Since 1989

No products in the cart.

What is a FirstMate LID Diet?


March 9, 2021

Our Limited Ingredient Diets have been formulated to contain only a single meat protein and a single carbohydrate.  Other ingredients in the formula include only those required to ensure health and safety of your pet, and complete and balanced nutrition for all life stages.

Limited Ingredient Diets, such as our FirstMate grain-free product line, can be useful as an elimination diet or to help identify food sensitivities in your dog or cat.  Using less ingredients makes it easier to identify the potential cause of a food sensitivity in your pet.  Pets suffering from itchy skin, watery eyes, or digestive issues may be experiencing a food sensitivity, but if your kibble contains an extensive list of ingredients it can be difficult to determine the ingredient(s) that are causing the issue.  Feeding one of our Limited Ingredient Diet options for approximately 12 weeks can provide some insight into possible allergens; if your pet’s symptoms clear up on the FirstMate formula and return on their original food, it is likely a food sensitivity.  

Our Limited Ingredient, grain fee formulas all contain potato as the single carbohydrate source.  Potato was chosen as it is highly digestible and is not a common allergen in dogs or cats.  The protein options for dogs include Pacific Ocean Fish (a combination of wild caught Herring, Anchovies, & Sardines), Australian Lamb, Chicken, and Cage-Free Duck, and our cat formulas are available in Pacific Ocean Fish or Chicken (and soon Cage-Free Duck!).  We also include blueberries in our Chicken dog formula, as well as the cat formulas, to help support urinary tract health.  Pumpkin in our Cage-Free Duck formula can help with dogs prone to loose stool or constipation.

Our Limited Ingredient Diets also make it easy to incorporate rotation into your pet’s feeding regime.  Since each of the formulas in the product line typically only differ by the source of protein, most pets can tolerate regular rotation among the protein options.  This helps to prevent the development of a sensitivity to a single protein source, and also keeps things interesting for your pet.

3 responses to “What is a FirstMate LID Diet?”

  1. Kimberly Yanecki says:

    What do you offer suggest for large breed sensitive tummy?

  2. Wendy Vandersteen says:

    Hi Kimberly,

    Thank you for your interest in our LID diets for your dog. If your dog is fully grown, any of our formulas would be appropriate. For a sensitive tummy, I think our new Duck with Pumpkin would be a great option. If your dog is still a puppy and not yet fully grown, then I would recommend our Pacific Ocean Fish Large Breed formula as it is formulated to ensure proper growth of large breed puppies.

    I hope this helps!

    Best wishes,
    Wendy

    Wendy Vandersteen, PhD
    Manager of Research and Development
    FirstMate

  3. Australian Lamb No1…

Want to join the discussion? Leave us a comment!

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Articles:

Go to Your Bed & Mat Training Part 2

Read more

Join the FirstMate Family

Get pet advice, tips and more!