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Hangshai
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25-05-2010, 08:57 AM

Food allergies

Ok, so, I switched to a new dog food. Its been hard finding a good food because it seems like my dogs are allergic to everything. Ive tried royal canin, Nutro (I know, I didnt know how bad it was until after I bought it), and I just bought a bag of blue buffalo, and I think its making them itch. They've been chewing their feet a lot more lately. It really has got me frustrated, as I can't seem to find anything that works. Does anyone have any suggestions? By the way, they are mixed breed terriers, Im not sure what kind exactly. Oh, and Ive also noticed some red spots on my females tummy, kinda like scabs. Ive noticed them before, but I never knew they could be associated with the allergies until recently. Could that be connected to the food as well?
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~Helen~
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25-05-2010, 09:32 AM
How long has your dog/s being having reactions??

Alot of dogs don't tollerate grains and often chicken can be a problem for some dogs too.

Have they been seen by a vet to see what is actually causing the reactions??

Often it can be environmentel problems with allergies not just food.

I had a dog who I lost at just under a year old as she was litterally allergic to every food, I'm more than happy to share the processes I went through to figure out whats foods wasn't safe (the early days) and how to help them cope with the reactions.

Your best bet is going to the vet and possibly having them tested if you feel thats the way to go.

If your looking for a good food thats got nothing but goodness and no rubbish in it then Orijen is fantastic, I feed this now and mine are thriving on it. It is expensive but I feel its worth it.
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wallaroo
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25-05-2010, 09:39 AM
We are using JWB turkey and rice for Toby which is a hypoallergenic food. Our vet told us to give him that and nothing else for at least 6 weeks to clear his system.

Also we have been told that if he is allergic to one thing he could be more prone to other things i.e, hayfever.
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Velvetboxers
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25-05-2010, 10:00 AM
Allergies are rife in summer. Spots on tummy are most likely to be "contact" allergies. ie long grass, carpet, etc. Very hard to be sure without tests. Summer for one of ours can be miserable. Try "freezing" your dry dog food overnite, defrost & feed to see if that helps. A dermatologist (skin) vet told us that, it helps a lot of dogs

R. Canin is quite rich & some dogs cant tolerate it. Also check oil & fat content in the food, too high a content can cause problems. I feed ourboy a "light" diet, not because hes ovwrweight but because its lower in fat & oil & it has helped.
Wafcol salmon & potato is a good food for allergies & sensitivities.
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Labman
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25-05-2010, 10:08 AM
If you are fighting allergies, you do want to look at the ingredients. If your dog is allergic to chicken, switching from a chicken meal based food to one using human grade cuts of chicken, won't help.

As mentioned, having the vet do tests so you know what the problem is can eliminate a lot of guess work. There are also foods formulated tohave fewer ingredients, therefore less likely to be a problem.
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Hangshai
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27-05-2010, 05:00 PM
Ok, so it took me a little while to get back to this thread, but Im here. Thank you for checking it out. I've been busy the past few days observing my dogs and trying some different things. My most recent brand of food was Nutro small bites lamb and rice meal. I went to the pet food store, one of the big box chains around here, and told them my dog was allergic to some foods and I was having trouble finding something that worked. They recommended Nutro and said it was hypo-allergenic along with having some ingredients other foods didnt have. I didnt do any research at the time, and the worker pushed it pretty heavily so I got it. Now Im concerned because although it seemed to have worked, there were a few times here and there where my dogs have gotten really sick. It could just be coincidence, but when I finally DID do some research online, I found out Nutro had some problems. So, I did a little more research and found a couple brands to look for the next time I went out for dog food. This last time I bought the Blue Buffalo lamb and rice meal. Ever since then, I have noticed the change. I also sometimes supplement their dry food with wet dog food. I have been adding half a package of the Cesar brand food. Again, its more of a treat for them, and when I looked into that brand it seemed to be a well made product. So, now Im worried because my male dog Hammy has been itching up a storm. It hurts me to watch him because he looks so uncomfortable. He keeps coming up to me wanting to get scratches, but I can tell the little guy is pretty uncomfortable. I dont have enough money to go to the vet today, it will at least be 2-3 weeks until I will be able to, but what I can do is return the dog food and try something else. The cashier said if I had any problems I could return it for an exchange no problem, and I still have my receipt.
So, from what I read, sometimes wheat and corn can be the culprit when it comes to allergies. The Blue brand food does have WAY more ingredients than the Nutro, but neither have wheat or corn. What the Blue has, though is barley, and I was wondering if that would count as wheat, or if it is similar enough.
Thanks again for all the responses, I will be waiting patiently for any replies.
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~Helen~
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27-05-2010, 06:08 PM
One thing to bear in mind if your dog/s have a true food allergy then swapping and changing their food will make them more and more poorly each time, as their bodies will try to fight the allergen each and every time.

White fish, rice and cooked potato are all use in hypo allergenic pet food, if you can afford/manage it then cook either plain white fish or either rice or potato and offer that, don't use any other food stuff. You could try chicken but its possible that could be a cause.

The only way the find out what your dog is allergic to is by ellimination but you should only use a maximum of 2 foods at a time for a minimum of 6 weeks and gradually add just 1 food to the list each time and see if there is a reaction, if there is a reaction cut it out and stick with the original 2 foods for another 6 weeks and then try another food and then continue this until you find safe foods.

You won't fix it by feeding a "general" hypoallergenic pet food.

You could try giving a antihistamine to help the itching. Over here in the UK a 4mg piriton is ok. Aloe vera or calendula either topical or orally can help with the itching too.
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lozzibear
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29-05-2010, 04:06 PM
my dog is currently on a special diet to find out what he is allergic to. his caused him to loose his fur on his face (around his eyes and muzzle), around his eyes also become sore and bled and his ears were painful. after many vets visit, and many unsuccessful treatments, the vet final decided it was a food allergy.

he is on wafcol just now, and has no reaction to it. so far he had chicken added to it, and there was no reaction to that today he has had beef added so will just need to see how he gets on with that.

i notice that you are in california, and im not sure if wafcol is sold over there (im sure its made in the UK) but you could find a similar hypoallergenic food and maybe keep them on that for 6 weeks, and then gradually introduce other foods giving a few weeks inbetween them to see which on sparks the reaction? the allergy could be something to do with the enviroment though...
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madmare
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29-05-2010, 07:08 PM
I had a JRT that was basically allergic to food. Any dried food was a big no no for him as he was very allergic to storage mites and something added in the drying process of the food.
He couldn't tolerate chicken or fish so I fed him lamb nature diet. It mean't no treats or anything for him. This was the thing I found he was best on after trying just about every other protein source.
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olivers mum
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31-05-2010, 06:46 PM
I had same thing with my dog. Tried him on Burns and never looked back.Nothing in it except what it says on the bag. My dog has a wheat allergy,so if all else fails it might be worth a try.
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