[Laurie H]

Hi everyone! I am so glad I found this forum 🙂 I have a Chinese Shar Pei who just turned 1 yr old (yesterday) and she has had recurring yeast infection problems (in ears, mainly and now in the folds of skin near her mouth and between toes) every 2 months since she was 4 months old. My vet gave her some kind of medicine that went in her ears for 2 weeks, and it cleared it up at first, then gave her Chlorpheniramine 4 mg pills to take -I pill 2x daily. She then increased it to 2 pills, 2x daily. Angel has been on Hill’s Science Diet (canned and dry) which I now see could be at least a big factor in this 🙁 We thought it was a good quality food 🙁 Anyway, my vet still thinks it’s just seasonal allergies, not food related. Can anyone tell me appx guess how long it would take (after switching brands) before there might be an improvement? Any and all comments, suggestions, about fighting yeast infections very much appreciated!

[Stacey C]

Hello everyone! Brand new here and I am looking to get some helpful advice. I have 5 small dogs (3 chinese cresteds, a minpoo, and a pom) . 1 of them has many food allergies that makes changing foods a nightmare (SHE HAS BEEN TESTED) . I have had them all on Solid Gold for about 12 years. That is almost all she can eat. A while back they changed up their foods and I haven’t been happy with it since. Then I look at this site and see Solid Gold hasn’t got the best ratings to add to my unhappiness. I checked out a new pet store in the area and found Pioneer Naturals. Never heard of it before. The clerk said one of her coworkers had tried it but it was way too rich and made the dog sick. I was looking at the venison formula, or maybe bison. Can anyone weigh in on this for me? My doggies and I TIA.

[Susan]

Hi Adrienne, have you ever tried an elimination diet to see what foods make him itch & make his poo sloppy, My Patch has IBD & itchy skin allergies, I’ve read that the 2 come together with some dogs, something they eat irratates their skin & stomach, then they have sloppy poos or diarrha.. Im awful at explaining why & how things happen, I started Patch on an elimination diet & I found he can’t eat potatos, sweet potatos & now I think chicken, cause after he eats chicken he gets hive like lumps all over his body especially the white fur/skin part….Patch cant have a high fat% or high protein% diet, I did my elmination diet for breakfast cause I knew his Vet prescription Eukanuba Intestinal worked for him & never gave him diarrhea or itchy ears & skin..
So I give the Eukanuba Intestinal for dinner…
breakfast I started with boiled chicken breast & 1 tablespoon of pumkin to much pumkin made his poo very soft & sloppy, then the next week around 5days if everything is good I added boiled sweet potato within 1-2 days, 1 of his ears started itching so I stopped the sweet potato & just gave him the chicken & pumkin again he went good again, then after 2 days no itchy ear when everything was good again I added potato with the chicken & pumkin within 20min he got a rash all over his stomach & chest I thought we must of walked near a plant or bush, something that morning so next morning I added a bit of boiled potato again he started scratching & the rash came up again then that night he was pooing real sloopy then had very sloppy poos the next day I stopped the potato, then I tried boiled egg he was ok with egg…
just keep adding foods that you want him to eat or what foods are in kibbles to see what makes him itch & poo sloppy, you see within 2days when a food doesnt agree with them..

I have Patch on the Wellness Simple Limited ingredients Lamb & Oatmeal as the lamb & oatmeal is the only one without potato, he has the Wellness simple for breakfast & the Eukanuba Intestinal for dinner & at lunch he has Tuna Pumkin white rice & a few peas he’s
not pooing sloppy or diarrha & he’s not scratching on the Wellness Simple here’s a link to have a look at their range the Simple is down the bottom, but out of all the kibbles that I tried the Wellness simple has been the best kibble so far & his poos are the best that they have ever been…..write everything down in a diary
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/recipes.aspx?pet=dog&ft=1#Complete

[chocolabowner]

We tested out dinovite with our chocolate lab. She has bad allergies, and it shows with paw chewing, skin spots and hair loss.

We used dinovite for a 90 day period and she had more energy was less irritable and stopped all scratching. And her ear infections went away.

Then stopped using it and they all came back over the last year. We are starting her again on dinovite.

Dinovite saved our dog and we will continue to use it from now on.

[Dori]

Primal Raw Formula has a Venison that does not contain any other “animal” ingredients. It does contain some fruits and veggies. I don’t know whether your dog has any issues with any fruits and veggies in particular. It is one of the foods I use in rotation because I have a dog with allergies and intolerances to all things fowl including eggs. She does well on their Venison Formula.

[InkedMarie]

Why only venison? You say allergies, what proteins exactly is he allergic to?

