Could my pet have a food allergy?

Can all dogs and cats develop a food allergy?

All dogs and cats can develop a food allergy, yet fortunately there are still more animals without, than with, a food allergy. It does seem to be the case that one breed is more susceptible to a food allergy than another. So heredity also seems to play a role in developing an allergy to certain nutrients.

Food allergy, how does it develop?

When a dog or cat eats food containing a nutrient, which the body recognises as not good, this substance can trigger an abnormally strong reaction of the immune system. These nutrients, which trigger a reaction, are almost always certain proteins such as proteins derived from fish, plants, cattle, chicken, pigs or other animal species. When these proteins trigger an immune system reaction, we call them allergens. These proteins (allergens) are seen by the body as intruders, which must be rendered harmless. The body therefore reacts by forming antibodies that actively attack the allergens by forming histamine, among other things. This histamine causes the symptoms such as skin complaints usually with itching or intestinal complaints often with diarrhoea and flatulence. To induce an allergic reaction, it is not necessary to eat these proteins daily, if they are eaten only once a week, complaints can also arise.

What food can my animal be allergic to?

Thus, almost all dogs and cats are allergic to certain proteins, usually of animal origin. It does not matter whether the protein your pet reacts to comes from raw meat or is processed in cold-pressed kibble or extruded (crispy) kibble. What matters in this case is that the animals get the protein and the immune system reacts. In very exceptional cases, pets may also show allergic reactions due to dyes or chemical preservatives.

So what do I feed my dog or cat with a food allergy?

When it is known which animal or flat proteins cause your pet's skin or intestinal complaints, the search is often easier than when this is not the case. If your pet has always had standard food then it generally contains: chicken, beef or pork. Note, this is absolutely not always the case therefore it is good (if possible) to check what was in the food when the symptoms started.

Then there are two options either use an elimination diet or give a hypoallergenic diet with hydrolysed proteins.

What is an elimination diet?

Elimination diets contain a protein source such as salmon, venison, duck or horse and a carbohydrate source such as rice or potato. This diet is then offered as the sole food for about 6 to 9 weeks. It is very important that your dog or cat is not given any other food, snacks or leftovers from under the table during this period. Only then can it be said whether your pet tolerates this protein source. If the symptoms disappear, you can look for a complete food with this protein source if the elimination diet did not already include it.

Dog Elimination Diet:
• Hill's Prescription Diet Canine d/d Food Sensitivities
• Royal Canin Sensitivity Control
• SANIMED Hypoallergenic Dog DR (Duck/Rice)
• TROVET Hypoallergenic IPD (Insect)
• TROVET Hypoallergenic RRD (Rabbit)

Cat elimination diet:
• Royal Canin Sensitivity Control
• TROVET Hypoallergenic RRD (Rabbit)
• Hill's Prescription Diet Feline d/d Food Sensitivities
• Trovet Unique Protein (with home-cooked rice or potato)

What is a hypoallergenic diet?

When you feed a hypoallergenic diet it contains hydrolysed proteins. These are proteins that have been processed, cutting the DNA into smaller packets. The advantage of this is that the recognisability of the protein disappears, minimising the chance of an allergic reaction. In practice, many foods are also called hypoallergenic when they are actually elimination diets, i.e. a single carbohydrate with a single protein. Testing whether your pet can tolerate a hypoallergenic food is done in a similar way, so offer it for about 6 to 9 weeks and see if the symptoms disappear.

Dog Hypoallergenic Diet:
• Hill's Prescription Diet Canine z/d Food Sensitivities
• Royal Canin Hypoallergenic
• Royal Canin Anallergenic
• SANIMED Skin Sensitive Dog (Atopy)
• SPECIFIC COD-HY Allergen Management Plus
• TROVET Intestinal DPD

Cat Hypoallergenic Diet:
• SANIMED Skin Sensitive Cat (Atopy)
• Hill's Prescription Diet Feline z/d Food Sensitivities
• Royal Canin Anallergenic
• Royal Canin Hypoallergenic
• SANIMED Intestinal Insect
• TROVET Intestinal FRD
• SPECIFIC FDD-HY Food Allergen Management

To know for sure that an allergy is indeed present, a challenge may have to take place after the symptoms disappear during the 9 weeks of offering different food. This means that the dog or cat is offered the old food again, if the complaints return then an allergy can be assumed. If the complaints do not return then something else was causing the complaints.

-This is an automated translation-