Can Fido Have Food Allergies?
Published: Nov. 19, 2008 Source: Dr. Domenico Santoro An archive of Pet Columns from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine is available online at www.vetmed.illinois.edu/petcolumns/. Requests for reprints of this article may be directed to Mandy Barth, mandyb@illinois.edu. The Centers for Disease Control recently reported that four out of every one hundred children have a food allergy. Just as in humans, the other furry, four-legged family members can have food allergies as well. Dr. Domenico Santoro is a dermatology resident at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Urbana. He says, “food allergies are much less common than flea and environmental allergies, but dogs can have them.” The most common food allergens in dogs are proteins such as chicken and beef, as well as dairy products. “Clinical signs of a food allergy usually start in a young puppy less than one year of age,” mentions Dr. Santoro. Each animal can have different clinical signs, w
