Our sweet little furry friends are as much our family as any other members. We tend to be so much more attached to them than even other humans. And so, who can ignore those cute puppy faces (and don't forget that breath!) It will make your heart melt, despite all the mischief these little guys get in.
But did you realize that your dog also could potentially be gluten-sensitive?
Most studies have found that dogs can be sensitive to gluten or have celiac disease like humans.
That is why, like most people embracing it, there is also a gluten-free diet for dogs. As the awareness about dogs' problems has become popular, so has a gluten-free diet for dogs. If you are not well aware of dogs' gluten-free diet, here is some information to help you.
Effect Of Gluten On Dogs
Usually, dogs do not have much of a problem digesting wheat or any other grains. They also do not commonly show any issues when people add grains to their diets. But some dogs do face troubles just like just humans do.
This gluten sensitivity, as known for humans, is ‘Gluten induced Enteropathy in dogs. When dogs, who are gluten sensitive, consume gluten, their small intestine develops chronic inflammation. Like humans, dogs, too, show the evident effects of gluten sensitivity.
If gluten enters the system of gluten-sensitive dogs, they suffer from Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis. This sickness is one that wreaks havoc on their intestines and irritates the gut lining. While this is one of the significant consequences of gluten poisoning in dogs, others show different symptoms.
Symptoms like itching, skin allergies, and other skin issues are visible when a gluten sensitive dog consumes gluten. The continuous itching that happens due to gluten sensitivity is Dermatitis Herpetiformis. But all these symptoms can happen even without the dog having gluten sensitivity. Often, due to the symptoms being so common, doctors can mistake them for gluten sensitivity.
Or, when it happens due to gluten, they mistake it for being allergies to other things. One sure-shot way of knowing that the sickness is due to gluten is that the dog will pass loose stools, lose lots of furs, have a sudden thinning in their coat lining, lose weight, and become lethargic. When these symptoms occur all together, it is most likely that your dog is suffering from gluten sensitivity.
Although gluten intolerance is detectable, it is not that easy. Apart from being quite expensive to carry out, the tests are also not always definitive. There is a scope for error in them despite costing a fortune.
How To Know If Your Dog Is Allergic To Gluten?
One way in which you can know whether your dog is allergic to gluten is by performing the gluten-free diet test.
If you think that your dog might be sensitive to gluten or have celiac disease, you must put them on a gluten-free diet. If your pet's condition improves by going gluten-free, gluten may be the reason for their issues.
To perform this test, you need to put your dog on a gluten-free diet for a couple of weeks. Then observe their health pattern closely, which will help you conclude the results. If you want to diagnose their condition professionally, you will have to take them to a veterinarian.
What the veterinarian would do is to put them on a gluten-free diet for a few weeks. Along with this, they might also conduct urine and blood tests for confirmation. If their condition improves over 2-4 weeks, they will reintroduce gluten back into their diet.
This little amount of gluten in the diet is a means to check whether the dog's condition would relapse. These methods are a sure-shot way of concluding a perfect diagnosis.
But, since dogs' gluten-free diet is not very popular, many people have apprehensions about it. So, what is the gluten-free diet for dogs? And is a gluten-free diet healthy for dogs? If you also have such questions, let us find the answers to them together.
What Is A Gluten-free Diet For Dogs?
It isn't easy to stick to a gluten-free diet for dogs since most of their food contains grains. Whether you feed them regular human food or even specific dog foods, they are likely to have grains in one or the other form.
And the sad part is that our little furry friends cannot even complain about the pains and aches due to the food they consume.
Since ages past, even before people tamed animals and domesticated them, they hunted and found their food. As time passed, humans gave the tamed animals food according to their liking. With the various natural food that the animals had for themselves, they did not have many grains. They mainly thrived on meat and plants.
If you are apprehensive about feeding your pet a gluten-free diet, you have nothing to worry about. If anything, you will only be taking them back to what their ancestors thrived on.
Even if your dog is not gluten-sensitive, going gluten-free will indeed cause them no harm. A gluten-free diet for your family dog would be eliminating any food that contains any trace of gluten.
When you put your pup on a gluten-free diet, you need to ensure that no food contains wheat or grains in any form. Whether you give them your regular food or their dog food, ensure it is entirely gluten-free. While it was challenging to find gluten-free dog food earlier, it is now readily available due to the growing demands.
So, you will not have a tough time looking for some good quality dog food for your dog. If you are not sure how to go about your dog's dietary habits, you should consult a veterinarian.