[Lisa M]

Does anyone have recommendations for a toy poodle who can only have venison as the sole protein in his food (no chicken meal, eggs, or proteins from other animal sources) due to allergies? We’ve been through Natural Balance (didn’t help with allergies and he didn’t like the taste of any of it), Wellness (VERY fishy and made his allergies acutely worsen), Evangers (which was discontinued). Right now we use Evo 95% wet food, which has had recalls, and California Natural dry venison (which has had recalls, and seems to be being possibly discontinued? or at least it is very hard to find). I have a source for venison ground hamburger meat with ground bone, but I also have been unable to find vitamin supplements to add to it. I’d ground up some of the dry CA Natural and called it “sprinkles”, and he would eat it that way sometimes. He’s seen 2 vets, consulted with a vet internist, and has seen a veterinary dermatologist, so yes, it is documented that it is both food allergies and skin allergies. He did not go for any of the freeze dried stuff. Thanks so much.

[Jerry S]

I have a Siberian husky and an Alaskan malamute on Earthborn Holistic bison dog food for the last 2 years. Both dogs coats became fuller within a few months of trying this food and the malamute’s coat became much softer and still is to this day.
Over the last 4 months, however, my husky (6 1/2) has begun to slowly develop bare spots on his hind legs and to a lesser degree on his sides. My vet noticed some matting near those areas and his skin was fairly dry and flaking but saw no other red flags. His blood work showed no issues. I brushed out the matted fur over the next couple weeks and bathed him with an anti-bacterial/anti-fungal shampoo as a precaution a week ago. His skin feels softer and doesn’t appear to be flaking anymore, but his coat is still dry in those areas. His coat has also lost some of its color over the last few months and has become dull on his rear legs. He has not been scratching at all.
I was told by a dog food rep in Petsmart last week that dogs tend to build allergies to the same pet food over a period of about 2 years and suggested trying a different formula in the same brand. Is there some credibility in this?

[Nita P]

I’m not familiar with that brand if food, but if you like it, I would stick with it. For my dog Bella, I actually switched her to just white rice & ground elk meat when her ear issues got really bad this summer. I had ordered the dynovite and it arrived a few days after we went to the vet. The vet gave us a round of meds that really made her feel bad – she lost complete control of her bladder & just laid around with no energy. Took her off meds after 2 days. Kept with the rice and elk (you can use rice and chicken too) with broth mixed with the Dynovite and the Lickychops omega oils. I had a different dog in 2 weeks. Her personality changed completely too! Her ears (yeast infection, allergies) cleared up, the bad breath got better (it’s not all gone), her coat is amazing and she sheds about 10% of what it was before dynovite. She also had the paw chewing & licking issues, which are supposedly allergies. From my personal human issues, antibiotics caused yeast issues (along w/ diet choices) and I see that in my dog too. I read a lot of the info on the dynovite website and I wasn’t up for the raw diet, but I did learn a lot from their suggestions. I went to the rice/meat only with the dynovite to clear any food allergies we might be dealing with (just like I’ve done w/ myself in the past).

I don’t store it in the fridge – just in an airtight container.

We recently lost our oldest dog & I stopped the dynovite for about 7-8 days (just for no reason other than grief forgetfulness) and Bella’s paw chewing came right back. Needless to say I’ve now had a 2nd round of proof this supplement works for my dog.

I moved Bella to a full serving pretty fast and she tolerated it very well. I’m very pleased with Dynovite!

Hope that helps!

[Naturella]

Kristin – what Dori said.

Dori, I would LOVE to go to the North-West! It so appears that Washington, Oregon, Maine, Vermont, NY, Ohio, Illinois, and PA are all on the same/similar latitude as Bulgaria, so I would feel pretty okay in most of those, I believe, but still… if there was a state with Fall being 50% of the seasons, I would LOVE it, lol! 🙂

P.S. I also get bit like no other… Takes me seconds of being outside to be mauled over by mosquitoes at least… But my one true enemy (not for a health reason, I just am afraid so much of them suckers), are bees/wasps/anything that can sting me… I just hate it. Not too allergic (only get a large local reaction usually), but their buzzing just freaks me out, lol. I’d still tough it out to have beautiful mountain views with lakes and maybe an ocean in there somewhere… 🙂

[Dori]

Hi 4FF. If this is your first order and you’ve never registered or ordered on the site then you’ll see on the right mid to lower right hand side of their home page a section for you to click on as a new customer and introduction offer with 10% off and free shipping. Click on their and follow the steps to what you want to order and then entire that code. When I first ordered from them I ordered the Sample package #2. It contained no poultry because Katie is allergic to all poultry. If this still doesn’t work for you then please call then tomorrow and explain what you want to order and that you are having an issue with their introduction offer for 10% off and free shipping. She’ll either walk you through the steps or just take your info over the phone.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Susan D:
If it is a contact allergy to grass that will be tough to keep him off of it; rinsing your dog off after each time in the grass and bathing regularly might help. Here are some sites with info on rinses that help with both contact allergies or food intolerance issues:

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2009/12/16/thirty-seconds-to-relieve-your-pets-itchy-paws.aspx

