My dog has a chicken allergy. Can she eat food with trace chicken?

Hi and thanks for posting! If Blue is allergic to beef and chicken, all products associated with these proteins should be avoided which includes beef rawhide. You may want to stick to another non chicken or beef chew or treat such as the product I have listed below. https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/blue-ridge-naturals-oven-baked-salmon-jerky-dog-treats

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Fortunately, there is an option for Bizu that is a newer poduct from Royal Canin, which is a multifunction pet food. They have a combination diet that is urinary (like he is on) and hydrolyzed protein, which is specifically for allergies. Hydrolyzed diets may use chicken and other proteins in them, but the protein sources are broken down so small that the body doesn't recognize them and they don't cause the itchiness we see with food allergies. This may be a great option for him!

First of all this information regarding peas, potatoes and lentils is not true whatsoever. you can feed him any brand of food that is grain free and chicken free, many companies have at least one product that will fit this description- Orijen for example have a food called "six fish", it's grain free and there is no chicken in it either.

I am sorry to hear about Azul! It is possible she could eat duck or turkey without issue but I would probably try offering it in small amounts and monitoring her closely. With food allergies we must be very careful because over the counter diets can be contaminated with other protein sources due to being produced in the same factory or due to poor quality control. In cases of severe allergy then prescription veterinary diets are recommended. With these diets, the entire factory is dedicated to a specific diet and all equipment is cleaned to ensure there is no cross-contamination. I would not recommend jumping back and forth between diets with different protein sources as this can lead to us not having any protein sources to resort to if a dog develops an allergy to their current one. I would stick with a diet if it is working for Azul until/unless a problem arises.

Dogs are omnivores and can get enough nutrition from a balanced commercial vegetarian food. If you would like to try a meat diet, you could consider a novel protein diet. A novel protein is one that Buddy hasn't eaten before. You could consider venison, bison, fish or duck. Natural Balance makes a number of limited ingredient diets that you could consider. https://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dog-formulas/special-category-limited-ingredient-diets Another option would be to try a hydrolyzed diet. Those would be prescription only and would be more expensive, but might be a good option as well. I am attaching a handout with more information about diet trials for food allergies below. https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4952600 Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

In most animals with food allergies hydrolyzed protein sources are ok. However, if it is possible I usually recommend switching to a novel protein source instead of the hydrolyzed diet. This way you can ensure there is no reaction from the food. Additionally I would avoid other poultry proteins as well. Some animals that are allergic to chicken also have reactions to foods with duck as the primary protein.

Since Cash is a small dog, you might consider one of the more expensive options such as a dehydrated or fresh food diet. They are able to control their ingredients much more easily than a large manufacturing plant does that makes dry food. I have been very pleased with The Honest Kitchen ( https://www.thehonestkitchen.com/ ) and Just Food For Dogs ( https://www.justfoodfordogs.com/ ). Both have foods that will not have chicken and both have options without any poultry. You do not have to worry about the potential addition of chicken fat which a number of dry food companies do as well. If those are not good options for Cash, then you may consider a canned food which again will generally be safer than a dry food at making sure there isn't any chicken contamination. I have been pleased with Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets ( https://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/ ), but be sure to read the labels carefully. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and gives you some ideas. Thanks for using PetCoach.