Does your pet have allergies?

Many pets' have allergies, but some have severe allergies that can arise from many different reasons. Most of the time, getting allergies under control is easier than we think.

Allergies can show up in many different ways:

• red/irritated skin;

• itching;

• hair loss;

• excessive licking;

• biting/licking of the paws;

• yeasty ears;

• ear infections;

• bad breath;

• gas, etc.

The first thing you should do when your pet is suffering from allergies is to start with the food.

Food is typically the number one cause and CURE for allergies. In our first Words of Wellness article (Say '"NO" to Grains), we talked about the importance of grain-free kibble (dry food), well once again, "grain free" plays a massive role in making allergies significantly worse or better. The first step in eliminating allergies is to take away all grains from their diet. Here is a little reminder of foods that are classified as grains; corn, wheat, soy, rice, oatmeal, barley, oats, sorghum, etc.

You would be surprised at how quickly your pets' allergies decrease once you eliminate one small food group. Again, here is a list of grain-free kibble brands:

• Nature's Logicl

• Zignature;

• Pure Vita;

• Wellness;

• Open Farm;

• Acana;

• Fromm;

• NOW;

• Orijen, and much more.

These are all fantastic brands that will help not only decrease allergies but also give your pet a better quality of life.

Per our last article, the brand of kibble we do not recommend are:

• Purina (Pro Plan, Dog Chow, Beneful, etc.);

• Iams;

• Eukanuba;

• Science Diet;

• Prescription Diet;

• Pedigree;

• Royal Canine, and many more.

Now, eliminating grains may be the cure for some pets, but not all. Severe allergies can take a little more time, patience, and different food/supplement protocols to improve. Usually, the most common allergies from food are from a particular protein, potatoes, or even peas. Another common allergy is from the environment, such as seasonal allergies.

Meat (protein) allergies:

Beef, chicken, and turkey are prevalent allergens to most pets. Think about it. Almost every brand of food has beef, chicken, or turkey. Changing up the protein can help to eliminate allergies tremendously and is an essential part of keeping your pet healthy. Switching the protein, within the same brand, with every bag of food you buy, will not only help decrease allergies, but it'll keep your pet interested in their food.

Novel proteins work best for pets with severe food allergies. Novel proteins are meats that they typically are not used to consuming, such as; bison, venison, pheasant, rabbit, duck, goat, elk, kangaroo, etc.

Pets with severe food allergies can have an adverse reaction to even the slightest protein ingredient. For example, the bag might say 'duck,' but if you look at the ingredients, it might have chicken fat listed. That could be a reason that your pet still has allergies. Kibble brands that work best in this situation and are known as a limited ingredient:

• Nature's Logic;

• Zignature;

• Wild Calling;

• Acana (Single Protein line), and

• Pure Vita.

* Remember this includes treats as well! *

Seasonal Allergies:

Allergies caused by the environment can get a little tricky. Typically seasonal allergies start in spring and end in late fall, but there are some ways to prevent allergy symptoms and an increase in inflammation. First, try feeding cooling or neutral proteins during allergy seasons, such as rabbit, duck, whitefish, or bison.

Adding supplements to their daily food regimen also plays a role in decreasing symptoms. Some supplements that can help are:

• honey;

• apple cider vinegar (decreases yeast in the body);

• colloidal silver (boost immune system);

• probiotics;

• bromelain and papain (suppress histamine production);

• omegas (stay away from fish oil);

• coconut oil, etc.

* Adding supplements in your pets daily food regimen is an excellent way to keep them healthy, regardless of allergies. *

Another step for seasonal allergies is making sure they are clean once they come back inside. This includes:

• foot soaks;

• wipes (dog-friendly), and

• weekly baths (Buddy Wash, Jax n' Daisy or Kin + Kind).

Watch out for shampoos that contain oatmeal. Oatmeal can make your pet yeasty and has no soothing effect for them like it does us.

There are many causes of allergies. What works for your pet may not work for another, but there are many brands and types of food that eventually will be a match.

Since kibble is the most common way of feeding, we wanted to talk mainly in this fashion. Although if your pet has incredibly severe allergies, kibble may not be the best option. In later articles, we will start to talk about the importance of different types of feeding.

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In the end, we all want our pets to be the healthiest possible and live the longest life possible, and we want to help everyone's pet stay healthy and happy! The more we study and learn of better avenues, the better their diet, their health, and their overall life will become. Have a topic you'd like us to discuss? Send an email to info@itsallaboutthepaws.org.

Most of this information is researched, read, or learned from; Dr. Karen Becker, Dr. Vivian Grant, Dogs Naturally Magazine, NCBI, and other research articles.