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/05/03/eating-these-foods-can-make-your-dog-itch-like-crazy.aspx

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/10/25/dog-foot-bath.aspx

[Donna L]

Wow! Thank you Angela. That’s exactly what I’ve been looking for. You didn’t leave out any details and I’m grateful for that especially the wide variety that you can pick and choose from. My Toby has allergies to sweet potatoes, peas, salmon, and kale, and so the vast other ingredients to pick from was exactly what I’ve been searching for. Thank you again. Sounds delicious 🙂

[Susan D]

My vet said it is not food related but is a contact allergy – probably to the grass. Since I live on a one acre fenced property, I don’t know how to keep him off the grass. The vet said that food allergies usually manifest on a dog’s stomach and cause a rash and loss of hair. None of that is happening to Jake.

[Susan D]

I have a 5 yr old black lab (Jake). In the last year or so he has been constantly licking and chewing his feet. We tried allergy shots (depomedrol) and it didn’t help at all. He is eating a chicken based dry dog food that has not wheat or corn. We add canned food and also cook chicken thighs and add that meat. We also have 3 other dogs, 2 german shepherds and a mixed breed. The others do not have this problem. I bought a natural formula supplement for dogs and he has been on it for about 3 weeks but I don’t see any results yet.

Any suggestions? My husband and I are retired so cost of food is an issue (of sorts).

[Mom2Cavs]

Hi all, I’m glad your dog ended up okay. Of my 3 Cavaliers, only 1 reverse sneezes (Laverne). Stella, my Cav at the bridge, reverse sneezed, too. I’ve heard it has to do with the dog maybe having allergies, or the shape of its upper palate. Anyway, it’s harmless and I just put my hand over her nostrils to get her to mouth breathe and all is well. 🙂

• This reply was modified 11 years, 6 months ago by Mom2Cavs.

[mandy d]

Hi Sue66b, I actually must have missed that one somehow! I’ll check out both. She’s never eaten raw before but the vet we just saw is a pretty big proponent of the paleopet diet and didn’t seem concerned about feeding her raw even with her colitis so I figured it was worth looking into. She’s doing much better after the vet visit, but I do think I’m going to try her on some different food and see if I can find something that prevents the flare ups.

Crazy4cats- I’m looking for fat around or less than 10% and fiber around 9% for a kibble, but I suppose those amounts vary for wet or raw foods. Unfortunately I think the wellness core reduced fat that we had tried in the past is the only one that high in fiber. Right now I’m adding pumpkin to her normal food for extra fiber. The formulas that fall in the range I’m looking tend to be senior or weight reduction foods, so that’s been most of what I’ve looked at but unfortunately almost all (or all) are poultry based which she is allergic too. They tend to have either chicken or turkey as the main ingredient or have poultry fat somewhere in the ingredients. Even all of the prescription GI health/senior/weight management foods are poultry based.

[mandy d]

I’m not sure if this actually exists…

My five year old mini schnauzer has periodic bouts of colitis after having an intestinal blockage&surgery a few years ago and a low fat, high fiber food helps. However she also has a poultry allergy and basically all the foods that are significantly lower in fat and higher in fiber than her current food have chicken or turkey as the protein source. We currently feed her Wellness Core, alternating between the ocean and lamb flavors, but she still has the occasional bouts and just had the worst one yet. At one point we tried the Wellness Core reduced fat version, and the fat/fiber content worked really well for her but it is turkey based and this confirmed that it was poultry in general that she was allergic too, not just chicken. I’ve done A LOT of searching in the last year here and on other websites, but I’m hoping maybe I’m just missing something and the perfect food is actually out there. I was originally looking for a kibble, but at this point I am totally open to canned or raw food, it would just be best if I did not have to prepare her food myself. Any suggestions?

Right now I’m leaning towards trying her on Addiction canned foods or the OC Raw dog goat&produce formula. Although I am a little hesitant to try her on raw food when she is so sensitive.

I also think it would also be nice for it to have things like omega 3s or other healthy oils, added nutrients for joint health (she has early signs of degenerative disc disease), and maybe something low-carb to prevent any other future health problems. But of course, I can always supplement the omegas and joint health. I can also always add more fiber too, so a low-fat, low-carb food with average fiber would be ok.

[DogFoodie]

I would TOTALLY second C4C’s post!

Wellness products are excellent. I hope the new food helps to quiet their allergies / intolerances. I never had good luck with any Acana products, even for my dog without food sensitivities.

Good luck!

[Anna S]

Does anyone know why this brand only receives 3 1/2 stars? I just purchased this to try on my sensitive allergic dogs switching from Acana Ranchlands.

