What Is A Dog Food Allergy?
Unfortunately
many dog food allergies normally manifest in your pet in a way that we
can not see. However one way of knowing if your dog may have a dog food
allergy is that their skin becomes itchy. Often this results in them
scratching themselves on the feet, legs, chewing of the tail, shaking
the head, loss of hair, rubbing of the face, anal itching along with
recurrent ear infections and sores appearing. But more often than not a
food allergy in a dog can be overlooked as it is assumed that their
skin problems are being caused by other health issues. This may include
fleas, mange or external allergens such as pollen and dust.
But where food allergies are concerned in a dog they may also be other symptoms apart from a skin reaction. This includes:-
1. Vomiting
2. Diarrhea
3. Flatulence
4. Sneezing
5. Asthma like symptoms (seem to have difficulty breathing and wheeze)
6. Some may even have seizures whilst other their behavior may change.
However in some cases a food allergy may not be suspected as the dog
has been eating the same food for years without any reaction to it. But
just like us a dog can develop a particular sensitivity or allergy
towards a product that they have had not problems with before. This may
occur because the manufacturer has made a change in the ingredients
that is now using and so an allergic reaction may occur. What is
important to remember is that a food allergy can appear at any age in
any dog as well as in both dogs and bitches even if no alterations have
been made to the product that you use.
One of the best ways of treating a dog who has a food allergy is by
using an elimination diet. Although this will help to remove the
symptoms it does not always provide your dog with nutritionally
complete meal. So the best way to do this is by producing specially
tailored home prepared meals. But for those of you who do not have the
time to prepare such a meal then there are a wide variety of dog foods
around which provide a vast selection of alternatives. So the best
thing you can do is read the ingredients on the product carefully and
closely observe your dog for at least a couple of months in order to
determine whether the food you have selected is appropriate as well as
being allergen free.
So if you are concerned that your dog may be suffering from a dog food
allergy then talk to your vet and look at what sorts of alternative
foods you can give them.
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