This is a specific conversation about Dog food allergies — identifying and fixing them — ask about yours and get one honest answer for your exact situation.
inparticular.ai
That's actually a really useful starting point — your vet has already done the hard work of ruling out environmental causes, so you know you're dealing with a genuine food allergy rather than chasing the wrong problem. For a 7-year-old Lab on a novel protein trial, the goal is finding a single protein source your dog has never eaten before, with no cross-contamination from common allergens like chicken, beef, or wheat. How long has your Lab been showing symptoms, and do you know what proteins have featured in his or her diet historically? That'll help me point you to the right food.
She's been scratching and having loose stools on and off for about a year. She's always eaten chicken-based kibble, and had beef treats. The vet said to try duck or venison as she's never had those.
inparticular.ai
Perfect — chicken and beef are the two most common triggers in dogs, so duck or venison is exactly the right move. For a novel protein trial to actually work, you need a food where duck is the only protein source and there's zero chicken meal, beef fat, or mixed meat derivatives hiding in the ingredients. A lot of mainstream brands say 'duck' on the front but include chicken elsewhere in the list, which would invalidate the whole trial. What does she weigh roughly, and is she on any joint supplements or additional foods alongside her main kibble?
She's about 32kg. She gets a fish oil capsule daily but nothing else. We're happy to switch completely.
inparticular.ai
Good — fish oil is fine to continue, it won't interfere. At 32kg she's a typical Lab weight, so portion control matters too since this breed is prone to weight gain, especially at seven. My recommendation is Canagan Grain Free Duck for Dogs. It uses a single named duck protein, no chicken, no beef, no grain fillers, and the ingredient list is genuinely clean — duck makes up around 35% fresh duck and duck meal. It's been specifically popular for elimination trials in medium and large breeds precisely because the protein sourcing is strict. You'd feed roughly 280–310g per day for her weight, split across two meals. Transition slowly over 10 days, and give the trial a full 8–12 weeks before drawing conclusions — food allergies take time to clear from the system.
That sounds really sensible. Is there anything we should avoid during the trial period?
inparticular.ai
Yes — this is where most trials quietly fail. No treats unless they're single-ingredient duck or venison. No chews, rawhide, dental sticks, or flavoured supplements during the trial. Even a small amount of chicken protein from a treat can keep the immune response ticking over and make the results unreadable. If she needs rewards for training, small pieces of the Canagan kibble itself work well. Keep a simple symptom diary — skin, stool consistency, scratching frequency — so you have something concrete to take back to your vet at the follow-up.
Really helpful, thank you. I'll order the Canagan duck and start the transition this week.
inparticular.ai
Great — you've got everything in place to run a proper trial. The main thing is patience; the improvement in skin symptoms often lags behind gut improvement by a few weeks, so don't be discouraged if the scratching takes longer to settle than the loose stools. If after 12 weeks she's clearly better, your vet can guide you on whether to reintroduce proteins one at a time to identify the specific culprit, or just stick with duck long-term. Good luck to her.
