# Allergy from Natural Balance?



## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

I fed Minnie Iams kitten food when she was little, but after mentioning it on here I was told it was not the best option and gradually switched to Natural Balance (low calorie formula). During the month she was eating it, she had a few awful allergic reactions--two of which warranted emergency vet visits. After switching her back to Iams, we have not had any issues. I know this is not the best food for her, but I'm paranoid to switch after she had such serious reactions to the Natural Balance. Plus emergency exotics visits are not cheap...haha. I tried comparing the ingredients, but they were very different and it would have been difficult to pinpoint what exactly was triggering her allergy. Do you guys have any suggestions?


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## Chloethehedgie7 (Jul 24, 2013)

Iam's cat food is really bad, so I would try to get her off that. Try switching to Chicken Noodle Soup for the Cat Lover's soul or Authority Senitive Soulution. (Authority can only be bought at PetSmart.)
She just probably just had a bad allergic reaction. But doesn't mean you still can't switch her to something else. But, try to find a cat food with different ingredients than the Iams.

Hope this helped,
Katie (ChloeTheHedgie7)


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

Maybe talk to your vet in advance, find out if there's anything you can do on a non-emergency basis to deal with a reaction if it happens? Switch foods slowly, watch like a hawk for problems...

It is so hard to diagnose food-issues with something manufactured like kibble, because there's so many ingredients and no way to pick out which is the key bad one.


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## abbys (Oct 13, 2012)

What were her allergic reactions like? These are ingredients that Natural Balance has that Iams doesn't:

Brown rice
Potatoes
Oats
Pea protein
Pearled barley
Pea fiber
Alfalfa meal
Salmon meal
Lamb meal
Carrots
Duck
Tomato pomace
Salmon oil
Yucca Schidigera Extract
L-Carnitine
Kelp meal
Cranberries
Parsley flakes
L-Lysine
Dried spinach

Along with variations of the vitamins and minerals.

So you could start by comparing other foods to Natural Balance trying to avoid those ingredients and take a trial and error approach. But then you run the risk of exposing her to more life-threatening reactions, but I don't know how else you would test for allergies with a hedgehog.

You could always take the homemade food route, but you'll need to do a LOT of prep work and research before you dive into that: http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/forums/12-diet-nutrition/23066-raw-home-cooked-diets.html

I agree with Annie&Tibbers about asking your vet if there's anything you can do to treat mild reactions before making an emergency visit.


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Thanks, guys! I ended up getting Blue Buffalo Indoor Health. I'm going to start introducing it on Sunday night in case she has a reaction and I'd have to take her to the vet the next day.
@abbys - Her reactions were sort of sporadic but fast-acting. She'd start getting red around her face, and within an hour, she'd have red spots all along her back and some on her belly. She'd start to swell up around her face as well.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Yikes, that's a fast reaction! :? I like Annie's & Abbys's suggestions. If you're going to try the Blue Buffalo, I'd write down a new list of all of the ingredients that it shares with the Natural Balance, so if she does react, you have a new list of possible suspects that are in common between the two. Hopefully the list might be shorter than the one Abbys posted between Iams and NB.

Another thing you can keep nearby while you're trying the new food is Benedryl. There's not a definite dosage for it (that I know of), and you should still be very cautious if you decide to try using it in response to an allergic reaction. But there's a couple of other people who've tried to help with itching. Their method of dosing was to soak one or two kibble in the liquid, then feed. Not an exact thing at all, and like I said, I've only seen a couple people try it so far. But it might help if she has another very fast reaction & if you think her health (breathing) is threatened.

It might be worth it to talk to your vet on the best route to take if she does react to the Blue Buffalo. Not all vets are great at nutrition, but they might have some ideas, or some more limited ingredient diets that you could try. I know with dogs, a common procedure is to feed a diet of chicken and rice (or a protein + rice), then start adding in new ingredients to see what they react to. Since dietary deficiencies don't usually cause immediate problems, I doubt it'd seriously compromise her health if you need to resort to trying something like that. It would definitely be a lot of work/research, though. Here's hoping the Blue Buffalo works out alright! Let us know how she does, I know I'll be waiting to hear.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

I believe benedryl is in the exotic animal formulary ( I don't have my copy near me at the moment).

You can get the dosage for Benedryl from a veterinarian. I had one that had to take it twice daily for a long time. I took a capsule, opened it, mixed it with a measured amount of water, and dosed it. You can also add a little something to "sweeten" it to make it more palatable.