[Jennifer C]

. Thank you for the posts! We’ve had her for about two years. She is about 4-7 but that is certainly a guess. So hard to believe she was a stray as she is WONDERFUL. She had worms-giardia-severe skin issues when we adopted her. She was a black lab with white flakes all over. She has an incredible appetite. She is very low key but super sweet. Her stools are formed goes twice a day. Eats AM & PM. Dry skin is better but itching and her ‘event’s are not much better. She alsogets chronic eye infections with lots of discharge / crust. Vet has suggested possibly allergies. Thyriid normal. Has had bouts of UTI x 3. Has always been on Purina one.

[DogFoodie]

Hi Jennifer,

The yeast (Malassezia) infection is secondary to the seborrhea. The seborrhea could be the result of a medical issue (like thyroid) or allergies, either environmental (flea bite dermatitis) or food related. If it were thyroid related, you might see issues related to weight loss or gain, as well.

First, I’d like to ask some questions: about how old do you think she is; how long have you had her; did she have the condition when you adopted her; has it ever improved or gotten worse (do you know what caused the change); how long has she been eating the Purina and has she ever eaten anything else? How are her stools?

Without knowing the answers to those questions, my first thought is that changing foods is such an easy way to see if that’s the culprit, that it’s worth trying.

I would choose a simple grain free food that contains a single animal protein. I would choose a protein that your dog hasn’t eaten. She’s been eating lamb, so maybe try something like duck or rabbit. Look for a food that that doesn’t contain other high histamine ingredients like tomato. I would avoid fish oils, in the event that fish is a problem as fish oil, in theory shouldn’t contain protein, but it isn’t a guarantee; same goes for chicken fat. Chicken is a common problem ingredient, so I might avoid all fowl for right now. Look for something that contains none of the ingredients she’s getting now.

I’d recommend Nature’s Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet in either duck or rabbit. Some other good limited ingredient foods are Zignature, Back to Basics, Wellness and Earthborn Holistics. I’m not a huge fan of Natural Balance or California Natural, but both are affordable.

Figuring out food allergies or intolerance, is very time consuming and can be very frustrating. Keep notes on what you’re feeding and how she reacts to it and be patient, give the new food time to work. A true elimination diet is a lot of work and can be very challenging to do. Feeding a limited ingredient food is easier and keep in mind that treats can be problematic as well.

[Dori]

Hi 4FF. I keep forgetting that there are a few of you that have fish intolerant pups. It’s one of the few things that Katie, who is allergic to almost everything in life in general, can eat with no issues. So sorry, I didn’t mean to leave the fish intolerant dogs out.

I have also always preached that if your dogs continually have issues you need to do an elimination diet. Most people want an easier fix. I know that’s how I was with Katie 5 years ago. I would never have believed back then that that was exactly what I had to do and it took forever. Still after all this time she continues to have new intolerances crop up.

So what are you able to feed Sam?

[lolo2379]

Thanks everyone for your help. I’m not sure the “type” of infection, I thought it was just a regular ear infection. My pit bull girls both have allergies and have gotten yeast infections between their toes once or twice. I think we are going to switch to something without potato. We were doing salmon and potato and may go to lamb and rice. I prefer not to go with chicken. Thinking about Wellness or Fromm.

Thanks again!
Lori

[Susan]

Hi Lori, I also rescued a dog that suffers from skin allergies & ear problems, (Canine Atopy).. I started an elimination diet & found he can’t eat Potatos, Sweet Potatos & wheat, I also stopped his chicken & I’m feeding him Wellness Simple Lamb & Oatmeal limited ingredients as he cant have potatoes but Wellness Simple has 3 different grainfree kibbles Wellness also has their Complete Health range & their Grainfree Core…I prefer to feed a kibble with grounded rice as most of the grainfree kibble have potatos or lentals & are high in carbs causing dogs to itch more…
A few ladies from the do park have dogs with skin & ear problems, their vets put their dogs on vet diets & they didnt help with the itch so now they are feeding their dogs “Holistic Select” Anchovy, Sardines & Salmon meal also made by Wellpet & their dogs are itch free & no more itchy ears & looking real shinney & healthy, also we bath our dogs in Malaseb medicated shampoo it kills any bacteria on their skin but doesnt strip their good oils also bath weekly, the Malaseb seems to relieve any itch & helps with their itchy stinky ears..sardines in spring water are good as treats.
here’s 2 links one is the Wellness range & the other link is the Holistic Select range
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/recipes.aspx?pet=dog&ft=1#Complete
http://www.holisticselect.com/recipes.aspx?pet=dog#category5

[InkedMarie]

Allergies depend on what they’re allergic to. I used Wellness Core reduced fat with great success and have heard good things about Annamaet Lean.

[InkedMarie]

Wow, that wasn’t easy. I didn’t find many foods that didn’t have the list of ingredients your dog is allergic to & they don’t have higher protein:

Natures Variety Instinct LID lamb 22%
Rabbit: 25%
Duck: 26%

Wellness Simple Frainfree salmon & potato. 25%

Zignature duck 27%
Lamb 28%

If I was you, I’d feed raw or home cooked.

