Allergies In Dogs
Allergies in dogs are an immune response to something in the body or environment so, it could be an environmental allergy, a food allergy or their diet, which is causing something to go wrong inside their body. Your vet will usually start with an assumption that there is an allergy to something when your dog has a rash or a skin condition that can’t be easily solved.
Allergies in dogs are an immune response to something in the body or environment so.
An Enviromental Or Food Allergy
Environmental causes for dog allergies are usually easier to identify than food allergies. Food allergies are becoming a more commonly diagnosed allergy problem, and its difficult to identify what food is causing the allergy. It can be one ingredient in the food or it can be a mixture of different foods.
Allergy symptoms can start when they’re puppies, so it’s important that you pay attention to how your puppy behaves after you’ve fed him or he has gone outside. If the allergy is from outdoors a rash will typically appear on the skin and a topical treatment will be sufficient. But you will need to keep the dog out of the allergen.
Try to be patient with your dog, redirecting his attention to something else, loving on him, and give relief the best you can until the problem is solved.
Yeast Infections – Becoming More and More Common 
Does your dog have a yeast problem ? A yeast infection can be confused with an allergy to food or the environment. It your dog is diagnosed with a yeast infection Apple Cider Vinegar works well. I give my dog 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar 2 times a day. When no-one else including my western/ natural vet could not figure out how to solve her rare yeast problem I gave her Apple Cider Vinegar and in less than a week she stopped licking her feet. Apple Cider Vinegar is acidic so it kills off the yeast. It is great for any dog, and for people too !
Just know, if the problem is internal, topical methods of relief will only be temporary. You have to fix the problem on the inside. It may take a 2 week period of medicine to calm down the body so that something natural like Apple Cider Vinegar can work. Start the Apple Cider Vinegar while waiting for your appointment with the vet.
Picture This ! Imagine you woke up one morning to get ready for work or to start your day at home. You start scratching your arm and don’t think anything of it. Not until the itching continued and did not stop. You get some itching cream, rub it into your arm and feel relief for maybe a minute and then it starts up again. You would probably scratch yourself until you bled and would continue to try to find something that would stop the itching. But in the meantime continue to scratch it even though it hurts. That’s how your dog feels.
Dog Food Allergies Symptoms
One of the most common signs of food allergies is dry or itchy skin. It can also start with a dog you have rescued. So pay close attention when you get a new dog at any time. You also need to be sure you are feeding a variety of proteins. If your dog is fed only one protein for years he can develop an allergy to it.
Visible symptoms of allergies in dogs are scratching and licking. The scratching may happen so much that he develops raw spots on his skin. If your dog has a thick coat of fur and he’s itching, you’ll have to spread his fur backward to be able to see his skin. Another symptom would be incessant licking of any part of its body. It will become raw, chapped or may even have a scab from so much licking. If your dog is licking his feet they will bleed until the itching is relieved because the dog will continue to lick.
More On Dog Food Allergies Symptoms
Dogs can also be prone to getting ear infections. You may notice an odor coming from their ear and there may also be swelling. These symptoms are not a guarantee, but a possibility.
Food allergies in dogs can create even bigger problems if they persist. The can become more severe. You may see a discharge coming from one or both ears. Senior dogs with food allergies can experience throwing up after eating as well as loose stools or diarrhea. It these cases you need to see your veterinarian right away. These symptoms could be an indication of something more severe.
All dogs can experience a mix of any of the common symptoms associated with food allergies. Most puppy and adult dog foods contain items that can trigger these allergies. Look for things like fillers, soy, wheat grains, dyes, and chemicals to make the food taste better such as aflatoxins, heterocyclic amines, acrylamides,polybrominated diphenyl ethers (found in flame retardants). These can also be cancer causing. If you don’t know what all the ingredients are in the food, don’t buy it.
Possible Solutions For Identifying Dog Food Allergies
Another solution to identifying your dogs allergies could be an Elimination Diet. One way to check to see if your dog is allergic to the food that he’s eating is to do an elimination diet. Look at the ingredients list on the food you’ve been feeding, and buy other foods that don’t contain that item. For instance, if there’s dairy in the food that you’ve been feeding him, then buy one that’s dairy free. If you give him the dairy free dog food and his allergies clear up, then you know you’ve found his allergy trigger.
Do the elimination diet with each food on whatever you’ve originally been giving him so that you can narrow it down to what’s causing his reaction. You’ll need to feed him the food without the suspected allergen for about five days to a week to see if there’s any change.
If you’re using regular dog food, then you can change brands and you can also look for food that’s organic. Organic dog food doesn’t contain the common allergy foods that regular dog food does, such as fillers. If this does not work go to the vet and let them know details about the food elimination diet you have done.
Allergies in dogs can be hard to start. But with perseverance and working with your veterinarian it should be able to be solved. Just know it may take up to 6 months to figure out. You want to solve the problem not cover it up with medication for the rest of your dogs life like a vet I had. Once its solved you will have a happy healthy dog to enjoy for a long time !
