Hello again - I'm after advice once again!

My Lab Amber (aka Beanie/The Bean) never gets a mention on here, she's just pretty good... a nice steady, middle of the road kind of dog :-)

However, she's been itching like crazy recently.  She's had brief itching spells in the past, 2 or 3 days maybe and by the time I think it's worth taking her to the vet, it disappears and she's fine.  This time it's been over 3 weeks and she's red raw.  She had some blood taken for an allergy test and we had the results back today.

So for dust mites the result was 'highly positive', and for beef, chicken, rice and peanut she's 'positive'. 

How much faith do you all put in allergy testing?  I'm going to do some reading around, but thought here was a good place to ask for opinions/experiences.

The vet has explained that there's not much we can do about the dust mites if she's living in the house, but they did say immuno-therapy may be an option if things don't improve.  Does anyone know anything about this?

We're focusing on the food for the moment.  I've only ever fed her chicken and rice food!!!  I feel pretty guilty about this if she is really allergic. The food companies I have experience of all use rice as a base, or if they have a rice alternative it contains chicken!  I'd consider feeding her raw, and have done briefly in the past, but think I'd struggle to do this economically without chicken.  I'm sure I can find some suitable complete food, but it's nice to have recommendations from actual dog owners.  Does anyone use a rice and chicken free dry dog food?

Thanks :-D

Clare

>  I'd consider feeding her raw, and have done briefly in the past, but think I'd struggle to do this economically without chicken.  I'm sure I can find some suitable complete food, but it's nice to have recommendations from actual dog owners.  Does anyone use a rice and chicken free dry dog food?

Im my experience allergies can be a minefield and im sure someone with more knowledge will give you better information than myself.

I wanted to say that, i have a springer who tested positive for a chicken allergy. He was swithced onto a slamon based complete with he did well on however it gave him shocking wind so we switched to a lamb based (AG, and now Natural Dog Food company) without any problems. However these contain rice so no use to yourself.
With regard to RAW feeding, i feed raw extras to my three and my springer can tollerate Raw chicken quite easily without any ill affects. so do not be put off with feeding chicken products if you go down the raw route. It would have to be a try it and see. Raw chicken is quite a different product to the cooked form found in completes.

With regards complete allternatives id reccomend http://www.challengedogfood.com/ingredients.html Thier salmon and potato feed contains no chicken products which most completes even if not chicken based tend to do usually in the form of 'chicken fat'.
Fish4dogs maybe another good allternative for you to look at.

Good Luck

Sorry to hear about Amber. I have gone down the immunotherapy route twice, and sorry to say it did not help either dog.

With regard to the food, there are plenty of good quality complete foods available now, but please be cautious as many foods which appear to be poultry/rice free, actually contain poultry fat.

I was recommended Wafcol Fish and Corn, and although I didn't like, my last girl thrived on it and it was the turning point in our managing the condition. They also do a Salmon and Potato, that may fit the bill. James Wellbeloved now have a range of foods that contain meat and vegetables. I don't know anything about them, but they may be worth looking at.

I feed Fish 4 Dogs and am sure both that all three varieties are free of chicken and rice. I am really pleased with the results, and a few people at club have tried it following screening for allergies and they have all been really pleased with the result.

HTH
Jenny

Springador, you beat to it.

Thank you :-)

Not heard of Challenge, but thank you for the link.  It's definitely on the list of ones to consider, and the price isn't bad either!

It's ridiculous that so many foods have chicken oil in!  It seems chicken is going to be very difficult to avoid!!!

Just found there are James Wellbeloved fish/lamb/turkey and veg kibbles too.  Anyone tried these?

Thanks, posted at the same time :-)  Fish4dogs may be worth a go too.  I tried it on my pup (when he was a pup) because I thought it sounded so good, but it really didn't agree with him.  It certainly sounds good for Amber.  So Wafcol, Challenge, Fish4dogs and JWB are contenders at the moment!  I think I'll see what I can get locally so I can swap her asap, then I can start trying to find which kind suits her best.

Thanks again to both of you!

I was always told that chicken fat/oil should not be a problem as it's the protein molecule that causes a reaction.

Arden Grange mention it here: http://www.ardengrange.com/full-ingredients-glossary.asp

Hmmm, interesting - thanks... so Arden Grange should be ok too :-) 

Arden Grange does contain rice though, except for the fish/potato one I think.

