# Good food for skin allergies



## kera (Jul 1, 2013)

I posted once before about our dog's skin problems, and it hasn't improved at all. She was on Diamond foods when we got her, and we switched her to Wellness Super5Mix which she likes, she's not picky. Her skin is quite pink, she itches/bites all over her body (her bum, sides, ears, legs, paws) and she started losing her fur. Now, her fluffy hair has thinned out so much that we can actually see every speckle on her skin because there is no hair covering it. Vet ruled out fleas and mange and she has no other problems except for her skin. 

The vet said it was seasonal allergies, but Prednisone/Benadryl didn't help and made her sick. The Benadryl was showing some improvement, but it made her so sleepy and zombie-like we had to stop after awhile. They also switched her to the Seresto flea collar, and Trifexis for whipworms. They said she just lost her puppy coat. Didn't even mention food allergies. I've had dogs my whole life and I've never had a dog lose their puppy coat to the point where they were almost bald?

I've done some research, but I am having trouble deciding. We have no idea what she is having a reaction to. I was thinking of trying Taste of the Wild, Acana, Blue Buffalo or Evo. I heard Orijen is good, but expensive? Should I get grain-free? I do plan to rotate and want to mix in some wet food with it also. Any advice would help!


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## NicoleIsStoked (Aug 31, 2012)

I would go grain free and try a single protein source at a time narrowing it down until you ind what works n


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## Ivyrose (Aug 11, 2013)

Grains are a very common food allergy in dogs, and that's really what sounds like she has going on. I hear chicken is also a common thing fkor them to be allergic to. I would definitely go grain free.

Also, its a little expensive but raw goats milk (a company called Answers carries it online.) has done amazing things for my dog who suffers from allergies, before she suffered from chronic ear infections (due to allergies) and she would non-stop chew her paws, within a couple weeks of starting her on the goats milk her ears cleared up and she hasnt had an infection since, she rarely chews her paws now. I just mix some in with her breakfast and dinner, she loves it. Definitely something for you to look into.

I've also heard the supplement fish oil is good for allergies in dogs.


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## RedGermanPinscher (Jun 22, 2012)

Disclaimer: Please be sure to consult with your veterinarian before Administering any medications or following any suggested treatment regimes. 

That being said:

I have one here that can not tolerate Chicken, Grains or Potatoes, amongst a few other (Environmental) things, that we are working to identify. A life time on Steroids (Apparently his former owner treated his allergy issues with long term use of them rather than trying to eliminate the variables and getting to the root of the problem) has left him a mess and as a result: He often has a yeasty/icky smell to him and if left untreated will scratch himself Raw.


What has been working for him is:

1. Regular brushing ( at least once a day), wiping him down with fragrance free baby wipes after being outside, bi-weekly baths with either an anti bacterial shampoo or a conditioning shampoo that contains Lavender, Coconut and/or Tea Tree Oil ( I recommend Earthbath products) you can also use a medicated shampoo such as Microtek or Zymox.••

2. Having all bedding etc he comes in contact with is washed with an all natural dye free, fragrance free detergent.

3. Ester C and Echinacea {Echinacea is given every other day or so, Ester C daily} supplements added to his meals (To help boost his immune system).

4. Adding Omega 3&6 such as those found in "fish or Krill oil" to his diet.

Also, when and if he begins to itch or break out in a rash he is given Benedryl***, as needed, (dosage is usually 1mg per 1lb) to calm the reaction.

Take a look at the ingredients in your current food, including any treats/extras, and begin to eliminate variable** or she may be sensitive to a cleaning agent you are using**

** Ex: If food contains Corn, Wheat or Soy, find one that doesn't. If that doesn't work look at the protein source and If it is the same as current food then switch to another protein source void of the grains as well. So on and so forth.
***You can substitute Zyrtec, if Benedryl is not working for you.
** For environmental in home cleaners, try switching to dye and fragrance free agents or use all natural products like lemon juice, baking soda and vinegar for items she/he comes in contact with.??
••Microtek is an excellent shampoo to use, another one I like is Zymox: http://www.revivalanimal.com/Zymox-S...and-Rinse.html or Virbac: http://www.revivalanimal.com/KetoChlor-Shampoo.html.*


In addition, unless the switch has caused a drastic decline in health, you need to give the new regimen a good 6-8 weeks of consistent application to fully take effect... 


