From scratch to scrumptious: Feeding the skin from the inside out with Dr Maeve Garde

This presentation equips veterinary nurses with the practical knowledge to identify, and help clients manage allergic skin disease in small animals through targeted nutritional therapy. The session opens by detailing how to differentiate environmental allergies (atopy) from adverse food reactions in canine patients, emphasising key clinical nuances such as non-seasonal versus seasonal pruritus, gastrointestinal co-morbidities, and distribution patterns. Attendees will learn the gold-standard protocol for executing a strict elimination diet trial, alongside veterinary nurse-led strategies to support 100% owner compliance—including navigating non-compliant treats, flavoured medications, and multi-pet households. Expanding into feline dermatology, the talk highlights the subtle and varied manifestations of feline allergies.

The second half of the talk focuses on long-term clinical management using Hill’s therapeutic foods, demonstrating how customised nutrition can interrupt the itch-scratch cycle from the inside out. Nurses will gain an understanding of Hill’s Prescription Diet z/d, made with highly hydrolysed proteins that are broken down to avoid detection by the immune system. The presentation also introduces Hill’s Prescription Diet Derm Complete and Derm Complete Puppy, highlighting its dual-action approach that utilises single-source intact protein for food sensitivities alongside the Histaguard Complex, a proprietary blend of bioactives and phytonutrients. The blend helps to normalise the immune system reaction to environmental allergens.