I got my dog allergy tested and he is chicken and duck intollerant, but we have also found any food with rice in gives him terrible wind.  We currently feed Burns pork and potato but have also had good results with wainrights fish and potato.

Yep it was the fish/potato one that I'd spotted, but I was put off by the Chicken oil.  I've heard a lot of people recommend Arden Grange too.  It seems I am spoiled for choice now :-D

Two more :-D

http://www.symplypetfoods.co.uk/Salmon-Potato

http://www.barkingheads.co.uk/for-dogs/salmon-potato-dog-food-fp.html

hehehe thanks... also Orijen 6 Fish should be ok (if I'm feeling particularly wealthy!!)

Another vote here for Challenge. One of mine suffers from contact allergies and is soo much better on the salmon range. He's a bit laid back and they are the only ones I've found that do a 'performance' food without chicken. 

Hi,
My GSD is allergic to chicken and fish and my consultant advised to try a meat she hadn't eaten before in the hope she hadn't built up an intolerence to it, and suggested JWB turkey and rice and she improved straight away. I was amazed that chicken and turkey could be so different as I assumed both were poultry, but it worked for us. BTW it doesn't have any chicken fat in it just turkey fat. JWB are very helpful if you call them and can also advise what is and is not in their food as they deal with doggy allergies all the time.

Or Acana Pacifica (not quite as expensive as Orijen 6-fish).

Thanks, not heard of that one .  I've just been reading about Orijen.  I really like the sound of it, and have often thought I'd feed it to all of mine if I could afford it... but I'm seriously considering just for Amber, I think a total change of food may be just what the doctor ordered!  Off to google Acana Pacifical now!!!

Hiya,

I have two that have various allergies and they are both on immunotherapy as well as a specific diet.  With one of them the immunotherapy has made a dramatic difference and really changed qulity of life.  The other it has definitely helped but not to the same extent and other things are needed to control the itchiness.  She is also on anti histamines when bad and is on a specific diet and has fish oils in her diet which seems to help.  My guys were on Wafcol Salon and potato but are now on JB fish grain free.  They are also on natures mnu nuggets and have part raw diet which works well for them.  Even a small amount of rice at sensitive times for one of mine can make a difference to her.

Hoovering daily and steam claeaning when ever posssible on soft furnishings can make a difference to dust mites.  Also a raised bed may be of benefit rather than on the floor and changing bedding frequently.  Hope she's more comfortable soon :-)

Have a look at the Bern website (http://www.bernpetfoods.co.uk/index.html) although you may be able to get it cheaper elsewhere!

Thank you, that's very helpful advice.  I'm re-jigging the conservatory now as that's where they choose to spend most of their time.  They have a leather sofa and wood flooring, which I think are ok... I'm going to get rid of the fluffy rug she just loves :-(  I guess I'll have to embrace my inner clean-freak!!!  The vet actually recommended a plastic bed with newspaper for her, but I don't think she'd be happy at all.  Ideally, the vet said a kennel outside would be the best thing for her!!!  That's not going to happen... she mostly sleeps on the leather sofa, so if I keep it very clean do you think that's appropriate?  I could look into a raised bed, but I think she'd still choose the sofa!!

We're going to see how she is with a change in food, and if there's no improvement the vet wants to consider the immunotherapy route (especially as it should be covered by insurance!!).   It's nice to hear it has helped with your dogs, the vet said it is very hit and miss - the figures she quoted were 33% improve, 33% get worse and 33% have no change at all!!! That didn't exactly fill me with confidence!!!!

>How much faith do you all put in allergy testing? 
>The vet has explained that there's not much we can do about the dust mites if she's living in the house, but they did say immuno-therapy may be an option if things don't improve.  Does anyone know anything about this?

I have a boy that is allergic to some pollens.  He had a York test and then a year or so later we had another more specific test just to see if it could pinpoint any different (non native species) - it didn't!

Luckily my boy isn't allergic to foods or dust mites per se BUT I've found that when he is in a raised allergic state that both of those things can exacerbate the problem.  This might also be the case with your girl but in reverse so that it's the current pollen count causing her elevated itchy spell.  We are slap bang in the middle of my lads worst time of year...

