Food allergies

[Marley1]

My Marleys lower lip is swollen. The vet says it’s likely a food allergy. Problem is when he was diagnosed 6 weeks ago, I completely changed his diet to all wet foods of many varieties. So now I don’t know which flavor is causing the allergies. Anyone know what the most common food allergies are in cats? Could it be something else besides allergies? He’s also been licking himself a lot which makes me think he could also be itchy. Anyone else have experience with this?

 

[Larry and Kitties]

Could it be a rodent ulcer?
https://www.thesprucepets.com/rodent-ulcers-in-cats-5093328

 

[squeem3]

Proteins and filler ingredients are typical causes of food allergies / sensitivities. You'll want to put your cat on a novel protein only diet for at least a couple of weeks to see if that helps. Chicken is a very common cause of food allergies / sensitivities. Rabbit is a good novel protein to try for a food trial. Treat should match the protein of the main diet (example, freeze dried treats in rabbit with a rabbit canned food diet) The Rawz brand of canned food is good and doesn't contain too many extra fillers. The pate ones should be low carb enough for a diabetic. Rawz is expensive, though, and sold only at independent pet stores. https://rawznaturalpetfood.com/ingredients-source/where-to-buy/

If it's a filler ingredient (fruits, veggies, fish oils, etc. Lots of things that can cause reactions), that's harder to try a food trial on. You'll have to read labels and choose foods that don't contain a suspected allergen but also low carb enough to feed.

Did the vet consider other possible causes like rodent ulcers?

 

[Marley1]

Proteins and filler ingredients are typical causes of food allergies / sensitivities. You'll want to put your cat on a novel protein only diet for at least a couple of weeks to see if that helps. Chicken is a very common cause of food allergies / sensitivities. Rabbit is a good novel protein to try for a food trial. Treat should match the protein of the main diet (example, freeze dried treats in rabbit with a rabbit canned food diet) The Rawz brand of canned food is good and doesn't contain too many extra fillers. The pate ones should be low carb enough for a diabetic. Rawz is expensive, though, and sold only at independent pet stores. https://rawznaturalpetfood.com/ingredients-source/where-to-buy/

If it's a filler ingredient (fruits, veggies, fish oils, etc. Lots of things that can cause reactions), that's harder to try a food trial on. You'll have to read labels and choose foods that don't contain a suspected allergen but also low carb enough to feed.

Did the vet consider other possible causes like rodent ulcers?

 

[Marley1]

He didn’t use that terminology. But isn’t the main cause of rodent ulcers allergies to food or environmantal sensitivities? I know it could be caused by other medical factors but his assessment is that it’s allergies. Especially because I changed his diet drastically just over a month ago. Also he has had this happen in the past periodically and then it goes away. This time it’s not going away as quickly that’s why I took him in. But it may be that I would feed him canned food every once in a while in the past and now he gets that food every day. Also he had complete lab work 6 weeks ago and no other medical issues showed up other than diabetes. And some slightly high number to do with his liver. I can’t remember what that was but he didn’t seem overly concerned about it.
I guess what I’m asking is, if it is a rodent ulcer, couldn’t the diagnosis still be food allergies?

 

[Wendy&Neko]

In addition to chicken, fish and beef are common allergies. Rabbit, lamb, venison, duck, kangaroo, goat, pork are some options to try. You have to read labels as I've seen rabbit canned food with chicken in it (cheaper meat) and salmon with chicken in it. Canned foods with "meat by products" ought to be called "mystery meat' as you don't know what protein is in them. A LOT of Fancy Feast flavors have fish in them. Can you look at the labels of the food he was getting before and identify ingredients. Then look at what he's getting now that is new to him.

Liver numbers such as ALT can be higher with diabetes.

 

[squeem3]

Koha is another good brand with novel proteins and few fillers. Hounds and Gatos is another with novel proteins. Be wary of foods labeled as "limited ingredient". They are not always novel protein. And yes, read labels! A food may be labeled as rabbit but may contain chicken or whatever you're trying to eliminate in some form lower down on the ingredient list. My eyes got crossed eyed reading commercial raw food labels to find a food that doesn't contain the filler ingredients Leroy can't have. It took awhile to figure out that random fillers like goat milk and certain oils were the cause of his bald fur spots.

