Which food for puppy allergy

[Dzr]

My 19 week old puppy has had spots on her tummy since I've had her. They go with antibiotics only to come back. She now has black spots. Vets thinks it's a food allergy and currently on JWB wet food turkey and rice for past week (after their dried food) but she is still scratching her muzzle and ears and paws. I heard dried food could have dust mites which cause allergies which is why I changed to wet. Any ideas? I feel very useless.

[PollySpaull]

Have you thought about raw feeding? My boy when I first got him had a very dry, scurfy coat. He was quite itchy with it too. I started raw feeding and have never looked back. I use a complete raw (it comes in boxes and I defrost and feed) supplemented with things like chicken wings, lamb spines etc. My boy is thriving on it. I'd be happy to give you the name of our supplier if you wanted. It really made a difference to Monty and I'd never change now.

[Ambler54]

Rosie has had all sorts of problems , usually of the runny variety , but also itched like crazy on Burns .After our last bout of runs and more antibiotics I saw a different vet who suggested removing all grain and that included rice and suggested just a salmon and potato. I found Barking Heads Salmon and potato wet and dry and am pleased with the result. I think Growling Tums does a similar product.It has very few ingredients, is made in the UK with decent grade products. Might be worth a try.

[Patp]

First of all I would have blood tests done.  At least that way you will know what to feed and what to avoid.  Your insurance might cover the cost.

Even raw fed dogs can have a flare up on some food types / treats etc

[EmmaRose]

I agree with Pat, an allergy test will identify any allergens which you can then exclude from the diet/environment. 
Our oldest lab had terrible allergies as a puppy and is in fact allergic to most things she was tested against but especially grain and beef/duck/other red meats.  So she has grain free food with fish by Fish4dogs.  I think grain allergies/intolerances are very common but there are lots of grain free foods available (wet and dry).  Holly is also allergic to grasses/pollen and so we have to limit walks in long grass in the summer otherwise she can get really irritated.

Hope you find a solution soon

[Archie bean]

I would go down the grain free route before anything else. Fish and potato is a good exclusion diet to start with. Check the ingredients though as some fish and potato kibbles contain poultry fat. 

[AlanT]

Fish, Chicken, Rice. Ordinary human grade food and a bit of cooking.

Then you will know exactly what you fed. Anything manufactured is a mixture of stuff you don't know.

[Emilyoliver]

One of my dogs has a sensitive stomach and what appeared to be allergies as a puppy.  He settled really well on Simpsons sensitive puppy food (salmon and potato).  May be worth a try.

[Theo961]

You could try one of the less sensitive foods and see how you get on but if it continues it may be worth having allergy tests at the vet. My friend tried all sorts of the less sensitive foods with her lab, when she had the test carried out it was the complete reverse and he was actually better with the foods that cause most dogs problems. 

[Dzr]

Thanks all. I don't want to do the allergy tests as she is still young and I have heard (from vets) that they aren't always helpful particularly since she can't take any allergens till a year.

I have started her on Lilys grain free dry food. I actually ran out of her old JWB dry food so couldn't combine to ease in the new food for more than 2 days and she has had wet poops ever since. She actually just sniffs at the food and walks away and only goes back as she realises this is all she is going to get. How long do I persist for her belly to settle down and her poops being hard? Also, should I be concerned that she isn't as enthusiastic about eating it?

[AlanT]

Took nearly two years to get poo that wasn't quite runny.

Am now using low-fat kibble and a variety of wet-food and raw and fish so on. Changes on a daily basis.

But this dog is in perfect health and has a wonderful coat and loads of energy.

[Archie bean]

If she's got used to the wet food I'm not surprised she's not really interested in kibble.  Archie used to be fed a mixture as a pup but he got very fussy.  He eventually just used to spit the kibble out and I abandoned it completely. A good wet food formulated for a sensitive pooch is what I would be looking at. Salmon and potato is what I have been told to feed Archie due to chronic colitis. I use Wainwrights wet trays but also occasionally fishmongers finest or forthglade. I don't know if there's a puppy version of any of these in the salmon and potato variety though.

Archie also has problems with itchy skin. Often it seems to be seasonal allergies. It's a nightmare for both of us when it's bad but I mostly manage to keep it under control with simple antihistamine tablets. This summer has been really bad but, thank goodness, he is settling down now it's turning colder.

[Ambler54]

Took a while to a) find a food Rosie would eat b) that didnt give runny poos.She managed to catch Giardia so we has a spell on a prescription diet for sensitive tums until her tum settled and I think that really helped sort Her out, then introduced a salmon and potato food as suggested by the vet, no grains not even rice.But really until then We never really got on top of the poo issue. And She loves the wet food so now We have kibble in the morning which She eats when She is ready and kibble/ wet mix for tea .Keeping to the two meals a day so as not to overload the tum.But it took a long time to get anywhere near a solid poo and something She would eat.I go to a puppy class and We had to do food manners ie put the food down and make the dog wait until told to eat, dont think anyone believed Me when I said I had to walk around with the food trying to persuade the dog to eat.
Rosie is now 10 1/2 months and it has taken until recently to sort Her out. Good luck and be patient.

[bizzylizzy]

I would also suggest giving raw food some thought, I was absolutely amazed at the und positive effect it had on Humphrey's coat and it was noticable within a matter of days. I would never go back to processed food now.

[Maisiesmum]

Hi DZR, hope your little girl is ok. Have you managed to find out what it is yet? I'm asking because my 5 month old pup has the same. Her belly has always been dry but a few weeks ago I discovered black spots under her one arm pit and a few on her chest and leg on the same side.
The vet thought it was a kind of dermatitis, she actually called it a kind of age related acne  She is on antibiotics for ten days and then we have to take her back.
I told the vet that we feed her raw but she said it didn't make any difference as they can still be allergic to any ingredient in any food! Makes sense I suppose but as I don't want to go down the route of shovelling antibiotics in her all the time I'd be very interested if you have had any more info