Hi Becky,
I’m teary eyed that you responded so quickly! God Bless you and thank you so very very much. I don’t have the funds now to buy that prescription and I have exhausted my Xena taking her to soooooo many vets pumping her with steroids she is way over her normal weight and each vet recommends that I give her that hills science diet food.
Konamisan
Poor Xena. She sounds as miserable as my foster was when I got her–maybe worse. Ellie has been eating Nutro’s Grain Free Lamb and Potato but if Xena can’t eat Potato, that won’t work anyway. What helped Ellie was the medicine Atopica. It literally saved her life. Her family was going to have her put down because she was so miserable but they couldn’t afford the Atopica. Our pug rescue group got her, thank goodness. Within 2 or 3 days of taking it, she was a totally different pug–comfortable, able to lie down and relax, not scratching and rubbing all the time, the inflammation went down, etc. She also was on an antibiotic because she scratched till she was infected. Anyway, that was a year ago and she’s still doing well on Atopica, the lowest dose.
There’s also Royal Canin Hydrolyzed Protein food. Maybe you could look into that. I’m not sure how it works, but it’s something with the way they take apart the proteins or something. So even if they’re allergic to chicken, for example, they can still get the chicken protein. I may have it totally wrong, but you might look into it. It’s a prescription food available from your vet.
I hope Xena starts feeling better soon. I know these skin allergies are terrible.
Hello everyone, HELP PLEASE!!!
I posted a comment as you can see back in March of 2013. I read your forum as often as I can. I would please like some suggestions and help with my post. I have her on Ziwi Peaks Venison and that is over with now. My Xena isn’t even digesting this food anymore. She threw it all up after two full hours after eating it. Xena can’t eat any fowls, beef, fish. I gave her some boneless skinless very very low sodium sardines and the girl would have crawled out of her skin if she could scratched like the dickens and had to wear a e-collar for 3 weeks. She can’t eat any form of potatoes either. The pet stores don’t really offer a long line of products and I have to travel by public transportation just to buy her food. I was thinking of putting her back on the Stella & Chewy’s Rabbit Formula.
Thank you,
Desperate Konamisan
My Mila (1 1/2 today) isn’t picky at all and I’ve had her on a lot of variety. Kibble [Canidae, Earthborn, Orijen, Acana, Brothers, Wellness, Fromm, Annamaet, (Chicken Soup, TOTW when I’ve had to)] and canned (Merrick, TOTW, Fromm, Canidae, Dave’s GF, Tripett, Wellness, ATG). Freeze dried and Dehyrated: Stella and Chewy’s, Primal, THK, Grandma Lucy. Premade raw: NV, Primal, Bravo. Raw organ/muscle meat, green tripe. And also RMBs:chicken back, turkey necks, pork necks. The only one I wouldn’t recommend is the Canidae Single Grain Protein Plus, although a 5 star food, because of the multiple protein sources and not grain free. (It was suggested at a pet store before I got Mila) You have received great advice above, stick to a single protein source and try to go grain free. Is it just when the dog has chicken protein that you see these issues? Maybe Sadie has a chicken food allergy? Try other protein sources beef, lamb, turkey, fish and also add a little canned pumpkin and plain yogurt (digestive enzyme and probiotics). And once you find a few that work rotate them, being on one type of food for too long can make it easier to form food allergies. Mila does have sensitive skin especially during spring-summer allergy season, I guess that might be a “pit issue”, so adding omega 3s and coconut oil to her food are a big help, and also bathing often is key. I’m using a medicated antifungal antiseptic shampoo right now because her skin was negatively effected after getting her spayed and vaccinated during allergy season, which is a big no-no. (The main reason I’ve switched to raw) But also like Earthbath or any good teatree oil shampoo. Try not to use a oatmeal based shampoo especially if Sadie’s skin has open sores, red, and irritated.
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This reply was modified 12 years, 3 months ago by
SandyandMila.
Mine aren’t thrilled with veggies but they eat them if I mix them with some ground meat. So, no premix or anything? Then I would definitely stick to one protein source long enough to know that your dog is not reacting to it, then try one more long enough to make sure that it isn’t a problem, and so on so you can figure out what your dog is reacting to. You really need to look into what the absolute minimum you need to get into your dog to balance her meals.
