# Dog allergic to Meat! Is it possible?



## Maab (Nov 9, 2009)

hi all,

I have been wanting to ask this question a while ago. 

I know a dog, Actually a dogfriend of my dog, which is looking worse and worse as the time goes by. He is A large dog, about three years old and looks like he is ten. Few months ago he was showing "only" skin problems, dry hair ( the owner puts special oil on his coat every day, and he tells me that his dog is allergic to any animal proteins and he must be on a special diet made of '...who knows what', I guess grains...
He also takes the dog to a dermatologist specialized for dogs (a rare profession I think) but he does and the dog is looking worse. He has no enegy and the inside of his ears are red and there is some flaky white stuff pealing off from anywhere. Anywhay the dog is a mess and I am not sure I could find a way to invite him to read posts on this website without offending him. Maybe he has been missguided? I don't know. 
Before I say anything to him at all, I'd like to know whther it's possible at all that a dog can be allergic to animal proteins. 
So, what do you think.


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## CorgiPaws (Mar 31, 2009)

Maab said:


> hi all,
> 
> I have been wanting to ask this question a while ago.
> 
> ...


I think it's possible (though very rare) for a dog to be allergic to A animal protien, but for one to be allergic to ALL of them is like being allergic to air. 
It's also important to note that while allergies might set in on a cooked or processed form of one kind of meat, the same dog generally does fine on a natural raw form of it.


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

The chances of a dog *actually* being allergic to ALL animal proteins is about as likely as flying pigs. Ok, maybe not that slight, but the chances are VERY low. My guess is this dog is so sick and has such a depressed immune system from the lack of proper nutrition that he is just going down hill at an alarming rate.

There is no doubt in my mind that the owner has been misguided, like the majority of pet owners. This is of course not their fault, unless they choose not to be pro active about their pet's health. 

Have you expressed your concerns for this dog to the owner? If not I would make sure that you are very concerned about their dog and maybe they will open up a bit to other ideas and suggestions....


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Had the very same thing with a local dog here. Allergic to every type of meat they said. Dog was a total mess, exact same symptoms you are describing, yeast infections everywhere, a very unhappy dog, broke your heart to see it. Eventually persuaded the owner to try a fish only kibble (please don't be mad, I know this is totally the wrong forum - but raw was just not an option with them) and even went as far as to buy some "6 fish kibble" for the dog. Within a week there was a huge difference. If raw (which btw, I tend to think could be the answer), is not an option with them, then maybe they could be open to trying something different like the fish?


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Molly- I think that is a great idea. It sounds like moving slowly with this person is going to be best, baby steps. Suggesting a better kibble with fish might just show the owner that there really is room for improvement, leading to thought provoking things with the owner and maybe what they are currently doing is more harmful than good.


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## ruckusluvr (Oct 28, 2009)

i do not think there is anyway possible for a dog to be allergic to ALL meat.
maybe the dog is allergic to chicken. and lots of dog foods, even lamb and rice, and some fish formulas have chicken.

I know two dogs allergic to chicken. I have a dog, he is not allergic to chicken, but does crappy on it.


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## Maab (Nov 9, 2009)

The first thing I thought when I heard him saying it I thought that he has been brain washed by the vet. He is so fond of him... I don't know what his wife things, thou. 

For a dog to be allergic to all the meats it's like a fish allergic to water. I don't know, but I personally I don't trust that the dog is allergic to all the animal proteins. And I wish I find a way to make them rethink and try raw. 
The fish-kibble is an idea, I'll see if I can talk them out. 
Thanks for your replies


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

I know that Fromm makes a good low allergen fish formula food.


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## jdatwood (Apr 13, 2009)

ruckusluvr said:


> I know two dogs allergic to chicken. I have a dog, he is not allergic to chicken, but does crappy on it.


What kind of chicken? Processed chicken in kibble?


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## MollyWoppy (Mar 19, 2010)

Just a note - when choosing a fish kibble there is often another animal protein, (normally chicken) listed further down the ingredient list. I was careful to get one where the sole animal protein source was fish.


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## ruckusluvr (Oct 28, 2009)

jdatwood said:


> What kind of chicken? Processed chicken in kibble?


I am not sure. i just know that he doesnt do well on chicken dog food, and those other couple of dogs get red skin and lose hair on chicken dog food. so we all have just stopped feeding chicken all together.


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## jdatwood (Apr 13, 2009)

ruckusluvr said:


> I am not sure. i just know that he doesnt do well on chicken dog food, and those other couple of dogs get red skin and lose hair on chicken dog food. so we all have just stopped feeding chicken all together.


Unless these symptoms have come as a result of feeding unprocessed chicken I don't think you can say with much confidence that chicken is the problem. There are far too many ingredients & other variables to make that kind of diagnosis


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## spookychick13 (Jan 26, 2010)

My Cavalier Jack is allergic to cooked pork, but he is great on raw pork!

As far as the original posters concern, if they're not interested in trying raw, perhaps you could talk to them about cooking for the dog? I know there are 'dogs with allergies' recipes out there.
I am 99.9% positive the dog isn't allergic to meat, particularly raw meat.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

ruckusluvr said:


> I am not sure. i just know that he doesnt do well on chicken dog food, and those other couple of dogs get red skin and lose hair on chicken dog food. so we all have just stopped feeding chicken all together.


none of my dogs ever did well on a chicken formula, whether wet or dry.

they did fine on my cooked chicken and they are doing fine on raw chicken.

i wonder what the difference is in the processing of dog food that makes so many dogs have problem with the chicken contained?


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

The process of cooking denatures proteins so it changes their "shape" which can trigger an allergic response by the immune system because the "shape" (arrangement of molecules) is the factor on whether it's an allergen or not. If the shape of the changed protein from chicken that is cooked is picked up as an allergen you will see symptoms. Since the proteins from raw chicken are not denatured, or in their natural state, their shape is different than cooked chicken which means that the immune system will not show an immune response from it since they will not bond with T cells.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

danemama08 said:


> The process of cooking denatures proteins so it changes their "shape" which can trigger an allergic response by the immune system because the "shape" (arrangement of molecules) is the factor on whether it's an allergen or not. If the shape of the changed protein from chicken that is cooked is picked up as an allergen you will see symptoms. Since the proteins from raw chicken are not denatured, or in their natural state, their shape is different than cooked chicken which means that the immune system will not show an immune response from it since they will not bond with T cells.


how is the process different from me cooking chicken to kibble chicken, which is cooked chicken i presume?

both dogs did fine on my cooked chicken, either roasted or boiled....but neither dog did well on kibble chicken....we always had to feed them a lamb type food with kibble...


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Your dogs probably didn't have a reaction with the homecooked chicken because it was all by itself. Chicken in kibble is mixed with who knows how many other things so it's quite possible that the chicken mixed with another ingredient would cause an allergic reaction.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

danemama08 said:


> Your dogs probably didn't have a reaction with the homecooked chicken because it was all by itself. Chicken in kibble is mixed with who knows how many other things so it's quite possible that the chicken mixed with another ingredient would cause an allergic reaction.


personally, now that i think about it, it's got to be something in the processing...

their food was a mish mosh of ingredients....

oh wait..you're saying that i cooked the chicken separately. oh. i get it. :redface:


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