When your dog has food allergies, finding the right dog food formula can definitely be a challenge. Since dog food allergies are so common, it can be very difficult to actually figure out what your dog is allergic to. There are many common allergens that can cause your dog to experience an allergic reaction, most of which are included in less expensive dog food brands. Here is a general guide to dog allergies and hypoallergenic dog food formulas.
When Do I Need Hypoallergenic Dog Food?
If your dog is experiencing itchy skin, flaking skin, redness, watery eyes, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or other symptoms, they may have an allergy to something in their diet. This means that you will need to first identify the ingredient that they are allergic to. The best way to start doing this is to purchase a hypoallergenic dog food formula. These special formulas are usually made with limited ingredients, in order to help you narrow down a diet that is suitable for your dog. For example, California Natural is a type of dog food that is made with one fat source, one protein source and one carbohydrate source. This means that you can greatly eliminate the number of ingredients that your dog may be allergic to. Since many dogs are allergic to certain types of carbohydrates, some hypoallergenic dog food formulas use certain types of starches that aren’t known for causing allergic reactions.
Corn
One of the most common ingredients that can cause allergic reactions in dogs is corn. It has been proven that a dog can’t fully digest corn, and that it may cause allergic reactions when consumed over long periods of time. If your dog is allergic to corn, this usually means that you have been feeding them a low-quality dog food formula. Switching to a higher quality dog food formula may help lessen the symptoms, as long as the new formula is completely corn-free.
Wheat
If your dog is allergic to wheat, finding a formula that doesn’t include wheat can be very difficult. Wheat is included in many lower tier dog food formulas, usually as a filler ingredient. Many commercial dog food formulas also include wheat gluten. If your dog is allergic to wheat, be sure to choose a hypoallergenic dog food formula that is free of all wheat ingredients.
Chicken
There are now many hypoallergenic dog food formulas that are being made without chicken. This is because chicken or chicken ingredients are contained in most dog food formulas, and may be the cause of your dog’s allergic reaction.
Choosing an Exotic Protein
Some hypoallergenic dog food formulas are made with exotic protein sources. This may include venison, lamb, buffalo, duck or other meats. By choosing a hypoallergenic formula with one of these proteins, you can increase the chances that you will find a formula suitable to feed to a dog with food allergies. Many dogs are developing allergies to some of the most commonly used protein sources in regular dog food formulas.
5 Responses to “Hypoallergenic Dog Food”
I rode the ride of try anything but prescription diets for my colitis/allergy dog. You name it we tried it at some point. Sometimes a dog needs this type of diet. It works. Then everyone makes you feel guilty, so you change and your dogs gut goes to crap. Ifbit works use it. Supplement with pre and probiotics, fos, etc. I just want everyone to know that though you all trybto be helpful, there are some dogs that need and thrive on a diet like HA.
not all of purina foods are bad. although wellness or california natural are natural dog foods that i feed my dogs, not everyone can afford those diets. purina is a large brand, they make low end foods like mighty dog and little bits and cesar, but they also have purina one, purina proplan and purina prescription food. for clients that cannot afford the hollistic approach, i definatly recommend proplan by purina. purina is also such a large brand that they have the finances to do alot of extensive studies and they fund alot of research where as smaller companies may not. so although purina mighty dog is an awful food, not all purina is bad!
Hello,
I just found this post and wanted to let you know you have a number of choices. There are many good foods and you are right most are available a feed stores or higher end pet stores. I amsure no one likes a helpful comment to be a commercial but we have listed a number of food brands and their ingredients. Also some warnings and information about testing for allergies.
Hope this helps.
Jamie
I have a dog that is currently being fed Purina h/a dry dog food. Also, I would appreciate it if you can help find a dry dog food that is over the counter that I can buy at Pet store or Tack feed store.
Thanks
Donna
Please do some research on Purina dog foods! There are so many good foods out there, Purina is comparable to McDonalds for humans (bad for you) if your dog is prone to alergies, do a little research, perhaps try Acana Lamb and apple low alergy formula or something that doesnt’ include corn and other nasty fillers. it’s amazing how much less food your dog actually needs when they get a good quality diet my Cavalier (22lbs) eats just less than 1 cup of food per day.