around $45 a bag but did just go up to about $50.

I’d really love to get them something better. Maybe something that also makes their poop a little smaller too? (I know–wishful thinking? LOL)

Any suggestions based on the gas/allergies?
I priced raw diet– which I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to do, but it’s way out of our price range from what I am reading.

I CAN and will supplement a little bit of our cooked food on top (If I can avoid the gas and allergy issues– that will take a little experimenting)….

I have a feed store 1 mile from my house that sells some food but he’s kinda expensive on some items. I also live near Petco, Petsmart and have Amazon prime… I live in Texas, suburb of Dallas if that helps.

Any thoughts or tips would be greatly appreciated!

[Autumn]

Does anyone have suggestions for a good limited ingredient (preferably kangaroo) dog food that is within a budget and of good quality? I have a 10 month old Great Dane with horrible food allergies, and I’m having the hardest time finding good foods within a good price range and quality. He does not do well on rabbit or lamb, but I have not tried any other novel proteins other than Kangaroo which he has done pretty well on.

[Melissaandcrew]

Hi John
.

Sadly welcome to the world of wheaties. Great dogs, lots of medical concerns. Be thankful yours has the skin issues from allergies and not the intestinsl. Ours had both. We feed high quality dry and raw foods to control his issues. He eats a lot of Acana, Orijen and Nature’s Variety products. Once you find a brand that is higher rated, look for any chicken in it. We started ours on the Acana Lamb/ apple with great success. We never feed him a food for long term, in the hopes that he will not develop an allergy due to exposure.

For example. Last week he ate Acana Pork/squash for two days, Nature’s Variety Rabbit (limited ingredient) for 2 days, and the lamb Acana for 2 days. Grandma Lucy dehydrated venison for one.

[Naturella]

Meghan (and everyone),

Welcome to DFA!

I second everyone’s recommendations, and I can attest to the quality of Wellness CORE (I have the Ocean formula lined up to feed in the next few months), and I have fed Earthborn Holistic Coastal Catch and Victor Yukon Salmon with great success – my Bruno was full of energy, shiny smooth coat, etc. If your dog is allergic to poultry, try adding some variety as much as you can. Many of Victor’s foods are beef-based. Earthborn also has a bison and lamb meal-based formula, but it may or may not have chicken fat in it, not sure. Dr. Tim’s (another affordable option) has a pork and salmon-based formula as well.

As a fellow college (does Grad school count?) student on a budget, I understand your struggle, but it is possible to feed good food for less – just try to find online and in-store sales and coupons and see what happens! Wellness often emails coupons once you sign up for their mailing list.

[Pam P]

I feed my dog Answers fermented raw food and kefir. My son’s Mastiff mix had such itchy skin she had to go on antibiotics for a wound she scratched raw that wouldn’t heal. I started her for one month on Nature’s Logic Sardine. Nature’s Logic is one of a very few that doesn’t use synthetic vitamins and minerals. The synthetic vitamins and minerals come mostly from industrial waste such as coal tar for one. They aren’t good for humans and they aren’t good for pets. She started detoxifying on Nature’s Logic. Then I put her on Answers Fermented Raw food for a month. The itching became less. Now she is on only Kefir for a month and her itching has just about stopped. The kefir is a detox diet. She hasn’t lost weight. Her energy is 300% higher. I’ll see how she does after another 2 weeks to see if we gradually get her back on food or keep her on kefir for another 2 weeks. The key is to clean and detoxify the system and then to make sure the immune system is strengthened. Allergies are an immune system issue. I also give my dogs organic extra virgin coconut oil, sardine oil, pumpkin seed oil, and royal jelly. Royal jelly is excellent for the skin and coat. Its what the queen bee is fed. I learned that from an owner of champion show dogs. I have also given them canned sardines. Frozen sardines can be purchased in bulk online. They have small bones which are loaded with calcium. If I was going to feed kibble, I would lean towards Nature’s Logic or one that doesn’t use synthetic vitamins and minerals. They are a little lower on the meat, so I would add gizzards and some raw meat to it, preferably a balanced frozen meat. There are several to chose from….Nature’s Logic, Primal, Instinct, and others. I hope this gives you some ideas.

[Dori]

Hi John P. First let me say that I’m a commercial raw feeder grain free foods so I’m not going to really be of much help with kibble. I do know that a lot of people on this site consider Acana and Orijen made by Champion to be a quality company. The only kibble that, on rare occasions, I have put in rotation is Nature’s Logic Kibble but only the Sardine. All others contain either some sort of beef or poultry (eggs). One of my dogs has many many food intolerances and sensitivities. The list is quite long so I won’t bore you as they don’t pertain to your dog. But she is highly intolerant of all things poultry which includes all fowl. Below is a partial list of what I feed my three dogs and they all do very well on them, I’ve left out any of the beef that I feed because your dog has an intolerance to beef. I feed all my dogs the same food because of my allergy girl, Katie. I feed a rotational diet so here goes.