I would absolutely just feed one thing until you are sure that’s OK and then just add one new thing at a time. That’s what you should do for an allergic dog, it’s called an Elimination Diet. It’s the only way to be sure what he’s allergic to. Do NOT discount the idea that the vegetables can be the issue. I just discovered that my dog is HIGHLY allergic to peas and I’m pretty sure green beans too! I had tried to give her some garden fresh green beans and she had a reaction the next day. They are both Legumes.
I would not give any vitamins or supplements etc during your Elimination Diet either because they can also be allergic to those!
I’ve tried some veggies, but she doesn’t care for many, mainly carrots and home canned green beans. And she loves apples, so not many choices….
Yes, you can. What are you giving besides just meat? Those things may contribute to allergies too. If the answer is nothing, then feeding an unbalanced diet is OK short term, but not forever. And some of the things she is missing may be what is leading to some of the itching.
Good for you for adopting a pit and a handicapped one at that! I’d like to suggest trying PetSmart’s brand of Simply Nourish. Specifically the Simply Nourish Limited Ingredient Sweet Potato and Salmon dry dog food. And the canned Simply Nourish Limited Ingredient Diet Fish & Potato Stew is excellent for allergies too. My scratching and licking allergy dog stopped that behavior cold turkey when on this food. The only issue she had on it was her eyes got goopey. I think she has mild reaction to potato. This food is on sale often and there’s coupons sometimes too so it’s a very affordable dog food. PetSmart just emailed me a $3.00 off coupon for any Simply Nourish purchase! I know right away if a food causes scratching to my dog. Return it to PetSmart if it doesn’t work out. Good luck with your pitty!
I have been feeding raw since March of this year, I have a Bassett Hound named Lucy, she is 18 months old and weighs about 45lbs. I switched to raw mainly due to itching and shedding like crazy. I started just like all the directions have said…..chicken, then turkey, pork, beef, organs etc. She loves her food, but she is still itching…..the shedding has eased up quite a bit. She has been eating deer for a few weeks and loves it. I was wondering if I could just feed deer for a couple of weeks, since I’ve heard it rarely causes allergies, and see if the itching stops. Then add other meats one at a time to find the culprit. Any suggestions are welcomed, the itching is driving us all crazy!!!
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This topic was modified 4 years ago by
Mike Sagman. Reason: Fix Duplicate Topic Title
Start with something like AvoDerm Revolving Menu. It’s single protein and “medium” protein. Other “medium” foods are Nutrisource grain free Heartland Select and Seafood Select or PureVita. If budget is not an issue, check out The Honest Kitchen Zeal. It’s grain free, potato free and single protein (fish) but “high” protein or Sojo’s grain free or Natural Balance LID (both single protein, low protein). I would just recommend a simple ingredient food for a few weeks to see if it helps. If she does ok with that type of food, then slowly add a different food and watch for reactions. Also give probiotics. This will help seed the gut with beneficial organisms for better digestion and less gas. Herbsmith has an herbal allergy formula and quercetin is for allergies too. She can always work her way up to a 5 star food. Some dogs just can’t do it right off the bat.
We have a soon to be 5 year old Dalmatian who is currently eating ProPlan Salmon. We rescued her in March and her coat was fine. Since the summer she has been itchy and looks like a rash under her coat. She is also chewing at her paws. We thought we’d switch to another food to help/investigate if it was the food (Proplan worked for our other Dals) or see if maybe she had allergies to the grass (which another Dal had). I also wanted to give her a food that was more nutritional and not a lot of fillers, hence the Blue Buffalo. People rave about this, but I don’t like the newest posts that I’m seeing! Any other suggestions?
We tried a round of almost every probiotic for “dogs” out there… mercola, purina, micro flora, blahblah blah. I can vouch for Probiotic Miracle. We got the best results with PM and when we decided to stop supplementing for a few weeks all the allergies and poop problems came back. So now all our dogs get Probiotic Miracle every day, which, if you get the 3-pack, it is very affordable (and way cheaper than vet visits!). Been about 2 years now and we have healthy dogs all year round. Last 6 months we’ve also switched over to their raw grain free dog food formula which is cream of the crop in my opinion. Anyway PM is the way to go where probiotics for dogs is concerned.
I’m not a fan of Blue Buffalo.
Tell us more about your dog; ie: breed; age; medical / nutritional needs; food intolerances / allergies. What are you currently feeding your pup?
