Scratch. Lick. Chew. Repeat.
If your dog seems to spend half their day scratching their belly, chewing their paws or rubbing their face on anything that stays still long enough, you're probably wondering what on earth is making them so itchy.
And you're definitely not alone.
Itchy skin in dogs is incredibly frustrating, both for the dog and the person trying to work out what's causing it.
The tricky part is that there isn't one single cause.
Fleas, grass, pollen, dust, skin infections, parasites and environmental allergies can all make dogs itchy. For some dogs, however, something in their diet may also be contributing to the problem.
So, before blaming the chicken in their bowl, let's look at what can make a dog itchy, when food is worth investigating and why the protein your dog eats can matter.
There are plenty of reasons a dog might suddenly—or persistently—be itchy.
Some of the common causes include:
And sometimes there can be more than one thing happening at the same time.
For example, an allergic dog may scratch enough to damage the skin, allowing a secondary yeast or bacterial infection to develop—which makes them even itchier.
That's why persistent or significant itching deserves proper investigation rather than simply switching foods over and over again.
It's not always obvious scratching.
Dogs with itchy or irritated skin may:
Some dogs with food-related issues may also experience digestive signs such as loose stools, vomiting or excessive wind, although skin problems can occur without any digestive symptoms at all.
Yes—but food isn't responsible for every itchy dog.
True food allergies are less common than many people assume.
When food is involved, dogs are often reacting to a particular protein or ingredient they've been exposed to, rather than simply reacting to "dog food" in general.
And despite what you may have heard, grains aren't automatically the problem.
Commonly fed animal proteins can also become dietary triggers for individual dogs.
This is why simply moving from one food containing chicken to another food containing chicken—or changing brands while continuing to feed multiple proteins—may not tell you very much.
You'll often hear the words allergy, sensitivity and intolerance used interchangeably.
They're not quite the same thing.
A food allergy involves the immune system reacting to something in the dog's diet.
A food intolerance doesn't involve the same immune response but may still cause an individual dog problems.
From an owner's point of view, the symptoms can sometimes look remarkably similar.
Rather than trying to diagnose the difference yourself, it's generally more useful to work out whether a particular ingredient is actually contributing to your dog's symptoms.
And that's where a properly planned food trial can become useful.
When investigating a possible food reaction, the protein source deserves particular attention.
Proteins such as chicken, beef and lamb are fed extremely commonly.
That doesn't mean they're bad foods.
Plenty of dogs thrive on them.
But if you're trying to work out whether your dog is reacting to something they've eaten regularly for years, feeding the same familiar proteins in a different packet isn't necessarily going to answer the question.
That's where novel proteins can come in.
A novel protein is essentially a protein that your individual dog hasn't regularly eaten before.
That's an important distinction.
There isn't one meat that is universally "novel".
For one dog, venison might be completely new.
For another dog that has eaten venison treats for years, it isn't novel at all.
Less commonly fed proteins available in New Zealand can include:
Novel proteins can be useful when building dietary variety, but they can be particularly interesting when you and your veterinarian are investigating whether a commonly fed ingredient may be contributing to your dog's problems.
If you're looking at less commonly fed proteins, our Novel Proteins for Dogs NZ guide explains what makes a protein novel and covers options including possum, goat, venison, hare, horse, rabbit and kangaroo.
One advantage of choosing simple, clearly identified raw ingredients is that you can know exactly what animal protein you're putting into your dog's bowl.
At The Raw Dog Food Co, we're particularly passionate about wild and less commonly fed proteins.
Some options worth exploring include:
Our Wild NZ Possum 80:10:10 Raw Dog Food is made from wild-caught New Zealand possum and contains meat, edible bone and organ in an easy-to-feed minced blend.
Possum is much less commonly found in conventional commercial dog foods, making it an interesting protein for dogs that have eaten the usual chicken, beef and lamb proteins throughout their lives.
Wild Goat Raw Dog Food is another less commonly fed animal protein.
Our 80:10:10 goat blend contains meat, edible bone and organ and provides Kiwi raw feeders with an alternative to more traditional proteins.
Our Wild NZ Venison 80:10:10 Raw Dog Food is made from New Zealand wild venison.
Venison is naturally lean and can be another useful protein to consider when you're looking beyond the everyday options.
Horse Meat for Dogs is an exceptionally uncommon protein in most New Zealand commercial dog foods.
Our horse meat is boneless, so when feeding it long term it needs to form part of a properly balanced raw diet rather than being fed as the dog's entire diet on its own.
Our Wild Hare Raw Dog Food uses whole wild hare including meat, bone and organ.
Again, whether hare is genuinely "novel" depends entirely on what your dog has eaten previously.
This is an important one.
Possum, goat, horse, venison or hare aren't automatically hypoallergenic foods.
A dog can theoretically react to almost any dietary protein.
The benefit of a novel protein is that your dog may simply have had little or no previous exposure to it.
That's why knowing your dog's feeding history matters.
If you're trying to investigate a genuine food allergy, don't just pick whichever packet says "novel protein".
Think about everything your dog has eaten previously—including:
You'd be amazed how quickly a supposedly new protein turns out to have appeared somewhere else in the dog's diet.
If your veterinarian suspects your dog's food may be contributing to persistent itching, they may recommend an elimination diet trial.
This needs to be much stricter than simply trying a different meat for a few days.
Generally, an elimination trial involves feeding a carefully chosen novel or veterinary hydrolysed diet exclusively for a number of weeks.
