Blog - Allergies in Doodles

A while back I was asked about allergies by a family with one of our Doodles. They changed their dog’s food to a grain-inclusive brand recommended and sold by their vet which contained a lot of corn and legumes. That was when the trouble started.

We have been very fortunate not to have needed to address this, but since I took the time to look into it and consult my own holistic vet I thought I would post the information here.

START WITH HEALTHY PARENTS
We place great pride in healthy puppies from healthy adults with great temperaments. I want everyone’s experience with their puppy to be as positive as possible. Puppies are a lot of work but if we can make any of it easier we really try. If any of our parent dogs have a know allergy, we don’t use them in our program. We had a dog (from another breeder) who continually had ear infections. We made the correct decision to re-home her to a pet home rather than breed her and risk passing that on. Those are the hard and expensive decisions a good breeder needs to make.

EAR INFECTIONS
It is important to note that Doodles can be prone to ear infections, as are all floppy eared dogs so care should be taken to check them frequently and stay on top of any potential issues. Keeping the hair trimmed beneath the ear canal can be beneficial in promoting good air flow (keeping the ears dry) and your groomer can help with that. Groomers used to recommend plucking the hair in their ears however more recent thinking is to only pluck ear hair when it is clearly prone to matting. To pluck or not to pluck is a subject for another day so discuss with your vet and/or groomer based on the needs of your Doodle. Most importantly, do a week ear check to look & sniff to make sure their ears are clean and healthy.

FOOD, ENVIRONMENT AND/OR FLEAS & PARASITES
So back to allergies in Doodles. If the parents don’t have allergies, what can cause them in your Doodle? After a chat with my vet, she said allergies tend to be caused by one of three things: Food, Environment or Fleas/Parasites. The last one is the easiest to detect and fix. If they are allergic to flea saliva even 1-2 bites can cause them to lick and scratch and chew their skin raw. You may not see fleas on them, but if on a walk a flea bites them and falls off, it can still cause a skin reaction for up to a week and if their raw skin gets infected, even longer.

ENVIRONMENT
Environment is the hardest to fix. Dogs in urban environments tend to suffer much more from allergies than those in rural environments. Much the same as people. Bathe them more frequently to keep allergens off their paws and skin. And if their paws are brown from licking, use a Malactic Wipe in between their paw pads daily. And wet environments, like the Pacific Northwest where we are, means sometimes their paws are moist longer in Winter. Sometimes just changing their location to a drier climate fixes that issue. Obviously not everyone can up and move, but you can dry their paws off when they come inside and create a “dry” potty yard on the side of your house with a concrete and good draining gravel or turf area. Have the groomer clip out the fur between their paw pads in Winter to help them dry faster also.

Environmental & seasonal allergies can be from both inside and outdoors and would include dust, dust mites, pollens (trees, grasses, weeds, molds), pesticides on the lawn or around the house. They can be caused by inhaling them but also because dogs tend to have their nose to the floor and their paws constantly touching the floor/ground, they are more susceptible to picking these things up than we are. Contact allergies can be caused by carpet cleaner, floor cleaner, laundry detergent, air freshener, candles etc. It is highly recommended for the health of your doodle (and family) that you avoid artificial fragrance in all forms.

ALLERGIC RESPONSE
Allergies are an overreaction of a dog’s immune system. When they detect pollen, dust or a food ingredient they can’t tolerate, their body treats them like a virus or bacteria and releases histamine which results in a lot of inflammation. Inflammation causes redness and itchiness and disrupts the normal protective skin barrier. The inflammation and trauma caused by licking and scratching often causes a secondary skin infection.  So catching and treating it quickly is important.  It is important to note that true “allergies” aren’t nearly as common as “intolerances”.

FOOD
Food allergies may be due to proteins found in chicken, beef, corn, soy or wheat. Chicken and beef often gets a bad rap, as it may not be the chicken or the beef protein itself causing a problem, but rather the heavy use of corn that animal consumed that is triggering a problem in your pup. Corn, besides being heavily sprayed with herbicides/pesticides, is a popular and inexpensive feed for livestock. Corn is a high-energy, high carbohydrate starchy vegetable that promotes fast weight gain in animals. This reduces the time it takes for them to reach market and results in more money for more pounds. But weight gain and a spike in blood sugar are not outcomes that are beneficial for your pets health. Corn does not belong in your pets food either directly or indirectly.

FOOD TRIALS
If you suspect a food allergy it is recommended to do a strict food trial of 8-12 weeks. Your vet (preferably a holistic vet) can help you with this and will likely recommend you pick a single protein other than chicken or beef and feed only that for the duration of the trial. Make sure you only feed a treat with that same single protein and no other ingredients. If using ground lamb for instance, pick a lamb organ dog treat and nothing else. Once you know your pet tolerates that protein, you can add another. Although feeding a single protein won’t comprise a perfectly balanced diet for your dog, it is fine for the limited duration of the food trial (confirmed by my vet).