I never thought I would want to order online until I found chewy.com. Great prices and free shipping over $49. I’m not a fan of any of the foods you listed. With that said, Wilderness is probably the best one you listed because it is grain free. Have you thought of switching up the protein every now and then? That will help prevent allergies and also keep him interested in his food. Also, you don’t necessarily have to feed a puppy formula. As long as the food is made for all life stages you can feed it. That may open up other options for you.
tracie, could you put a little bit of something on top of the Victor food or maybe try a different one that’s not beef. Is there a chicken and rice one? I have heard that it’s not uncommon for dogs to not like a beef food. I don’t think I’d go back to that version of BB though since it doesn’t sound like that one was working for you.
I think I’d try a bit of something tasty on top first. Otherwise, when they eat the Victor food do they seem OK on it?
I have a Schnauzer who’s prone to pancreatitis. He was on Pedigree Adult Complete for years and he would have frequent bouts of pancreatitis, constipation, stomach pain, vomiting and his poops were hard as rocks…and looked like them, too. I switched to Blue Buffalo Wilderness Chicken and all 3 of my dogs suffered from frequent soft stools and bad gas, although they absolutely loved the food. The frequent soft stools had me worried for my Schnauzer, so I switched (again) to Victor’s Beef and Rice formula. I transitioned each time in about 7 days time. Now that they are completely on Victor’s…they won’t eat. Should I go back to the BB? I’m a little nervous because of all the complaints I’ve heard about BB. Also, it’s hard to find locally…I really hate to keep switching them, but I’m not really sure what else to do. Any advice is appreciated!
I wish I could add what works but I’m not there yet…ALTHOUGH I did just today make a list of her foods and the only common ingredient I could find in all the foods that have not worked is peas. Maybe coincidence but other than vitamin type ingredients…that’s the only common thread.
So now of course, I’m afraid of PEAS. Does anyone know what exactly “peas” means? What sort of pea? Just like an English(green) pea?
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This reply was modified 12 years, 3 months ago by
somebodysme.
From what I’ve been able to gather, Boone has an intolerance or allergy to chicken, he ends up with ear infections.
He’s always been a paw licker; I tend to think its behavioral but just guessing.
I’ve kept grains & chicken from him, lately, white potato too.
He does great on Brothers allergy, Orijen six fish, THK Embark & Zeal, NV lid turkey.
Patty, Betsy, FreeholdHound, and Melissa: You are very generous with your knowledge and time. Thx all!
The allergens (aka intolerances, sensitivities, problems) that I’ve identified are from “ugly trial and error with food.” Ha, ha thx FreeholdHound for that quote. I suspect dog food companies and veterinarians have made mucho bucks off of people like us.
Earthborn Holistics Meadow Feast is going to be on trial next with my dog (thx Betsy). I’ll post updates.
BTW, I have two sisters who each have two dogs. They refuse to consider any other dog food than Iams and Pedigree. I mean refuse!! I’ve offered them bags upon bags of opened dog food that didn’t work out for my allergy dog. Acana, Orijen 6 Fish, Wellness Core, Evangers, Nutrisca, etc., all for free! As a matter of fact I have an unwanted and unopened bag of Dr. Tim’s Kenesis (my dog can’t have chicken). I end up donating most of the opened bags to PetSuppliesPlus. Local animal shelters come and pick up the food from there weekly. The unopened bag will go to PetCo who collects it for low income pet owners.
I’m in the same boat so maybe someone will pipe in. A light bulb finally came on with my dog. What I thought was all caused by food allergies are partly allergies and partly yeast. When I get her on a food that she’s not allergic to, the rash on her back clears right up but her feet flare up. The feet are yeast and the back rash is food allergies. Or at least this seems to be what we are figuring out. On a low carb food such as Nature’s Variety, the feet heal but her back flares. On an brand new meat such as lamb and/or rabbit, the back heals right up but the feet flare because the only food I tried was too high in carbs. SO now I will try lamb Nature’s Variety but the problem is that it’s not readily available and she has some stool issues with NV.
So if yeast is your only issue, I’d suggest giving Nature’s Variety LID a try. Of course, most people will suggest you need a raw or cooked diet. I haven’t crossed that bridge just yet…HA!