If the problem is "Severe" and you are using a medicated shampoo it is often suggested that you: Bathe Dog every 3-4 days for approximately 2 weeks, then once a week for another 2-3 weeks and eventually you should be able to bathe once every 4-6 weeks or as needed.... 
(Again, consult your vet before implementing any type of treatment regime)


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## georgiapeach (Mar 17, 2012)

Another vote for a grain free kibble. If that doesn't work, get one that doesn't have potato. My westie mix has a lot of food allergies, as well as being allergic to grass. I'd recommend Acana, Fromm, Nature's Instinct, or Hi-Tek Naturals (choose grain free), maybe in a fish variety. All three come in a fish flavor. Hi-Tek will be the most budget friendly choice, but it's a good kibble - made in GA! 

In addition, I'd give your dog a fish oil capsule daily. Mine eat them whole - I just drop one in the bowl with their kibble. It's good for skin and heart. If your dog won't eat it, prick it with a needle and squeeze over the kibble.

To help itchy red feet, mix 1/2 organic apple cider vinegar and 1/2 water in a container deep enough to cover your dog's feet. Soak feet for a couple minutes each, 2-3 a day. Pat (don't rub) dry. My dog is small, so I can do 2 feet at a time in a wide container. You can reuse the mixture for a few soakings - keep covered inbetween uses. ACV is anti-fungal and anti-bacterial, so it can help control yeast that develops in the moist skin from the licking.


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## ~Amanda~ (Aug 24, 2013)

I agree with your vet that it could be seasonal allergies. Most people don't know consider that dogs and cats can be allergic to grass, pollen, ragweed, wool, perfumes, and laundry detergent. They can also have skin reactions to medicines, flea and tick treatments, fertilizers or pesticides from lawns, certain plant oils, and more. 

If you're trying to go down the food allergies route, then you have to choose a food with a strange foreign protein. Dogs and cats develop allergies to foods they have been exposed to for long periods of time, most commonly chicken, beef, and grains like wheat, corn, and soy. In order to see if these are allergens for your dog, you need to cut them out of their diet. Try isolating ONE protein that your dog has not been exposed to, such as rabbit, bison, venison, duck, kangaroo, boar, or even fish. These ingredients are not cheap and therefore are not normally part of the average dog food. The key is to choose one and only one. 

With an elimination diet, you will take out everything from the equation to see if what you do feed triggers a reaction or in your case, more fur is falling out and not growing back. If the protein you are feeding is encouraging your dog's fur to grow back, then label that as a non-allergy food. It's something your dog can tolerate. Then you would slowly start introducing a second protein, and seeing if that makes a difference. If the fur starts falling out again, nix it. That food would have to be labeled an allergy food, your dog cannot tolerate it. Eliminate it and after a grace period where you allow your dog to regrow any newly lost fur, try another protein.

It's not a short or inexpensive road to travel, but it will be cheaper than getting a blood panel done and sent in for allergy testing through your vet. You can ask them for an estimate for the test to be done, but that price is almost always too steep for most people. 

The key here is to be careful about EVERYTHING that goes into your dog. If you give any treats for training or biscuits, make sure they are only that one special protein. If your family feeds table scraps, make sure it is only of that protein or that it's not contaminated by another protein (ie. cooking veggies in chicken broth). You also have to be sure when you go places that no one feeds your dog. Some stores offer dog biscuits and sometimes some one at a dog park will be giving out snacks, and although they mean no harm, it could sabotage your elimination diet. Luckily, these days several companies make treats with allergy dogs and cats in mind. 

