In this article…
1.0 Dietary Remedies
for Food Allergies
1.1 Processed Dry/Wet
Prescription Diets – not recommended
2.0 Initial Clean-Up of
the Diet
Step #1 – Remove all
Grain and Grain Derivatives
Step #2 – Asses Whether
You Need to Go to an Elimination Diet
3.0 The Elimination Diet
Protocol and Recipe
3.1 Goal
3.2 Duration
3.3 Transition
3.4 The Nutraceutical
and Alternative Medicine Element
3.5 The Elimination Diet
3.6 Understanding What Comprises a Novel Food
3.7 Recipe for
Elimination Diet
3.8 Supplements for the Elimination Diet
4.0 The Post Elimination Diet
1.0 Dietary Remedies for Food Allergies
Processed Dry/Wet Hypoallergenic Prescription Diets – not recommended...
Don’t use an allopathic
veterinarian prescribed processed prescription dry or wet allergenic food unless you have
researched that product thoroughly to ensure that the product does not contain
ingredients that put your dog’s or cat’s health in further jeopardy.
Sounds crazy right?
Well, many allopathic
veterinarian prescribed prescription food products contain substances that trigger allergies and
cause further health complications.
You can find an example of one of the most
popular veterinarian prescribed allergenic dry food products here
complete with a detailed explanation of why the product is not a healthy option
for your dog or cat.
2.0 Initial Clean-Up of
the Diet
Step #1 – Remove all
Grain and Grain Derivatives from
the Daily Diet (food and treats)
Grain is the number one trigger for allergies in dogs and
cats so the first thing you need to do is eliminate all grain and grain
derivatives from the diet (this includes food and treats). If you are not sure
what food ingredients are grain derivatives you can read here,
here
and here.
At this time you can begin supportive supplementation measures
provided in 3.4.1, 3.4.2 and 3.4.3 below or you can choose to see if simply
removing grain from the diet is sufficient to resolve symptoms.
If after several weeks food allergy symptoms are still
present then it is time to go to Step #2.
For those of you that are interested in removing all
possible allergens from the diet up front, simply combine Step #1 and Step #2 –
don’t wait to do #1 first and then #2 after several weeks time.
If you are already feeding your dog or cat a diet that is free of grains, grain derivatives
and all of the items listed under Step #2 then go directly to Step #3.
Step #2 – Remove
These Allergy Triggers from the Daily
Diet (food and treats)
- Chemical-based preservatives;
- Brewer’s yeast;
- Egg by products;
- Meat by products;
- Poor source fats;
- Sweeteners;
- Synthetic additives and supplements;
- Also…
- Fruit that is high in sugar content – i.e. banana, pears;
- Root vegetables that are high in sugar – carrots, sweet
potato.
For detailed information on what to look for and avoid see
section 4.0 of this article ‘Food Allergies in Dogs and Cats – Causes, Symptoms,
Treatments’
At this time you can begin supportive supplementation measures
provided in 3.4.1, 3.4.2 and 3.4.3 below (if you did not do so in Step #1) or
you can choose to see if simply removing the additional allergy triggers from
the diet is sufficient to resolve symptoms.
If after 3 to 4 weeks food allergy symptoms are still
present then it is time to go to Step #3, the elimination diet.
3.0 The Elimination Diet
- Example Protocol and Recipe
3.1 Goal
3.2 Duration
3.2 Transition
3.4 The Nutraceutical
and Alternative Medicine Element
3.5 The Elimination Diet
3.6 Novel Foods
3.7 Recipe
3.8 The Post
Elimination Diet
3.1 Goal
The Elimination Diet is a very limited ingredient diet that
is meant to be used on a temporary basis to:
- Give the dog’s, cat’s system an opportunity to:
- Detox and calm the body/immune system by providing an
opportunity to:
- Stop the build-up of toxins caused by the food allergy;
- Support the Kidney and liver to eliminate the toxins;
- Thereby helping to provide relief from the symptoms of the
chronic allergic reaction.
- Begin the process of discovery that will pinpoint the food
stuff(s), ingredient(s) that your dog or cat is allergic to.
