[JAN E]

I have a 2 year old Golden Retriever who has been plagued with skin issues due to allergies her whole life. Food tests found she’s allergic to soybeans, corn, alfalfa, green peas, sweet potatoes and beef! I’ve used California Natural dry food her whole life, trying different ones until we determined the problem. I find that most quality dry foods contain many of these ingredients. Canned food seems pretty expensive. Can anyone suggest a dry food that does not contain these things? I’m seriously considering cooking chicken for her and storing portions in the freezer….! I’d also like to eliminate rice, if possible. She’s still having skin issues. (Haven’t yet ruled out grass.) Any help is appreciated!

[Kristin C]

Hey Jan -that’s a tough one. I am scrolling through dry dog food ingredients and can’t come up with one. Have you considered freeze dried? I feed my dogs raw, I make most of it, so cooking and storing may be the best option for you to control the ingredients. Hopefully someone else pipes in with a solution for you.

[pugmomsandy]

Maybe you can just add a scoop of ZiwiPeak to her meal and reduce the California Natural a little bit. That would still add a little variety but some quality protein.

[Bobby dog]

Hi JAN:
Maybe the Natural Balance LID Duck, Kangaroo, or Rabbit recipes. I would also look into commercial raw for variety as a topper (or full meal a few times/wk) as pugmomsandy suggests.

Another option would be to make some or all homemade meals using a dinner mix. Here’s a link to some info on mixes:
http://dogaware.com/diet/dogfoodmixes.html

Here’s a link to a dinner mix that is fed and recommended by several regular posters. This is also the site for the book that BCn recommended, Steve Brown’s “Unlocking the Canine Ancestral Diet”:
http://www.seespotlivelonger.com/home/sll/smartlist_13/dinner_mixes.html

• This reply was modified 9 years, 6 months ago by Bobby dog.
• This reply was modified 9 years, 6 months ago by Bobby dog.
• This reply was modified 9 years, 6 months ago by Bobby dog.

[Bobby dog]

Maybe these two:
Precise Holistic Complete Grain Free – Lamb & Turkey with Garbanzo Beans or Pork With Garbanzo Beans:
http://precisepet.com/dog-formulas/precise-holistic-complete-grain-free/

I am currently feeding the Pork with garbanzo beans. My dog had a skin irritation last month so I decided to cut out white potato for the next few months.

[Susan]

Hi Jan, have you tried the “Natural Balance” Limited ingredients, Kangaroo & Potatos & the Rabbit & Potatos these 2 are the only 2 limited ingredients kibbles with only the 1 protein & just potatos, the other NB limited ingredient kibbles have peas or sweet potato…here’s a link to have a look at the ingredients..
http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/product-category.aspx?…
do not feed anything else just this kibble for 1 month & see if the itching gets better then what I did was of a morning I started an elimination diet, I’d give his kibble that I knew didnt make him itch for dinner & in the morning I started with boiled chicken breast & boiled pumkin after 1 week when there was no scratching I added boiled Sweet potato, within 2 days Patch started scratching his ears, so I stopped the Sweet Potatos & the itchy ears stopped within 2 days, then I added boiled potato within 20-30 mins Patch got a red rash all on his chest/stomach, at first I thought no it cant be the potatos we must of walked past a bush or something that morning, so the next morning I added the Potato again & again the red rash came all over his chest & he started rolling & rubbing on the rug then he was doing real sloppy poos, so now I know that he’s allergic to Sweet potatos & potatos & wheat… also are you bathing in a really good medicated shampoo that works.. I use Malaseb medicated Shampoo Patch gets bath every 5-7days or as soon as he starts to really scratch, Malaseb shampoo kills any bacteria on their skin & doesnt strip their good oils from their skin, after bathing in this shampoo for 1 month you will see results, I saw results within 2 weeks it releaved him & stopped the mad rubbing & scratching..
I have worked out its food & environment with Patch, also keep a diary what she ate that day where you walked etc then you start to see a pattern after one year, you can always look back 6 month or 1 month & see oh that happen when I feed this or walked thru that bush track etc… Its hard work but its worth it when you start to find out what is causing the problems…

[Kristin C]

Hi Jan – the Natural Balance kibble looks largely potato based. I would personally stay away from them. We use Orijen a couple times per week (convenience) but I believe it has pea fiber in it. Perhaps if you cook, or feed raw, for a period of time you could reset your pups digestion to incorporate a kibble again (later). See Spot Live Longer Dinner mix would work with a lightly cooked or raw program. What is she getting for fat or oils in her diet?

[JAN E]

Many thanks to all for your suggestions!

[JAN E]

Kristin C, what do you suggest for an oil supplement? I tried a fish-based oil, but her breath and the smell of her toys was awful!! 🙂

[Kristin C]

Jan-I feed my girls raw meaty bones on the weekend and split a can of sardines between the 2 of them at the same time. I also split a can between the 2 girls mid-week as a snack. I prefer to feed whole food versus a daily “supplement”. Have you explored yeast overgrowth for the skin allergies?

[pugmomsandy]

Grandma Lucy’s Pureformance and Valor product lines might work for you too. Grandmalucys.com

[JAN E]

Hi, Kristen, have not explored yeast overgrowth, but would like more info on that. Looking at See Spot Live Longer dinner mixes, which seem to be fairly easy, along with following an ancestral guide to percentages of meat, veggies, etc. I’m concerned about achieving a balanced diet, and did find several brands of canned food that do not need the pea, potatoe and rice binding ingredients and provide vitamins and minerals. What do you think about adding cooked meats and veggies to a good canned base food?

[Kristin C]

I think adding any real food, cooked or raw, is a great addition to the canned food. The SSLL Dinner Mix would make any homemade meal balanced if I read it correctly. If you are feeding at least one meal per day commercial food though you probably wouldn’t have to worry too much about balancing it as long as you use proper ratios of meat, veggies. I started using SSLL to be safe but am not adding it in all the time.

[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!

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