Now good options for foods:

*Lamb*- 
_Acana_ Lamb and Apple dry
_California Natural_ Lamb Meal and Rice Large Bite Dry Dog Food
_Wellness_ Simple Limited Ingredient Diet Lamb & Oatmeal Dry Dog Food
_Natural Balance_ Lamb Meal and Brown Rice
_Canidae_ Lamb Meal and Brown Rice Formula
_Natures Variety_ Instinct Limited Ingredient Lamb Formula

*Venison*-
_California Natural_ Grain Free Venison Meal Formula Dry Dog
_Natural Balance_ Grain Free Venison & Sweet Potato Formula Dry/Canned Dog
_Stella & Chewy's_ Simply Venison Dinner Freeze-Dried Dog Food also comes in frozen raw
_Addiction_ Canned Dog Food Hunter's Venison Stew
_Innova Evo_ 95% Venison Canned Dog Food

*Rabbit*-
_Grandma Lucys_ Pureformance Rabbit Grain Free Freeze Dried Dog Food
_Stella & Chewy's_ Absolutely Rabbit Dinner Freeze-Dried Dog Food (Also available in frozen raw)
(This is the hardest to fine and the most expensive)

*Duck*-
_Acana_ Duck & Bartlett Pear Dry food
_Wellness_ Simple Limited Ingredient Diet Duck & Oatmeal Dry Dog Food
_Holistic Select_ Radiant Adult Health (Duck Meal) Dry and Canned

*Bison*-
_Pure Vita_ Grain Free Bison Dry Dog Food
_Artisan_ Grain-Free Bison Dog Food (freeze dried)
_PetKind_ Tripett Original Formula Green Bison Tripe Canned Dog Food

*Boar*- 
_Natural Balance_ L.I.D. Wild Boar and Brown Rice Canned Dog Food

*Kangaroo*- 
_California Natural_ Grain Free Kangaroo & Red Lentils Formula Adult Dry Dog 
_Addiction_ Grain-Free Outback Kangaroo Feast Raw Dehydrated Dog Food
_Addiction_ Wild Kangaroo & Apples Dry Dog Food

*Fish*- 
_Orijen_ 6 Fish Dry Dog Food
_Natural Balance_ L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets Sweet Potato & Fish Canned and Dry
_By Nature_ Natural Salmon/Ocean Fish/Yogurt Dog Dry Food
_Wellness_ Complete Health Super5Mix Whitefish & Sweet Potato Dog Canned and Dry
_Blue Buffalo_ Fish & Sweet Potato Dog

Not all of these foods are grain free, and not all may be in a form your dog will eat. I've tried listing an assortment of different foods whether they be canned, dry, freeze dried, or raw. These are not the only options out there, but they are ones that I made sure have no other proteins in them, which in my opinion is one the most important thing in choosing an allergy food. If you choose to use another food, make sure there is nothing else in there. Some times you'll see a food labeled "Bison" or "Rabbit", yet they'll have lamb or chicken or fish in it. Even certain brands who are really good about keeping separate the proteins in one food, will cut corners in another. So read your labels. Watch out for 'chicken fat', fish oil, and non species-specific ingredients like 'liver' and 'flavor'. And if you are doing a duck diet, don't let turkey, chicken or other 'poultry' sneak onto the label. While it might not be a problem for most dogs, you are trying to stay as on course as possible. 

Oh and you mentioned you want to do a rotational feeding schedule. That may be feasible in the future, but right now, the goal is to eliminate potential allergens and that means choosing only one thing... This may seem like torture at first, but it is the only way to find out what might be affecting your dog. Once you start identifying different proteins that are okay for your dog, you can start rotationally feeding those. You can also switch around the different brands of food as long as it's the same type of protein. 

There are lots of resources out there. This is by far not all you should go by. 

So good luck, hopefully this will help.


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## kera (Jul 1, 2013)

Thanks so much for the advice, I really appreciate it! I'm definitely going to use the suggestions and hope we can figure out her allergy problems!


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## Mr. V (Jan 28, 2010)

Ivyrose said:


> Grains are a very common food allergy in dogs,


Ya know, I've never actually seen any original resource on this. Wheat and corn are shown in lists of most common food allergens but chicken and beef are usually at the top of the list. Why blame the grain immediately?


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## Mr. V (Jan 28, 2010)

~Amanda~ said:


> The key here is to be careful about EVERYTHING that goes into your dog..


