How to tell if your dog is allergic to their food
It can often be difficult to pinpoint whether your dog is allergic to a certain ingredient in their food or whether the symptoms they’re experiencing are from something else i.e. the environment., If however, your dog is experiencing some unpleasant and prolonged symptoms that don’t seem to be budging, your vet will be able to run some tests to get to the exact route of the problem. It’s often helpful to know which symptoms to look out for, so we’ve listed the main ones below.
Symptoms to look out for:
- Upset stomach; wind, diarrhoea and/or vomiting
- Unhealthy skin; this could be flaky and dry, itchy or even oozing
- Unhealthy coat; patchy and/or bare in places or even dry
- Frequent sneezing or a runny nose
- Irritating ears, nose or eyes
- Swollen, irritable feet that they regularly lick or bite
Caring for a dog with food allergies
While some dogs are allergic to certain meat types, others are allergic to grains. We’d usually advise seeking vet advice prior to switching foods, however if the vet is unable to pinpoint exactly what ingredient they’re allergic to, the next best option is to try different food types and closely monitor your dogs reaction. If certain meats aggregate them, switch to a new one. If it’s the grains, switch to grain-free. There’s plenty of foods especially catered to dogs with allergies, from Imperial Food, through to Smolke. Many of our customers opt for hypoallergenic foods, avoiding things like wheat, soy, corn, additives and other problem-causing ingredients.
What if it’s the environment?
Sadly, if your dog is allergic to something in the environment, its just a case of managing his or her symptoms. The best thing to do would be to bathe him/her every couple of weeks with a medicated shampoo, which will help to relieve the discomfort they may be in.
Foods we recommend for dogs with allergies or sensitive digestion:
- Smolke Grain-Free for adults
- Smolke Grain-Free for puppies
- Smolke Sensitive
- ImperialFood 1st Class
- ImperialFood StarFish
- Naturis Freshly Steamed Meat
Shop our complete food range today – you won’t be disappointed…