Allergy elimination diet (long)

[Patricia]

Hi,

Edward has had occasional flare ups of horrible skin since he was a puppy. It gets really itchy, then he starts getting a hotspot, then it goes all crusty everywhere if I'm not quick enough getting rid of the hotspot. I groom him regularly, and have a blower that I use after every walk so he never stays wet or dirty for long. The vet thinks that he must have an allergy, he's on antibiotics for his skin for another week, and it's all clearing up well.
At the moment I am feeding him Orijen, with no grains in. The vet has recommended feeding him Hills ultra allergen free for 6 - 8 weeks, and then we can have the allergy tests run. I'm not that impressed with feeding him Hills though and this one is REALLY expensive. So I was thinking of feeding him raw. If I keep him on only 1 or 2 protein sources then he will still be able to be tested for allergens. But what meat would be the best to start with? Should I start him on raw once the antibiotics are over to give his digestive system a chance to recover? Any advice would be great, thank you!

Tricia

 

[Alex]

A couple thoughts- There are several high quality kibbles that would be appropriate for an allergy elimination diet. Which Orijen formula have you been feeding? Blue Buffalo Basics and Natural Balance LID's to name a few.
Raw proteins are often tolerated better than processed proteins, so even if he's got a sensitivity to say, chicken in kibble, he may handle raw chicken just fine.
I've been brooding over a raw allergy elimination diet myself, Monty's had some skin problems recently, and the culprits are the cheap and easily available meats like chicken and pork, and I'm not sure I could afford a balanced, raw diet of more novel meats :/ Fortunately, it's looking like a fire ant attack as opposed to an allergy, but I was thinking if it comes to that, I'd do a high quality limited ingredient kibble diet rather than any of the perscription stuff. For dogs this size, an rx diet for two months would be hundreds and hundreds of dollars!!!
If you've been considering raw, I would just go for it as a first step for the next few months, feeding a full variety of raw foods after the first month or so, then reevaluate whether an allergy test is needed.
Here is a great collection of resources for starting a raw diet. Most people start with chicken quarters and go from there.
Dogster Raw Forum

 

[JackandKelly]

Wellness also make an allergy line
http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/categories.aspx?pet=dog&cat=3

 

[Thule's Mom]

Elimination diet would have been a nightmare for me... Thule was allergy tested and we found out she spiked highest for Carrots, then lamb, beef, chicken, oatmeal ..... and a number of others plus environmental allergies; Carrots are in just about all the foods, including Orijen... lamb and oatmeal are the 'go to' items for dogs with suspected allergies. I'm currently feeding TOTW Pacific Stream, but Wellness makes a "Simple" line, they have a fish formula that I may try.

 

[lapage24]

I just went through this with Hera. ALL of her diarrhea issues and skins issues, etc. are completely gone now that she's on raw. After the last visit to the vet when she was still having issues we had dropped another $300 trying to figure out what was going on. The vet wanted her to continue on the metronidazole AGAIN. I finally had enough and decided to go with my gut and spent the weekend putting a raw diet together for her. I stopped the metronidazole the same day I started her on raw. She had diarrhea for another 12 hours maybe and she hasn't had any since then. It's been about 2 months now.

It is more expensive this way (but not much more expensive than premium kibble to be honest) , but I figure it is MUCH less expensive than what we were going through with the vet. He just saw her for her wellness exam last week and was blown away by her health now. Everything has improved. The vet and I are thinking that it may actually be a preservative or something that caused all of her problems. I tried every grain-free kibble under the sun that didn't contain chicken or eggs (known allergy) and had as few ingredients as possible. Raw is the only thing that has worked.

We tried chicken first (which is how we figured out her allergy to that), then beef and pork. She tolerates pork, but I just prefer giving her beef.

I am ecstatic about her health and how everything has turned out. She used to thumb her nose at dinner sometimes and now she can't wait to eat every meal, so I know she's ecstatic too.

 

[BaileyBear]

I agree with Deb about elimination. Bailey tested allergy positive for lamb, fish, and chicken. Would have taken a long time to figure that out. Not sure how expensive allergy testing would be for you, but I paid $140.00. I think it was well worth it to have the info and move on from there. We ended up going raw because very few foods don't have something he's allergic to and those are just bluck. Now if I could just control the rest of his world and get rid of all the environmental allergens.

