Is it an Allergy or an Intolerance?
With people at the park and professionals using different language, what is really going on with your dog and why does it matter?
Allergies
Spoiler, allergies are quite rare - depending on the breed and environment.
Intolerances are far more common - especially within breeds like:
Frenchies, Goldies, Border Terriers and Oodles (including mixes), even your rescued ‘mixed breed’ village dog can suffer from intolerances and gut issues.
So, lets pop the hood on what’s actually going on inside your dog. Here’s a very basic anatomy >
Mouth > throat > oesophagus > stomach > small intestine > large intestine > colon > rectum.
Each stage has a really important part to play in how your dog breaks down and digests food. But there are very easy rules to follow to keep your dog safe, based on it’s breed and how it’s built, like:
When to feed and when now to feed - daily timings
How to keep it hydrated, how to make sure the stomach can digest food without causing reflux or needing medication
How ingredients can help or hinder health - at every meal and snack time
Most dogs are intolerant to chicken if they have an intolerance. It is merely the most common protein which causes an issue, but some dogs are lucky (because it is the most prolific protein amongst dog food and treats) and can tolerate chicken. We need to remember that every dog is an individual. But people do still call it a ‘chicken allergy’. Why?
Because it’s easier, quicker and humans understand the severity of an allergy more than an intolerance.
An allergy is a ‘severe’ immediate reaction - like anaphylaxis (swelling), ataxia (loss of coordination) or vomiting and diarrhoea. If you see this, please contact your vet immediately. Vets are great at dealing with sudden, chronic health issues and should be your first port of call.
Intolerances
Intolerances are a bit more ‘scientific’. How good is your GCSE biology - or whatever they call it now? We’re going back to ‘the good old days’ of handwriting in books.
If you remember your basic anatomy from above, you’ll know that food gets digested in the stomach, the acid breaks it down. Dogs have super strong stomach acid, strong enough to digest bones if they’re healthy. But sometimes, this can get disrupted - for different reasons, but let’s not dive too deep here, there’s more to come…
Need a deep dive? Book a consult with me to better understand your dog’s issues.
When the broken down food leaves the stomach, it is digested in the intestines (small and large to keep it simple). The food is ‘on the inside’ then there is a layer of cells (villi) which increase the surface area of the gut, and have special mechanisms to move nutrients and water from the gut, through the walls and into the blood stream and around the body to where they’re needed. Actually via the liver which acts as a ‘cleaning station’.
Side note - the microbiome - full of trillions of micro flora and fauna - like bacteria (‘good’ and ‘bad’) live here, amongst the villi. This makes up 70% of your dog’s immune system.
Stay with me, I know you know this, but this is a fun refresher!
Beyond the gut wall and around the organs is the lymph - yes dog’s have a lymph / waste system too. This is where the immune system cells live. There’s a few - I’m not getting into the weeds here, but they’re there, circulating, and policing the nutrients, contaminants and everything else.
Think of it as a policing system. Now, if - for any reason, and there’s a few - the villi die off, holes form in the gut wall lining. So where there would be ‘a policed window of support for nutrients’ there is now a ‘large doorway’ letting ‘everything’ escape into the system. This is leaky gut and it causes an inflammatory response from ‘a body’. Yes, our body, but we’re talking about our beloved dogs.
This policing system sounds the alarm! Intruder alert - and the immune cells get busy. Very busy. This means that the inflammation doesn’t just stay in the gut. It can be - but is rarely localised. So you will see inflammation in the ears, the paws, the bum, the eyes, the genitals, a dry nose, flaky or irritated skin, as well as a sloppy poop.
And sometimes (due to multiple factors like medications, vaccines and environmental pollutants) the system doesn’t turn off. It’s stuck on high alert.
The ‘open doors’ if not fixed ‘crumble’ and make larger holes and caverns. Letting ever bigger molecules and things pass through the gut and into the dog’s internal system.
Basically, making it much worse.
