It is hard to shop for your dog if it suffers skin allergy. Grain free foods are expensive and it will take time to get all the information about the best dog food for skin allergies.
If the dog suffers poor digestion issue and skin irritation and other problems had been ruled out, then you should have it tested to know if it is not suffering food allergies. Food allergy with dogs is something genetic and it can be passed down from one parent to its pup. The problem takes place if a dog is trying to break down the protein and this is why the foods that cause allergies are these that contain proteins.
The foods that cause allergies are these that contain rabbits, pork, soy, lamb, chicken, egg, corn, wheat, dairy, beef and fish.
You can find blood and skin tests at the market and this is where you should start if you want to know if your dog suffers allergy or not. If you want to know the type of the food that causes allergy to your dog, you have to start by elimination process. This is done by taking off all the foods that a dog is eating and to substitute them with something new that they have never taken before. Afterwards, the old food is introduced back slowly and this is how you can be clear if the food is behind the allergy or not.
If you are already aware of the foods that cause allergy, then the following step is to make sure that you do not include them in their diet. You can ask the veterinarian to prescribe the food for your dog, or you can make the food on your own using safe ingredient. You may also try commercial foods with safer ingredients.
You have to give the hypoallergenic dog food for at least 8 weeks before you know that the dog is responding to it well. The dog may experience the improvement against their food allergy in 6 weeks; however different dog breeds may take some time to respond to the new food. You have to give your dog only hypoallergenic dog food and you have to avoid other types of food, flavored medication and treats.
When the food allergy had been diagnosed by the use of the hypoallergenic dog food, then the next challenge is to confirm this diagnosis. If the original diet is given, then the allergy may come back in two weeks.
If you want to get information about the best dog food for skin allergies, it is better to talk to a veterinarian. Hydrolyzed diet and Novel protein which are available only with prescription, they are better compared to these that are bought in the stores. The store foods may contain some traces of allergens even when they are not listed at a label. Deciding to eliminate important ingredients away of the diet of your dog, without the help of the veterinarian, will not be the best idea. It may lead to the nutritional imbalances and it will be hard to know underlying problems.
