Can switching to a different kind of dog food cure my dog's food allergies?

Dog food allergies are more common amongst pet dogs than most people realize – actually, they're the third most com,on allergy after flea bite allergies and inhaled allergies (atophy). Roughly one in ten dogs will be affected by a food allergy at some point in their lives, with symptoms ranging from itchy skin and excessive scratching to hair loss, ear and skin infections, and flushed, hot patches of skin. You may also notice your dog having increased bowel movements despite being fed no more food than usual.

There's no particular breed of dog which is more likely than the others to suffer from food allergies – dogs of all shapes and sizes, from puppies to old dogs, neutered or not, male or female, can be affected, although there is some indication that most allergies to food are likely to appear when the dog is somewhere between two and six years old. You should be aware that “allergies” and “intolerence” are different things, as intolerence for a dog is similar to humans getting an upset stomach from eating a food that “doesn't agree with them”, and can cause diarrhea and vomiting just like in the case of humans. Allergic reactions to food, on the other hand, cause itching and other skin problems.

 

Fortunately, your dog doesn't have to continue to suffer if he or she develops a food allergy. You can often easily cure the condition simply by switching to a different kind of dog food. The bad news is that most dog foods actually include the most common triggers for allergies! The most likely culprits are beef, chicken, and dairy products, closely followed by soy, wheat, and corn. It can be difficult to find a dog food that doesn't have any of these ingredients. In the past, many dog owners have made the mistake of assuming that putting the animal on a lamb and rice diet will solve the allergy problem. While this is indeed possible, it's not universally true – dogs can be allergic to these ingredients, too, but because they haven't traditionally been included in dog food recipes as much as all the others, the statistics for dogs developing allergic reactions have been misleadingly low.

The best solution is to look for a special hypoallergenic dog food and try your dog on that, keeping a close eye on his or her symptoms to see how the change in diet affects them. Before doing this, however, you should be sure that an allergy is indeed the problem, bearing in mind that any number of other problems could be causing the symptoms. Check the likelihood of an inhalation related allergy, flea bites, yeast infections, intestinal problems, bacterial infections, and so on, or go to your veterinarian for help if you're not sure. Some veterinarians will perform a blood test, but these aren't always accurate enough to rule out all the other possibilities. If you do manage to narrow it down to a food allergy, then try your dog on either a commercial or homemade hypoallergenic dog food. A good pet store should be able to advise you on which one to try, how to put your dog on a trial diet, and how to know if it's working. It may take a few tries, but once you find the right kind of diet, your dog's allergy symptoms should disappear.

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