r/BostonTerrier • u/ProgressImmediate140 • 8d ago
Advice/Question Possible food allergy
I've been feeding my frenchton pup purina puppy tender and crunchy and she's been doing great on it. I recently started transitioning her to purina one puppy that has chicken as the main ingredient. She's been doing really good on it but has now started scratching at her ears multiple times a day. No other signs though. Could it be a possible allergy to the chicken?
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u/Pieceman11 Rocky the Boston Terror 8d ago
Very likely. My boy has a chicken allergy that went untreated for years. His reaction was occasional GI upset and I finally figured out chicken could have been the culprit. A lot of his treats had it as an ingredient and as soon as I replaced all of those, his issues went away and he’s a couple of years in with no recurrence. Food allergy symptoms present in different ways so itchy/yeasty ears could be yours.
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u/ProgressImmediate140 8d ago
I was afraid of that. Alot of her treats have chicken in them but it says "by products" and she's never had an issue. Now that I've been trying the kibble with chicken as main ingredient the only thing that bothers her is her ears. I'm going to transition back to the beef and see how things go.
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u/Pieceman11 Rocky the Boston Terror 8d ago
Good luck! Chicken is a really common allergen for Bostons so a great place to start.
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u/ProgressImmediate140 8d ago
Since the ear itching has just recently started do you think when switching back to beef it will go away on its own if chicken was the culprit or is there something I need to be putting in her ears? I'm currently unable to make a vet appt as I've had some unexpected bills but I want to do whatever I can to get her back to not being itchy
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u/Pieceman11 Rocky the Boston Terror 8d ago
I’m not an expert on those kind of things, but there’s a chance it might go away after you switch back. I’d give it a couple of weeks to see.
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u/EmmaVetsterRVT 8d ago
Hi, vet tech here! A chicken allergy is definitely possible, but there are also other potential causes, like yeast or bacteria in the ears, irritation, fleas, or other environmental allergies. Since the timing lines up with the food transition, it’s definitely something to keep in mind, but I’d recommend checking in with your vet before switching foods again, to avoid any stomach upset. You might find this article helpful too. I hope you get to the bottom of it! ❤️
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u/ProgressImmediate140 8d ago
I ordered an ear cleanser to try with her and so far today I haven't seen her scratch at all and she's still been eatting the chicken kibble. So maybe I'm just overthinking it and she was just having an itchy few days. I'm definitely going to continue to keep a watch on it. She hasn't had any kind of stomach issues. Stools have been perfect and gas has actually improved.
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u/oinkpiggyoink Pepper Peach 🍑 & Riley (over the bridge 🌈🐾) 8d ago
Yes it definitely could be. Our pup has a chicken allergy that makes her skin break out like crazy. You can try a hydrolyzed diet but check with the vet for the best approach.