Thank you mucho!!!!! I have been looking for links on line but can’t find anything, I am not sure if I was looking it up wrong. I have already orderd the carvasol from wysong and am taking her to get her allergies tested to find out exactly what foods she has allergies to so I know if I can get the heart glandular bc everyone seems to be from a beef source. Still I would like to understand like supports like theroy bc I don’t get it and feel dumb lol
I have a Doberman with horrible stomach issues. Her culprit seems to be higher fiber and rice. After dealing with it for years(meds, restricted diets etc) her diarrhea and weight loss resolved on Abady granular, Natures Variety raw and Victor Grain free Ultra Pro.
Foods that mine have tested reactive to are: chicken, turkey, venison, salmon, whitefish, sweet potato, milk, soy, & corn. I can say I knew most of the above from ugly trial and error with food. I also believe that anything too heavy on peas, beams & legumes can set him off also.
I just recently found Natures Logic Beef Formula and he is doing AMAZING on it. I have tried the Sardine Formula and he likes that one also. There is one more formula I believe I can try which is their Lamb. I am also rotating in raw beef grinds, tripe, or sardines into his kibble.
I want to be able to rotate kibble as I believe that is best but at the moment I am stumped at what other brand to even consider. I will start up my research again after basking in the glory of Natures Logis for a bit 🙂
Hi Black & Blue (AKA Julie :),
First of all, you have to register separately for the DFA side (Discus) and then the forums (another format that I forget now what it is). It’s weird.
Your allergy list is a tricky one, isn’t it. Are the allergens that you identified through your own trial and error, or did your vet do some form of allergy testing?
It seems like eggs in one form or another show up frequently. Ah ha, I think I found one for you! Take a look at Earthborn Holistics Meadow Feast. Unless I overlooked something, it looks like it fits the bill, and would be a good alternate protein source for you.
My dogs sensitivities (not allergies) are easy compared to a lot of folks ~ grain, white potato, lentils and chickpeas. Two that he does great on are Earthborn’s Great Plains Feast and Horizon Legacy.
It’s so awesome when you find something that really works well, isn’t it! : )
So far with my dog, I know for sure most grains are a problem and chicken is a problem, though he doesn’t have any issues with chicken liver. I suspect that potatoes will be a problem, but haven’t given him potato enough to make sure. And I’m afraid that too many beans, legumes will be a problem for him, because he gets gassy easily, but he has food issues that some wouldn’t call allergies.
So far he can eat Brothers, all flavors except chicken, Earthborn Holistic Grain Free Great Plains Feast, Nature’s Variety Instinct Rabbit, Nature’s Variety Instinct LID Turkey. And he gets Darwin’s raw except for the chicken, he also gets pork, quail, goat, mutton, sardines, herring, salmon, etc. all raw.
My dog has a lot of food intolerances and I sometimes forget what they are. Here’s the list: Poultry, eggs, sardines, rice, oatmeal, and slightly white potatoes. Here’s the reactions: Paw licking, face scratching, belly rash, ear infection, gooey eyes, butt scooting, diarrhea, rust colored stained fur around her mouth and anus, and flakey skin on her ears. Here’s the dry dog food that she can eat with good results: Merrick Grain Free Texas Beef + Sweet Potatoes Recipe. (I haven’t found any others after trying TONS of different food. I’m still working on finding other brands to rotate.) The canned food: Born Free Salmon Recipe.
List your dogs’ results here too!
Yes, those are all the typical symptoms of food allergies, my dog has all that but my vet told me it was food allergies. I’m surprised the vet didn’t suggest that you change his food…I actually had TWO vets tell me to change my dog’s food. Also if your dog has been on antibiotics and steriods a lot, he may also be suffering from yeast. I’d add a pro-biotic each day.
Now on to what to feed…UGH this is where we are at right now. I first tried Nature’s Variety Instinct Turkey which did OK with the scratching but isn’t doing OK with her stool which it made too hard and she had issues “going”. It’s a good food but just not for my dog.
Have you gone to the review section and read the hypoallergenic food suggestion article? It will shed some light on what are the most common allergens. I would just suggest to read that and try a different food. It’s just hard to tell you what to try because all dogs are different as to what they are sensitive to. If your current food has corn in it, that would be my first course of action is to use a food that does NOT contain corn, see how that works and go from there. It’s a long drawn out ordeal finding the right food but you may get lucky and it’s simple like maybe you are feeding a low quality food and just feeding a better 4 or 5 star food will help fix it.