He does have immuno-therapy injections and it certainly makes a big difference but I also have a care regime that helps to manage the situation.  If I were faced with this again I'd go further before starting injections just to see if it could be managed on it's own.  The key changes I made are as follows:

Food -  I changed to predominantly raw but I still feed the odd bowl of kibble (AG). I have a friend that freezes her kibble portions overnight to kill mites
Home - beds are now Tuffies, anything else def makes my boy scratch.  He likes a cover so these are cotton fitted ones or a towel!  If he is in an itchy phase I vacuum more frequently.  This def helps :)
Other - He has Piriton 2 or 3 times a day when he needs it.  I slosh him off with a very weak solution of Hibiscrub after every walk. Eyes, ears and mouth all wiped with a damp sponge otherwise it's just tummy legs and paws.  I use Dermacton on his spotty bits and Fuciderm if I need to on anything that looks more aggravated or balding.  It sounds like hard work but actually it's now normal for us and he spends so much time sleeping upside down that a quick inspection and slip slap slop with the cream is easy.

Hope this helps :)

Our setter is currently having immunotherapy - like your dog she is allergic to house dust mites, some grasses and yeast. I tried her on hypoallergenic food but  she hated it and she is a thief so we could never manage to rule out everything though we know she is allergic to cheese. I'm not sure if the immunotherapy is helping or not - sometimes I think she isn't scratching so much (it affects her ears mostly) other times she is going nuts scratching and shaking her head and its hard to know for sure. All we can do is finish the course of treatment (it takes a year) and hope for the best.

Hiya,

I don't know if you've misunderstood your vet or if they've told you incorrectly but that's not right.  It does go in thirds roughly, but it's a bout a third makes a big difference to and all bar deals with the problem, another third it helps but doesn't deal with completely (like my second one) and another thrid it doesn't really seem to have an effect on.  Unless your dog has a problem with the immunotherapy injecitons (which isn't common as they are made specifically for your dog and they are introduced at a tiny dose andf then built up) then they certainly won't make the dog worse.  I know several different people with dogs on these at several different vets and they all quote the same figures and never heard any say a third get worse.

The leather sofa sounds ideal, I only suggested a raised bed so that it's something off the floor away from where dust mites are often found in nooks and crannies.  Leather is ideal as it can be hoovered and wiped so won't store dust mites the same as fabric sofas.  Exactly why I changed over to leather sofas :-)

I have been lucky with the immunotherapy helping my guys, I do know of lots of people with dogs it's helped though none to the extent of the one of mine that it has pretty much cured.  But lots in the same position as mine girlie that still needs some help - she is a lot more comfortable on it than she was before though.  It does take a while to take effect but it has been worth it in the long run for mine :-)

You need James Wellbeloved as all their foods are made with single protein source because of these types of allergies.  They do a lamb and vegetable/fish and vegetable combination (carb source is, I believe potato but you will have to check this).  Your best bet is to email them to ask their advice - just google them for their website.

You can also reduce dustmites by getting a special filter on your vacuum (a hepa filter I think its called).  I have got laminate flooring which helps considerably but I can only suggest hoovering like a lunatic with a filter will definitely reduce the housemites considerably just a bit of a pain when you're a busy person!!

I personally set a lot of store by these tests as Maisie had terrible itching - to the point of chewing off a large section of her fur (down to the flesh) and this has stopped as a result of dietry changes. 

In the interim, while you are doing what you can to sort things out, please look at Dermacton (again google it).  This was very kindly recommended to me on Champdogs and should give your dog a more instant relief in the short term even though you will still have to work on the source of the problem.  I still bathe Maisie in this as keeps her skin and coat nice and healthy.

Hmmm... your figures are definitely more promising!  My vet definitely said a third get worse, I questioned it because I thought they sounded like awful odds.  I'll ask for clarification when I go back next time, but will see how we go with changing food for now.

I've bitten the bullet and ordered some Orijen, in my opinion it looks (ingredients-wise) to be the best available... she's only a wee-Lab, so I'm banking on a bag lasting a long time!!! 

Thanks for all the info :-D

Thanks for the recommendation for Dermacton, you're the second person now, so I guess it's good :-)  She's awfully red and puffy tonight, so I think I'll order some tomorrow to ease her skin until we have things under control.

We've now got laminate flooring too, so at least the hoovering needn't be too frantic!!

My dog was on this food all of his life because he was allergic to chicken.

http://www.royalcanin.co.uk/vet/clinical_diets/canine_clinical_diets/sensitivity_control_dry.aspx