This is very heavily proven science. Go on, Google it. Ask Chat GPT. My favourite sources are Dogs First Ireland and Dr Karen Becker / Rodney Habib, also Dr Judy Morgan.
So, the holes get bigger, more ‘bad stuff’ gets through, and the immune system and microbiome has nowhere to live, and can’t manage with the amount of ‘everything’ getting into the system.
This is why dogs are ‘allergic to grasses, moulds and pollens’ it is the body saying “Houston, we have a problem”.
I’ve tried everything
Some dogs get to this stage (especially border terriers, frenchies, goldies, oodles etc) and they ‘need a novel protein’ because everything you try just sets the system off, regardless of what it is. This is also why food intolerance tests can throw up inaccurate results - if the body is in an inflammatory state aka cytokine melt down, it will attack everything. And you are left with a dog who won’t eat anything, is fussy, has constant runny poops, colitis (snotty poops), chronic ear infections, a greasy coat, a dry nose, etc…I’ve been there.
This is now why we have insect protein foods (not bio available and can do more damage depending on the insect and what it’s been fed/how it’s been raised) and vegetarian, even vegan diets for dogs (I don’t recommend).
This is also why vets recommend that dogs become medicated with apoquel, steroids and cytopoint. These medications turn off the policing alarm. So stuff gets through, but the warning or alarm light is switched off.
Now, if your car was low on oil and your oil light came on - and you just switched it off with ‘a steroid’. Tell me, would your car still need oil?
If your smoke alarm in your burning house was turned off, and the windows were sealed, would it still be on fire?
Your dog is medicated, but don’t worry, you’ve followed your vet’s advice. Some vets are absolutely brilliant and have a deep and thorough understanding of this ‘new science’. Some however still practise ‘old, traditional techniques’ - which are financially and physically more expensive for you and your dog.
The medication can give your dog a chance to overcome the inflammation response and begin to heal itself. That is the theory. BUT…
If you’re not removing the cause and healing the gut, helping the microbiome re establish for all of it’s healing qualities, your dog’s system will flare up again as soon as it wears off. Medication can be helpful, but it’s only a quarter of the battle.
So, if you’ve ‘tried every food’ and your dog is still being medicated…
If you don’t understand ingredients or the nutrient profile in dog food and how each ingredient can affect YOUR dog.
If your dog is driving you mad, and the bills are adding up, and you’ve tried everything, I’ve been there. I’ve seen it. I’ve lived it. I’ve paid the vets bills. I’ve missed work for specialist appointments, only to be told ‘he’s really well, just have another injection’.
For the financial and mental toll on your dog and on you, get in touch with me (or someone else qualified, I don’t mind - I can also recommend brilliant people) and lets work out a plan to help you and your dog.
Any dog can be intolerant to anything
I know dogs who can’t have peas or carrots. I know dogs who can’t have grain or grain fed protein. I know dogs who are terrible on soya and legumes. And don’t get me started on gluten!
What is in most commercially available dog food - at your local branch of X chain pet store? ‘Pea protein’, ‘cereals’, ‘hydrolised x’, ‘hypoallergenic y’, ’chicken’. What is the main ingredient in pretty much all puppy foods on the market? Chicken. What do puppies immune systems go through in their early stages of life? Combined vaccines, toxic flea, tick and worming treatments, disinfectant, everything in the mouth at the immune sensitive time…
Breathe.
This is unfortunately why a ‘hypo-allergenic’ label on the food or treats, or a ‘prescription diet’ means nothing. The food manufacturers use marketing jargon to convince you to try their version of the same remixed ingredients that can trigger your dog. So what triggers your dog? Have you tried everything?
Until we have a consult, you haven’t tried everything.
I’ve made it my personal mission to know every ingredient to every treat and dog food on the UK market. Because I care about you, and your dog’s wellbeing.
And you can blame it on my London vet. My ‘trust worthy’ breeder. My little broken dog, who has taught me everything. And continues to inspire me to be able to help you.
So, to get get in touch with me to start you dog’s wellness journey today.