Here is the link to the article:
/best-dog-foods/hypoallergenic-dog-foods/
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This reply was modified 12 years, 3 months ago by somebodysme.
It’s not really about “scores” on DFA. It’s about what your dog is allergic to! Do you mean he had worse trouble with the other food or do you mean it had a worse score? Like I said, score don’t matter when you are dealing with a health issue. Score be darned is what I’m thinking these days with trying to deal with my little girl’s allergies. If she’d stop chewing her paws, I’d feed a one star at this point. That’s how frustrated I am. She’s on a five star and is worse off now then she was on Purina Pro Plan! GAH!
All I know is you need to immediately get your dog off the NB, not because it’s not a five star food but because YOUR DOG is allergic to it! I can’t tell you what to try from there but right now I have my dog on Natural Balance potato and rabbit….keeping fingers crossed. Poor thing just can’t shake the irritated paws and I can’t figure out what her issues are. She’s has only just started NB a couple days ago.
It really and truly is completely different…one dog to the next. Start out as you have with a LID food and if that doesn’t work, try a different recipe. If your dog had no itching problems on his old food but it’s not a low quality food and you want better, let’s say it was chicken based…well you can guess from that that your dog doesn’t have an issue with chicken and you can try a higher quality chicken based food. Chicken gives you lots and lots of choices!
The food he was on prior to natural balance was even worse. when I read the review on this site, natural balance limited ingredient diet actually scored really well. I’m thinking maybe its the sweet potato he’s specifically having a problem with and maybe I should just try a different flavor with a different main ingredient. What do you think?
I wouldn’t feed sweet potatoes to an allergy dog…after reading Plechner’s articles about dog allergies. It can make things worse. I would get the food you were feeding before and feed that and take him off the NB that is causing so much issues. He will have to have antibiotics if it gets too bad! Those rashes get infected.
If the food you were feeding is not a good quality food, try and find a better quality ingredients but that is similar to your old food. That’s what I would do. There’s nothing worse than allergies in a dog to deal with…it’s very frustrating! But main thing, get him off that NB NOW!
I recently switched my 6 year old bulldog to natural balance (limited ingredient diet) sweet potato and chicken. It’s been a few months and since then his facial fold has gotten infected, his ears are bothering him, he’s constantly licking his feet and I just noticed that his chin is getting irritated and red. He’s also been eating grass every night consistently for the past week and not throwing up. His poops are regular but it seems like he’s drinking much more water. He just seems like a giant itchy ball of infection and I feel so bad for him. I need advice on what dry food has worked for sensitive dogs with allergies. What brands work? What ingredients should I be looking for? Does he need supplements?
One of my Cavaliers (in my avatar pic, Laverne) has anal gland problems off and on. I attribute it to allergies with her. I have taken her, all the dogs, off all poultry. She is now eating for kibble Holistic Select grain free. It is a poultry free, fish based kibble with a pretty decent fiber content at around 6% max, I believe. It does have potatoes, but they don’t seem to be a problem with my dogs. I do top with canned foods and have been keeping them poultry free, as well. So far, I’ve been using Wellness for the majority….95% Salmon or Beef or Lamb, Beef Stew, and Simple Salmon or Lamb. This seems to be working. She hasn’t had any issues since I switched to doing this. I was using Zignature kibble, and will probably keep it in the rotation. I just bought some Big Dog Natural dehydrated raw in beef flavor that I plan on trying in the mix. I also add probiotics and enzymes to my dogs’ food. There are lots of them recommended on this site. Currently, I’m using Wholistic Pet Digest all Plus (or something like that lol!). This is all I do, no other supplements atm. Oh…I almost forgot, I do give a biscuit at night before bedtime. I’ve been using Wellness Lamb grain free or Whitefish (not grain free). Any soft treats given, usually during therapy dog visits, are Wellness Pure Rewards beef. As you can see, I like Wellness hahahaha. 🙂 I’m not saying this regimen would work for your dog, but to think about allergies….perhaps do away with chicken and definitely grains. Go from there. I’ve been battling this with Laverne for awhile now and I feel I finally have a handle on it.
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This reply was modified 12 years, 3 months ago by
Mom2Cavs.
I only recently read an article by Dr. Plechner who appears to be the pioneer of creating dog food for allergies and tests for allergies etc. Is anyone familiar with Dr. Plechner and his work and is this man truly a dog allergy expert as it would seem.
