Does your dog scratch all the time? Does he go on and on scratching? If you're like most people, it probably drives you crazy - not to mention your poor dog. You look your dog over - no fleas to be found. So then why won't the scratching stop?
One common answer for your dog's itchy skin is food allergies -- your dog is reacting to a certain ingredient in his dog food. Another common answer is psychological -- your dog has issues (nervousness, hyperactivity, anxiety). However, one area that tends to get overlooked in the diagnosis of a dog's itchy skin is nutrition, or lack thereof.
When you deprive your dog of essential nutrients (vitamins, minerals, fats), their body may respond with inflammation of the skin and scratching - your dog's itchy skin!
Your dog is a beloved member of your family. You don't deprive him of nutrients! Do you? You might very well and not even know you are doing it. If you answer yes to the following question, there is a very good chance that you are.
Do you feed your dog commercial dog food? Most dog food companies provide very substandard dog foods without you even knowing it. Just because the label says "well balanced" and "complete nutrition" does not mean that it is. Most of the food that goes into dog food are by-products. A by-product is whatever is left over of a whole ingredient after the healthy, usable portion has been removed. So even though the dog food says it has a certain ingredient, chances are the good part, the part with the nutrients, aren't in your dog's food. This lack of quality nutrients results in your dog's itchy skin.
Proper nutrition is every bit as important for your dog as it is for you. Your pet relies on you solely for his food. Feed him quality, nutritious food and watch a lot of his problems disappear.
There are several alternatives to feeding your dog inferior commercial dog food and most of these will alleviate your dog's itchy skin and other "allergies". One alternative is to make your own dog food - homemade healthy dog food - where you have complete control of what your dog eats. Another alternative is to supplement a healthy kibble with fresh meat. The last alternative is to find out which dog food companies care more about your dog than their profits - there are a few out there. You'll need to learn how to read the ingredient labels to figure it out.