OC Raw: Fish & Produce Patties, Lamb Patties, Rabbit Patties, Goat Patties

Primal Raw Formulas and/or Primal Pronto Formulas: Venison Patties, Rabbit Patties

Vital Essentials Raw: Fish Patties, Rabbit Patties

Nature’s Variety Instinct Raw: Venison (also contains lamb), Rabbit (also contains pork)

Stella & Chewy’s Raw: Venison, Lamb, Rabbit
I’m not a great fan of Stella & Chewy’s but will feed it if I’m in a pinch.

Natures Logic Kibble: Sardine (It contains millet which is a pseudo-grain. Katie can’t tolerate grains but for some reason the millet in Nature’s Logic doesn’t seem to bother her. Could be because I feed it so infrequently and never for more than one meal every so often.

I’m an advocate of rotational feeding for my three dogs so I rotate their food pretty much with every meal and don’t feed them the same protein without a three day break in between. It’s the only way I can get around Katie’s food issues. Dogs with allergies should also avoid corn, white potatoes, rice (all), soy. They are all pro-inflammatory so you’re basically feeding the allergies and making things worse. You need to feed non-inflammatory foods and ingredients as best you can. It’s pretty difficult to avoid every single thing all the time but it helps a great deal to do your best.

Hope some of this has helped. I’m sure someone else will chime in soon to help with kibble feeding.

Oops! Don’t forget about checking to see what’s in the treats you give your dogs. For treats I only give pieces of fruits (no grapes) and veggies. No seeds or pits with the fruit please (toxic), I also peel apples and cucumbers. I don’t feed any commercial treats due to grains and too many recalls for my liking. Too many pesticides used on both. Good Luck and if I can answer any questions please ask.

I just wanted to mention that the only fish that Katie cannot eat is salmon. All other fish foods she’s fine with but is very sensitive to salmon.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 9 months ago by Dori.

[John P]

My four-year-old Wheaten Terrier (wheatable really – dominant wheaten mix) has serious allergies, skin issues, and food sensitives to most grains and several proteins. He started on a poultry-based food (Organix) but became sensitive after two years. After trial-and-error and an allergy test, we switched to a fish-based food (Natural Mix). However, recently he has become sensitive to it. I am desperate to find a food with a new protein. It breaks my heart to watch him itch and scratch all day. My vet is wonderful, but beyond sending me to this site, she is as desperate as I am.

Right now, I’m feeding him a raw diet consisting mainly of quality meat leftovers I buy from the butcher (pork and venison, mainly), but I can’t afford to do that much longer. I subscribed to the Editor’s Choice, but almost every food is poultry-based or enriched with poultry meals. I noticed Acana foods might have some alternative proteins (such as pork). Does anyone have experience with them?

I know he is definitely allergic to most red meats, including beef and bison. The poultry-based food he ate contained turkey and chicken. The fish-based food he ate contained salmon. He has never had any issues with pork or venison. I am wondering if someone might have experience with a dog who became intolerant of one poultry protein but could tolerate another (say I could try switching him to duck or pheasant)?

Otherwise, do any of you have favorite foods containing pork, venison, rabbit, or lamb? Do you have any other protein recommendations? Do you have any other suggestions period?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for your time.

Best,

John

[Ellen G]

My doxy has had seizures since he was 2 yrs. I researched this product and it really helps control and can stop the seizure while happening. The site is Allergic Pet and he is on VSF Nuroplex Herbal supplement and drops. You can read up on all those dealing with Pet Seizures and how it has helped lesson or elimate (as long as they remain on the program). I did not want to put my Ozzy on the drugs the vet recommended, too many side effects. I do have to be careful using different heart worm and flea and tick meds. Frontline plus caused an immediate seizure and had to bath my dog with Dawn blue dish soap so please stay away from it. Many owners even lost their pets so before giving your pet anything read side effects. If it lists seizures stay away!