FIX THE DIET
Optimal pet health requires an optimal diet. Even if your pets issues aren’t caused by food, a healthy gut equates to a healthier dog. You can start by limiting grain intake. While canines may be opportunistic consumers of grains, they don’t actually have a carbohydrate requirement. The average bag of grain-based food is often more than 50% carbs, largely from insulin-raising corn or potatoes. Carbohydrates also raise blood sugar levels in dogs and tend to be crops that are heavily sprayed with agricultural chemicals/herbicides like Glyphosate. Carbs and sugar are what yeast thrives on. Feeding a high carbohydrate kibble diet increases the likelihood of food intolerances/allergies that make your dog more susceptible to yeast. Excess yeast is often the culprit in ears or paws, leading to excessive licking.

FEED FRESH
We support the inclusion and/or feeding of whole, fresh foods, novel proteins, both raw and gently cooked. There is a lot of recent research indicating dogs fed only dry kibble (a highly processed diet) have more health issues than those on raw or gently cooked diets. Even swapping out 10% of a dog’s processed diet with fresh alternatives can be beneficial to their health and longevity. If you are interested in the healthiest possible diet for your dog, read The Forever Dog for more info.

NATURE’S BENADRYL
Quercetin has been coined nature’s Benadryl and is a natural substance found in fruits and vegetables that have anti-oxidant, anti-histamine properties. If your dog is experiencing allergic symptoms (red, itchy skin etc.) it is worth trying this natural approach which is safe to use and has minimal to no side effects. Quercetin supplements often contain Bromelain which is an enzyme that suppresses histamines. Together these two substances work together to rid the body of histamines and relieve your pets symptoms.

BALANCED DIET
I should mention here that we strongly promote a raw or fresh diet, however , we understand it needs to be balanced. Just feeding your dog ground turkey and/or ground beef for breakfast and dinner isn’t going to give them all the vitamins and minerals they need or would have consumed naturally. Most veterinarians are opposed to raw diets because vet schools don’t teach the nutrition of raw foods. Vets have an immediate concern that when their client says “I feed raw”, that they are throwing down a beef knuckle bone for breakfast or a hamburger patty for dinner. But we consumers are far more educated than that. You wouldn’t feed your child Fruit Loops or even Cheerios for every meal, so why would anyone think that dry, extruded kibble for every meal makes sense?

We personally feed pre-made frozen raw patties by Steve’s Real Food for our dogs breakfast and vary the protein every couple days. For dinner, we may switch to Farmina or Carna4 kibble. For treats we use Ziwi Peak freeze-dried and/or single ingredient freeze-dried or dehydrated lamb or beef lung or salmon. We add ranch fresh chicken and duck eggs (fed an organic, fermented feed), an Omega 3 oil (krill, mackerel, salmon etc.) and a daily probiotic.

CARNIVORES DON’T CHOOSE LENTILS
I’ve had families tell me they were feeding a “quality” food but when I looked at the nutritional profile, it showed the first four ingredients as duck meal, chickpeas, lentils, peas.  You want the first three ingredients (or at minimum the first two) to be from a recognized meat or fish protein. Looking at this list, chickpeas, lentils and peas are all legumes and inferior, far cheaper sources of protein compared to meat, poultry or fish.  Ingredients will be listed in descending order but even so, this is an inferior quality food and a mostly legume diet. Canine’s are not designed to thrive on a diet of legumes!

ANTIHISTAMINES
Stronger than natural Quercetin but not as potent as a Vet prescribed steroid, some dogs may find relief from mild seasonal allergies with antihistamines which block the effects of histamine. Diphenhydramine (Benadryl) and/or cetirizine (Zyrtec) are two options. Generic versions are available at a very low cost. Check with your vet for the dosage that is appropriate for canines.

DECEPTIVE MARKETING
Now that I have you reading labels, here is something else to be aware of. Many dog food manufacturers practice something known as ingredient splitting. This means that when their product includes a very high amount of legumes for example, they can separate them out into specifics (chickpeas, red lentils, peas, green lentils etc.) The combined total of legumes would then outweigh the meat content but by separating them out, they can appear to the consumer to contain less than they do. This is a very deceptive practice and makes it hard to recognize how legume-heavy certain brands are.

KEEP THEM ACTIVE
Finally, a bored dog will lick its paws, especially at night. Make sure your dog is getting the right amount of exercise, social interaction and brain engaging activities in addition to a high-quality diet and a low-stress environment. We always say a tired puppy is a good puppy, but this goes for adult dogs also.

BE PATIENT
Changes in diet and/or environment take time. It can take two months or more to get everything out of their system and see if something new is working. The worst thing you can do is try a new food for a couple weeks, declare it isn’t working and switch again. Stay the course and give it time to work.