Summary

Food allergies occur when pets develop sensitivity to specific diet components such as beef, dairy, wheat, corn, soy, chicken, eggs, or certain additives like preservatives or dyes. The most common sign is chronic itching, often accompanied by hair loss, skin redness, chewing, scratching, and recurrent skin or ear infections. Diagnosis requires a carefully controlled prescription hypoallergenic diet trial lasting up to 10 weeks, during which the pet must consume only the prescribed food. Improvement may be gradual. A food challenge after the trial helps confirm the allergy. Strict adherence to dietary restrictions is critical, as ingesting other foods can invalidate results.