Some people just feed a home cooked or raw diet because they know exactly what ingredients they are feeding to the cat. That might be an option to look into. It sounds complicated and time consuming but it's not.

 

[Marley1]

In addition to chicken, fish and beef are common allergies. Rabbit, lamb, venison, duck, kangaroo, goat, pork are some options to try. You have to read labels as I've seen rabbit canned food with chicken in it (cheaper meat) and salmon with chicken in it. Canned foods with "meat by products" ought to be called "mystery meat' as you don't know what protein is in them. A LOT of Fancy Feast flavors have fish in them. Can you look at the labels of the food he was getting before and identify ingredients. Then look at what he's getting now that is new to him.

Liver numbers such as ALT can be higher with diabetes.

Thanks for that info. I could go to the store and look at the labels of the food I used to give him but it was a variety of different flavors. It was mostly whisky’s wet food but many different meats so I don’t know if that would help.
Do the ALT numbers improve once a diabetic cat’s bg level is stabilized?

 

[Marley1]

Koha is another good brand with novel proteins and few fillers. Hounds and Gatos is another with novel proteins. Be wary of foods labeled as "limited ingredient". They are not always novel protein. And yes, read labels! A food may be labeled as rabbit but may contain chicken or whatever you're trying to eliminate in some form lower down on the ingredient list. My eyes got crossed eyed reading commercial raw food labels to find a food that doesn't contain the filler ingredients Leroy can't have. It took awhile to figure out that random fillers like goat milk and certain oils were the cause of his bald fur spots.

Some people just feed a home cooked or raw diet because they know exactly what ingredients they are feeding to the cat. That might be an option to look into. It sounds complicated and time consuming but it's not.

 

[Marley1]

Thank you! I’m not sure if he’d like home cooked but I could try. I do make him chicken broth but I may have to cut that out now. I’ve starting with cutting out beef right now as the vet told me it was the most common allergy. But who knows it could just be the fillers in the food. It looks like it’s gonna be a long process to figure this out. If I could just pick up rabbit cat food in a grocery store I would but all this stuff is so difficult to find and very expensive.
Another possibility is a reaction to his plastic dish. I only used it once a day because it was a timer feeder. I had it set so he could have a snack while I was at work. I’ve taken that away now so we’ll see if that’s what it was.

 

[Wendy&Neko]

My IBD girl can't do fish, and the green lipped mussel in Koha is also a no-no. Hounds and Gatos is hard to find, at least in the west coast part of Canada. There are some Canada Fresh (lamb and duck) canned options, unfortunately you'll have to go to pet food stores like Bosley's to get them. Petsmart has some other protein options, various vendors. Or order on line - but that means a case of it. I too made raw food. In Canada there is premix from TC Feline, or you can get it from FoodFurLife (in the US). That's mostly meat, water, premix mixed together in a bowl and portioned into tubs for freezing. In Canada we also have lots of options of premanufactured raw - and if it doesn't have bone it in, you can saute it if you want to.

 

[squeem3]

Oooo... plastic. Yeah, try using a glass or ceramic or other material bowl. With timed feeders I've heard of people placing a small glass or paper bowl inside the plastic feeder bowl so the cat doesn't touch the plastic.

I don't think you'll find novel protein cat food at a grocery store. A local independent pet store is your best bet. And there's always buying online. The pet food brand will have a "where to buy" search locator or list on their web site.

 

[Marley1]

Oooo... plastic. Yeah, try using a glass or ceramic or other material bowl. With timed feeders I've heard of people placing a small glass or paper bowl inside the plastic feeder bowl so the cat doesn't touch the plastic.

I don't think you'll find novel protein cat food at a grocery store. A local independent pet store is your best bet. And there's always buying online. The pet food brand will have a "where to buy" search locator or list on their web site.

Ya I never use plastic normally. My cat dish bowls are metal but it was the only timer feeder I could find. That’s exactly what I did was change the dish inside so now only the casing is plastic and he has no reason to lick that. Thanks for the info!

