It is very disturbing when your dog gets allergies and you can’t figure out what’s causing them. We cannot begin to think that something as healthy and nutritious as wheat can cause allergies in dogs. But the fact is that dogs can be allergic to wheat and you need to be careful with their diet.

Detect Presence of an Allergy

You must be able to know the change in behavior in your pet dog. Look for skin problems, for instance scratchy, rough skin leading the dog to continuously scratch. The skin of an allergic dog turns red and flaky. So since your dog won’t come and tell you that he isn’t feeling well, you need to go and check up on him! See if there is inflammation in its ears and if it has lately started shaking its head more often. The dog might rub itself on the carpet owing to the irritation in its skin. It may lick its pause to provide moisture to the itching paws. The dog may get diarrhea and anal itching.

Consult a vet, you’re not a vet!

Don’t just act on the behalf of a certified vet and start treating your dog on your own. It can lead to worsening the condition of the dog. If the vet you go to doesn’t seem sympathetic and caring enough then go to another. The veterinary doctor usually suggests an exclusive diet to see if the symptoms of allergy go away. You will switch back to the original diet when the symptoms go away and if the reoccur that means your dog is allergic to the original diet.

Hypo-allergenic diet

If you find allergy symptoms in your dog then you can also directly switch to a hypo-allergenic diet for it. Compared to exclusion diet, hypo-allergenic diet will get rid of the allergy sooner, but you will not find out what particular ingredient your dog is allergic to. But it is best to consult the doctor first and follow his advice as random elimination of nutrients from a dog’s diet is a bad idea.

Treating a wheat allergic dog

What to do when you find out that the pet is allergic to wheat? Don’t feed wheat-y diet to the four legged! Get your dog a nice wheat free diet after consulting the vet or go for an exclusion diet for 10-12 weeks. Don’t give your dog chewy toys as it will lead to a delayed treatment. Also read the labels on the dog food packaging to prevent accident wheat inclusion in the pet’s diet.