[sheltielove]

I am a college student looking for a good food on a budget. The dog I recently adopted is on Blue Buffalo Freedom Grain Free Small Bites mixed with a grain free wet food. He doesn’t have any grain allergies so I am interested in switching him over to a good food that is more college student budget friendly!

When reading some reviews, I saw some negative feedback on the brands Diamond and Nutro. I know that Nutro is AAFCO certified, so I was wondering what problem there was with this brand? My parent’s shelties have been on Nutro Max their whole lives and have wonderful coats, etc. I just want to make sure I am the most informed as possible before making a switch!

[cola410]

My dogs used to eat Evo, but after the recall I switched them just to be cautious. After all the drama with the recalls and the company changing hands, how do I trust them again? SHOULD I trust them again? My dilemma is this – my boy Duke had a mast cell tumor removed, so in an abundance of caution I want to switch his food to one with higher protein. Evo Red Meat would be perfect for his allergies – chicken, turkey, fish (except salmon), sweet potato, kelp, rice, and barley. But I have to wonder about the quality with it being made by one of the big brands. Help!

[djdogirl]

I have 5 schnauzers. I currently feed them Canidae. 2 of them were spayed earlier this year and gained weight, mainly around the chest area. All my dogs are fixed and these 2 were not fat until being fixed. The others did not gain like this.They all eat the same everyday. I am looking for a good weight control food that is also hypoallergenic, as 3 of them have allergies. Any suggestions on what you have used. Cost is of no importance as I will try anything until I can get them regulated on something that works.

[Akari_32]

Taking as much carbs as possible out of his diet has helped a lot. I do feel thats the biggest issue. He’s had less than a weeks worth of the Pure Balance stews over the last two weeks, and already he smells yeasty and disgusting, and has been chewing his feet a lot lately. But allergies are so bad right now that even Haley was shedding so bad I started thinking it was a health issue and took her to the vet– just for him to say it was allergies! Thankfully he didn’t charge me for the visit, just for the Sentinel I picked up since her Tifexis is out (thank god! I hate giving that stuff..). You could run your hand down her back over and over still come off with literally a hand full of hair every time! It’s amazing to me how she even has any hair left at this point! So I’m sure he’s got some sort of environmental allergies, as well– probably to everything that blooms. Everyone, human and animal, is having a hard time right now.

Not only do I hate seeing him itchy and red, I HATE the sloppy, licky noise. I even yell at the cat when he starts getting too slobbery sounding when grooming himself LOL Can’t stand that sound @.@

Aw, thanks! I try lol

[Bobby dog]

The proof is in the photos! He looks great. You never know, you mentioned in the past you initially thought he had allergies to grass and although it looks like allot of issues were his diet maybe a little is the outdoors too. I know from experience it is horrible to see your dog scratching and licking himself constantly; knowing they are physically uncomfortable and not feeling well is awful! Anyway, good job taking care of him!!!

[Akari_32]

Right?? LOL

Bentley’s fur is growing back pretty well. Almost at full length again on his but and thighs. You can see his legs are still red, but he seems to not be losing any more fur, so whatever. I think its the Pure Balance I had to buy him. They didn’t have any of the 95%, so I got him the puppy stew kind, and its making him itchy. That and everyones allergies in general are just really horrible right now. I haven’t been able to breath for like a month, and a lot of people are catching colds, as well. So thats not helping him, either. But his new diet should help! Wish there was an affordable raw diet for the cat. I would love to try it. He really loves his beef heart lol

• This reply was modified 11 years, 6 months ago by Akari_32.

[Yorkieville]

Bobby dog
I agree, I prefer getting samples, even when I have to pay for them.

I wonder how you apply for dog food commercials.

None of my Yorkies were ever picky eaters, but I always felt the same way, if they won’t eat, something is wrong with the food. My new Yorkie puppy, refusing to eat THK, really makes me think something is off with the food. I’ve read that when a dog refuses a food, there is either something wrong with it, or there is something in the food, that they’re allergic to. She has always been a good eater. She’s happy to have her Wellness Stews back. So, like you, I consider myself lucky, and I think Lyric considers herself lucky, too.

[Susan]

Hi Lynn, Ive been posting & posting about WellPet (Wellness) kibbles telling people how good they are especially if your dog has health problems & is on a prescription vet diet & you dont like the ingredients in the Vet diets…. I have a dog with Pancreatits & IBD & the Wellness Simple the Duck & Oatmeal & the Lamb & Oatmeal have been the only kibbles that have worked for Patch beside his vet diet. Wellness Simple is a limited ingredient kibble…
Wellpet also make Holistic Select & Eagle Pack, I dont know if they are GMO free, I know the Holistic Select Anchovy Sardines & Salmon meal is excellent if your dog has itchy skin allergies….

[Michael L]

Hi Again,

So I think it was a little too early to call that success.