3.2 Duration
The Elimination Diet should be strictly maintained for a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks, up to 12
weeks (3 months) – no variations in diet during that time frame. This should provide
ample time for your dog’s or cat’s system to completely detox. To aid in the
detoxing process a nutraceutical should be added to the diet – see further
below.
3.3 Transition to the
Elimination Diet
Don’t make the switch without doing a methodical transition,
unless you are 100% certain that your dog or cat has a constitution that
accepts change without adverse reaction (i.e. diarrhea).
Transition slowly by:
- Substituting a small
portion of the meal once a day with some of the Elimination Diet;
- Over the period of a week to two weeks gradually substitute
more of the existing food with the new Elimination diet food until the existing
food is completely replaced by the Elimination Diet.
The 12 week countdown starts when the full switch to the
Elimination Diet is completed.
3.4 The Nutraceutical
and Alternative Medicine Element
3.4.1 Detox
It's very important to develop a detox support regimen that will suit your individual dog, cat. There are many supplemental foods, herbs and alternative medicines that help to support detox, generally the detox regimen should be comprised of multiple items that work together and are suited to the individual animal's requirements. Below an example of two of the many natural detox supporting substances...
3.4.2 Speed
Resolution of Overall Symptoms of Food
Allergy
- Quercetin can be helpful.
- Read the article for dosage, cautions and interactions.
3.5 The Elimination
Diet
The elimination diet consists primarily of two ingredients:
- A single source, novel animal protein type, and;
- A single source plant-based nutrient rich, low carb, low sugar, high fiber squash or root veggie.
3.6 Understanding What
Comprises a Novel Food
The term ‘novel’ means a food that you have not fed to your
dog or cat before.
For example:
3.6.1 Animal Protein:
If you have had your dog or cat on a chicken-based diet:
- You should switch to a mammalian based protein i.e. lamb, if
you dog or cat has never had lamb, or to a novel mammalian protein – see the
list below.
- Dogs and cats that are allergic to chicken may also be
allergic to other fowl, such as turkey, duck, etc.
- If you have had your dog or cat on a beef-based diet:
- You can try switching to a novel fowl or a novel mammalian
protein;
- Novel Fowl examples:
- Duck;
- Fish (if your dog/cat has never eaten fish before);
- Emu;
- Quail;
- Ostrich;
- Pheasant
- Novel mammalian examples:
- Alligator;
- Beaver;
- Bison;
- Caribou;
- Elk;
- Goat;
- Kangaroo;
- Moose;
- Rabbit;
- Venison (deer).
3.6.2 Squash or Root Veggie
- If your dog has always eaten a diet that included grain
- Pumpkin (is a squash);
- Rutabaga;
- Turnip;
- Squash.
- If your dog or cat has eaten potato before then novel would
be;
- Pumpkin;
- Rutabaga;
- Turnip;
- Squash.
- If your dog has eaten Pumpkin or squash before then novel
would be:
3.7 Recipe for Elimination Diet
- If your dog or cat is accustomed to a high protein raw food
diet use the same protein v.s. carbohydrate) ratio in the elimination diet;
- If your dog is on a homemade cooked food diet then use the percentage of protein to
carbohydrates as noted below in the recipe;
- If your dog is currently on a commercial processed dog food
that primarily consists of fillers then you have to give your dog or cat more
time to adjust to the percentage breakdown of protein v.s carbohydrate provided
below. To do this make the recipe with a lower percentage of protein (say 35 to
40%, and a higher percentage of carbs, say 65 to 60% and slowly reverse the
percentages to reflect those provided in the recipe below.
3.7.1 Elimination Food Recipe
Daily meals consist of…
- 50% to 60% novel animal protein;
- 40% to 50% novel squash or root veggie;
- If your dog is raw fed maintain the 80-10-10 ratio (muscle meat - organ meat - bone) and either forego the i.e. squash/pumpkin or just add a small amount (1 to 2 tsp or tbs depending on your dog's weight) to each meal.