How To Treat Gluten Intolerance In Your Dog?
As in humans, gluten intolerance in dogs, too, is a permanent condition. You will not find a 100% cure for it but only a few remedies. Switching to well-known dog food brands that supply gluten-free food will be very helpful.
Here are some gluten-free dog foods you can try.
Complete Mix Grain/Gluten-free
This food is well suited for a daily dose of nutrition and all requirements. You can introduce this in your dog's diet every day and see the renewed energy and good health. This mix has very well-balanced ingredients that cater to the dog's health altogether.
It also has low carb content, which helps solve the hidden issues they may suffer in their intestines. With this food, your dog's digestion will significantly improve, and subsequently, their health will too.
This food is suitable for both dogs as well as puppies. To make it taste better for them, you can add their daily dose of meat and mix it with this food. It is a great food option for any dog suffering from gluten poisoning or one who has a sensitive stomach and skin.
Wellness Core Grain Free Kibble
This is another excellent option for gluten-free dog food. It comes power-packed with meat protein.
Most of this protein extract comes from fish meat along with a few others too. The main ingredients in this gluten-free dog food are salmon, whitefish, herring, menhaden fish, and peas. Its nutrition content is fat up to 17%, proteins of 38%, and carbs of 38%.
All in all, this Wellness formula is an excellent food option for protein. It is most suitable for dogs and puppies of both small as well as large breeds.
Nulo Freestyle Grain-Free Dog Food
The main ingredients in this food contain menhaden fish, sweet potato, peas, deboned salmon, and some turkey meat. Apart from being super-rich in protein and all other nutrients, this food is loved among dogs. Many pet parents have commended this food for being the best for their pets.
So, if other dogs love this food so much, you might as well try it for your own and see how well they enjoy it! Puppies, along with small breed dogs, and the adults can eat it.
Taste Of The Wild Grain Free Dog Food
This is one dog food that contains meats from the wild. As the name suggests, most of its meat content is wild animals like the forest Buffalo, Bison, and roasted Venison. It also has lighter ingredients like lamb, chicken, peas, and sweet potatoes.
Since it contains a high protein content and rich sources of meat, it is one of the most superior dog food choices for your dog.
It may be slightly expensive but oh so worth it when your pets devour their food without falling sick. It suits puppies and adult dogs of all breeds, especially the small ones.
Orijengrain Free Dry Dog Food
The main ingredients in this food are monkfish, flounder, Atlantic herring, Acadian Redfish, and the Atlantic Mackerel. So basically, this food is rich in seafood and thus has fish meat as its protein source. It has around 43% protein and fat content of 21% with carb content of 28%.
Orijen is an excellent Grain-free food option for your dogs and comes highly recommended by most pet parents. Not only is it well suited for large breeds puppies but also adult and senior dogs.
It also has another variant, which is a specifically curated recipe for weight loss in dogs. If you have an overweight dog who is not very active, you can put them on this gluten-free food to reduce their weight.
Surprisingly, grain-free dog food is rich in protein as compared to food with grains. These grain-free dog foods use suitable substitutes for grains to maintain the nutrition balance. When the right substitutes are not used, you may have to compromise on the nutrition value. But ensure that you thoroughly check the labels and look for the ingredients in them.
Two ingredients are most often used as grain substitutes in dog foods. People use this in place of cereal grains or corn or rice and mainly wheat, rye, and barley. These substitutes are potatoes and legumes. Under this canopy of legumes, the most widely used are chickpeas, soybeans, lentils, and peas.
Even though the legumes are substitutes, they are extremely rich in proteins and are an excellent source for dogs. Nonetheless, using plant-based food as grain substitutes is not as useful as the meat itself.
Your dog needs the essential amino acids and other nutrients that are available only on a meat-inclusive diet.
Final Words
Unlike us humans, our little fur babies cannot always express what they are going through health-wise. It is all the more our responsibility to pay close attention to what is causing them any trouble.
Many times, the wrong diagnosis leads to their health deteriorating even more. Therefore, our pet must get the right treatment for a gluten intolerance if present. This way, you can avoid any future hazards to their health and give them good food and the healthy life they deserve.
Gluten-free dog food is not difficult to find, and with a little research and analysis, you can find the best one for your dog. Even if it costs a bit more than usual, it is worth it for your dog's good health. Make sure to consult a veterinarian before switching your furry friend's dietary changes.
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The key to figuring out why you feel the way you feel is to take a more significant look at what is going on inside you & even around you, and then ask questions!
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