[Dori]

Aimee. And I disagree with you. If you have an inflammatory illness, as I do, and inflammatory illness, as I do, having similar underlying attributes, as I do, the general advice is to avoid pro-inflammatory ingredients and supplements. Aimee you and I go back and forth on many issues but this one happens to be one that I am closely related to and completely informed on. I’m not only speaking of canines or animals but of all. Having an inflammatory illness since 1997 I know of what I speak. I don’t live somewhere in the boon docks and not knowing of what I speak. I have been to the best of the best around the world, not just the USA. All have told me the same thing in different languages as to their knowledge and experiences with inflammatory illnesses. Having a dog with allergies….again, I know of what I speak. I realize that you are well versed and researched on the areas of science which I will readily admit I know very little of in schooling and education. Not my interests. I know what I know from many years of experience and knowledge. Let’s leave this particular issue alone between the two of us. I’m coming from extreme personal experience, you’re coming from it from data. Very very different. I mean no disrespect Aimee as, if you know me at all from our posts back and forth, I have a great deal of respect for you and feel you are probably one of the smartest if not THE smartest person on this and other sites, but this is not an issue you want to go head to head with me. Let’s just drop it right here. I don’t want to stress myself which is not good for inflammatory illnesses and I have too much respect for Dr. Mike to put him in a position that he has to be put in the middle of this particular discussion.

[Susan]

I think Laleah should give the limited ingredient Natural Balance a go, it may just work for her little dog….Why I mentioned IBD as its a inflammatory disease like skin allergies…sometimes dogs will have both illnesses like Patch has, once your fix their diet you fix everything..
Some dogs that have skin problems the NB Kangaroo & Potatoes or the Duck & Rabbit limited ingredients works great for their dogs & clears their skin problems up, just cause it has low protein it gets a lower star rating…… Every dog is different with their skin problems, what works for your dog will not work for my dog (Raw)….. Patch does not eat NB he can’t eat potatoes gets real bad Colitis…
I’m sick of Marie always having a go at my post, she has done it for 2 year now, I’ve had enough…..if I see something that I don’t agree with or a mistake or what ever, I just MIND my own business & move on….maybe take your dogs out for a nice long walk & smell the beautiful flowers….
Have a nice day…

[Dori]

Susan. I too can read and the OP did not mention IBD with regard to her dog in any way shape or form. She talked about her dog being itchy and oozy. Why would you recommend a food that works for Patch for his IBD be appropriate for her Boston Terrier that is itchy and oozy? I’m just curious as to the correlation of your reply and the OP’s problem.

I’m also wondering about your response to Marie. I’m quite sure Marie has quite an active life. What makes you think she’s checking your posts in particular. I’m sure, like all of us, we see threads in the forums and comments on the comment side and want to offer some help if we can. I’m sure that if you re-read your reply to Marie you will see that it was a bit discourteous. There is also no need for yelling as that is what all caps typically means on line.

I also wanted to mention that IBD, Pancreatitis and Allergies are all inflammatory conditions. No one and that includes animals that has any of these conditions should be eating foods from the night shade plants. Potatoes are night shade plants as are tomatoes, egg plants, and many others that can be googled on line. Night shade plants are pro-inflammatory.

• This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by Dori.

[Dori]

Aspen A. I may be missing something. If a food had a recall for a peanut contamination, what would that have to do with whether you had peanut allergies or not? They weren’t being recalled because that had peanuts or the food was made in a plant that had peanuts they were being recalled because the peanuts were contaminated. I’m glad you didn’t have any issues eating contaminated peanuts, I would have thrown them away. I don’t have any peanut allergies so I can eat peanuts but I’m not going to eat contaminated peanuts.

Yes, I do realize that all companies are subject to recalls for a variety of reasons but with so many companies not having recalls why would I chose to feed foods from companies that have had recalls? I wouldn’t. I realize that a lot of people feel differently and are perfectly fine feeding foods from companies that have had recalls; even many many recalls. They believe that the companies will or have learned from their mistakes. I just don’t happen to fall into that category. I try to be as pro active with my three dogs health as I can be.

Thanks for your kind words about the pet parents on this site.

[Susan]

Hi sounds like your girl has IBD, I read on a link now I cant find it, it said you shouldn’t give dogs enzymes especially if they have a healthy gut, there 2 types of enzymes the plant enzymes or Porcine enzymes….I’d stop the kibble, my boy has IBD & has so many problems with kibbles, just finished trying another kibble & he was sooooo ill, bad acid reflux, now has a real sore throat from the acid reflux, vet wants him on just Turkey breast mince mix in 1 raw egg, then I make about 4 loaves & put on a baking tray & bake 20mins…just for 4-6 weeks to give his stomach a rest, I freeze section & also boil sweet potato boil pumkin & freeze, I boil some Quinoa as its gluten free,….he has stop scatching & his red paws have gone & the red under his chin has gone… I’m finding Patch needs a gluten free diet & has real bad food allergies that has caused his IBD & Colitis when he eats something that he’s allergic too, he has his bloody poos cause the food is irritating his bowel..look up gluten free & low residue foods & stick with those foods also don’t rotate too many foods as you wont know what is causing the itchy skin….
I have found foods that agrees with him & give for breakfast & dinner & something else that agrees with him for lunch & a late dinner, he has 4 small meals thru the day, we found this works best for Patch. also use Malaseb medicated shampoo I found to be the best…. Patch does not take any heartworm meds, he cant take any worm meds only Milbemax all wormer every 6months & I dread the day its due he eats grass the next day & feels sick all day but doesnt have diarrhea on the Milbemax, vet said its very mild, Patch can not use Advantage flea spot on… only Frontline plus, as Frontline only penetrates 2 layers of the skin, where other flea spot ons penetrate thru into their blood, Patch nilly died from Advantage…you name it Patch cannot take it, its all to do with his IBD…..
So I have learnt LESS IS BEST….

