I'm stumped!

[dunky]

I got Augie's allergy test results back today, and he is allergic to EVERYTHING! Okay, not really, but he does have significant allergy issues. The vet and I both think that his issues this year stem from a food allergy that just started a cascade of sorts. We are hoping that if we can get him on a good, low-allergen diet all winter that next year will be far better. The problem is he's allergic (or borderline) to so many foods.

He's definitely allergic to:
Venison
Corn
Flax
Barley
Kelp
Alfalfa

He's borderline allergic to:
Salmon
Poultry Mix (Chicken/Turkey)
Pork
Eggs
Milk
Soybeans
Rice
Oat
Brewer's Yeast
Sweet Potato
Duck

The vet suggested it would be best to stay away from ALL of those ingredients, but the problem is it only leaves me with available proteins of beef, lamb, and fish mix (catfish, cod, herring, mackerel, and whitefish). Does anyone have any dry food suggestions? I'm still not against going raw (especially since I can rotate proteins), but I cannot feed any commercial raw foods due to the ingredients. Instinct has flaxseed in it and Primal has alfalfa and kelp.

 

[MaplesMommy]

Check out the Primal Grinds and Mixes(they come in 5 lbs tubes). They only contain muscle meat,bone and organ and the mixes some organic veggis.
You could go with the Beef/Beef mix,Lamb/Lamb Mix and Sardine/Sardine Mix.

 

[dunky]

Is it okay for those to make up the bulk of the diet? I know of one stores I've visited that is about 30 miles away carries the beef and turkey mixes, so I could get the beef to get him started until I find someone to special order for me.

Do you supplement at all with a raw diet? Like nuvet or something along those lines?

 

[MaplesMommy]

This can certainly make up his whole diet.
The package says 'not complete' because it is literally 100% meat/bone/organ only. And to be a complete food AAFCO set the standard of adding micronutrients. Long story short you can definitely feed it but Id supplement with Fish Oil and them rotate coconut Oil,Spirulina etc.
Commercial supplements usually contain alfalfa and kelp but if you can find one without you can use it for sure.
The most important thing he needs is Omega 3 because its usually found in eyes and brains of the prey and that doesnt come in commercial raw diets.
You can use plant based Omega you can find in Spirulina,Wheat Grass or Chia Seeds but active Omega found in fish is even better. Instead of the Fish Oil you could also feed Sardines(in water not oil) once a week. When you buy Fish Oil make sure it comes in a dark glass bottle and only/the majority is Omega 3. After 90 days the oil turns rancid so Id buy smaller bottles that will last you less than that.

 

[bullmama]

Sounds like a good option, I looked at some of my favorite foods and all of them have at least one ingredient on your list.

 

[dunky]

I went to the one store I mentioned in the other post today, and they said they might be able to special order the mixes or grinds for me. I'm not sure about the cost though, because they wanted $22.99+tax for the 5lbs chub of beef. If my math is correct, he'd need about 10 ounces a day so it would end up getting fairly expensive fairly fast. I really would like to make sure that I can rotate proteins with him, no matter what I'm feeding, because I'm afraid that he will end up allergic to new things due to constant exposure.

I did find that the Nature's Variety Instinct comes in a limited ingredient Lamb that he should be able to have, and I'm thinking the rabbit formula should be okay since it's a really new protein. There is also Solid Gold barking at the moon, which is herring and beef based that might work. He did bad on the NVI kibble before, but he was on chicken and just the regular kibble.

He's actually doing a whole lot better on the Acana duck and pear formula, which I attributed to getting him away from potatoes, but it very well may have been to it only having one true "allergy" in it instead of multiples. I just wish they didn't have kelp in all of their formulas.

 

[2bullymama]

Have you looked into any of The Honest Kitchen formulas? You add your own protein to a base mix... See if any of those will help you

 

[MaplesMommy]

I just checked the Honest Kitchen at our store and they all contain either Flaxseed,Alfalfa,Oats and/or Sweet Potato.

If you want to cut down at the price of the meat Id suggest adding a carb such as Black or brown sprouted rice or steel cut oats but that would be a no-go for you. There is also Quinoa which is very healthy and a seed not a grain but it is a more expensive carb that you could add. Costco sometimes had a good deal on organic Quinoa though.
For every 1/2 cup cooked(as in already cooked Quinoa(it expands a lot so you would probably only cook about 1/4 cup)you can take away 3 ounzes of the meat.

 

[dunky]

I'll defiantly have to look up using the Quinoa, and I'm leaning towards also including some fresh veggies/fruits in his diet because he loves them so much. I also am thinking I'd rotate between using coconut oil, pollock oil, and salmon oil as supplemental fats.

How often can you switch proteins when feeding raw? Like should I just feed one protein for a week, then switch, or is it best to switch more often?

 

[MaplesMommy]

Just make sure the fish Oil you use is mainly Omega 3 not Omega 6 as you dont want to risk an inflammation.

You can certainly feed the same protein source for 1 -2 weeks. As long as you rotate at least once a month.

 

[dunky]

Just wanted to update. I tried giving Augie the primal raw mixes and he won't eat it, which is an issue because if he goes all day with out eating he ends up vomiting. I've tried doctoring it up with some of his favorite veggies and he still won't touch it.

I just got some Instinct limited ingredient rabbit kibble (since it is allergen free for him) and he won't touch it either.

 

[bullmama]

Have you considered home cooked or raw diet?

 

[MaplesMommy]

Which protein did you get in the Primal? Try a few different ones. You can also put some coconut oil in the food.Dogs usually love the taste of it. That or you can try honey or grind some of his favourite treats and sprinkle it on top. Once he gets used to the raw and tries it he will love it.
Usuallt its cats that are stubborn to wean off of kibble onto raw but sometimes dogs can be like that too.