Based on this link /reports/editors-choice/
I decided to try Annamaet Grain Free Manitok however after two days my dog just stopped eating it. I mean he won’t even sniff it. At first I thought it was still his allergies but once I gave him some of his old food (Orijen puppy large) he finished that in 2 seconds.

I found this link:
/best-dog-foods/hypoallergenic-dog-foods/
That talks about Suggested Hypoallergenic Dog Foods
And more specifically I decided to try ACANA Duck & Bartlett Pear Singles Formula Dry

This food has limited ingredients and I figured it would be a good place to start as it’s based on duck and not chicken like the orijen one.

My dog loves it, I mean he chases me when I go get it, which he has never done before (very picky eater).

However I’m not sure about the dosage and/or if it’s suitable for large breed puppies. My golden retriever is 9 months old and weighs about 83lb.
The label says that there’s 1.3% calcium which I think should be okay (as per my understanding as long as it’s less than 3.5% it’s all good). Can someone confirm that?
http://www.acana.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/ACA-SINGLES-WEB-PDF-2014-DUCK.pdf?20c636

Can someone confirm that?

Thanks in advance.

[Akari_32]

I know how you feel, Dori! I’ve come to the conclusion that if it has fur or produces pollen, I’m allergic to it. Thankfully, as long as the furry friends are kept on a diet that keep theirs skin and coat nice, they don’t bother me too bad (which is rarely the case with anyone’s pets in these parts, and cats are the worst in my case). Living in Florida, everything is always blooming, so I’m always in a state of clogged sinuses and non-breathing. Certain things (like too much unkempt cat, and certain kinds of pollens) will give me a migraine that I may or not be able to get rid of for the next week and half. I clearly live in the wrong state for this @.@ I used to avoid the cat room at the shelter if I could, but some people would want to look at the dogs, then want to be shown the cats. If there were kittens in there, though, I’d suffer the headache later just to play with them. It was worth it! XD

I figure, I already can’t breath no matter what, so I might as well have a good time lol But, yes, do what you can! Don’t make yourself miserable over anything. That’s not how helping out is supposed to work at all :p It’s great that they come out and get your donations (instead of turning away anything not worthy *rolls eyes* lol)!

[Dori]

Hi Akari and all. As I mentioned, I donate food, treats, supplies once a week. Four times a year I make a nice size monetary donation to my local shelters and human societies. Unfortunately, though I’d love to donate time with the dogs I really can’t because I’m allergic to them. I always call when I’m on my way and one of the volunteers comes out to take my donations. I wish I could spend time with the dogs, but I do what I can.

[William W]

Pro Pac. It is very popular with the ranchers in Eastern Oregon. In the latter part of 2009, I discovered my Border Collie/McNab had wheat allergies. The vet put her on Science Diet, and the allergies cleared up as my wallet cleared out. The local farm and feed carried nothing but Pro Pac. I cut the ingredients label off of the Science Diet, and found a near perfect match with one of the Pro Pac brands. My dog didn’t like it. So I found another Pro Pac brand she would eat. For 5 years she has had no allergy issues. Her coat was glossy, and her eyes were bright. We moved recently. There are no Pro Pac retailers nearby. But there is a PetCo just down the street. So I bought a small bag of Whole Earth Farms Grain Free. She tolerated it. When I went to buy another bag, I made the mistake of buying Nature’s Recipe Grain Free. The bags looked the same, and I couldn’t remember the name while looking at 500 different brands of dog food. Now her coat is dull. At least the parts she hasn’t chewed and licked down to bare skin. I returned the Nature’s Recipe for a refund, and bought a bag of Whole Earth Farms. Anyway, Pro Pac is reformulating their Superpremium line and calling it Ultimates. It is still close to $1.00 a pound. If she does not improve dramatically by the end of this bag, I will be making the long drive to find a Pro Pac retailer. I just hope their new stuff is as good as the old. I still remember New Coke…

[Lee N]

Hi Everyone!

Dogs Naturally Magazine is a great place to fine info on vaccine for pets! Here a article I came across:

In a study performed by Vanguard, it was found that a combination vaccine (which typically contains parvovirus, distemper and one to five other antigens), given to six week old puppies had only a 52% chance of protecting them against parvo. This means that the puppy has all of the risk of the vaccine but only half the potential benefit. At nine weeks of age, 88% of the puppies in the study showed a response to the vaccine. At 12 weeks, 100% of the puppies were protected. Some vaccines will provide protection earlier or later.
Only one dose of the modified-live canine ‘core’ vaccine, when administered at 16 weeks or older, will provide long lasting (many years to a lifetime) immunity in a very high percentage of animals.
Vaccinating puppies under 12 weeks of age, and cer- tainly under nine weeks of age, for parvovirus is a high risk, low reward approach. Not only is the parvovirus component of the combination vaccine not all that likely to be effective at that age, it can actually work to block the effectiveness of the distemper component. It also makes the vaccine more dangerous, because the more antigens contained in the vaccine, the greater the risk of autoimmune disease (including allergies, joint disease and cancer). Moreover, most vets haven’t seen a case
of distemper in years which begs the question: what is the big push to start vaccinating puppies at six to eight weeks of age when the parvovirus component is unlikely to work and it is very unlikely the puppy will come into contact with distemper?

