What food allergen? w/o expensive test

tekgrl

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Anyone have any experience trying to figure out what food is causing a food allergy? I went to a new vet and he gave a shot and said if the shot worked, then it was an allergy. Now that the shot has worn off, Palas has formed bloody, hairless patches above his eyes and in front of his ears (the classic food allergy sign, I've read). But my vet says he wouldn't pay the $500-$800 it costs to see a dermatologist about an allergy test for him. I don't know how much its supposed to cost, but his suggestion is to go on medication for it long term. I don't really like that idea. I'd prefer something more natural like food that doesn't include the allergen. So I need help deciding where to begin figuring out what it is or what food will not make him break out like this. Of course, I still pet him and give him attention and play with him, but I can't help but be repulsed by his huge bloody patches.
 

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I would just switch foods every so often, figuring in the ingredients. If you suspect it's corn, look for a food without corn. If the problems still persist, look for a food without wheat. If the problem still persists, see if he's allergic to chicken or lamb and look for a food without the ingredient. Just keep doing that until you've figured out which ingredient(s) is causing the problem. Don't do it too often or too quickly, as you may upset his tummy, but that's a good way to figure out food allergies.
 

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I would look for a food that doesn't have any major ingredients in common with the food he's eating now. Hopefully he will get better on the new food, and then, if you want to, you can try introducing other foods one at a time to find out what he can eat.
 

norman's mom

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The first thing a dermatologist would have you do is a food elimination trial to see if there is a food allergy or if it is some other kind of allergy. To do this trial, you need a food with very simple ingredients, preferably with an unusual protein source. Since Natural Balance has been a part of the recall, I'd suggest one of the Wellness Simple Solutions foods. I know they have dog varieties, but you'll have to check on what they have for cat varieties. Pick an unusual meat (something you cat hasn't had) and go with the formula with the strangest grain, if possible. Feed it for 6-8 weeks exclusively with NO other treats or anything with a flavor in it. Also give only distilled water. If you see improvement, you know you have a food allergy. If you don't see improvement, odds are it is not a food allergy and you will probably need to do testing. Steroid shots are not a long term solution, and they will cause more damage in the long run (in addition to becoming less effective).
If you do so improvement with the food switch, gradually start bringing other whole foods into the diet -- a little chicken breast for a week, and if that works out okay, maybe try some beef for a week. Keep adding things in until you find something that doesn't work for your cat.
I have only done this with dogs. I have one who is an allergic mess. She did not have a food allergy, which we determined from the food trial, but we had the dermatologist do a skin test (and it wasn't $500-$800 for the test -- but with the serum added in, too, it was closer to $500), and she was allergic to a lot of pollens. We give her immunotherapy injections every 10 days. It has improved her quality of life be leaps and bounds, and I would recommend it highly if the food trial yields no results.
Also think about what has changed in your household -- new cleaners, detergents, pest control treatments, etc. They can be sensitive to these things. They can also have allergies to fleas or dust & dust mites. My dog is allergic to all 3 of the those! Flea allergies simply require application of Frontline every 3 weeks instead of every month. Frontline goes down to 75% effectiveness after the third week, which is plenty for most animals, but not enough for a flea allergic one.
 

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WHat are you currently feeding>>>???


COMMON in some order

FISH

WHEAT

SOY

BEEF

then

Corn

RIce

Chicken

Lamb

Potato

Basically see what your feeding and try a new protein( meat ) and either rice or no grain
 
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tekgrl

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after the recall, i stopped feeding the nutro kitten pouches and cans and just continued to feed the nutro dry kitten. after awhile of just dry, they were starting to beg for wet food so I tried a package of the NV frozen beef patties along with their nutro dry kitten. They liked them ok but no change. after the NV frozen and nutro dry ran out (about 2 weeks ago), I tried Serengeti herbal feline formula for all stages and Innova Evo cat and kitten canned because. During the time I switched, he was doing well from the shot. But now that it's worn off, they started to come back slowly but now they've gotten really bad the past 2 days.

I guess I should look for dry and canned food that doesn't have chicken in it first. I will call the store I'm pretty sure carries Wellness to see if they have the simple solution you're suggesting.

He's currently on prednisone since the day before yesterday but it has little to no effect so far.
 

sharky

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YOU went from a BASIC dry to a VERY complex dry ...

I would try a lamb based food ... Natures Vareity makes a good one
 
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tekgrl

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Originally Posted by sharky

YOU went from a BASIC dry to a VERY complex dry ...
Whats with the caps? Could you explain what you mean by this? I ask because your comment feels a little accusatory. Obviously I didn't feel I was picking the right foods for a food allergy situation, that's why I posted a thread to ask for suggestions.

He was having the symptoms when he was eating just the Nutro products too. So even if Nutro kitten is a very BASIC dry, he wasn't right for him.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by tekgrl

Whats with the caps? Could you explain what you mean by this? I ask because your comment feels a little accusatory. Obviously I didn't feel I was picking the right foods for a food allergy situation, that's why I posted a thread to ask for suggestions.

