Elimination Diet (for Allergies)

[sandgrubber]

I've had a few dogs in my boarding kennel who get frozen portions of weird foods, eg, camel and sweet potato. These have something to do with elimination diets, but in some cases, the owner is not doing an elimination diet but just doing the quick and easy option of looking for something that will make a rash go away.

I have some links with a game meat exporter who gets various sorts of unusual meat. I sense that there may be an opportunity to provide "convenience" food for people wanting to do elimination diets.

I'd love to hear from people who have done the elimination diet routine. Did it work? Was it a nuisance? Was it expensive? Was it worth it? Would you like to see other supply options for the foods used?

[Tiggy]

I buy the Camel and Sweet Potato purely for a treat. It's $5.99 for 600g. If you can source game meat cheaper I'd be interested. :rolleyes:

[Pixie's mum]

We did it with our dog when she was young. She was allergic to beef - which apparently is very common - and turkey which is quite rare. She can eat all other meats though (refuses kangaroo). Now though as a two year old she can cope with the odd bit of beef. The trial was 4 weeks without beef as they thought this may have been the issue and she was expected to eat turkey and lamb but the turkey tricked us for a couple of weeks.

[Ptolomy]

We have done the elimination diet - was on goat and sweet potato for 3 months before we could start adding things.

Was it worth it - it sure was - before seeing Mandy at Murdoch I had tried to eliminate foods myself - but I wasn't cut throat enough in terms of the dog only having 2 foods and nothing else. I also didn't realise that when you added a "new" food to try it has to make up 1/3 of her daily food intake and she had to be on it for 10 days.

Was it expensive - no definitely not

Did it work - it sure did - I now know that she can't have beef, lamb, milk, wheat or corn.

Was it a nuisance ....to begin with it was, I felt really sorry for the dog because all the others could have lots of treats, Beans could only have goat or sweet potato and you really are limited in the number of ways you can give these two foods. I was also still training Beans which mean any food rewards at training could only be goat or sweet potato.

Interesting, that I now use a lot of sweet potato as treats for all my kids.

Lucky for me I drive past South Street Pet Supplies every day - so accessing goat was easy.

[k9katz]

A food elimination diet will only work if your dog is ONLY allergic to food. I have a dog who had severe allergies and I did an elimination diet, feeding her only Hills ZD and NOTHING else for 8 weeks. It didnt make a scrap of difference, would you think then the dog had no food allergies? I had the 'spot' allergy blood test done and it came back with all sorts of food allergies along with many grasses and environmental allergies. Just eliminating the foods she is allergic to would not have helped as she was still reacting to other things.

[First Time Puppy Owner]

A food elimination diet will only work if your dog is ONLY allergic to food. I have a dog who had severe allergies and I did an elimination diet, feeding her only Hills ZD and NOTHING else for 8 weeks. It didnt make a scrap of difference, would you think then the dog had no food allergies? I had the 'spot' allergy blood test done and it came back with all sorts of food allergies along with many grasses and environmental allergies. Just eliminating the foods she is allergic to would not have helped as she was still reacting to other things.

Agreed 100% - great if only a food allergy, but a bl**dy nusience if not. We are on a second one to make certain that it's not food as the first one he had Sentinel Spectrum and megaderm both possible having different sources of protein. Thus second one is IAMS (formally eukenuba (sp) ) Response Fish and Potato - also know as Response F&P. 12 days into it and I think we will trial for 8-10 wks (as long as the large bag last) but he is still on Prednisone thus currently masking any scratching issues, but will be ween off by the 9th of Jan completely and I guess we will see 100% then if there are other factors to his itchiness/chewing. Which sadly i have no doubt there are - then perhaps next step will be the skin prick test, cortravance to try to keep allergies at by and possibly last resort will be Atopica *sigh* (ps have done homeopathic vet, a couple hundred in too diff shampoos etc)

[puggy_puggy]

I have a dog who had severe allergies and I did an elimination diet, feeding her only Hills ZD and NOTHING else for 8 weeks. It didnt make a scrap of difference.

I to did the elimation diet with Hills ZD for 2 months with my male pug a few years back. Did absolutly nothing for him as well. Basically it was a load of crap.

Looking back I find it sad now that vets have not educated themselves enough and think outside the world of dry processed food and cortisone.

[k9katz]

Looking back I find it sad now that vets have not educated themselves enough and think outside the world of dry processed food and cortisone.

Actually my vet really wanted me to do the blood test as he had already had sucess with others, the food was only an outside chance. Once we got her on the desensitizing injections she made a tremendous improvement. She is now also able to eat a dry food without side effects and is a different dog. No cortizone now or polaramine and a healthy coat and happy dog.

[sas]

We've been on 3 elimination diets without success.

We've done Roo, Horse & Rabbit as the usual ones.

We have a Dane that eats 2 kgs of meat a day so food elimation diets with 'fancy' meats sent us broke. Horse you think would be cheap it was actually pricey and it smells disgusting!

We did a year on Raw meats and veggies with no success

Food allergies are apprantly the rarest form but everyone seems to treat it as the first thing they look at.

A Spot test is a great way to start, although it does deliver False positives which you'll have to rule out.

We still have allergy issues dispite desentising injections for a year and thousands of dollars in potential miracle cures.

We're treating now for a potential yeast problem as yeast can present it self like allergies and we have had more success.

Edited December 22, 2008 by sas