How to Feed Your Dog to Prevent Skin Allergy

Skin allergies are very uncomfortable for dogs. The itching drives them to bite themselves until the skin is raw. It can even make a gentle dog take a nip at you when the itching is intense. Good nutrition can make a difference for a dog. If you're wondering how to feed your dog to prevent skin allergy, read on.

One thing you can do is try to determine if the allergy is to an inhaled allergen, such as pollen, or to something in the dog's food. Most likely it will be an allergy to something inhaled. By the way, veterinarians call inhalant skin allergy "atopy." This word means "unexpected placement." The word is used because the dog inhales the allergen, and then the reaction shows up on the foot, base of the tail, or some other place you would not expect.

If you suspect an allergy to a food the dog is eating, you can put them on a strict diet of a different carbohydrate and a different protein than what the dog has been eating. This "elimination diet" should be used for 12 weeks. If it makes the dog feel better, it could be because the old food is no longer in its system. Perhaps the old food was indeed what was creating the allergy.

The elimination diet could be a lamb and rice preparation if your dog has never eaten this combination. If it has, you will have to choose different foods. Has the dog eaten venison? How about rabbit or duck? The carbohydrate will need to be different from the wheat, corn, and soy commonly used in dog foods. There are commercial allergy diet foods that will help you with how to feed your dog to prevent skin allergy, too, so you don't necessarily need to do it yourself.

Many people with allergic dogs are now turning to a raw diet. If you opt to go this route, you will definitely need to do it yourself. A raw diet requires chopping meat fine and adding ground vegetables.

There are some useful supplements you can add to a dog's food to help it with its allergies. One is fish oil. You can use a capsule of human grade fish oil and pierce it with a needle. Squeeze the contents onto the dog's food. Flaxseed oil can provide the same nutrients, which are Omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids. These are excellent nourishment for the coat and skin.