[Susan]

Hi Kathy, I forget itchy skin, yes Potatos are a high carb & can cause itch, see how she goes with the potato, as alot of the kibbles have potato now & the Wellness Simple has their Potato & Salmon, Turkey & Potato & they’re suppost to be for skin/stomach problems, but Potato makes my boy itch with his skin allergies, thats why I got the Duck & Oatmeal, & Lamb & Oatmeal kibble as it has no Pototes but all dogs are different… maybe try sweet potato first…you’ll see, as soon as Patch eats something that doesn’t agree with him he starts his scratching & gets his hive lumps all over his head & body…
like 4FootedFoodie said there’s alot of good dog diet books, also Lew Olson has a book called “Raw & Natural Nutrition for dogs” it has cooked meals for certain illnesses, its an excellent book & easy recipes & what vitamins to add, like grounded up egg shell for their calcuim…its only $12.80 on Amazon…in the end home cooked ends up being cheaper & healthier & ur dog will be happier…

[Lucky22124]

My dog had a horrible reaction to vaccines earlier this year. The good thing was that I didn’t get very far with her & was able to rush her back in for treatment. They said that in the future they would give her pre-med before vaccinating her, but we got a second opinion just to be sure. The new vet said that other than rabies every three years, it’s too risky to vaccinate my dog because the reaction will be worse each time. So now we can’t really bring her into places like petsmart because of the risk of contracting parvovirus or bordatella.

She gets the heartworm preventative every month, but I don’t put flea medicine on her. She’s never had fleas in her whole life. We check her for ticks when we go to parks or other places where she might get them. I just always had a hard time applying the flea meds, which is why I stopped using it.

I think people should vaccinate their dogs if it’s safe to do so, but some dogs are allergic, and in that case, they shouldn’t vaccinate. It was our vets advice to not vaccinate our dog, and after almost losing her to the last vaccine reaction, I’m okay with that. I just have to be extra careful with my dog now.

[Stewart]

The one thing I dislike about Ziwi is there use of lecithin. It is soy based lecithin. For some dogs soy can trigger an allergy.

After having an issue with my dog constantly regurgitating or vomiting many different types of food(kibble, raw, dehydrated,canned) we had him tested. What puzzled me was some foods he would immediately vomit while others he would be fine with for weeks before he would start to reject. We had this same issue with Ziwi. We later found out he has a moderate soy allergy. So ingredients he was moderately allergic to took awhile to build up in his system before he could no longer take it.

Have you thought about other types of raw or dehydrated foods? Ziwi is good but there are so many other types of commercial raw that could be a better fit.

[Kim E]

I have 2 Maltese and am having a very difficult time finding a good quality small kibble. One of my babies has an under bite and definitely needs the smallest kibble available – she won’t even try a larger piece. My second baby is violently allergic to corn – not that I would want corn anyway. He’s less picky but a really tasty kibble would really help both of them. Neither of them care for Blue Buffalo – it’s been awhile and I don’t recall whether they offer a tiny kibble.

Ironically, I can find really small kibble bites in grocery stores – full of corn and other unhealthy ingredients.

Thank you for any suggestions.

[Kathy J]

Re: 9 year old lab/keeshond mix. This years summer scratching was worse than ever and turned into hot spots. Benadryl not much help. Then vomiting started. We discovered tapeworms, made our visit to vet and treated her for that, being careful not to med near feeding time so she wouldn’t lose the dose if she vomited. Weren’t able to finish antibiotics for hot spots because of the frequent vomiting, but wounds are healing nicely. Switched to home cooked rice and chicken a week ago and no more vomiting, no more scratching, healing and well. Tried to gradually add dry food back in the other night – maybe 20 kibbles in with chicken & rice and she threw up a little and showed signs of itching for the first time in days. Stuck on chicken and rice, but not sure that that is nutritionally sound for long term and not sure how to get her back on a regular diet – can they develop food allergy later in life and what should I do to figure out what brand to try? Could really use some advice. Thanks.

[Dori]

Thanks so much Lisa for reply to my question and now I see why I’ve never heard of it. All my dogs have always been toys and small dogs. I’m a small woman (5′ 1″) so never would be able to handle a large or giant breed. The other reason is that I’m allergic to all animals so all my dogs have been small “hypoallergenic” types (hair as opposed to fur). I have, of course, heard of bloat in dogs with barrel type chests which sounds very very scary I just never knew that there was an actual procedure that could be done as a preventative. That’s excellent to know.