 

[BaileyBear]

Forgot to add that Bailey had a diet made up by a Canine nutritionist and she recommends starting with chicken when going raw. Remove the skin for the first few days because it can be too fatty until the dog's system gets used to raw. We started with turkey.

 

[ardeagold]

If you're going to consider raw, make sure you research a lot so the dog gets the proper balance of nutrients.

There are so many things a dog can be allergic to. My son's dog is allergic to chicken in any form and many foods use chicken fat even if they don't use chicken itself, even in some of the grain-free fish diets. He uses one of the Wellness "allergy" foods now and Coco is doing well.

I have a Golden who's severely allergic to wheat. So he gets none..ever. One piece of spaghetti will set off ear problems within 12 hrs. His was easy to figure out...his mother had the exact same thing, which is what prompted us to go to a corn/wheat/soy food to begin with. Then we went to grain free...altogether.

One thing to perhaps consider...is he allergic to the water he's swimming in? Molly gets skin infections when she swims in certain water. She has to be fully bathed with an anti-microbial shampoo, and COMPLETELY dried after every swim or the skin problems flare right up. We also use a final rinse of apple cider vinegar and water, and leave it in. It's also anti-microbial.

 

[Sierra Newfs]

If you're at the point of considering an elimination diet, I urge you to find a great veterinary dermatologist to work with. Working with a dermatologist can save money and lots of heartache in the long run. The American College of Veterinary Dermatology has a list of dermatologists at: https://www.acvd.org/

Elimination diets can be tough. You'll need to discuss ahead of time if a commercial or home-prepared diet is better for you and Edward. Most vets will balk at a commercial non-prescription limited ingredient diet for a formal elimination diet since the manufacturers are not necessarily upholding the same standards to make sure no cross contamination occurs between batches. Also discuss any medications (heartworm or flea preventatives; NSAIDs) which may be given in chewable form, flavored toothpastes, chews, and other household pets (snacking in a litter box or drinking from the same water bowls). Any secondary infections will need to be addressed.

I'm happy to send you a copy of Dr. Wojciechowski's notes from her dermatology talk at the '08 national.

The WSAVA posts their proceedings online and is a wonderful resource for information. http://www.wsava.org/

Deer For Dinner--How Important Are Elimination Diets For Itchy Patients?
Ralf S. Mueller, DACVD, DECVD, FACVSc -Munich, Germany
http://www.vin.com/proceedings/Proceedings.plx?CID=WSAVA2008&Category=3862&PID=23956&O=Generic

Interpretation of Laboratory Tests for Allergies in Dogs
Petra J. Roosje, DVM, PhD, DECVD - Bern, Switzerland
http://www.vin.com/proceedings/Proceedings.plx?CID=WSAVA2010&Category=8388&PID=56228&O=Generic

Individualized Treatment in Canine Atopic Dermatitis
Douglas J. DeBoer, DVM, DACVD - Madison, WI, USA
http://www.vin.com/proceedings/Proceedings.plx?CID=WSAVA2010&Category=8388&PID=56253&O=Generic

Advances in Canine Atopic Dermatitis
Douglas J. DeBoer, DVM, DACVD - Madison, WI, USA
http://www.vin.com/proceedings/Proceedings.plx?CID=WSAVA2010&Category=8388&PID=56244&O=Generic

Good luck!

 

[R Taft]

Annabelle is very allergic to many things, especially wheat.........But we have since found that it is mainly preservatives of any kind she is allergic to, so we feed RAW. She cannot tolerate chicken bought through the shops, but can eat our homegrown, so that says something to what is in the farmed chicken. She also does organic pork, but not "factory raised" pigs.........We are lucky we have our own meat and an organic Butcher who is very generous with meat and bones. Our dogs also have whole RAW fish, which they adore. Oats and barley are the main grains for breakfast. Our dogs have done very well on RAW for many many years now. And Toby has gained 10lbs in the last week with his RAW diet. Mind you he is eating about 3lbs of meat and two eggs plus all the other oats/barley and additives. Salmon oil and Vit E plus kelp and Vit C are also added. It took me a while to get Annabelle back to normal.

Annabelle had allergy skin test done at a Uni to find out her wheat and preservative allergy

However my friend feeds Eagle pack sardines/salmon no wheat (holistic) to her very alergic Labrador and Tina does really well on that.
Good luck , Ronnie