Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Dog with allergies help?

I have a 3 year old newfie that has severe allergies. We have put her on special food, give her shots every month, use special shampoos and hydrocortisone sprays to help out her skin. I give her benedryl when she gets really bad, and antibiotics when her skin gets infected. our vet tried putting her on medication that costs 300 a month but still hasn't worked. But she still is suffering. I hate to watch her just scratch and bite herself to death its really sad to watch.





I was just wondering if anybody has the same problem and what works best for their dog, any home-made therapies or ANYTHING, were getting desperate. any ideas? thanks!

Dog with allergies help?
Is it environmental or food allergies or both? Environmental can be tested at the vet's. Food allergies cannot. Do not waste your money on the blood test for food. It is unreliable. Even the Merck Vet Manual states clearly that only a strict elimination diet can determine food allergies. I'd get this dog on a grain free diet (Innova EVO, Orijen, Timberwolf Organics, Nature's Variety Instinct, etc) or preferably a raw diet. No corn, no wheat, no soy, no sorghum, etc in ANY FORM. The poster above is incorrect. Gluten is a protein matrix that acts as a thickening agent. The white part of the corn is the embryo, so I don't know what you are talking about.





I'd supplement this dog with 4-6 fish oil capsules a day plus 400 IUE of vitamin E plus 2000 mg of ester C (for overall better immunity and it is a natural antihistimine). A raw egg (with shell is fine) every other day and a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil on the other days will also be helpful. He needs to up his omega 3s to minimize inflammation. These will help.





NO MORE YEARLY VACCINATIONS! These can exacerbate these kinds of problems. Get the 3 year rabies as required by law, but only get the parvo/distemper titers tested. No vaccinations other than that are needed.
Reply:I had similar problems withmy beagle.


We have no problems now- we put her on a vegetarian diet- we use Natures Recipe (we buy it at Petsmart- its 35 or so for a big bag.)


One thing you want to make sure of is to have your dog flea free- they get hotspots from flea bites.


Another thing is to make sure there is no corn in your dog food. Dogs can not digest corn. Corn Gluten is ok as that is the only part of corn that is digestible (its the little white circle on the bottom of a corn kernel in case you were wondering.)


I only use oatmeal shampoo on my beagle and I dont bathe her often. Use a nice soft brush to brush her with every day.


Same with the treats- no by-products- no corn. We use bark bars for her treats or make our own. I can share a recipe if you email me or you can look up how to make vegetarian dog treats online.


Oh... also, for the scratching, I used 2 parts water to one part tea tree oil in a spray bottle and just applied it to her itchy spots... it kept her from biting and soothed the spots at the same time.





Hope this helps some!
Reply:Are you sure you don't own my Shih Tzu??? We have gone through EVERYTHING you have said for 9 years now. We are at wits end. There isn't one thing you could possibly mentioned that we have not all ready tried a dozen times. Right now we are using a food nutrient supplement called: Dinovite. You can read about it at www.dinovite.com I told the company when I ordered it, that if it worked, I would buy stock in their company. We have only given our dog 2 doses so far and we still watch the dog chew and lick like a mad-man. We will use the 3 month supply we have just gotten and keep our fingers crossed. I have even thought of putting the dog down as I can not watch the madness the dog seems to go through. I am not heartless by any stretch...I, too, can not spend over $300 a month to suppress the symptoms and not cure the problem. This is REALLY our last hope with our dog.
Reply:I'm so sorry to hear that! I work in a clinic that specializes in allergies. We have seen a few that are very severe. WE put them on the food Z/D Ultra made by hills. You have to make sure that nothing passes her lips for 4 months absolutely NOTHING BUT THE FOOD. NO TREATS, NO CHEWIES, NO TOOTHPASTE, NO HUMAN FOOD. You cannot turn a dog into a vegitarian when they are naturally canivoires. Please do not do a vegetarian DIET!! It will cause severe health problems. There is allergy testing available through your vet to find out what exactly she is allergic to. It ranges from 200.00-400.00 But it will provide you with what exactly to avoid. They can also make up serum injections for her to prevent allergic reactions. Ask your vet for Temaril-P. Its an antihistamine with cortisone and should help will any extra allergies she gets. (I use this on my own dog and it works wonders) Get a coat spray that seals in the moisture for when she gets baths. That will help with the skin irritation. HOpe this helps!!
Reply:my husky has terrible allergies that start in the spring and run until oct or until the first frost hits, then he is ok when the weather is cold. he goes through hell with the itching,hot spots fever etc. he is a lot like ur dog. i have tried him on home made food which i cook. hamb,chicken.rice and lots of veggies which help. i also give him up to 3 prenisone pills a day along with 3 benadryl until he cools down.then i start weening him off for a few days, then as soon as he starts feeling miserable i treat him again. get medicated oatmeal skin conditioner for dogs and snip the hair off the sore spots and rub the cond it, let is sit until u treat him again in a couple of hrs.the prendisone side effects are thrist,hunger and peeing a lot but his skin cools off quickly.it is a cheap drug that works well on my husky so get ur vet to prescribe it. it is the dogs comfort we have to consider and it works.i have also used gold bond medicated ointment and powder on his skin which helps at times to.after ur dog is on the meds for a while u will just have to give hime 1 or 1/2 a day keep the dust,smoke or any other irritants out of ur house and plug in a vaporizer to get moisture in the air.good luck


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