Guide to dog food allergy symptoms

Dog food allergy symptoms aren't specific which makes it hard to diagnose food allergy by just looking. Dogs that suffer from an allergic immune response can exhibit different symptoms.

Top 3 dog food allergy symptoms

1. Dermatological symptoms

The most important sign is an itch, which is not bound to a particular time of year. When your dog's skin is itching he will be excessively scratching, licking his feet, rubbing his skin against surfaces, etc. You can also see skin infections, hair loss and repeating ear problems.

2. Gastro intestinal symptoms

These include vomiting and diarrhoea. It seems that dogs with a food allergy have increased bowel movements up to twice the amount of non-allergic dogs.

3. Respiratory symptoms

Breathing problems, sneezing, sporadically your dog could show signs of asthma.

Other, less frequent, signs of allergies

allergy symptons in a Labrador Retriever

Loss of appetite.
Musculo-skeletal problems.
Behavioral problems.

These symptoms are general for dog allergies and it is not easy to determine whether your furry friend is suffering from a food-induced allergy or another type of allergy (such as for instance contact allergy or inhalant allergy).

In this picture you see the skin of a Labrador Retriever who was suffering from both dog food allergies and multiple contact allergies.

Read this allergy case study and leave your comments »

4 Clues that may point towards a dog food allergy

Your dog has allergy symptoms year-round (you notice no seasonal effect).
Your dog is very young and has moderate to severe skin problems.
Your dog's itchy skin has been treated with antihistamines or steroids and this did not work.
Your dog has recurrent ear problems, particularly yeast infections.

And another complicating factor is that your dog may have BOTH: a food-induced allergy next to atopy or dermatitis. Therefore it is important to rule out other causes or to treat these upon diagnosis.