# Feeding Raw, questions about coat and allergies



## Ladyscarletthawk (Dec 6, 2011)

Ok so question one... those of you feeding a raw diet even partial, have you seen a difference in your poodles coat? Does it grow faster, thicker with the added protein? If so are you feeding all raw/BARF or just supplementing some wings and things to help with the their teeth? I already feed my mini honest kitchen, and I supplement some chicken wings mainly for her teeth, but am willing to up her raw intake if it will help her coat.

Question two, Ive been trying to find info on this. I have a toy poodle that has food allergies, and she is allergic to chicken. At least that is what the test say AND she started to react when I switched her to a chicken kibble. How likely is she to react to raw chicken? I would really like to give her raw meaty bones, but I would like to avoid red meat and pork, and duck is hard to come by in pieces. She supposedly is allergic to turkey as well. Fish doesnt have the teeth cleaning ability Im looking for. Thanks!


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## TrinaBoo (Apr 3, 2012)

My toy poodle had the slowest growing, dry coat ever! She could go 6 months with out her needing to be clipped. Switched to raw....BARF and her smell is gone, infections gone, and her hair grows! Now I can tell a dfference within a couple weeks and her FFT is done weekly. When it comes to the chicken, I have heard that sometimes organic chicken is tolerated. That is what a local business told me. But they also said that turkey is more tolerated than any chicken, organic or not. It's a shame she is allergic. Those turkey necks work wonders on teeth!


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I have also heard that raw chicken and turkey can sometimes be fine for dogs that cannot tolerate processed versions - is her problem intolerance, or full blown allergy?


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## faerie (Mar 27, 2010)

i too, have heard that often times the allergy is arrested when they are fed it in raw source.


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## Marcoislandmom (Mar 15, 2012)

My Karat cannot tolerate chicken whatsoever. For many dogs, it is the #1 allergen of all the protein sources. She does exceptionally well on Duck and my nutritionist said we could also try turkey..that dogs who have chicken allergies not not necessarily have turkey allergies. It is not chemicals that cause Chicken allergies so I doubt "natural" or "organic" chicken would be better tolerated. 

I am now a 100% raw feeder and my pup is sooo happy, now such an eager eater while prior she was really picky, and better yet, since she was underweight, after 3 weeks, she has gained two pounds, which is terrific, especially since you can feel larger muscles in her rear hams.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I have read that dogs allergic to cooked chicken are OK with raw but you might want to tray trial run to see how your dog reacts. Swizzle has been on raw since he was a puppy. His hair grows fast. I know with my Aussie when I supplemented his kibble with raw meets bones his coat improved noticeably. His coat color and shine improved. I am not sure if it grew. Faster but the texture was better. I feed Aunt Jenni and also give him chicken necks and legs.


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## Ladyscarletthawk (Dec 6, 2011)

TrinaBoo said:


> My toy poodle had the slowest growing, dry coat ever! She could go 6 months with out her needing to be clipped. Switched to raw....BARF and her smell is gone, infections gone, and her hair grows! Now I can tell a dfference within a couple weeks and her FFT is done weekly. When it comes to the chicken, I have heard that sometimes organic chicken is tolerated. That is what a local business told me. But they also said that turkey is more tolerated than any chicken, organic or not. It's a shame she is allergic. Those turkey necks work wonders on teeth!


Unfortunately it is difficult to get a hold of any necks lol. Her allergy report came back as poultry mix (chicken, turkey), but nothing about duck. I can get duck necks which she likes but only at dog shows. I probably could get necks of whatever bird but I would have to buy 40lbs of it lol. Cheap but no room.. I may save thanksgivings neck for her tho. She started to get itchy while on Canine Caviar Spenial Needs that has chicken as the protein.. she also had liver disfunction and they can accumulate allergies then.


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## Ladyscarletthawk (Dec 6, 2011)

fjm said:


> I have also heard that raw chicken and turkey can sometimes be fine for dogs that cannot tolerate processed versions - is her problem intolerance, or full blown allergy?


Its an allergy, she can eat just about anything and not have issues. Its the constant scratching that is the major sign. Altho she may have an intolerance to brown rice.. or it could be too much fiber lol, but she gets loose stools then. She has environmental allergies too and is on hypo shots, so its always a big battle with her


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## Ladyscarletthawk (Dec 6, 2011)

Marcoislandmom said:


> My Karat cannot tolerate chicken whatsoever. For many dogs, it is the #1 allergen of all the protein sources. She does exceptionally well on Duck and my nutritionist said we could also try turkey..that dogs who have chicken allergies not not necessarily have turkey allergies. It is not chemicals that cause Chicken allergies so I doubt "natural" or "organic" chicken would be better tolerated.
> 
> I am now a 100% raw feeder and my pup is sooo happy, now such an eager eater while prior she was really picky, and better yet, since she was underweight, after 3 weeks, she has gained two pounds, which is terrific, especially since you can feel larger muscles in her rear hams.


I dont have the time or memory to feed full raw. I like to supplement . However she has started to become a porker.. she's borderline cushinoid, so that is where it may be comming from. ALtho she was also recently spayed, and has been eating like a cocker lol. I have to be careful of how much I feed her, she's been an eater for years, but now it really seems like she's starving at meal time. Im hoping that adding raw will help her feel fuller longer without adding a lot of weight on her.


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## Ladyscarletthawk (Dec 6, 2011)

CT Girl said:


> I have read that dogs allergic to cooked chicken are OK with raw but you might want to tray trial run to see how your dog reacts. Swizzle has been on raw since he was a puppy. His hair grows fast. I know with my Aussie when I supplemented his kibble with raw meets bones his coat improved noticeably. His coat color and shine improved. I am not sure if it grew. Faster but the texture was better. I feed Aunt Jenni and also give him chicken necks and legs.


It is so encouraging to hear that a lot of you see some improvements with coats. I want to optimize my minis coat growth and health. Right now my toy is itching a bit and I so want to try the raw but unsure of how much of it is from the environment and how much from the food sigh. I am waiting for the aloe supplement to arrive. It worked wonders for her staph infection! I ran out so couldnt do a trial to see how well it worked for itching itself.. I think when I feed my mini her wing I may give some to my toy poo. I now she can eat it (so long as there is not a lot of pesky skin to prevent here swallowing/tearing it) and she can tolerate it fine. We will see if she itches more or not.


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