My dog was 6 years old when she became mysteriously ill with gastrointestinal upset and diarrhea. Her symptoms were uncontrollable with traditional over-the-counter medicines, and getting worse every day.

I gave up trying to treat her myself and took her to the emergency vet. Rozy had lost 20 lbs in 3 weeks time, and was refusing to eat. We did a battery of blood tests to determine if organ failure was the culprit. They treated her for intestinal parasites, though none were ever found.

Rozy continued to worsen. The vet called in 2 other specialists to help find the cause of the illness, and all the vets made me aware that Rozy may not pull through this before the answer could be found.

More blood tests showed a critically low level of total serum protein. If this level was not corrected soon, the osmotic pressure in the intestines would be out of balance, and Rozy would not be with me anymore.

An ultrasound of her abdomen was ordered to look for possible cancer tumors. None were visible. We had tested for anything and everything under the sun, and all the tests were negative!

The vet suggested we treat for IBD, since we couldn't figure out anything else. She prescribed Purina HA, and asked me to bring Rozy back if her condition does not stabilize.

Well, she did stabilize. When her weight came back up to normal, we did food trials to find out exactly what was making her ill. We tried novel proteins - Lamb, Venisen, Trout, Tuna, Herring, hydrolyzed chicken (another prescription diet). Everything made her vomit and have diarrhea.

We tried novel carbohydrate sources - Sweet potato, White potato, barley, brown rice, white rice, wheat. Again, everything made her sick.

I finally gave up on the food trials, and just fed the HA exclusively. Rozy has been on this food for 3 years now, and as of her annual wellness exam, she's completely healthy!

Without Purina HA, Rozy would not be with me anymore. Thank you Purina -- You saved my dog's life!

Pros: Excellent diet for highly allergic dogs

Cons: Pricey

With Penny's allergies she needs food like this, it is so good for her to eat and it doesn't cause her any problems like itchy skin and rash in her ears.

Pros: good food, good for them

Cons: none, its worth the cost

Purina HA is great for my dog with food allergies. It's a hydrolyzed protein, so it's smaller and the body doesn't recognize it and have a reaction to it. My dog loves it, and she's a fairly finicky eater. It comes in 8#, 20# and 35#, but it's fairly expensive. I would recommend it if you're not having luck with other diets. It's similar in comparison to Hill's Z/D.

Pros: Comes in small and large bags

Cons: expense

We've used this at our house for several years now.. it does seem to help some.. but I supplement it with fatty acid capsules and an antihistamine. Together, the regimine appears to keep things under control.

Pros: seems to decrease the scratching

Cons: Expensive

My dog has so many allergies and this is one of 2 dry foods he's allowed to eat. Fortunately he likes it and his allergy symptoms are gone. a good choice

Pros: tasty

Cons: very light