My vet gave me the amounts to mix and how much to dose based on the weight of my hedgehog.


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

You can also get liquid benedryl for children and use that.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

You can do that too. There was some particular reason I opted to not use the liquid children's formula. Most likely some inactive ingredient that I'm opposed to or it could have been an amount issue. The poor gal was being treated for mast cell cancer, so was already on lots of meds.

Something else you may consider if benedryl isn't strong enough to stop the reaction when it starts, talk to your regular vet about having an emergency medication on hand for those just in case moments.

For the hedgehog above, I also had an emergency supply of prednisone on hand should her cancer release a large amount of histamine and other nasty/irritating chemicals. Doc told me the signs to watch for and the doses to use should I ever see those symptoms start.


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Both vets that I went to prescribed Benadryl as needed to keep her comfortable. I've given it to her by syringe because the doses they suggested were very similar. @Kalandra, you had one that had to take it consistently? What were their reactions like? 
I would like to talk to a vet about what to do at home in case she has another reaction, but I'm not totally comfortable with the ones in this area. I recently moved to come back to college, and we went to an exotics vet mid-August for one of those emergency visits. The lady specialized in birds and didn't seem too..informed about hedgehogs. The other vet has worked in zoos and has practiced longer, so I'm hoping he'll be better. Regardless, I think I'm going to make an appointment this week because she's starting to lose a lottt of quills. Her skin looked flaky too, and when one vet suggested an allergic reaction to mites, she gave me the next few doses of Revolution to take with me when I went to school. I applied that a few days ago (I figured that even if she didn't have them, it wouldn't do her any harm) and there hasn't seemed to be any improvement. She's been eating fine, but she hasn't been nearly as active on her wheel and she's been a little grumpier.
She just has a couple issues going on and I'm not sure if/how they're related.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

You mean to taking it all the time? To be honest, I never noticed much reaction from her to it. I gave it to her twice a day, at 6:30 am and at 6:30 pm. Both times when she would be going back to sleep. So if it has the same reaction in animals that it does to humans, I never saw it in her as she was getting it during her sleepy times anyway. 

She took it for a while. As I mentioned she was taking it to combat the histamine release that her cancer caused.


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Update: She had a reaction to Blue Buffalo Indoor Health. I noticed immediately and was able to give her Benadryl before it got too bad. I'm terrified to try any new food


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Well, shoot.  Can you maybe compare the ingredient list between the list Abbys posted (ingredients in NB that weren't in Iams) and the list for Blue Buffalo? I wonder if that might narrow the list down further...I would do it myself, but I have to head out for class now. *sigh* I'm sorry to hear that she reacted to this one too though.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Have you tried a cat food that has limited ingredients? Like one of the Natural Balance LID formulas, or a Blue Buffalo Basic? These formulas have fewer ingredients, and are designed for dogs/cats that are sensitive to foods. The NB LIDs, I believe, are all grain free and seem to be the foods with the least number of ingredients. Where the BB Basics have a grain free available and more ingredients listed. You may even want to try a grain free variety to further eliminate ingredients.

Natural Balance Green Pea & Duck is both limited ingredient and grain free (Peas, Duck, Duck Meal, Pea Protein, Canola Oil, Flaxseed....).

If she has a reaction to one of these, you will at least have fewer ingredients that are the potential cause.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

Eventually, you may need to decide that keeping her on Iams, although a diet of junk-food, is at least better than the constant allergic reactions. I'd give her a break between trials at the very least, keep her from associating eating with pain or anything like that.

Maybe you could supplement with some of the suggestions from the raw-food diet, where things are single-ingredient? Or babyfoods?

I'm glad you're learning how to recognize and treat reactions quickly, and that the Benadryl works!


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Annie, that's what I've been considering D: She likes the Iams and that seems to be the only food that hasn't given her any issues. The changing of foods, although VERY gradual, seems to be stressing her out some too. It's totally understandable since she's having reactions and that can't feel pleasant, and I've noticed that her poop has had a tiny bit of a green tint.
I think it would be a great idea to try to supplement some healthier foods. I will definitely look into that. She is also a fan of chicken, and I can try to work that in sometimes.
Kalandra & Lillysmommy, I am just so hesitant to try anything new :/ . I'm going to follow up with Annie's suggestion and try to make this less-than-healthy diet more nutritious.

