What foods should I avoid feeding my puppy to prevent ear infections?

It could potentially be an ear infection. I would recommend taking Diesel to the veterinarian to have them evaluate his whole ear canal to make sure an infection isn't deep in the ear canal. If you wanted to switch dog foods I would go to a salmon based formula to get some omega 3s in his diet. It is not a hypoallergenic food but it may help a little. Make sure you get the puppy version of the food and do a gradual transition to the new diet. I hope Diesel feels better and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi there and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If your veterinarian has suspected a chicken allergy, the best thing to do is to avoid chicken and chicken byproducts in all foods and treats. You can try a different flavor of food (one without chicken or chicken byproducts). If he is a fussy eater, the best thing you can do is not immediately change the food (unless there is a medical reason to do so) if he doesn't eat right away. Offer the food you purchased and he will eventually get hungry enough to eat what is in front of him. He wont starve! I hope this helps and best of luck to you and Ishwar!

Hi there. Recurring ear infections, or persistently itchy, irritated ears, are indeed a common sign of allergies in dogs. This can be due to environmental allergies, a food allergy, or both. Apoquel is usually effective at treating environmental allergy problems - so if it didn't help much, I agree that a food trial with a prescription hypoallergenic diet would be the next logical step. If she responds well to the prescription diet, you may be able to cautiously switch her back to an over-the-counter limited ingredient food for long-term maintenance.

I am sorry to hear of Princeton's ongoing war issues. If you are concerned about possible medication side effects I would recommend discussing this with your regular veterinarian. I would also discuss with them the possibility of food allergies. Chronic/recurrent ear infections like you are dealing with for Princeton can often be secondary for a food allergy, a diet change may be what is needed for him. When considering a new food remember that the protein source is typically the thing that causes the allergy-look at Princeton's current dry food to see what the protein source is. You will need to look for a food with a protein source he has not been exposed to (remember that the chicken you feed mixed with his food is a potential allergen as well). Your vet can discuss any particular brands or products they recommend, and be aware that a food trial for allergies can take 6-8 weeks before any effect is seen. Also talk to your vet about culturing the material in Princeton's ears, if you haven't already. Sometimes the yeast or bacteria that is present becomes resistant. A culture will show what type of organism is present, and what medication is going to be most effective. Your vet can then help you tailor a new treatment plan to try and resolve the issue. I also recommend routine ear cleaning at home using a cleaning solution recommended by your vet. Keeping the ears clean of debris can help reduce the number of infections. Good luck-I hope you are able to get Princeton feeling better soon!

Hi. Most likely your veterinarian is concerned about food allergies. There are several prescription foods to try. If he doesn't like the one, discuss with your veterinarian trying one of the others

There are a lot of prescription brand foods to try. We tend to stick to prescription brands because we know they don't have any contamination of other products in the food. However, there is one food that I have seen some success with, called California Natural by Natura. You can also visit your local organic pet food store to see if there are other options available in your area, like Fromm, WIld Frontier, etc. I hope that you find something that is affordable for Harper to continue on, as you complete your evaluations during his food trial. https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4952600 Best wishes and take care.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. The best way to prevent allergies is by preventing the possible allergic component if one is known. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!