One thing that stands out is that he is saying that dogs with allergies should not be given sweet potatoes and you should try regular potatoes. Sweet potatoes contain estrogen which causes more allergies. He explains but I have ZERO medical training so it doesn’t really make sense to me. I mean it makes sense but I don’t understand the clinical part of it. He says that dog food manufacturers have put sweet potatoes to appeal to the humans that are buying the food and is not the best thing for dog food allergies and they can actually make things much worse.
He also talks of an issue in today’s dogs called “Plechner’s syndrone” which is a hormone imbalance which he claims is responsible for much of the dog food allergies we are seeing today. It has been brought on my breeding practices as best I can make out, according to him. He says that we should have our allergy dogs tested for this first thing if they are having lots of allergies. It can be treated, apparently with hormone therapy.
Here is a link to one article which is on Dr. Plechner’s website:
http://drplechner.com/learn/allergies/dog-food-allergies/
It is rather eye opening if he really does know what he’s talking about. Anyone know of his work and how valid it really is?
Hi all. I have been using dog food advisor for quite some time. Here’s the deal. I have an 8 year old pap and I think she has ibs. She’s sensitive when it comes to grains and overly processed foods. The last dry food she was on was Merrick’s grain free buffalo. She was doing okay on that kibble but she get’s seasonal allergies. She was one yeasty dog! I slowly took her off the Merrick and put her back on her raw food diet. With a lot of baths, and her adjustment to her old raw food diet I thought we were good to go. Unfortunately she started having serious diarrhea, so she just ate cooked chicken with pro- biotics from Nature’s Farmacy. I cooked her a low residue food and then I started adding 1 tablespoon of acana per meal thinking I could switch her to acana. No way. I thought I was going to pass out from her second poop. Talk about foul smelling!!
She does well with a protein ratio of 28-32% and a carb ratio the same or lower level. I really liked brother’s complete, but realistically, I can’t afford it. I have two fur babies and while they are small I don’t know if I could afford them. At least with a 50 lb bag of Acana, I would be set for a good 4-5 months.
This is what I’ve tried over the years that hasn’t worked or I didn’t like:
back to basics-diarrhea city too much protein
Evo, Innova, California Naturals-she didn’t do so well on those as a puppy. Ibs flare ups etc.
Having written all of that, is there some grain free, potato free (or at least low potato) food I can get my dogs that I can get a sample packet(s) I can afford. It used to be that the stores would give you a sample packet. Pet people charged me $10.00 for a sample packet.
I live in Columbus Ohio. I usually go to Petco or Pet People because they tend to have the better foods in stock.
Please tell me there is help for this situation. She’s on the prescribed low resolution and she’s taking “their” probiotics. It’s only a matter of time 2-3 days until she’ll be back to normal. I have NO clue what to give her that I can afford for both of them.
HDM: a few months ago, we talked about converting my 8th month old mastiff/lab mix to Dr. Tim’s GF Kinesis. One of my main purposes for this transition was to also put my 2 year old lab/vizsla on the same food as him.
He’s doing fine. In fact, they both love the taste. However, Quinn (2 year old) has been chewing her feet like crazy since she transition 100% over to Dr. Tim’s (3 weeks ago). She developed a rash on her stomach and I actually took her to the vet to get her on steroids as over-the-counter wasn’t working. Additionally, they gave me a pill to help with the itching prior to the steroids, but that also did nothing.
At first, I thought it was her allergies flaring up. She had to be put on steroids last summer. However, she had lasted all of the summer (June and July) without any itching while on Fromm’s Adult Gold. The reason I believe it may be the food is that she’s also thrown up twice since I started feeding it to her.
The basis for the background question is this:
In your opinion, can I feed Riggs (now 10 months — will be one year in mid-October) the Fromm’s Adult Gold? Note that I said Adult Gold, not Large Breed Adult Gold.
Quinn just hasn’t done well on any grain-free food that I’ve fed her. Acana, Taste of the Wild, etc. May be too rich for her. She did fine on Adult Gold — it’s just that I wanted her stools to be a bit firmer. That’s why I decided to try and make a household swap.
Would really love your feedback as I find it valuable. Thank you very much!
OH yes, sounds just exactly like my dog with allergies too. She’s a “lab mix”…AKA no one knows!
