Dietary Soy

Information has existed for many years in Shar-Pei circles concerning the use of soy in diets for Shar-Pei and adverse effects. I can find no information in the nutritional literature, which would support this notion, and I actually found some information indicating the potential protective effects of soy in the diet against cancer. Certainly dietary sensitivity and allergic disease due to soy in the diet is possible and can occur in any individual in any breed. One major problem in this area is the lack of objective tests for food allergy in animals. The gold standard is still the use of hypoallergenic (elimination) diets to diagnose the condition. Another problem concerns the high incidence of allergic disease in Shar-Pei in general. My general recommendation concerning diet in Shar-Pei is to feed what the dog does well on. I evaluate coat quality, stool quality, stool quantity, physical condition and stamina and the dog’s psychological status in this regard. I’ve seen Shar-Pei do well on one brand of dog food and other Shar-Pei do poorly on the same brand. Unfortunately, it is a trial-and-error approach, but because it is, I’m careful not to make broad generalizations about brand name diets and ingredients.