How long until my itchy dog feels better on a grain-free diet?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

• Answered By Claudia Fioravanti

  Veterinarian

  Published on December 19th, 2016

  Normally dogs that are allergic to food are never allergic to grain only, I would recommend that you change her food to an hypoallergenic diet rather than a grain free only. There are lots of brands to choose from, royal canine or Hill's , wet or dry, try a small bag of food to start with to make sure that she likes it, but make sure she is just fed that diet only no other treats or snacks for 7-8 weeks and you should see an improvement in her skin if allergies are related to food. I would definitely recommend a try but it' s important that you keep up the commitment for this period of time and that she isn' fed anything else.

  

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• Answered By Christina Kellogg, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on June 6th, 2017

  Hello. Grain allergies are very uncommon in dogs so a grain free diet should not be needed with your pup at this time. I would just recommend getting her on a high-quality small breed puppy food. Some of my favorite food brands for dogs are Science Diet, Royal Canin and Purina Proplan. I like these brands as they do extensive research and testing on their diets to make sure that they keep animals healthy throughout their lives. A puppy this age also should be fed three times daily until she was about six months of age or so. Best of luck as I know the amount of pet foods available currently can be overwhelming.

  

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• Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

  Veterinarian

  Published on September 18th, 2019

  With grain. Grain free food is a fad, and a dangerous one at that. Vets are seeing an increase in dogs developing cardiomyopathy who are fed grain free diets, and the FDA is now investigating that link. There is no scientific proof grains are bad for dogs, and grain allergies are very rare in dogs. Only 10% of dogs who have allergies have food allergies, and the majority of those allergies are protein related like chicken. You would need to have Lily seen by your vet to put her on a specialized diet to determine if she has a food allergy or not.

  

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