- If your dog is accustomed to eating raw use:
- Raw novel protein, and:
- Steamed, frozen mashed or finely chopped/diced novel
carbohydrate;
- If your dog is accustomed to processed food or homemade
cooked food then use:
- Cooked novel protein (cook using a low heat – not high heat
to avoid the formation of carcinogens) and;
- Use steamed, mashed novel
carbohydrate.
3.7.2 Cautions:
- If your dog or cat is suffering from other medical
conditions you may have to make further adjustments /considerations – for example:
- For kidney or bladder stones you may have to adjust the type
of protein or carbohydrate to suit the treatment required for the type of
crystal or stone being dealt with – for more on bladder and kidney stone dietary
requirements you can read
here.
- For pancreatitis make sure you go with a low fat meat.
- Make sure that you check the dietary requirements/constraints
for the condition being dealt with.
3.7.3 Supplements for the Elimination Diet
Probiotic Supplement:
- Should have at least 12 strains of bacteria and 20 to 50
billion microbes per serving;
- If the supplement does not require refrigeration don’t buy
it as the microbes that give the supplement its probiotic properties are dead
and therefore non-viable;
- You can use a human grade probiotic supplement or one sold
for dog and cats;
- Read this article to understand why a probiotic is required;
- Read this article for additional information on how to choose a good probiotic.
Digestive Enzyme:
- Such as bromelain;
- Ensure that the product contains NO fillers, sweeteners or
other unnecessary additives;
- You can use a human grade or one sold for dog and cats;
- Follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for dosage.
3.8 The Post
Elimination Diet
At the end of the 12 week period if your dog’s, cat’s symptoms
have receded or even better are completely gone then you can start slowly
adding other food stuffs back into his/her diet one at a time leaving days in
between adding another item so that you can pinpoint the exact item that is
causing the reaction if symptoms start to reoccur.
If you want to continue to feed a processed food diet select
it with care – most contain undesirable, health compromising ingredients of one
kind or other. Make sure you know how to select a better product - don't assume
you know - must people, even those that think they know - do not! Go to my index page, scroll down the page until
you reach
PART 3 – DIET & NUTRITION for DOGS and CATS
3.1 – Dog and Cat Food
3.1.1 Dry and Wet Dog and Cat Food (processed
commercial food)
- read the
articles in that section.
If you want to switch to a nutritious homemade cooked and fresh food diet you can start be using this grain-free homemade food recipe and
make sure you follow substitutions to suit your dogs, cat’s allergy triggers.
Turmeric
and organic coconut oil have many health benefits including anti-allergenic properties
– both are safe for most dogs and cats – read the articles for detail on
benefits, dosage, selecting a good product, cautions and interactions.
For additional information on causes and symptoms of food
allergies you can read here.
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Hi there! What a great lot of information! I am only confused on one part. I am trying to figure out the amount of protein versus carbs. My dog is currently on the Acana Pacifica formula so I am going to use the 60% protein and 40% carb ratio but is that by weight? And do I weigh it when it is in the raw form before I cook it, or weigh it after it is all cooked? Or alternatively, do I use volume and not weight? Lol. I hope I'm making sense. For instance, last night, I cooked ground elk and used 6 ounces of it to 4 ounces of cooked mashed squash but it sure seems like a lot of meat compared to squash and now I'm worried I did it wrong.. I am wondering if I should have weighed it out in the raw form or measured it by volume. Could you clarify for me? Thank you so much:)
ReplyDeleteAcana is a high carb product, so you should have adjusted your ratio to be at least 50%:50% first week but if your dog has not experienced diarrhea, I would not worry about ratio difference. Measuring by ounces is fine. If you need additional assistance you can use my consultation service.
DeleteKaren, great web site! I just have two questions. First, should the oils in the meat in this diet be balanced? Or is it ok to add just an Omega 3/6 supplement during this time? And should there be any vitamins added or vitamin rich food included, so that a vitamin deficiency doesn't arise during the 3 month period? Thank you again for these wonderful gems of information you have provided and for bringing everything together in such a comprehensive manner.
ReplyDeleteYou can purchase consolation time if you require further support.
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