The vet did the same thing. What I did was go with a limited ingredient diet. I have her on Nature’s Variety LID Turkey which is doing an adequate job of keeping it under control. Remember that everything he consumes can contribute, not just their dog food. Treats and rawhide etc. even vitamins and supplements. People food…it can all cause problems.
Really the antiboitics help heal it up but then it just will come right back because they are killing the dog’s immune system.
I chose the NV food because it had the least amount of ingredients and not potatoes of any kind. I don’t even want her on sweet potatoes either.
Does he stink like strong cheese? If so that is yeast too so you don’t want a food with too many carbs or it will get worse. You’d also want to give a probiotic.
Just out of curiosity, what are you feeding him now?
It definitely sounds like food allergies. What is he eating?
My dog was diagnosed with SARDS/IMR in April. In addition to finding a successful treatment with Dr. Plechner, I switched his diet from Purina One to Blue Buffalo. They have a simplified Salmon/Potato recipe that has helped. Here is some more info from Dr. Plechner’s website regarding food allergies that may also help. http://drplechner.com/learn/allergies/dog-food-allergies/
We have a 2 year old yellow lab retriever that we love dearly-he currently weighs about 75 pounds. He is constantly licking and itching. He does not have fleas that we can see-and we maintain his flea medicine. He also has ear problems-mostly one ear. The vet has seen him many times and treated him with antibiotics and steroids. I don’t like having him on these all the time. He was also diagnosed with “teen-age” acne under his chin. We were told to use sensitive acne wipes on those and make sure his bowl is not rubber, and always clean.
All of things we do-but I am beginning to think it is food allergies with everything. Can someone please help and give us some advice? Dog food, treatments, etc.
Thanks so much!
We have a 2 year old yellow lab retriever that we love dearly-he currently weighs about 75 pounds. He is constantly licking and itching. He does not have fleas that we can see-and we maintain his flea medicine. He also has ear problems-mostly one ear. The vet has seen him many times and treated him with antibiotics and steroids. I don’t like having him on these all the time. He was also diagnosed with “teen-age” acne under his chin. We were told to use sensitive acne wipes on those and make sure his bowl is not rubber, and always clean.
All of things we do-but I am beginning to think it is food allergies with everything. Can someone please help and give us some advice? Dog food, treatments, etc.
Thanks so much!
@Patty My vet seems a little unsure or even kind of flippant about yeast issues. Though let me just say, he has been very open minded about some of this (like food changes), I do feel like his ultimate answer is to take her to the specialist b/c he thinks it’s IBS and get her scoped, etc. He said that may not provide an answer, etc. though. So I’ll spend thousands…for to what end? I’m willing to do whatever it takes to help her. IF it will help her.
She does chew on her feet, has had a recent ear infection which we got cleared up, etc. Someone said allergies (which makes me leary of different foods), someone else said that’s definitely yeast (which I’m still learning what to do/not to do). Ach!! It’s really enough to make a worried dog mom throw her hands up. SO confusing but I really appreciate any input. I think I’ll stick with Brothers for now and pray that the Fruitables on top of the Beef doesn’t make her hate it. 🙁
I hear they are coming out with a new formula in a month or so that may work better for her…
Aww, your Harry sounds like my little Josie. It’s so tough bc you don’t know right away what will/won’t work. The vet thinks she might have IBS but I think testing for allergies makes more sense like you have before we go down the dark road of IBS. I guess it isn’t right to keep blindly trying all these foods, I need to just get her tested. 🙁
Natures Logic sounds interesting, thanks for the heads up! I’m always interested to hear of new foods working for ppl in similar situations. The breakdown and description sounds like it has meat protein (which is good) but website says it’s plant based. I’ll dig into it a bit deeper, I’ve got to get something ordered tomorrow…Stella and Chewys breaks my bank bc of how fast I go thru it…
My dog’s skin gets red when we come in from our evening walk. I might have to decrease the amount if time shes exposed to the outdoors. 🙁 I do bathe her often. I also have tried bee pollen recently but not seeing much of a difference. I do like using coconut oil in her food and topically and seems to work better. Have you tried coconut oil, Pugsonraw?
I love local honey! My follow through is terrible, so I’ve never had any luck with my allergies using it, but that’s only because of my inconsistency. I readily admit my faults. : ) I have a friend in the area and he’s diligently used local honey with great success. I did recently buy some bee pollen myself at a local orchard and need to start giving it a try. My daughter’s allergies have kicked in and she can’t swallow pills (she’ll be 13 tomorrow!), so I had been thinking of using honey for her.