That means no:
If you're undertaking a veterinary elimination diet using raw food, talk to your vet or an appropriately qualified canine nutrition professional about how to keep the diet nutritionally appropriate—particularly for puppies, pregnant dogs or dogs with medical conditions.
And remember: a mixed-protein raw box is fantastic for dietary variety, but it isn't appropriate for a strict elimination trial where you're deliberately trying to isolate one protein.
This is where patience matters.
Skin doesn't usually change overnight.
A proper veterinary food trial is generally measured in weeks rather than days, and your veterinarian may recommend continuing it for around eight weeks or longer depending on your dog's symptoms and the diet being used.
If your dog appears to improve, the next stage may involve carefully reintroducing previously fed foods to see whether the symptoms return.
That re-challenge is important because improvement after changing food doesn't automatically prove that a true food allergy was responsible.
So while the internet loves a quick "change their food and they'll stop scratching" answer, real life is usually a little more complicated.
It depends on what you're trying to achieve.
For a healthy dog without suspected food allergy, protein rotation can be a fantastic way of introducing dietary variety.
We feed plenty of different proteins ourselves and offer a huge range for exactly that reason.
But if you're actively trying to identify a dietary trigger, constantly rotating foods makes the detective work much harder.
During a formal food trial, consistency matters.
Once you've worked out what your dog tolerates, you can then discuss building greater variety back into their diet.
If you're simply getting started with raw feeding rather than undertaking an allergy trial, have a read through our Raw Dog Feeding Guide NZ.
Nutrition absolutely matters for normal skin and coat health.
Essential fatty acids, including omega-3 fatty acids, form part of good overall nutrition and can support normal skin function.
But adding one "skin supplement" isn't a substitute for finding out why a dog is chronically itchy.
If your dog is chewing themselves raw, repeatedly developing infected ears or scratching constantly, you'll get far further by identifying the underlying trigger than simply adding another scoop of something to dinner.
Definitely.
Here in New Zealand, warmer months can mean more grasses, pollens and other environmental allergens.
So if your dog becomes particularly itchy at certain times of the year, food isn't necessarily the culprit.
Seasonal patterns are useful information to give your veterinarian.
Try keeping a simple diary recording:
Patterns become much easier to recognise when they're written down.
A small occasional scratch isn't usually cause for panic.
But veterinary advice is sensible when your dog's itching:
Skin and ear infections often need treatment in their own right.
And if your dog develops sudden facial swelling, hives, breathing difficulty or collapses, seek urgent veterinary care.
There's no single food that is perfect for every itchy dog.
The best starting point is figuring out why they're itchy in the first place.
If food is suspected, look carefully at the proteins and other ingredients your dog has eaten previously and speak with your vet about whether a controlled food trial makes sense.
For some dogs, a less commonly fed protein such as wild possum, goat, venison, hare or horse may give you an alternative to the chicken, beef and lamb proteins found in so many everyday dog foods.
Most importantly, keep things simple.
Changing six things at once makes it almost impossible to work out which one actually made a difference.
At The Raw Dog Food Co, wild and novel proteins are one of our specialties.
We stock a wide range of raw proteins for Kiwi dogs, including wild New Zealand possum, goat and venison along with hare, horse, kangaroo, rabbit and more.
Whether you're looking to add greater variety to your dog's bowl or you've been advised to explore a less commonly fed protein, we're happy to help you work through the options.
Explore some of our novel protein favourites:
Or, if you're new to raw feeding, start with our Raw Dog Feeding Guide NZ.
Constant scratching can have many causes including fleas, environmental allergies, parasites, bacterial or yeast infections and adverse reactions to food. If your dog is scratching frequently or damaging their skin, it's worth getting them checked by your veterinarian rather than assuming food is responsible.
Paw licking can be associated with itchy skin, environmental allergies, food-related reactions, infection, pain, irritation or even behavioural causes. Persistent paw licking deserves investigation, particularly if the feet are red, swollen, smelly or sore.
An individual dog can develop an adverse reaction to chicken, just as they may react to other dietary proteins. However, chicken doesn't cause itching in every dog and shouldn't automatically be removed simply because a dog is itchy.
There isn't one universally best protein. A useful novel protein is generally one your individual dog hasn't regularly eaten before. Depending on their feeding history, that could include possum, goat, venison, horse, hare, rabbit or another less familiar protein.
Possum is less commonly used in conventional commercial dog foods, so it may be a novel protein for some dogs. However, no protein is automatically hypoallergenic and the best choice depends on your dog's previous diet.
It can help if something in the existing diet is genuinely contributing to the itching. But many itchy dogs are affected by fleas, environmental allergies, parasites or skin infections rather than food. A controlled veterinary food trial is far more useful than repeatedly changing foods at random.
Veterinary elimination diets usually need to be followed strictly for several weeks. Around eight weeks is common, although some dogs may require a longer trial. Your veterinarian can advise on the appropriate duration and diet for your individual dog.
Not necessarily. Healthy dogs can benefit from dietary variety. However, if you're conducting a formal elimination trial to investigate a possible food reaction, your vet may recommend a tightly controlled novel-protein or hydrolysed diet with no additional foods.
Watching your dog scratch, lick and chew themselves is awful—especially when you don't know why it's happening.
Food can absolutely be part of the puzzle for some dogs, but it isn't the only possibility.
Start by ruling out the obvious causes, involve your vet when itching is persistent and, if diet is worth investigating, keep things simple and methodical.
Sometimes the most useful thing you can put in your dog's bowl isn't a miracle ingredient.
It's simply knowing exactly what's in it.
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