Tuesday, April 9, 2013

My Allergies: Part II

A while ago I wrote all about my outdoor allergies in my blog post My Allergies: Part I. Unfortunately, last fall at my annual checkup, my vet also diagnosed me with food allergies.

To my mom, this was her worst nightmare. She had been using the immunotherapy on me all summer giving me shots and now this. Here is why the vet diagnosed me with food allergies. I constantly dug at my ears, while mom constantly gave me ear drops. Yet they were still red, and really icky inside. That is the best way for mom to describe how they looked. They didn't feel too great either. At my checkup my mom let the vet know how concerned she was with the ears and the scratching despite the fact that she was giving me the shots. She felt I should not be having these symtoms still. One thing to learn about the immunotherapy is that it can take a few years for it to work completely. But the doctor said that he was sure the ears were caused by food allergies. As a very experienced vet he sees this sort of thing all the time, and he was very confident in his diagnosis. Well, mom is very confident in my vet so she trusted him.

The first thing we learned is that you can't be given a test for food allergies like you can with environmental, or if you do it isn't as reliable. The only way you can test for food allergies is to start eliminating everything. 

Foods to Eliminate

  • No grains, including rice and potatoes
  • No beef
  • No poultry (chicken, turkey, duck)

Then we were given suggestions on what to try.

Foods to Try

  • Sweet potatoes
  • Lamb
  • Salmon/Fish
  • Venison
Mom took off to the store and got totally overwhelmed by all the choices and had a hard time finding a food that would fit in with the suggestions. She gave up at the large pet retailer and went to my shelter Wright-Way Rescue because she knew they sold the high quality food by Fromm's. She came home with their Salmon Tunalini for me to try and I liked it really well. She started working on increasing my new food while cutting back on my old food. But, after several days I started to not feel well. Mom noticed me licking the floor and eating leaves and grass outside. Off to the vet I went and after a quick blood test I was diagnosed with mild pancreatitis. I was very lucky that it was caught so soon. The vet recommend that I try a food with less fat. One of the disadvantages of the grain-free foods is that they are higher in fat. My Fromm's food had a crude fat percentage of 16%. The vet recommend staying as close to 10% as possible.

Off mom went to the store AGAIN! This time she came home with Nature's Recipe Grain Free Salmon, Sweet Potato & Pumpkin Recipe. It had a crude fat percentage of 12%. Well, after eating it only a few times my allergies got worse. I had a severe reaction to something in the food. The only thing mom could figure out was that it contained poultry fat.


Natural Balance to the Rescue!



This time mom went to Petco where a very helpful person helped her pick out Natural Balance Sweet Potato & Bison Formula. The third time is the charm! I have been eating it ever since! I love it and have had no reactions to it at all! Thanks Natural Balance for making a high quality, natural food for us problem doggies!

On a side note mom had always fed me a little canned food with my kibble. We found Wellness Lamb and I love it! But Natural Balance also makes a canned sweet potato & bison but our local store doesn't carry it. Maybe Truman will have it at Blog Paws? I hope so!

Love Dolly the Doxie (mix)
xoxox

15 comments:

  1. It looks like we share all the same allergies - I have the same food allergies too but I am also allergic to lamb and even wool!!! That is bad for a sheepdog to be allergic to sheep!!! We also has to hunt and hunt to find a good food and found a six fish blend that only has 10 % fat...it is hard to find low fat food that isn't full of chicken meal

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    1. BOL! Sorry! But you got to admit a sheepdog allergic to lamb and wool is pretty funny. But I am sorry about your allergies I know they aren't any fun and I am glad you found a good food too! Love Dolly

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  2. We feel so sorry for those of you that have these problems, the dog food makers are more concerned with selling crap in lieu of making quality food the vets and peeps want.

    the mad Scots

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    1. Thanks guys I think all that crap is what started all these allergies! Love Dolly

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  3. Buying food has become so confusing. We just switched to the Fromm's grain free limited ingredient and it seems to be agreeing with everyone so far. But we only just switched a month ago. Time will tell.

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    1. Fromm's is probably one of the best foods on the market. I ate it as a puppy so I am glad that is what you are eating. Doxies deserve the best! Love Dolly

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  4. Woof! Woof! Can totally relate ... I had the same issues. Lucky the vet worked with us and YES the process of elimination. GRAINS is the big thing. I only get it with mom's homemade treats. My food is high in protein. Go to smaller not chain pet store. You'll see other quality brands and the people are more educated. Mom will see you in BlogPaws. Lots of Golden Woofs, Sugar

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    1. Yes grains are the problem so mom is even worried about giving me organic treats with grain. Petco has that bulk treat bar where she buys these little grain free natural treats that I like. Hope you come to Blog Paws with mom! Love Dolly

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  5. Well squirrel snot...I hate ya'll went through all dis, it is amazin' how hard it is to find a proper food these days. What is even more shockin' is dat some dogs be allergic to CHICKEN!!!!!!!! OMD, dat is just terribles!
    I has severe allergies to da outdoors and to my yearly shots.

    Our vet tolded us to go to da Tractor Supply store fur food sense their foods tend to be fur huntin' dogs and has more protein.

    Puddles

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    1. That's a very interesting suggestion about the farm store! Allergic to the outdoors is the worst sorry you are too! Love Dolly

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  6. Wow that is not easy trying to find the right kind of food. We hope it gets sorted out. I am lucky I can eat anything. Have a wonderful Wednesday.
    Best wishes Molly

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  7. we feel your pain totally! Cody (our cat) supposedly has food allergies (I say SUPPOSEDLY) because for the past few years he has had to eat Royal Canin's Veterinary formula green pea and rabbit food...but...a week ago I gave him a TINY piece of turkey (which he has NEVER had)......guess what? He did NOT have a flare up. That leads me to think that the vet was wrong and that Cody's allergies are really environmental.
    Good luck, it is NOT fun and all of the allergy food is quite expensive

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  8. I get treats sometimes like table scraps of stuff I am not suppose to have and I do okay. Its probably the grain but you can never know for sure what it is that is causing the reaction. Love Dolly

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