dog with allergies.. need advice

brie · 08-01-2007, 12:31 AM

Hello all. My GSD seems to have allergies. She bites at her paws and rubs her head alot. I'm thinking she has food allergies, because she does it all the time; its not seasonal. She was being fed purina dog chow. I did research and saw that it is not a healthy food, so I switched her to Doctors Foster and Smith's senior dog formula. She still itches all the time. So, I was thinking to maybe try California Natural Herring and Sweet Potato food. I'm not sure though. I need your oppinions... Shes only been on the drs foster and smith for about a month.. Should i try it for a lil while longer? Would the California Natural food be okay to try for her? Anything else that you would recomend trying? She is 8 years old, but is very active, dosent act old at all really. Thanks in advance. It is so helpful to be able to come to this fourm to get and give advice

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all4thedogs · 08-01-2007, 09:04 AM

California Natural is a good allergy food, BUT your dog could also have indoor allergies which the food will not help.

You were right getting her off Dog Chow, that food is full of fillers and common allergens.

Your vet can do allergy testing so you can find out exactly what she is allergic too. You can also give her Benedryl and if you get your vets ok first Claritin.

I have a Great Dane with food, indoor and outdoor allergies. He takes Claritin daily and Benedryl if he has a flare up. We have been doing this for about 8 months now, and he is doing great.

BoxMeIn21 · 08-01-2007, 09:09 AM

Allergy tests are pretty much a shot in the dark. I've had better success with food elimination. You want to look for a food with one protien and one carb (preferrably not a grain). Natural Balance has a good one, Fish and sweet potato and Wellness carries a whole line of allergy foods.

brie · 08-01-2007, 04:39 PM

Thanks guys. If she has indoor allergies, what else could I do to help her?

ETA: Also, which of these would be best to try?

flint river ranch, 40lb=57.00
california natural, 36lb=53.00
timberwolf organics, 33lb=53.00

Anyone know where I could get free shipping?

Ginny01OT · 08-01-2007, 08:48 PM

I would steer clear of any dog food that has dried beet pulp or brewer's yeast in it. Although it can be argued that they are "good" ingredients, if your dog is susceptible to allergies I would try a dog food that did not have those ingredients which would be a heck of a lot easier then going for allergy testing. My dog had horrible ear infections, I put him on a predominantly raw diet and some timberwolf organics kibble, no more ear infections--now almost 11 months later!!!

all4thedogs · 08-02-2007, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BoxMeIn21

Allergy tests are pretty much a shot in the dark. I've had better success with food elimination.

I guess that would work if your dog ONLY has food allergies. We tried elimination (under vet supervision) and saw only minor improvement with Ryder. The problem is he also had indoor and outdoor allergies, so wouldnt show improvement until we found more of his allergens. Allergy testing can be very helpful, and the vet can have a serum made just for your dog to help with allergies. Its expensive, but if the allergies are severe I would consider it.

For indoor allergies, it really depends on what she is allergic to. Laundry soap, cleaning products, carpet, dust are all common. I switched to All free and clear for laundry soap, same with dryer sheets. We try to use natural cleaners (alot of vinegar and water), vacuum daily and keep the bedding clean.

Outdoor allergies are hard. Ryder is allergic to grass, but its not a severely.

I would speak to your vet about Benedryl and Claritin if the food doesnt help.

I personally like California Natural as a first step.

Dutchie · 08-02-2007, 04:02 PM

we took the frenchie to a pet allergist, she ate her feet and rubbed her face, she also would break out in hives and those would eventually get infected. After seeing the allergist she is 99% fine only some rare breakouts. We did not test for specific allergens but did some trial and error with diffrent med options. We now use atopica daily w/ no side effects. At first her regular vet put her on prenizone which was really bad for her- made her mean and grouchy it is not a long term solution to allergies fyi. you really need to see a specialist.I think she is allergic to outside pollens/grass or indoor allergens. We did not need to eliminate foods but we feed timberwolf organics- I would not use vet recomended food like hill's or purina that they carry in the office.

