Single-Protein, Hypoallergenic, Chicken-Free Dog Food – What Does It Mean?

A single-protein or monoprotein dog food is one that utilizes only one type of animal or plant-based protein in its composition. Unlike standard commercial dog foods, which contain at least two common types of animal-based protein, single-protein dog food typically contains an alternative protein source that the dog may not have encountered before. This makes single-protein foods often suitable for dogs with food allergies or intolerances.

Single-Protein Dog Food and Elimination Diet

For dogs suspected by veterinarians to have food allergies or intolerances, single-protein foods are usually recommended. In standard foods, multiple protein sources make it difficult to identify which one the dog is allergic or intolerant to. For this reason, a vet may recommend an elimination diet, which is a very reliable diagnostic tool.

What Is an Elimination Diet?

An elimination diet aims to remove allergy-inducing or intolerance-causing components from the dog’s diet. Determining which ingredient causes adverse reactions can be challenging when the food contains multiple animal or plant-based protein sources. In such cases, a dog food containing a protein source that the dog has never eaten before should be used. Single-protein dog food is ideal for this purpose.

How to Conduct an Elimination Diet Using Single-Protein Dog Food

The elimination diet starts the day the dog receives a full portion of only single-protein food. This means that you can slowly transition the dog to single-protein food beforehand.

The elimination diet should last for 9-12 weeks, during which time all other foods that could introduce another protein source should be eliminated from the dog’s diet, including snacks and treats. If the new protein source turns out to be beneficial for the dog, allergy symptoms should disappear after about 6 weeks. In the case of food intolerance, the change should be evident much faster.

To determine which protein is causing the allergy/intolerance, a provocative diet should be conducted after 12 weeks. It involves introducing a single additional protein source back into the dog’s diet that had previously been eliminated. If problems recur, you can be certain of the sensitivity to that specific protein.

What Protein Most Often Causes Allergies in Dogs?

Allergy to a specific type of protein is a very individual matter—dogs can become allergic to any protein source throughout their life. In practice, dog owners who have opted for an elimination diet or allergy tests point out that after eliminating chicken or rice from the dog’s diet, the animal’s condition improved.

On the other hand, among protein sources considered safest, lamb, venison, rabbit, and foods containing insect protein are often recommended. In the new line of single-protein EMPIRE PRIME foods, lamb has been chosen as the protein source.

What Dog Food is Best for an Allergic Dog?

For dogs diagnosed with food allergies, it’s essential to introduce an appropriate diet. EMPIRE PRIME single-protein foods are grain-free, eliminating one of the most common allergens found in dog foods.

Dry Single-Protein Dog Food or Wet Single-Protein Dog Food?

The choice of single-protein food depends on the individual preferences of the dog. Some dogs raised on wet food since puppyhood may be reluctant to eat dry food as adults. This stems from preferences acquired during their youth.

If your dog eats any type of food without issues, then there’s no problem — you can offer a combined diet in which one meal will be wet food and the next two meals will be dry food. In the case of a combined diet, remember to calculate the caloric content based on the dog’s daily energy needs — a veterinarian can assist with this.

From the caretaker’s perspective, however, feeding the dog exclusively dry single-protein food seems hassle-free since you can simply follow the dosing guidelines on the packaging.

Single-Protein Dog Food at Different Life Stages

If you’re caring for a puppy of a breed predisposed to food allergies, choosing a single-protein food would be the best thing you can do. This way, you’ll spare your dog health issues and yourself frequent visits to the vet. For particularly sensitive dogs, it’s important to have a comprehensive feeding program from puppyhood to adulthood. Such a nutrition program is offered by Empire through its EMPIRE PRIME line, which includes foods for both puppies and adult dogs:

• EMPIRE PRIME The Puppy for small and medium breeds
• EMPIRE PRIME The Puppy for large breeds
• EMPIRE PRIME The Adult for small and medium breeds
• EMPIRE PRIME The Adult for large breeds