Hi

I have a two year old Boxer who we have discovered has a food allergy. We aren't sure exactly what he's allergic to (we think wheat & dairy), but we've cut most things/treats etc out and he is on James Well Beloved Turkey & Rice and breast of turkey as advised by our vet. His tummy allergy problem has now cleared which is great, but he has lost some of his body weight and you can see all of his ribs. He was a lovely weight before but now I am worried and want to get him back to his normal weight again. Any suggestions on what I could give him to put some muscle back on him. Also he gets a lot of exercise so burns off a lot! Any help appreciated, Tina

You could give him more than the recommended amount, remember those amounts are only a guide and if he has more exercise he needs more food, if he is ok on one of James Wellbeloved he is probably ok on the others. Is the Turkey and Rice a maintenance one, if it is it will maintain him at the weight he is, therefore, he will need more food. How long has it been give, him time to recover.

Hi

Yes it is maintenance JWB and he doesn't usually lick the bowl clean as he really doesn't enjoy the kibble, he prefers the meat that goes with it!! (needless to say), I feed him twice a day and fill his bowl and most gets eaten. It's been about six weeks since he's been on this diet, but he's not really having any fat in his diet as turkey breast isn't fatty, so i was hoping i could add something to his diet every now and then to put some more muscle on him. What do you think?

If a dog has a true allergy to particular foods you can identify it by having him allergy tested which involves a blood test being taken by the vet and sent off to Yorktest who will supply you with the information of the particular proteins causing the problem and the severity; this way you can eliminate the offenders with facts rather than guesswork.

The intestinal tract and villi will be damaged by the presence of these allergens and will impact on the metabolism of your dog; it needs time to recover.  I would suggest feeding your dog a good Fish Body Oil which contains Omega 3s and DHA and EPA which are anti inflammatory and are calorie dense, around 1000mg per day along with 400 iu of natural vitamin E (d-alpha-tocopherol) the synthetic version is dl-alpha- tocopherol.  Neither of which is capable of being OD on; plus some natural live yoghurt each day; this will help bring back the intestinal flora to optimum operation.

Thanks for your info, I did recommend an allergy test but the vet said it costs about £250 and isn't totally accurate/doesn't cover every allergen, and i might not be covered on dog insurance, and as this diet worked i haven't pushed for it. Where would i get the fish body oil from? do normal pet shops sell it? and the vitamin E - does it come in capsules? and where would i get that from? Any advice is appreciated. Tina

Just seen this post. My sister has a boxer who used to get terrible bouts of diarreoh followed by weight loss, on & off since she was about two, she is now five. She would change her food and then it would happen again several months later. She has now been well for nearly a year  and is gaining weight. She had to worm her for three days initially and then put her on Burns venison & rice,she also added protexin (available from vet-medic) which helps the gut to recover its friendly bacteria.(so far so good)But she cannot add anything to her food otherwise she is loose again. Maybe this is common in Boxers ? they seem to have sensitive tumms!!!!!

The allergy testing is not foolproof however everyone I know who has used it has been covered by their insurance; not sure why it should not be?

Fish Body Oil and Vitamin E capsules available from Holland and Barrett, chemists etc they do not need "special" dog ones.  The Vitamin E normally comes in capsules which you can give as is or pierce and squeeze over food.

HTH

Thanks for the info on the capsules, i'll buy some asap. ALso the allergy testing, i'll ask my vet about it next time i go. It might be worth having it done and then i'll know for sure what he's allergic to. Thanks again for all you information.