He was having the symptoms when he was eating just the Nutro products too. So even if Nutro kitten is a very BASIC dry, he wasn't right for him.
NO NO not acuusing at all just stressing... I went back and realized the trouble was not just getting into the MORE COMPLEX foods... SORRY.. my caps arent to accuse just to STRESS
 
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tekgrl

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I see. I appreciate your suggestion. I will be going to the pet store to find one or both of the 2 foods mentioned sometime this weekend.
 
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tekgrl

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I went to the pet store that carried the brands that PetSmart and Petco do not carry. They had a few options for me to choose from. I was going to try the brand of dry kibble (I think Cal Natural) that only had three ingredients: chicken, rice, and something. But that said adult cat food and I still have a 4 mo old kitten that I think needs the extra kitten stuffs.

So I decided to try the NV Lamb & Rice dry for all stages first to rule out chicken as the problem since that is the most common meat. I also bought a bag of NV Lamb medallions just for Palas.

I will free feed the NV Lamb dry and feed the medallions to Palas once or twice a day. (At the same time, I will be free feeding DeeDee the NV Lamb dry and the innova evo canned once or twice a day since she doesn't have the skin problems.)

Wish me luck!
 
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tekgrl

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Thanks!

I also forgot to mention that I got them a drinkwell fountain as well that I filled with distilled water, since the distilled water was suggested.

Oh and I did change the type of litter from a clay scented to the Swheat (sp?) litter. I realize that if he gets better during this time, I will need to change his food to make sure it's the food and not the litter.

Question: Do you think I should continue to give him the prednisone? He's been on it for 4 days and it doesn't seem to be helping. And they only gave me 15 pills as a trial.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by tekgrl

Thanks!

I also forgot to mention that I got them a drinkwell fountain as well that I filled with distilled water, since the distilled water was suggested.

Oh and I did change the type of litter from a clay scented to the Swheat (sp?) litter. I realize that if he gets better during this time, I will need to change his food to make sure it's the food and not the litter.

Question: Do you think I should continue to give him the prednisone? He's been on it for 4 days and it doesn't seem to be helping. And they only gave me 15 pills as a trial.
DIcsuss tappering the pred with your vet .... as it is a drug not to go cold turkey
 

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I did a food trial on the Natural Balance Venison & Peas (both wet and dry) with my cat. My vet said that it's a very good allergy diet, almost identical to the prescription allergy diet she usually prescribes. Of course, the dry was recalled -- Natural Balance says they're working to reformulate the dry and release new batches, but I'm not sure how long that will take. The wet food is still good and my cat's still eating that -- he loves it.

It's important with the food trial that you feed only that food for at least eight weeks. No treats, nothing else. If the cat's symptoms go away by the end of eight weeks, then you can slowly introduce new foods, one at a time, to see if something changes. Or you can keep feeding the allergy food.

I'd make sure you get a food that's specifically meant as an allergy diet. They have the fewest ingredients and are created out of unusual protein and carb sources that most cats wouldn't be familiar with or allergic to. Of course, my vet said that there's a small chance that a cat might also be allergic to something in the allergy diet, in which case you wouldn't find out much.
 
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tekgrl

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Originally Posted by emmylou

I did a food trial on the Natural Balance Venison & Peas (both wet and dry) with my cat. My vet said that it's a very good allergy diet, almost identical to the prescription allergy diet she usually prescribes. Of course, the dry was recalled -- Natural Balance says they're working to reformulate the dry and release new batches, but I'm not sure how long that will take. The wet food is still good and my cat's still eating that -- he loves it.

It's important with the food trial that you feed only that food for at least eight weeks. No treats, nothing else. If the cat's symptoms go away by the end of eight weeks, then you can slowly introduce new foods, one at a time, to see if something changes. Or you can keep feeding the allergy food.

I'd make sure you get a food that's specifically meant as an allergy diet. They have the fewest ingredients and are created out of unusual protein and carb sources that most cats wouldn't be familiar with or allergic to. Of course, my vet said that there's a small chance that a cat might also be allergic to something in the allergy diet, in which case you wouldn't find out much.
Thanks, I will put that food on my list of foods to try.

Just as an update. His sores (4) haven't flared up (a little blood flow...which irritates him and he scratches it up and makes it worse) since I started on the NV lamb and rice last Friday. That could be completely coincidental since his sores have healed in the past and returned. But thought I'd use the thread to keep track.
 

sharky

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Has this cat been checked for herpes???
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by gizmo51

What are the herpes symptoms? How are they treated?
Sharky raises hand and asks for some help....

the spots leaving and comeing back sounds like one ....
 

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My cat also had lots of facial lesions from food allergies - it was awful to look at his face. The steroid shot helped him to stop scratching so that the wounds could heal. Basically - it's just like food allergies in people - you have to do an elimination diet and try to eliminate one possible culprit at at time. Can your vet prescribe hypoallergenic food? You have to order it off the internet, but your vet has to rx it. So far, I'm having success with Wellness grain free (wet and dry).
 
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