Some good advice. Also important to remember that almost all oral heartworm prevention is flavored and therefore not recommended during a food trial.


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## Cobalt (Jul 27, 2007)

Found our dog is allergic to chicken potato rice etc . There are very few foods with none of these ingredients. You could do an allergy blood test. Right now it is ragweed season and my dog is a mess. When fall comes and if you live where it gets cold take the winter to find a food that works for food because you know it won't be an outside allergy causing a reaction. For us there are only two foods that we can give our dog. Some of the foods sold for dogs with allergies are not good if your dog is for instance allergic to rice. It's very hard and I am sorry but keep t it!


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## kera (Jul 1, 2013)

I have also seen it mentioned elsewhere that Taste of the Wild grain-free sierra mountain with roasted salmon or their pacific stream may be good for single protein food. Has anyone tried these?


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## Bumper1 (Jul 14, 2013)

Ivyrose said:


> Grains are a very common food allergy in dogs, and that's really what sounds like she has going on. I hear chicken is also a common thing fkor them to be allergic to. I would definitely go grain free.
> 
> Also, its a little expensive but raw goats milk (a company called Answers carries it online.) has done amazing things for my dog who suffers from allergies, before she suffered from chronic ear infections (due to allergies) and she would non-stop chew her paws, within a couple weeks of starting her on the goats milk her ears cleared up and she hasnt had an infection since, she rarely chews her paws now. I just mix some in with her breakfast and dinner, she loves it. Definitely something for you to look into.
> 
> I've also heard the supplement fish oil is good for allergies in dogs.


Grains are not common allergens. Read the studies. Outside of wheat, they account for less than 5% of confirmed allergies. Common animal ingredients account for over 80%, as much as 90%.

Statistically, 1 in 10,000 dogs has a confirmed corn allergy and about 1 in 20,000 has a confirmed rice allergy. Barley and oats somewhere in the middle.

I would try Annamaet Manitok or Aqualuk or Option because the foods are very simple and made by a company that actually knows what it is doing.


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## Benjismom (May 19, 2013)

Bumper1 I feed my bichon Annamaet but it is low fat the green bag? I hope it is ok he has done fine on it although we are also having a paw ithy problem but I suspect it is seasonal allergies. How are the Manitok or Aqualak different?


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## Bumper1 (Jul 14, 2013)

Benjismom said:


> Bumper1 I feed my bichon Annamaet but it is low fat the green bag? I hope it is ok he has done fine on it although we are also having a paw ithy problem but I suspect it is seasonal allergies. How are the Manitok or Aqualak different?


No poultry, Manitok is red meat, no poultry, poultry fat or egg. Aqualuk is salmon and herring, no poultry products of any kind.

The Lean formula is a lower fat version of Salcha. I have used Salcha before and its wonderful. The supplier retired so I had to switch.


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## Mr. V (Jan 28, 2010)

Cobalt said:


> live where it gets cold take the winter to find a food that works for food because you know it won't be an outside allergy causing a reaction. !


unless the dog is allergic to year round things like house dust mites or molds which are a common allergen in atopic dogs.


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## Cobalt (Jul 27, 2007)

That is true, thanks! Yikes, if Luna were allergic to dust or mold on top of weeds/trees/grass/chicken/potato/rice/soy/turkey we'd be in real trouble!

It is raining right now and she is much better. Yeah for rain and hurry snow. :clap2:


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## sclevenger (Nov 11, 2012)

This sounds like Royce. His breeder had him on taste of the wild, we hit a rough patch and had to switch to 4-health, my store did not have grain free, so we went with what he had, he started itching and scratching really bad, due to the rough patch we missed his dose of Revolution so we thought fleas or some other irritant. So picked up frontline plus. End of rough patch, we switched to Halo...also not a grain free, but a really great food, well now his skin is red and itchy even worse, his hair is starting to fringe and tear at the end, vet ruled it was food allergy. So we are back on taste of the wild and hoping to see improvement soon!


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## Benjismom (May 19, 2013)

sclevenger I was just saying in another thread how I do not see much of any type of food that is not grain free anymore. Can't you order grain free on line?


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