Also, since yesterday evening, her reaction did not spread. I gave her a little bit more Benadryl this morning around 6AM just as a precaution. I just checked on her again a few minutes ago and she is NOT happy. I couldn't pick her up because she kept twisting around and trying to bite me, which is very unusual. These are the times where I wish soooo very badly that I could just ask her what's wrong!


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## abbys (Oct 13, 2012)

Aw, poor girl. 

I like Annie's idea of supplementing the Iams, but if you do decide to keep trying out new foods, here are the ingredients that Natural Balance (low calorie/reduced calorie) and Blue Buffalo Indoor have in common, that Iams Kitten doesn't have:

Barley
Brown Rice
Potatoes
Peas
Carrots
Cranberries
Spinach
Flaxseed
Parsley
Alfalfa
Kelp
Yucca Schidigera Extract
L-Carnitine
L-Lysine


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Thank you! That list did get shorter! Even if I decide to stick with Iams, I am going to avoid those ingredients for supplements just to be safe.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

If hedgehog reactions are anything like humans, food-allergies can lead to intestinal pain, bloating, constipation, painful urination... all sorts of uncomfortable feelings that would make my try to nip at anyone squeezing my belly!


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

That makes a lot of sense! I'm gonna give her her space for a while.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

Or have "playtime" be more "exhaustedly nap on mum's lap time." Can't leave her alone too much or she'll be extra-difficult, but you can be sympathetic to her plight.

This is all so sad and frustrating! She's lucky to have such an alert caretaker paying so much attention to her, and trying to figure out what she's saying. Give yourself a high-five, or, as that's a bit physiologically difficult, a chocolate.


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Very true--I should have phrased that differently! It's just that throughout the day I kept waking her up to make sure her rash wasn't spreading, and if she's in pain, I just want to give her uninterrupted sleep for a little while. That's usually what our "playtime" is like, anyhow! She is definitely a snuggler. 

And thank you!  I really, really appreciate all the advice. Every time I post on here I am reminded of what a wonderful community this site has.


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

Okay last thing! Minnie has been coming out of her igloo and sleeping by her food bowl. I don't think it's a big deal, but she just started doing it yesterday. I keep a heating pad in there with a couple layers of fleece on top of it so it's not too hot for her to lay on, the room temperature is around 70ish, and she does it regardless of whether or not the overhead light is on. When I put her back in her cage, she comes out within two minutes to eat a couple bites, and then curls up beside it. I just thought it was odd 

p.s. - When I woke up this morning, her wheel was covered in poop. That's the first time she's ran on it for an entire week, so I know she must be feeling better. Plus she did not resist at all when I picked her up. Definitely more like herself, and definitely feeling better.


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## Annie&Tibbers (Apr 16, 2013)

1. Generally, air temperature needs to be kept 74-80F, not just the ground. From the archives, heating pads are usually for old/sick hedgehogs to give them a bit of extra warmth, and moving from the nice warm heating pad to the colder everywhere-else (or the extra-cold wheel) could trigger hibernation attempts. No fun.

2. One of Nancy's standard archive-recommendations for sick hedgehogs who aren't eating much is to move their food right next to their sleeping area. I've interpreted that as, "Sick hedgehogs are really exhausted, so make it really easy for them to eat." Maybe she's getting back her energy after fighting off all the turmoil?

YAY FOR POOP-WHEELS! It sounds so ridiculous, and yet it is SO REASSURING that things are moving back to normal. Congratulations on the return of one of your daily chores!! (and on the unresisting snuggles; that's just a nice, warm-prickly reward in itself)


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

I keep reading about potential hibernation attempts. I live in Ohio where the temperature/weather fluctuates literally every day, so I was sort of waiting it out until it stayed cold. I think it's probably time to break out the space heater!
The good thing is that throughout all these issues, her eating habits rarely fluctuated. Besides the time when we tried Natural Balance, she was always very good about getting a full meal (including this most recent episode). Maybe her coming out and sleeping by it is her way of protecting it. Like, "Mom, I like this, PLEASE stop changing my food!" haha.


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## racheldrown (Dec 31, 2012)

And yes, poop-wheels are the single most relieving thing to see after a health scare! I am welcoming wheel cleaning and foot baths back into our routine with VERY open arms. She is snuggling on my lap as I type


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