 

[Marley1]

My IBD girl can't do fish, and the green lipped mussel in Koha is also a no-no. Hounds and Gatos is hard to find, at least in the west coast part of Canada. There are some Canada Fresh (lamb and duck) canned options, unfortunately you'll have to go to pet food stores like Bosley's to get them. Petsmart has some other protein options, various vendors. Or order on line - but that means a case of it. I too made raw food. In Canada there is premix from TC Feline, or you can get it from FoodFurLife (in the US). That's mostly meat, water, premix mixed together in a bowl and portioned into tubs for freezing. In Canada we also have lots of options of premanufactured raw - and if it doesn't have bone it in, you can saute it if you want to.[/QUOTE
Ya I may try homemade first before a venture to a pet food store. Thanks for the help!

 

[Gracie85]

You don't have to go to the store to look up ingredients. Go to Chewy.com and look there. They almost always have the complete ingredient and nutritional information for every thing they sell, and they sell almost everything. It's a great place to look up information, even if you aren't buying from them.

 

[squeem3]

@Marley1 any updates on your cat? Did you decide on trying a food trial or homemade diet? If you PM me, I have a useful chart that helps find foods suitable for cats with food allergies. It hasn't been updated in a few years but still useful. You'll have to double check on the pet food manufacturer's web site or Chewy to see if any of the ingredients have since changed.

 

[Tilda]

If it’s helpful, we use Rayne Nutrition for food allergies (they have elimination diets as well). The rabbit cups are low carb enough for diabetics

 

[Marley1]

@Marley1 any updates on your cat? Did you decide on trying a food trial or homemade diet? If you PM me, I have a useful chart that helps find foods suitable for cats with food allergies. It hasn't been updated in a few years but still useful. You'll have to double check on the pet food manufacturer's web site or Chewy to see if any of the ingredients have since changed.

Sorry for the late reply. Yes I’m working on elimination diet. Right now he’s only eating Turkey and beef and he seems to be a lot less itchy so I think I’ve narrowed the allergy down to either chicken or fish. I will introduce the chicken back in next and see what happens. Thanks for the info.

 

[Marley1]

If it’s helpful, we use Rayne Nutrition for food allergies (they have elimination diets as well). The rabbit cups are low carb enough for diabetics

Thanks for the info. I tried giving him rabbit and he doesn’t like it. Same with lamb. Fussy cat!

 

[Lisa and Witn (GA)]

Thank you! I’m not sure if he’d like home cooked but I could try. I do make him chicken broth but I may have to cut that out now. I’ve starting with cutting out beef right now as the vet told me it was the most common allergy. But who knows it could just be the fillers in the food. It looks like it’s gonna be a long process to figure this out. If I could just pick up rabbit cat food in a grocery store I would but all this stuff is so difficult to find and very expensive.
Another possibility is a reaction to his plastic dish. I only used it once a day because it was a timer feeder. I had it set so he could have a snack while I was at work. I’ve taken that away now so we’ll see if that’s what it was.

I make my own cat food and it has helped with food allergies for one of my cats. I use the same recipe that is used for raw food, but cook the meat first in just water and then add the supplements have the meat has cooled. I use the cooking water to mix the supplements in.

Since you are starting to make your own food, I recommend using a premix instead of adding the supplements individually. A couple good ones are found on these sites The CAT Store | RAW Cat food & Treats | TCFeline Premix | Whole Body Care (thetotalcat.com) and EZComplete Premix Information (foodfurlife.com). I generally use either chicken or pork for my cats. Occasionally they get rabbit but they are not a fan of beef.

 

[Gravy and Vicki]

I've never had a kitty with allergies but have a lot of experience with it in dogs. If it just started could it be environmental allergies? I had one dog that was allergic to autumn. From Sept til November she would itch and lick like crazy.

 

[Lisa and Witn (GA)]

I've never had a kitty with allergies but have a lot of experience with it in dogs. If it just started could it be environmental allergies? I had one dog that was allergic to autumn. From Sept til November she would itch and lick like crazy.

I used to have a dog with food allergies. It took trying a lot of different foods to figure out what triggered it. In her cas it was fish. I was shocked to see how much fish meal is in dog food.

 

[Marley1]

Thanks everyone for all the great suggestions! Right now he’s only eating beef and turkey and no scratching or licking for at least a week. I’m going to re-introduce chicken next and watch for signs. It’s either chicken or fish. Just got to figure out which one. Does anyone know if they could be allergic to fish but not salmon or vise versa? Or are they the same thing?