[JAN E]

Wanted to thank you all again for your help, and give you an update. Since I joined this group and did some investigating due to these allergies, we settled on a daily diet of 1/2 can Wild Calling (anything but Beef!) + 1 cup Ziwi Peak Lamb, twice each day. Every now and then I’ll cook chicken chunks or ground turkey to substitute for Ziwi, which is not inexpensive! Happy to report that we have clear skin, shiny coat, noticibly happier disposition! Thank you all!

[JAN E]

Wanted to thank you all again for your help, and give you an update. Since I joined this group and did some investigating due to these allergies, we settled on a daily diet of 1/2 can Wild Calling (anything but Beef!) + 1 cup Ziwi Peak Lamb, twice each day. Every now and then I’ll cook chicken chunks or ground turkey to substitute for Ziwi, which is not inexpensive! Happy to report that we have clear skin, shiny coat, noticibly happier disposition! Thank you all!

[Liz S]

I have a 2 year old chihuahua, 5 year old italian greyhound and a 1 year old pug/boston terrier mix. All 3 have itchy skin and continue to have ear issues. Yeast infections etc. I guess we were going about the wrong way and focusing on how high the quality of the food is. Vet explained it could be the food and/or environmental. They’ve always had chicken based kibble as it’s always seemed to be their favorite. And it’s hard finding a food all 3 really like. I realize each dog is different and may need different foods but that can be dealt with later… vet suggested switching to something like lamb…venison..rabbit…she said it would most likely take at least 8 weeks to notice a difference. Especially with their ears.

I don’t know what food I am going to try first. :/ Very frustrated and confused.

I was wondering how much allergy testing is? It was a hectic visit last week with my chihuahua so that was the only question I didn’t get to ask that I was planning on…

Also… say it’s environmental… if they’re allergic to a chemical that is being used wherever in your household…does it tell you which chemical it is? Is it possible for them to be allergic to my ferrets? I almost feel like, if I can afford it, I should get all 3 allergy tested???

Any advice/thoughts/shared experiences welcome.
Thank you!

[bkagel]

Help!!! I’m going to have to change everything free dog food again!!! Gracie is the one with the allergies. I have been giving both dogs raw apple cider vinegar in their water and her sensitive tummy seems to be doing much better in two weeks. However…..I have gone through almost all the dog foods that Inked Marie (thank you very much Inked Marie) listed and there is something I don’t like or they don’t like in almost all of them.

What they don’t like-anything with chicken or turkey

What I don’t like-fruit, legumes, anything that has a super high protein in it because it gives Gracie the runs. I’m not fond of sweet potatoes either. She’s an 8 year old papillion that acts like she’s 3. She doesn’t need fruit or sweet potato because she’s the energizer bunny already.

We have used Merrick grain free, Nature’s variety, Back to basics pork (too rich and gave her the runs) and currently using Nutrisource grain free. I don’t give them the lamb. Since they are both small dogs, I rotate blends every 3-4 months.

They love their kibble but it’s cold and snowy outside and she’s still scratching like a fiend.

Gracie and George were at their healthiest when they did raw. However, mommy doesn’t have the time, money, or energy to make up batches of raw food and repeat repeat repeat.

They love Evanger’s wet food and so do I. Just meat and water. I was thinking of trying Evanger’s dry food but I am concerned about the high level of protein to fat ratio. I’m also concerned about the sweet potato. Somebody help me!!

[constant_lurker]

I created an account just to respond to this, because it took me a long time to learn about this same issue.
My dog has a bunch of allergies — still sorting through them — and she started having problems with supplements that had digestive enzymes in them. Long story short, a lot of what’s used in kibble and supplements comes from aspergillus, which is a mold species. If your dog has yeast or mold sensitivities, those enzymes can cause problems. I abandoned them, closest thing she gets now is goat’s milk with probiotics in it, which really seems to help with keeping her system settled.
I hope this is helpful, and please keep in mind I’m not an expert or vet so some of what I say may be wrong.