Dog Community

Dog food for an allergenic dog?

Posted : 5/1/2006 2:19:24 PM

First, I was told this is THE place to come to ask for any kind of dog food info... so, here I am!

Being my frist post and all, I will give a little background info about my doggie...

I have a 40 lbs German Shepherd mix, unknown what the other half is as I adopted through a shelter. She is around 3 years of age, and I have had her for about 3 and a half months now. I picked her up from the shelter the SAME day she arrived, so I never knew what she had been fed prior to me having her. The first food I gave her was Nutro: Natural Choice Lamb and Rice formula... She did horrid on the food, developed the "pimples" on her stomach, started to break out in a rash, and chewed/itched herself, mainly her paws, like crazy. After that I switched to Natural Balance: Venision and Brown Rice formula, with much improvement. The main gripe I have is that her coat is really dry and dull, and she still continues to bite two hot spots. (although no bleeding.) My question is, since I can get pretty much any food, what food would you all recommend? I was at my local feed store, and they suggested Premium Edge: Skin & Coat formula, and I would like to know your opinions on it, as I have never heard of it before... here are the ingredients if you are wondering:

Ingredients: (Bold text indicates my questionable ingredients.)
Salmon, salmon meal (a source of fish oil), potatoes, cracked pearled barley, whole grain brown rice, canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), egg product, brewers rice, flaxseed, natural flavor, kelp, carrots, peas, tomatoes, apples, cranberry powder, rosemary extract, parsley flake, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, glucosamine hydrochloride, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, chondroitin sulfate, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, L-Carnitine, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vitamin K activity), riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid

Protein: 25%
Fat: 14%
Fiber: 3%
Moisture: 10%

I am just unsure of this food, as the majority of the ingredients look good to me, although I am not the most versed person when it comes to dog food... (although I am learning everyday!) Any and all help is greatly appreciated. Thanks for your time.

trotbryna

Posted : 5/1/2006 3:10:07 PM

Hi!

I have a pup who has been fighting food allergies for a while now. What has worked for her are as follows:

Wellness Simple Food
-it has one protein and one carb, very basic but also very bland. Once her nose led her to the realization that her brother was not eating this 'cardboard', she would not touch it. We had great results on it while it lasted though, and have talked with others for whom this food has been a lifesaver.

Wellness Whitefish and Potato
-she did well on this also. But again, it isn't the most flavorful food so she quickly lost interest.

Innova EVO
-this is what we are feeding her now. It does have chicken and turkey in it, which are common allergens, but these have not seemed to effect her. Both of our dogs are on it now and doing wonderfully. We do mix in a little brown rice as the EVO has no grains.

If an antihistamine helps our vet recommends Chlorpheniramine (Chlortrimetron). It isn't quite as harsh as say, Benadryl. This has helped with sneezing and paw-licking.

Hope this helps somewhat!

Ashley

Posted : 5/2/2006 7:08:01 AM

Hello Strag,
I have a Shih Tzu with food allergies to any poultry and I feed NB Vension and Brown Rice with great success too. Since the majority of the skin condition has cleared, have you tried maybe adding a supplement for skin and coat instead of switching foods? I believe you can buy fish oils such as Omega 3 to put on the food. Just a suggestion.

forpaws

Posted : 5/2/2006 8:06:49 AM

Hi Stragg, welcome to the forum.

Ingredients to avoid in an allergy prone dog are as follows: Greasy foods, Animal Byproducts, Grain Byproducts, Fillers, Yeast, and Sugar. This includes Brewers Yeast.

I would also put her on Minerals such as Zinc - 5 mg per 25lbs of body weight, Chromium - 5mcg. per 25lbs. This helps build resistance and supports tissue repair.

To help with the itching, I would give her Yucca Root. I do not use the extract but purchase the whole yacca root in the frozen section of Wal Mart, boil it and pull the strings out and add it to her food. This acts as an anti-inflamitory, and is also very beneficial for many things too.
You could also try some herbal remedies as well:
Turmeric Root, Black Catecbu, Grindelia Floral Buds and Lobelia, combined, protect the liver from circulating antigens and allergens, thereby reducing infections and skin or intestinal irritations associated with airborne, urea, and food related allergies. This combination supports the adrenal glands when epinephrine is needed by the body during inflammatory responses generated by allergens. It also is indicated for all disorders of hypersensitivity, inclusing allergies, asthma, dermatitis, irritable bowel syndrome, reactive arthritis, and food related digestive disorders.

I am sure Callie will see your post and add to what I have posted already. She is the Allergy person on this board. Wonderful lady. She has helped me out with my allergy dogs.

Good luck and keep us posted.

forpaws

Posted : 5/2/2006 8:08:18 AM

brewers rice

Is brewers yeast. Some forms of B-12 are hiden as brewers yeast also. Just for your information.

jennie_c_d

Posted : 5/2/2006 9:32:57 PM

I'd throw a couple of teaspoonfuls of human grade fish oil on the Natural Balance and be done with it. If she likes it, and is doing well, aside from dryness, there's no reason to switch. Almost every dog food (and even fresh food) available is difficient in Omega 3s. We ALLLLL need an Omega 3 supplement. It's important, and helps with lots of body functions, like clear thinking and healthy skin and hair.

Ashleigh hamblin

Posted : 5/3/2006 11:20:34 AM

There's Natural Life Lamaderm Adult dog food. It's available at Wal-Mart at a really reasonable price and it's enriched with oatmeal and omega 3-6 fatty acids. They have an ingredient list on their website at nlpp.com

Kevin White

Posted : 5/3/2006 2:45:28 PM

Thanks for all the advice, much appreciated!

Now... I was thinking, and decided to stay with the NB, since it has shown me such a great improvement. but I would like to try and supplement with some fish oil, as was suggested. My main concern is that I have heard you will need to add vitamin E as well as the fish oil, and try and balance it to a degree. I just haven't a clue though what the ratio is, or how much I should be giving per lbs, or much of anything when it comes to supplementing dog food. I have tried looking back through old posts, but none of them really seem to give any details, with everyone always just suggesting to add this or that. Should I assume then that it is not THAT important, or...? As you can see, I am a little lost, but trying to piece things together. If anyone could point me to some place I could learn more about supplementing, or tell me themselves, it would be once again much appreciated.

jennie_c_d

Posted : 5/3/2006 10:06:42 PM

For my small, but sickly dog.... I do 2000-3000 mg of fish oil a day and 250 mg of vitamin e. Emma weighs in at 16 pounds. Her healthy sister, Teenie, is 13 pounds, and gets less than half of that. I'm thinking that Emma's amount would be fine for a healthy, but flaky 40 pound dog.

cakana

Posted : 5/3/2006 10:13:03 PM

If you're not comfortable supplementing separate fish oil and vit E, you can buy something like Derm Caps or Derm Caps ES. Another is Brite Coat XS, which I'm currently using. I think they may end up being a little bit more expensive, but it saves me from having to worry if I'm giving the correct ratio.

jessies_mom

Posted : 5/3/2006 10:30:39 PM

I use DermCaps for Jessie; they come in sizes for small, medium, and large dogs and include the proper amount of vitamin E. The pimples that your dog had on her stomach were most likely caused by a contact allergy from grass or a weed and not the food she was eating. A good shampoo can help a lot with the hot spots; Nova Pearls works well, and there is a conditioner made by Tropiclean called Oxymed that is very good; it has a red cross on the bottle. Good luck.