In my mind, I kind of think of honey and bee pollen like a flu shot though, in that honey is seasonal and what you’re buying is probably from the past season as opposed to the current season, and is it going to be effective for current allergens. Meaning, does it contain the stuff that is currently problematic ~ would you be better off buying honey from last Fall to use this Fall?
I’ve never used it for my dogs, haven’t needed to I suppose, but I imagine it would work for them as well as it does us ~ it might take a little work to mix it into their food, or maybe not as I think about it.
I’ll be curious to hear what others have to share about this!
I happened across this thread while googling something and couldn’t help but registering just so I could reply. There are many well meaning but sadly uninformed thoughts here. I have a phd in animal nutrition and really encourage all of you to get your nutritional advise from your veterinarian not from a forum of people with opinions formed from the Internet. Dogs DO NOT “need” animal protein. There are several complete vegetarian diets on the market. Most dogs also do not “need” to eat a vegetarian diet. There are many dogs that have severe food allergies and their quality of life is greatly improved by a strict vegan diet. There are also MANY dogs whose lives are shortened by eating a diet too high in protein. It does not matter much whether that protein is from animals or plant based. A high protein diet is very hard on the kidneys and will eventually lead to premature renal disease. The trend of the pet food companies pushing a high meat diet is very scary. Especially for older pets. The argument that that is how our dogs ancestors ate is ridiculous. Their ancestors were not spayed or neuter, they were not on flea, tick or heartworm prevention, they were not vaccinated. There are reasons we don’t treat our pets as there ancestors lived. We love them, want to take the best care of them we can, and remember, their ancestors didn’t live very long. FYI, I’ve had dogs that have eaten foods with meat, 1 dog who eats vegan because of severe allergies, and 1 dog who ate vegetarian based on the recommendation of a veterinary neurologist for the treatment of a medical condition. They have all thrived. It’s not a question of meat or no meat for the average healthy dog. It’s a question of the correct balance of nutrients. Too much protein is just as bad as not enough. PLEASE consult your veterinarian or a veterinary nutritionist, not a random person with an uninformed opinion and an Internet education when it comes to the health of your pet.
bullterriermom, I haven’t had allergy testing done yet, we are just trying elimination and I’m hoping to find a good food. I put her back on NV LID the Turkey one and she is actually doing good on it and the feet are slowly but surely healing all up. Her rash on her back has magically healed up out of the blue. I really can’t help but think it was demodex and just getting healthy and taking supplements and vitamins have healed up up. I really do not know what caused her feet to flare up.
As far as diagnosis, it was just the vet that told me all her rashes and hair loss and scratching was most likely food allergies and he made some suggestions. It was just up to me to research a good food to start with. He wanted to put her on Iams.
I understand is quite pricey to have accurate allergy testing done though.
Emily, is you dog having problems on the BB? If not, then just keep feeding it. I >think< the no potato issue is mostly with allergies and yeast problems. If he doesn’t have problems then a potato formula should be OK. It’s just high in carbs/sugar so it bothers dogs with yeast problems.
The cheese smell, aka “Frito Feet”, is from yeast overgrowth on the skin. If you google it, you’ll see it’s very common side effect of excess yeast on the skin. My current dog does not have this, though he does have yeast allergies and gets ear infections. However, my previous dog had severe yeast/cheese/Frito smell all over his body, not just the feet and he bit, gnawed, scratched and itched almost non-stop, all day, every day. The vet said it was caused by allergies. He recommended bathing him 3 times a week to help relieve the overgrowth. That did help, the smell went away temporarily and he was less itchy but it always returned within a few days. A daily dose of Claritan or generic, really helped. Do not use the “D” formula that has a decongestant in it and is usually kept behind the pharmacy counter. He was about 50 lbs and I gave him one pill per day, it gave him some relief but 2 pills per day were too strong and he seemed drowsy, probably should not exceed 10 mg per 50lbs. Also putting about 1 to 2 tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar in the water bowl every day helped him too, he was a little less smelly and itchy.
Really, that dog should have been on a grain-free food but I couldn’t convince my ex to do it. Technically the dog was his, so I could only do so much to provide relief.