DivaDog · 08-02-2007, 05:14 PM

Actually even a dog with allergies other than food a change in diet helps big time. Allergies normally kick in because the immune system is struggling to cope. For example my dog has various food allergies - she cant eat any dried or wet dog food, she also has seasonal allergies - pollen etc. Because the food allergies were the worst I tackled those first - this was a few months before the summer - she normally increased in itching about may/june time - this year has been the best year for her by far. Because her immune system isnt struggling to fight all her food allergies it is better able to cope with the seasonal allergies. She has had no treatment for months now. If she eats something she shouldnt it will still set her off BUT and this is the most interesting thing - if she eats something she shouldnt her reactions are far less severe than they were...............I can only assume that a good healthy diet has given her body the chance to heal itself. Its not been easy and we had many set backs - but shes had no antihistamines for months and is no longer banned from going outside during the daytime.

Ginny01OT · 08-02-2007, 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brie

Thanks guys. If she has indoor allergies, what else could I do to help her?

ETA: Also, which of these would be best to try?

flint river ranch, 40lb=57.00
california natural, 36lb=53.00
timberwolf organics, 33lb=53.00

Anyone know where I could get free shipping?

If you order directly from the Timbewolf Organics website and spend over 10.00, you get free shipping, that is how I get my dog and cat food and have never had to pay for shipping.

luv4gsds · 08-02-2007, 08:45 PM

I would do a cleansing detox of the immune system and the liver then start off with a different type of kibble.

Laurelin · 08-02-2007, 09:16 PM

We feed California Natural Herring and Sweet Potato to our dogs because one has a food allergy. they're all doing really well on it and the one with the allergies hasn't had any problems since the switch. I'd say it's worth the try. California Natural has a really short ingredients list which is nice for dogs with allergies as well... And it's also pretty convenient here because they sell it at the nearby feed store and pet store along with Innova and such.

brie · 08-03-2007, 12:45 AM

thanks for the info. I'm going to try the California Natural Herring and Sweet Potato food.

Renoman · 08-05-2007, 12:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brie

Thanks guys. If she has indoor allergies, what else could I do to help her?

ETA: Also, which of these would be best to try?

flint river ranch, 40lb=57.00
california natural, 36lb=53.00
timberwolf organics, 33lb=53.00

Anyone know where I could get free shipping?

If you go the to www.timberwolforganics.com and order directly from them, they have free shipping for orders over $15.00. My personal favorite is the Timberwolf Organic. Been feeding it for several years.

newman · 08-05-2007, 12:30 PM

I would check with your vet my Shih Tzu has allergies and has to have a topical lotion applied to his underbelly and fur every other day and he also takes a form of Claritin for dogs once per day. I thought it was the food as well and turned out it wasn't!!!! Best of luck...

brie · 08-05-2007, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newman

I would check with your vet my Shih Tzu has allergies and has to have a topical lotion applied to his underbelly and fur every other day and he also takes a form of Claritin for dogs once per day. I thought it was the food as well and turned out it wasn't!!!! Best of luck...

Yeah, if this food dosent help I probably will end up taking her. How much does an average allergy test cost?

Scamp · 08-06-2007, 11:07 AM

Allergy tests are quite expensive and sometimes you can not find the culprit. My pup has a horrible allergy problem. She itches herself raw to the point of bleeding sometimes. The vet is still testing, trying to find what is causing it. We are thinking the grass and weeds, so I have to keep my grass mowed all of the time. We also give her Benedryl.

Good Luck

ShihtzuBeauty · 08-11-2007, 08:44 PM

Ahh allergies can be such a pain in the rear. My Eve used to have them really bad and she and JoJo still have some if they get ahold of something they shouldn't. Eve used to have to get pred. (steroid) shot about ev. 6mths.

About 2yrs. ago I started feeding Natural Balance fish and sweet potatoe. They Loved this food and all of them did Great on it then some of their products hit the recall list and I was afraid of cross contamination. I also stayed away not only from chicken but grains, soy, corn and wheat and not only in kibble but in treats as well.

Now though, for about 5mths. we've been on Solid Gold Barking at the Moon which offers everything that the Natural Balance did but I feel safer feeding this. I also stay w/their cookies. Mine are all doing Great on this food too and I'll add sweet potatos, peas or grean beans to it from time to time to mix it up. They get bored.

I haven't had to get a shot for them since I've gotten them on a better food.