[ilovesadie]

The whole idea with the danger of various protein sources is that there is not really that they will develop a food allergy, it has to do more with the availbility of these protein sources.

Currently, the vast population of dogs feed on foods that are mainly chicken, and beef product (and recently lamb). Many times, the food allergies that dogs have involve the protein source, which is why foods like IVD have diets like rabbit, duck, venison. They are not "allergy diets" per se, but instead have ingredients that from different sources than normal dog foods.

Now is feeding your dog food that has fish, or duck in it bad for them? No, not really, in fact it's quite nice to have a variety of protein sources in the diet. Mandy is right, it does increase the possibility of a food allergy, but you will know if it does cause one.

Why is feeding your dog a variety of protein sources bad? It's not really bad for your dog if they aren't allergic, in fact it may be good. But it's bad in the long run for other dogs. The only reason (I've asked a dozen vet nutritionists this question) is that there is only so much availability of protein sources out there, with chicken, beef, and lamb being the most available. If dogs without allergies consume all the other protein sources like duck, rabbit, and venison, there may not be much supply left to feed those with allergies. In addition, if dogs are exposed to all of these protein sources and become allergic by continued exposure, what protein source will be left to feed these dogs? We'll have to start looking elsewhere for meat like Kangaroo, horse, pork, etc...

Hopefully that makes a little sense. This is why many of the alternative protein foods are prescription only, to make sure that the protein sources are not wasted on dogs without allergy.

I think that a little fish mixed in with the other protein sources can be a great addition to the diet since Omega-3's are key, but I wouldn't switch them to an all duck or rabbit diet just for the heck of it.

If you have any other questions, ask your vet about it or I can try to answer them.

-Nate

 

[porshas_momma]

:roll: i DONT KNOW ABOUT ALL STATES BUT MOST STATES TAKE THERE ROAD KILL AND PUT IT INTO COMPOST PILES AND USE IN PARK AREAS AND HERE OKLAHOMA UTHENISED ANIMALS ARE TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DUMPS. (I HAVE BEEN THERE AND IT IS A SAD SAD SIGHT BUT THE ANIMALS ARE IN SEALED WHITE PLASTIC BAGS. I DO NOT BELIEVE IN ANY WAY COMPANIES ARE USING DOGS AND CATS IN PET FOODS. hOWEVER ALL OUTHER MEATS THAT HUMANS EAT AND A FEW WE DONT THE LEFT OVERS ( all of them) ARE USED FOR FEED PURPOSES. bECAUSE I HAVE GROWN UP AROUND TRRUCK DRIVERS WHO HAUL THE WASTE I KNOW QUITE ABIT ( OR I'D LIKE TO THINK SO ANYWAY)HAHAHA BUT SERIOUSELY I HAVE NEVER ONCE HEARD OF CATS AND DOGS BEING INCLUDED. i DO FEEL AS A SOSIETY WE TAKE WHAT WE FEED OUR PETS TO THE EXTREME ( im just as guilty as the next person) Animals in the wild including cats and dogs will eat anything to survive they are not that fragile. :wink:

 

[punky]

The whole idea with the danger of various protein sources is that there is not really that they will develop a food allergy, it has to do more with the availbility of these protein sources.

Currently, the vast population of dogs feed on foods that are mainly chicken, and beef product (and recently lamb). Many times, the food allergies that dogs have involve the protein source, which is why foods like IVD have diets like rabbit, duck, venison. They are not "allergy diets" per se, but instead have ingredients that from different sources than normal dog foods.

Now is feeding your dog food that has fish, or duck in it bad for them? No, not really, in fact it's quite nice to have a variety of protein sources in the diet. Mandy is right, it does increase the possibility of a food allergy, but you will know if it does cause one.

Why is feeding your dog a variety of protein sources bad? It's not really bad for your dog if they aren't allergic, in fact it may be good. But it's bad in the long run for other dogs. The only reason (I've asked a dozen vet nutritionists this question) is that there is only so much availability of protein sources out there, with chicken, beef, and lamb being the most available. If dogs without allergies consume all the other protein sources like duck, rabbit, and venison, there may not be much supply left to feed those with allergies. In addition, if dogs are exposed to all of these protein sources and become allergic by continued exposure, what protein source will be left to feed these dogs? We'll have to start looking elsewhere for meat like Kangaroo, horse, pork, etc...

Hopefully that makes a little sense. This is why many of the alternative protein foods are prescription only, to make sure that the protein sources are not wasted on dogs without allergy.

I think that a little fish mixed in with the other protein sources can be a great addition to the diet since Omega-3's are key, but I wouldn't switch them to an all duck or rabbit diet just for the heck of it.

If you have any other questions, ask your vet about it or I can try to answer them.

-Nate

V
Thank You again! Are you a Veternarian or student Vet ?(thought I read something way back about you both being students)
I will talk to my Vet, problem is I live in Puerto Rico and there isn't any natural food product for dogs here. I had to order online. I asked him once briefly a year ago about food and he said they're about the same. The breeder had fed Punky Ekanuba and my Vet sold it so I just stuck with it. She's over 16 months old and still on puppy food. So it's time to change. He wanted her on puppy food until a year old because he said she's small. But there aren't many Chi's on the Island so experience is different here and I don't think she's so small. A Vet in the States, while I was visiting, said he didn't agree and to change her to Adult food. I didn't, think it mattered enough to make my Vet feel second guessed so I just let it be, since she seems really healthy. Anyway he's very competent and he's great so I'll go have a chat with him. Maybe I can help bring some other products to the Island.
My experience is in the Human medical field and I know medical professionals can get a bit huffy when challenged.

Thank you again, you've explained things clearly and taken a lot of time to do so.

PS I guess Pinky will get chicken and fish choices then, so she thanks you too!!

 

[ilovesadie]

Punky's mom, I'm a veterinary student with years of experience as a veterinary technician. I've done a lot of research as well in various areas so my background in the field is pretty good =)

Glad I can help out! -Nate

 

[oliversmom]

It's so interesting to read all this. I became a new dog owner about a year ago and started investigating like crazy and came to a quick conclusion early on that just because a vet sells it in their offices, doesn't necessarily make it the best food for them. I do think thank goodness there are "some" really good premium foods out there. I really do my homework, check out order of ingredients, avoid ones with fillers and junk they don't need. I tried a few, all good, but obviously you also want one your dog seems to like. I have now settled on EVO by Innova and just feel really good about it. I started Oliver out on Wellness and LOVED it and felt that was just top notch but unfortunately he didn't eat it that well. I may try it again sometime down the road.

I also noticed the thread about shedding and though Oliver sheds "some" but not that much and I wonder if what we feed them has "some" bearing.

Anyway this website will take you to a comparison chart where you can pull up various brands of foods and compare one to another. This is just one of many websites that helped me when I was learning about all this.
http://www.naturapet.com/display.php?d=comp-wiz