How to Stop Dog Allergies

There is not one definitive way to diagnose if your dog has dog food allergies. There are a couple of factors to look at.

Dogs that are intolerant to certain foods may have physical problems such as diarrhea, vomiting, gassiness, or bloating of the stomach.

Food allergies are caused by an immune system reacting inappropriately to the present food that is being ingested. This is when we try to find the offending food to decrease or eliminate the problem.

Dogs also suffer other symptoms due to actual allergies rather than intolerance. Itchy skin is the most common symptom of a dog who is allergic to the food that he is presently on.

This itchiness is usually noticed on the dog's sides, tail, butt, paws, face and ears. The incessant itching, scratching and licking is sometimes as irritating to us as it must by for your dog.


The allergy needs to be found and eliminated quickly, so the incessent licking and scratching doesn't go on to cause open wounds that can get infected.

An obvious food allergy will show up soon after switching or changing your dog's food. Removing the recently introduced new food should take care of this problem. Adding only one new food at a time over a period of many weeks will help define which foods your dog can tolerate.

The difficulty of finding a cause for dog food allergies becomes more challenging when the allergy starts after your dog has been on the same food for years, and no new food changes have been recently introduced.

This is the immune system reacting to a sudden sensitivity to the allergen, and is harder to figure out what has caused this problem. In this case you will have to start from scratch to try and eliminate this dog food allergy. First you will have to completely stop the usual food altogether.


Although we all know by now that we are supposed to slowly introduce new foods slowly, and one at a time, in this case switching suddenly is necessary.

Put your dog on a diet consisting of foods to which he has never previously eaten.

If you have fed a chicken based dog food, then you can try another protein based kibble. Many foods for dogs with allergies are completely grain free, because grains are a known allergy causing ingredient for many dogs.

After starting a new diet, it may take several weeks for the allergy to slowly stop. Introduce a new diet consisting of a minimum essential ingredients, but making sure the diet is also nutritionally complete.

The fewer the better.

There are many excellent high quality, chemical free, grain free dog foods available which have just the very basic ingredients necessary for optimum health.


Always consult a vet if the symptoms are sudden and severe.

There are also many other types of allergies that are not food related, such as infestation of parasites and fleas, environmental or even seasonal allergies.

These should be eliminated as the cause of your dog's problems and are treated differently than dog food allergies.

It is not always a quick process, but if you can relieve your dog of discomfort, it is worth time spent investigating.


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Allergies and the food we feed our dogs are generally related. I found eliminating low quatlity dog food has completely cured my dog, Lady, of a horrible allery problem. This included incessanct paw licking, scratching and itching. Thousands of dollars spent at the vet couldn't help determine the exact cause, but within one month on a special grain free diet , she was 100% better. Find the top recommended foods for dogs with allergies here.

Source: http://www.articlealley.com/article_1065034_54.html

How to Identify the Cause of Dog Allergies?

There are many conditions that can make a dog itch or have hair loss, including endocrine, autoimmune, infectious, and parasitic skin diseases. It takes some detective work to identify the cause. A veterinarian may be able to diagnose the problem or may refer your dog to a veterinary dermatologist, a specialist in treating skin conditions in animals. If allergies are suspected, the first thing a veterinarian will usually ask is if the pet is on a flea-control product, Flea allergies are the most common type of allergies and the easiest to control. Dog owners have many options for flea control on dogs and in their environment.

Once flea allergies are ruled out and if the itch is non-seasonal, food allergies are checked next. Food allergies are not related to a season, while many atopic allergies start out as a seasonal problem. Dogs that develop atopic allergies usually show symptoms between 1 and 5 years of age, but food allergies can crop up at any time. They are high on the list of suspects when a dog first exhibits itchy skin at an age less than 6 months or over 5 years.

To test for food allergies, the dog is put on an "elimination diet" for at least 10 weeks, which means it is fed food that consists of a protein and carbohydrate that the dog has not eaten before, such as duck, venison, and potatoes. Veterinarians offer these special foods, and some may be found in retail stores. Or the owner may choose to feed the dog a homemade diet of foods recommended by the veterinarian.

If the dog's itching subsides by at least half, the allergen is considered to be one or more food ingredients. To confirm this, the owner can reintroduce the old food to see if the symptoms return. To find the specific ingredients that trigger the allergy, the owner should feed the special diet again and add one ingredient at a time from the old diet for at least a week until the itching increases, indicating that the last added ingredient is an allergen. Or the owner may choose to stay with the special food to avoid causing the dog discomfort each time an allergic ingredient is fed.

While the dog is being tested for food allergies, it should not be given treats, chewable medications, table scraps, or rawhide toys that may contain an allergen.

To check for atopic and contact allergies, veterinary dermatologists use an intradermal allergy test, or skin reaction test. The dog is mildly sedated, a postcard-sized area on the side of the dog is shaved, and small amounts of potential allergens are injected into the skin on the shaved area. If the dog is allergic to a particular substance, the skin will become inflamed at the area of the injection.

Find out more information about how Immunotherapy is used in treating dog allergies at http://dogallergiestreatment.com


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