[Evonne]

I have a three year old cockapoo, Charlie. He has been eating Blue Buffalo Grain Free Turkey and Potato for awhile now. He loves it, and that is saying a lot because he is super picky. This is the first food that he would scarf as soon as we put it in front of him. He has been having issues with yeast and dermatitis. We decided to have him allergy tested. I got the results back a few days ago. He is allergic to fish mix, potato, wheat, and green beans. He is borderline on lamb, venison, oats, beets, apple, banana, and tomato. I fed him a trial of lamb at one point and he reacted by turning bright red on his underbelly. So, I think that is more of an allergy than something that is borderline. I want to avoid feeding him anything that is on his borderline list. I am having a hard time finding him a commercial dog food. For the last few days, I have cooked for for him. I just used things that I had in the house. I used eggs, brown rice, carrots, and pumpkin. He loved it. I am not opposed to cooking for him, but I want to make sure that he is getting the right vitamins, proper carbs and protein. I am just a little nervous about all of this. I am not even sure what amount to feed him if I am cooking for him. I have been giving him a half of a cup of the stuff I made up twice a day. He is a little over twenty pounds. I have two other cockapoos with no allergy issues or health problems. They are also on the Blue Buffalo Grain Free Turkey and Potato. Since they are doing well, I will keep them on it. I just really need advice on what to do with Charlie! Any tips would really be appreciated.
Thank you!

[Jackie B]

There’s a Hypoallergenic dog foods list in the Best Dog Foods section on the main site.

I also sometimes homecook for my dog. I use a book by Rick Woodford, Feed Your Best Friend Better. It is easy and uses common ingredients. There are instructions for if you want to supplement with it or if you want to feed all homemade. Easy.

[John G]

A friend of mine has good results with their dog taking apoquel. If I remember its relatively cheap and worth talking to your vet about.

[Lori E]

We have been battling allergies with our 5 yr rottie for 2 years. After many vets and specialists, we are trying a holistic approach. We have her on raw goat milk and grain free and potato free Acana Grasslands. We have been told that it will take approx 7 weeks to see any changes. We are on week 2. The main symptoms are puffy and itchy eyes, excessive licking of paws, and “fly catching” syndrome. Any feedback is welcome.

[Anonymous]

Plenty information at these websites.
http://www.homeovet.net/dynamic/php/downloads/dog-c8470f2c75dbe4b683205c3919ee2310/dog_diet_complete.pdf

http://www.allergydogcentral.com/

Environmental allergies are more common than food allergies, often food sensitivities are referred to as allergies.
If the symptoms have been going on for more than a year, 4 seasons without significant relief I would consider seeing a specialist and having the skin testing done (if you haven’t done so already).

Have you considered consulting with a homeopathic veterinarian?
http://www.vitalanimal.com
for a list of homeopathic vets in your area http://theavh.org/ Make sure the vet has at least 75% homeopathic cases in their practice, or you might just get the same old same old.

My dog with allergies receives immunotherapy and seems to do best with Nutrisca dry (fish) as a base food. A daily fish oil capsule. Frequent baths with Malaseb.

[puppypiles]

I really like The Honest Kitchen. One of their new base mixes, Kindly, has zero of the ingredients you said he’s allergic to. With that, you add fresh meat of your choosing to make it complete. With that, you can give him whatever meat you wanted, and it might ease your mind knowing you’re giving him something complete and balanced.

Also, THK is super great about giving out samples. If you email them, I guarantee they’d send you a couple things to see if your pup liked it.

[trakrsmaandpa]

At the age of two years, my Dutch Shepard developed terrible allergies. He licked and scratched himself tell he was bloody, we tried everything. Working with our vet we worked our way directly to the source, the commercial dog food we were feeding him. The only answer we could come up with, was to start making homemade dog food based on a recipe I found online, high-protein and high in nutrients. He has ceased almost all the allergy symptoms, yes we go through an occasional bout of “itchiness” during allergy season, but nothing like it was, I am convinced it was the commercial dog food we were feeding him. I’ve been on this recipe for two years now and he’s not only virtually allergy free, he is also a healthier, happier, active dog!

[Mark M]

Buddy is 8 years old and has always had allergies. He is a Lab/Pit mix we rescued from the pound 2 days before he was to be “put down” when he was 12 weeks old. With our Vet, we have tried Apoquel, and Hydroxyzine, both expensive and minimal help. We feed him Blue Buffalo Healthy Weight Adult dry. He weighs 90 pounds. Can anyone help with dry food and biscuit advise? Home cooked is not an option.

[Anonymous]

Nutrisca, Salmon and Chickpea, it has limited ingredients, no grains, no potato.
Check it out at chewy.com and read the comments

(there was a recent recall, regarding chicken) I’m not concerned, but thought I should mention.

[theBCnut]

Nature’s Variety Instinct Rabbit LID is rabbit and tapioca based. Both ingredients are not typically found in common dog foods. The best thing to do is the gather the ingredient lists on the foods you have tried and start comparing them to see what ingredients they have in common and look for foods that do not have those ingredients. Best if a food that is made up of a novel protein and a novel carb.

[Tonia M]

My 17 year old Italian greyhound is allergic to corn, soy, potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, rice, pes,carrots,yeast, peanut butter, and a few more I can’t think of off the top of my head. I inherited her from my aunt when she passed. She was always sick her entire life. She wouldn’t eat for several days and when she did she would throw up or have diarrhea. So when I had her tested. She spend three days with a specialist and it was determined she had a list of food allergies, irritable bowel, and crones . I have struggled over the past few years to get her to eat. She basically lives on one or two ingredients . Then she will stop eating during her ibs flare ups. I don’t know what to feed her. She suddenly started eating her poop today. Yet won’t eat anything I offer.

[anonymous]

I would work closely with the veterinarian that is treating your dog. I would imagine the vet has recommended soft canned prescription food.
As a senior, your dog has multiple issues, I think the best you can do is to do exactly as the veterinarian advises, prescription meds and all, the goal is too keep her comfortable for the time she has left. Make sure she has fresh water available 24/7, add water to her food.
She won’t eat her feces if you stay with her when she is due to eliminate, scoop and discard immediately.
For anyone to advise you to do anything different than from what a veterinarian that has examined the dog recommends, is irresponsible and those actions may most likely increase the dog’s discomfort and pain.
Call the vet and discuss her symptoms, evaluate your options.
Good luck.

[pitlove]

Hi Tonia-

Your Iggy may benefit from a home cooked diet formulated specifically for all her health concerns by a board certified vet nutritionist. This way you know for sure what’s going into her diet and that she won’t have a reaction and using the services of a specialist allows the diet to be balanced correctly. That and home prepared meals may be more enticing to her.

Petdiets.com or BalanceIt.com are the 2 sites I would recommend. That or getting a referral from another doctor to a nutritionist.

[Lynne C]

hi, after lots of money spent and vet visits, you should know that those blood test kits are bery inaccurate for food allergies. There sre lots and lots of false positives and negatives. The ONLY way to truly identify food allergy is by an elimination diet. This involves either feeding a novel protein source or a hydrolyzed diet like royal canin for 8-13 weeks then intrducing foods one by one, and seeing reactions.
Each new food is tested for 2 weeks.

[Author]

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