How To Conduct A Cheap Food Trial For Dog Allergies
Does your dog suffer from allergies?
Do they rub their face on the floor, have dry and flaky skin, get hot spots, and even get rashes that become infected?
One of my dogs sure does.
Meet Ender. He's the sweet black lab/great dane mix staring at you through your screen.
Check out how we discovered what his allergies are and how we fixed it...
...without medicine.
When talking about dog allergies, most people start with this question:
What's the most common cause of allergies in dogs?
The answer seems to remain unclear, unfortunately.
Ask one vet and they say food allergies, while another says that it is inhaled allergies.
For Ender, (we think) we discovered that is mostly food with a little bit inhaled allergies. The good news is, he suffers no more!
Ender's Doggy Allergy Story:
One day this past summer (about a year after rescuing our 2 pups) we noticed our male, Ender, had some splotchy spots on his stomach.
Being that we live in an area that makes EVERYONE suffer from allergies, we didn't think much of it.
...until 2 days later when the rash exploded into a full blown skin infection.
"WTF?", I asked myself.
When I took him to the vet I was informed he was suffering from allergies. His allergies had also been contributing to chronic ear infections he had been dealing with since we rescued him, but the vet hadn't made the connection yet.
You see, in dogs (just like humans) the ears are just an extension of the skin, so recurring ear infections could actually be due to allergies, not poor ear hygiene.
The Most Common Food Allergies for Dogs:
- beef
- pork
- chicken
- milk
- whey
- eggs
- fish
- corn
- soy
- wheat
- preservatives
Most dog foods on the market have at least one of those ingredients. Does yours?
Even though food allergies may or may not be the most common cause of allergies in dogs, it is one of the easier ones to diagnose.
How to Run Your Own AFFORDABLE Food Trial
Take your dog to the vet and mention you suspect allergies and the vet WILL prescribe a food trial.
Ever had one prescribed?
It's like $50 per 15 poud bag of food!! If your dog is a bigger breed like mine, that will nearly break the bank!
The main thing you need for a food trial is to choose a food with a SINGLE, alternative protein source.
Since mainstream protein sources (chicken, pork, and beef) are the cause of many allergies, alternative protein options are:
- fish
- bison
- lamb
- venison
What Does Ender Eat?
He eats the Fish & Sweet Potato food from Blue Buffalo.
We chose this food for him for 2 reasons:
- Fish is known to be beneficial for skin health (in both dogs and humans), so it was seemed to clearly be the best choice.
- The carbohydrate source is sweet potato, instead of brown rice. This eliminates the possibility of continued problems in case Ender is also allergic to rice gluten.
The ingredient list on the website shows chicken fat as an ingredient in this formula. I could have sworn the last label I read on the bag did NOT list this ingredient, so I'll double check it with Blue Buffalo.
Note: If chicken is a big part of the allergen problem for your dog, the presence of chicken fat may be enough for the problem to continue.
Flaxseed would be a much better source of omega-3's and linoleic acid than chicken fat.
Speaking of flaxseed, a skin supplement like Dinovite may be a great addition to your dog's diet!
If you need help diagnosing where your dogs allergies are coming from, check out this great article on K9 Web that will walk you through some tests, step-by-step.
Be Leary of Treats!
Many "allergen free" treats have large amounts of chicken fat and/or chicken meal in them.
There are several brands of treats that are fish based and contain no wheat, gluten, and other allergens, including corn (which has ZERO nutritional value in dogs or humans).
What Helps Your Dog?
Whatever food you try, stick to the trial for 3 months, as it can take that long for a dog's body to adjust to the new diet.
What tips and tricks do you have for relieving your dog's allergies?
We have one dog, a pup just turned one year, has had terrible sensativities with foods. Gets really bad runs from chicken in the past, but I was told that chicken fat was 'ok' and would not effect her. Anyway, we did a switch from Natures Variety lamb and oatmeal, not that it was bad, but due to the constant recalls on their foods. I switched the dog gradually to Precise Sensacare, but the pup started to lose weight and was always hungry. There is pretty much nothing in this food. I was then recommended by the pet store to use Timberwolf Organics lamb and apple, but since she's been eating it, she has had gas and soft stools...now I just read the bag and there is chicken fat in there, as well as sweet potato I think. Being she seems to have a yeast allergy she is itching like crazy and her eyes are oozing a bit, and no, she's not sick. This started since we introduced the Timberwolf. She is hungry and still needs nutrition, but I am at a loss now as to what to give her! I was told Wysong Anergen formula, but I just don't know...I need some VERY good opinions. Thanks, Dotty
Another alternative is Natural Balance. The offer a Venison, Duck, and Fish all with Sweet Potatoe and also include the flaxseed and no Chicken Fat.
My dog suffered with chronic ear infections and constant licking and chewing of her paws. I switched her diet to Canidae Lamb and Rice and her symptoms disappeared with in 3 weeks and no more ear infections. The dog food contains omega 3 and 6, flaxseed and 7 other scoat nad skin conditioners. Canidae contains no wheat, corn or soy is holistic and the price is right.
So how do I use the flax seeds? Got a formula/recipe?
awesome mary! i'm glad i could help! let me know if the flaxseed helps you and your pooch.
Jeffrey,
Great information! Not only did I learn about some great foods for dogs who suffer from allergies like my last two have, but I learned that my chronic ear infections that have been haunting me most of my life can be caused from skin problems. I've had psoriasis and other skin conditions for the last 20 years. I do take flaxseed and will be sure that my next dog does as well. Thanks for the heads-up.
Mary
wow, you're right. Blue Buffalo must have changed the formula since i first put my dog on this food just 3 months ago. I SWEAR that chicken fat and brown rice were NOT on the ingredient list (which was one of the reasons i bought it). At any rate, my pup isn't having problems any more--and hasn't for about the last 5 weeks.
if his skin problems come back i'll be switching food again. How do you like the venison and sweet potato from Royal Canin?
One of our rescues has horrible allergies and we've run the gamut with him. You said that this dog food doesn't have rice as the main source, but the website lists it as the second ingredient. Am I misreading something? We do a venison and sweet potato recipe from Royal Canin.