I just switched my 'itchy' dog to a grain-free diet. How long before she gets some relief? Pet's info: Dog | American Cocker Spaniel | Female | spayed | 24 lbs

One important fact to remember is that grains are very rarely the cause of any allergies in pets. Additionally, grain free diets have been linked to heart disease though it is not fully understood at this time. If Stella does respond, it will be 12-16 weeks before you will know if it helped or not. Additionally, she cannot have any other treats/foods/flavored supplements during this trial period. The best way to rule out a food allergy is with a hydrolyzed protein diet. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hello. Grain allergies are very uncommon in dogs so a grain free diet should not be needed with your pup at this time. I would just recommend getting her on a high-quality small breed puppy food. Some of my favorite food brands for dogs are Science Diet, Royal Canin and Purina Proplan. I like these brands as they do extensive research and testing on their diets to make sure that they keep animals healthy throughout their lives. A puppy this age also should be fed three times daily until she was about six months of age or so. Best of luck as I know the amount of pet foods available currently can be overwhelming.

With grain. Grain free food is a fad, and a dangerous one at that. Vets are seeing an increase in dogs developing cardiomyopathy who are fed grain free diets, and the FDA is now investigating that link. There is no scientific proof grains are bad for dogs, and grain allergies are very rare in dogs. Only 10% of dogs who have allergies have food allergies, and the majority of those allergies are protein related like chicken. You would need to have Lily seen by your vet to put her on a specialized diet to determine if she has a food allergy or not.