[Kimberly T]

Hello!
I currently have a two year old toy schnauzer suffering from the usual allergy symptoms, chewing or licking of paws, pink itchy skin, etc. I started noticing these symptoms at a very early age, so for one of her regular check ups I brought the issues up to my vet. She stated that allergies don’t tend to start showing up until after they are atleast two years old, and that she was probably just doing “puppy” stuff and I was overreacting. After growing up with schnauzers in my life from an early age, I am pretty aware of “most” of there common health concerns. Our last family baby had diabetes, pancreatitis, and finally went completely blind. My parents always fed low grade food (kibbles n bits, pedigree, royal canine) and now knowing this can lead to so many health issues I have kept my little girl (Sophie) on nothing but 4 and 5 star food. Noticing the allergy symptoms I started to rotate foods to see if anything would help or change, and nothing seemed to help. Within the colder months the chewing decreased, but nothing was cured. Now recently she came back from the groomers in massive pain! Skin and ear problems. I went back to the vet and finally after some tests they said she had bacterial and yeast infections due to what they can only guess is seasonal allergies! After the antibiotics and healing process I am desperate for her to never have to endure such pain from something I feel I could of prevented! Any help on food, vitamins, etc. Would be GREATLY appreciated!
Thank you!!

[Melissaandcrew]

BRT- Dogs usually lick their butts and scoot when there is a problem-such as anal glands or worms. Paw/nail bed fixation tends to be allergies. Imagine an itch that you can’t scratch-kind of sucks, lol. I would make sure that he is worm free and his anal glands are not a problem. Tapeworm can not be seen on a fecal, so check around his butt very very carefully for anything that looks like hard dried up rice-those are the worm segments. You can try rinsing his feet to see if that helps-the other option, if the vet has already looked at him and said no issue-is to try a squirt of an anti chewing spray. If its merely behaviorally, he should stop after a few licks of bitter apple or something of that nature.

[milly w]

Vegetarian Dog Food

To most Americans, leading a vegetarian lifestyle is the right way to healthy living. As a result, they feel obliged to extend this sort of lifestyle to their pets. Such beliefs have brought about a wide-scale marketing campaign for vegetarian dog foods.

Depending on your definition of vegetarian, certain ingredients and food types may be incorporated or removed from a vegetarian diet. As a minimum requirement, most meat sources – pork, beef, fish, etc. – are usually removed from the diet. Animal products such as milk and eggs are also usually not incorporated into the diet.

Why do people switch their pet diets to Vegetarian Dog Food?

Most vegetarians believe that vegetarian diets are healthy when compared to the traditional diets, which include animal-source foods. Vegetarians extend this assumption to their pets, which of course is not always true. For example, dogs do not suffer from disorders such as high cholesterol. Therefore, cutting your dog’s meat intake with the intention of reducing its cholesterol intake does not serve any real health benefit to the dog.

Other folks believe that meat contains contaminated bacteria that may harm their dog. This may be a real and legitimate cause to worry; however, meat products that have been properly canned or dried pose a far lower risk of disease transmission when compared to raw vegetables or fruits.

Some people cut their pet’s meat or animal-source intake with the premise that it causes food allergies. Pets rarely develop food allergies. When it comes to pets, the risk of developing allergies due to protein intake from meat or protein intake from plants is the same. Cutting meat intake rarely helps solve this problem.

The most likely Effects of switching your Dog’s Diet to Vegetarian

The nutritional demands for dogs are very different when compared to those of humans. A perfect vegetarian diet for a human may; therefore, not be suitable for a dog. A vegetarian pet food that meets all the requirements – of the dog species – is very difficult, but possible to develop. However, it becomes even more difficult when you decide to use ingredients that fit a purely vegetarian diet: a vegan diet.

A protein and calcium need of a dog, for example, is much higher when compared to that of a human. Such nutrients are usually derived from animal ingredients.

Of course, it is possible to derive such nutrients – Calcium and protein – from synthetic substitutes; however, the process is much more expensive and far less reliable. The process may prove very effective theoretically, but fail miserably in the “real world”.
Finally, even if the dog eats the vegetarian diet that you serve it, it may not consume it in the proportions that its body requires. Pets enjoy a cookie or a fruit on an occasional basis; however, they may not enjoy consuming vegetarian products for their survival. Therefore, even if you come up with a vegetarian diet that meets all the requirements, your dog may not take in as much as its body needs. Thus, it will suffer nutritional deficiency eventually.

In a concluding remark, vegetarian diets are healthy – to a certain extent. However, they may deprive your dog of certain essential requirements. If you must serve your companion with vegetarian dog food, ensure that it takes it in sufficient quantities, and that it has all the essential nutritional requirements.

[Shane O]

Yes, if you have a dog with grain allergies this is a good choice. Otherwise the Kirkland Premium is better and costs less.