Treating food allergies in dogs can get expensive.
First, you need to make sure that your dog’s problems really are due to food allergies. That means ruling out fleas, ear mites, pollen, dander from other dogs and even people, and chemicals around the house and yard as the real root of the problem. The fastest way to do that involves taking your dog to the vet.
Then, you need to figure out which food or foods are causing your dog’s allergies. The vet can do a blood test called a RAST test that costs $200 to $300, plus the cost of the visit. This test just requires one vial of blood and waiting for the lab to analyze it. The problem with RAST testing is that it is often overly sensitive. It identifies all the foods your dog is strongly allergic to, plus other foods that cause very minor symptoms and might be safe once in a while.
Or you could take your dog to a veterinary dermatologist to get scratch testing. This kind of allergy testing in dogs is similar to the scratch testing for allergies that people get. It costs a few hundred dollars. However, only a veterinary dermatologist can do it, and there aren’t a lot of veterinary dermatologists. You might have to travel hundreds of miles and wait months to get an appointment.
There is a third way to find out what is causing your dog’s symptoms. Get your vet to write a prescription for hydrolyzed protein. This is dog food with every possible allergy-causing protein removed.
The hydrolyzed protein has to be all the food you give your dog for six to 10 weeks. No treats, no snacks, no sharing food the rest of the family is eating, and no food from other pet bowls. If the symptoms go away, then you know the problem was definitely food allergies, and then you can give your dog one new food at a time every 3 or 4 weeks to see if they cause a reaction.
Testing for allergies with a hydrolyzed dog food diet can be even more expensive than the first two options since hydrolyzed dog food costs about $125 to $150 a bag.
If you love your dog, and you hate to see her suffer from food allergies, there is another way: homemade dog food for allergies. You still have to be careful about treats and keep your dog from eating from other pet food bowls, but homemade dog food for allergies is an affordable way to treat dog food allergies.
What homemade food is good for dogs with allergies? What human food can I feed my dog with allergies?
Here is the secret to success with homemade food for dog allergies:
Give your dog the same quality of food that the humans in your family eat.
When you count vet bills, it doesn’t cost any more to give your dog high-quality food. Making homemade food for your dog with food allergies is a way to show your love for your dog that involves the whole family. And your dog will like it better, too.
Recipe for Homemade Food for Dog Allergies
Here is a complete, balanced dog food recipe that you can feed any dog, but more importantly, it is especially focused on dog food allergies.
You will need:
- One cup (190 grams) of brown rice
- 2 cups of water for cooking the rice
- 1/2 cup (75 grams) diced carrots. No need to peel.
- 1 pound (450 grams) of ground turkey
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon finely ground eggshell. If you are not feeding your dog raw, ground bones, then send the eggshells through the blender or through a coffee grinder and add to the mix for extra calcium.
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of sunflower oil
- 1 fish oil or krill oil capsule. Don’t break it open.
Start by boiling the 1 cup of brown rice in 2 cups of water. Boiling the rice causes the formation of resistant starch. This is starch that breaks down slowly enough in your dog’s digestive tract that it feeds probiotic bacteria and adds bulk for easier bowel movements.
Wash and dice the carrots. Put them in a pot with a small amount (half a cup or 120 ml is enough) of water and blanch them. Dogs like crunchy food, so you shouldn’t overcook the carrots.,
Put the ground turkey in a hot skillet. Break it up with a spatula. As it is beginning to brown, crack the two eggs and add them to the mixture. Stir the mixture occasionally to make sure the egg is thoroughly mixed in and the meat is completely browned.
For nearly all dogs, egg white is the least allergenic of all the sources of complete protein. Egg yolks are rich in fat called arachidonic acid, which helps your dog fight skin infections. They are also rich in vitamin D, in which many versions of homemade dog food for allergies are deficient.
Grind the eggshells while the rice is still cooking. A coffee grinder works best, but you can also use a blender or a mortar and pestle like you might use for making guacamole.
The eggshells are a great way to provide additional calcium. Dogs who don’t get raw, ground bones usually need more calcium. Make sure the eggshells are ground to a powder in your coffee grinder or blender. Don’t use more than half a teaspoon (1 gram) of eggshells for each pound (450 grams) of meat.
When you are ready to mix all the ingredients together, put the ground turkey meat and egg into a 5-quart (4-litre) mixing bowl. Then add the two cups of cooked brown rice, the half-cup of blanched diced carrots, and the one tablespoon (15 ml) of sunflower oil.
Sunflower oil is a great choice for homemade dog food for allergies because it provides the n-6 essential fatty acid linoleic acid, which many homemade dog food diets lack. This fatty acid powers your dog’s ability to fight infections and also to keep a healthy coat. It also stimulates the production of ceramide to heal broken skin.
Next, sprinkle the half-teaspoon of ground eggshell over the mixture.
Last, but not least, add an unopened 500-mg capsule of fish oil or krill oil to hide in the mixture. Leaving the oil in the capsule ensures that it won’t oxidize before your dog gets a chance to eat it. Your dog won’t notice small capsules hidden in her food, and if she does, she will probably like the fishy flavour.
Fish oil and krill oil are great sources of n-3 essential fatty acids, which help your dog’s body regulate the immune system to avoid allergic reactions.
No matter which brand of fish oil or krill oil you use, you need to make sure it is stored in a cool, dry place and is never exposed to heat or direct sunlight.
How much homemade dog food should I feed my dog a day?
How much homemade dog food for allergies you should feed your dog depends on your dog’s weight. Feed your dog 1 to 1-1/2 cups of this recipe per day for every 20 pounds he weighs. That means just 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup for a toy poodle that weighs 10 pounds, but 3 to 4-1/2 cups a day for an Afghan that weighs 60 pounds. It’s OK to add an additional 500-milligram capsule of fish or krill oil every time you feed your dog.
This recipe can be stored in the refrigerator overnight. Make homemade dog food for allergies fresh every other day for the best results for your dog.