[Amy E]

Hello, I’m new here.
5 months ago I adopted Moby, a 9 year old miniature schnauzer. He was from a puppy mill and weighed 7 lbs. when I got him. He now weighs 12 lbs and the vet says he’s a good weight. He came to us with ear infections, which we treated and cleared up.

He developed some small itchy bumps on his head, neck, legs and chest, which he licked, scratched and rubbed his body along the furniture. Vet diagnosed skin infection due to stress or allergies. Rx: zeniquin & clemastine for 10 days with KetoChlor shampoo followed by Allergroom shampoo daily for 3 days, then twice weekly for 2 weeks.

At 10 day recheck: All bumps healed and went away during the 2 weeks, except for one new bump on chest so 3 more days of zeniquin prescribed and continuing clemastine until winter arrives. Also supposed to bathe with the 2 shampoos once every 2 weeks.

Well… the bumps have returned on his head and neck. They started with just one here and there and have increased daily over this week. He’s starting to itch, rub and lick more again, even though he is still taking clemastine.

I feed him Eagle Pack Holistic Salmon kibble, but he also gets various treats (chicken based) and yogurt daily along with various other things like pumpkin, fresh veggies, fruit and sardines.

He came from Oklahoma and now lives in Minnesota. It just so happened that winter ended and spring began around the time we got him…the same time he started a new diet at our house…so it’s hard to know if his allergies are environmental or food based without testing (I’m considering doing a home-based test like Immune IQ). I suspect a life of poor diet and low exercise has weakened his immune system and now he’s more susceptible to everything, causing skin reactions. Besides the bumps, he has no other issues with his skin or coat (no hair loss, raw patches, etc). He has no digestive issues either. He’s a happy little guy, always wagging his tail, eats voraciously, sleeps like a log, potties on schedule (output looks good).

Do you think I should switch to a different food with fewer ingredients? If so, what? I’m going to eliminate the yogurt. We have another [senior] dog so feeding completely raw is cost prohibitive for me.

Thanks in advance for your help and advice.

[Vianca V]

This march I lost my beloved 15.6 year old pekingese, his name is Fluffy, I met him when I was 9 and he was my best friend and baby. Full disclosure I do have to recognize that he was older and had a few conditions but all of them where under control. In January, I had a 5 day trip scheduled and left him with my aunt who has alway taken care of him, for two weeks before that I decided to feed him Hills Prescription ID just to make sure he was eating well, when I came back although that first week he was well, the next week following up to the day he died we had a very rough go at it, he could not stop vomiting, and having bloody diarrhea, he lost a lot of weight, and was constantly dehydrated, and his blood work would show signs of renal failure and them they came back perfect. This went on for week, my concern is could that food have been somewaht responsible for what happened to him? Has anyone had a similar experience, or have you heard of something like this? I also noticed my 5 year old rescues skin condition got agravated and my moms 11 year old chihuahua developed allergies. Since then they are all of ID however my Dashound is on Hills Prescription Metabolic Diet to keep his weight in line and my 5 year old rescue is on Royal Canin Hypoallergenic Small Breed Formula, at this moment they are under different tratments my dashund for weight control due to the fact that he has a propensity to slip his disk, and my rescue is being treated for allergies and a staph bacterial infection which he was diagnosed with 2 days ago as the reason why he has been having so many skin conditions. Im afraid that keeping them on these diets may lead to their prematures death but I dont know what other options I have, all vets seem to recomed are those diets and even the few vets that are homeopathic, and natural medice friendly suggest these food.

[Michele N]

I have a 5 year old German Shepherd who has had allergies since he was just a pup. We have tried just about everything out on the market to relieve his itching. He has itched his fur off at times, and it is black underneath. He has a yeasty smell to him. He had to be on steroid shots when he was younger due to his terrible outbreaks and skin infections. He gets worse in the summer, but his problem went year round. Until I got sick of having him on high doses of Benadryll and taking him to the vet for the allergy medicine, which really didn’t help the problem, just gave him a little relief. After a year of me spending hours of researching nutrition , and yeast problems in dogs, I stumbled upon a dog food, that pretty much saved my dogs life. It is Dr. E’s Limited Ingredient Grain and Potato Free Food. It only contains 5 ingredients. For the first time in his life, my dogs fur grew back and he stopped itching and he didn’t smell anymore. I also have him on supplements, probiotics, digestive enzymes by Mercola, Jointsaver, & Lysine. This spring came all the pollens and grass which he is also allergic to, and he started itching again. Although this time he didn’t scratch off his fur. He just had some hot spots, and so I had a friend suggest trying Dinovite, because he said it was helping his dog. I can say that since I put him on this supplement, about a week and a half, he has been itching himself until he bleeds. I emailed the company and they said that was not enough time for the product to work. So I continued a couple more days, and now I am ready to toss this stuff in the garbage. I am so steaming furious, that this company would put out a product that contains yeast as an ingredient, and a ground grain sorghum, and then tell you to put your dog on a yeast and grain free diet, makes no sense to me. I don’t know where they source their ingredients, maybe China, I don’t know, but what I do know is that my dog hasn’t been this bad off in years. He has red bumps all over his legs, back, stomach, groin, even his tail. He is so miserable, that now I may have to have him go back on the terrible medicine I wanted him off of. He has bad hips and elbows and arthritis, so the last thing he needs to be on are steroids. But now it seems as if he has a horrible skin infection after being on this product. We haven’t changed anything else in his diet , so I know for sure, that this reaction is caused from the Dinovite. I absolutely DO NOT recommend giving ANY dog this product that has allergies, immune disorders, pancreatic disorders, or skin problems. He was doing oK, with his allergies, he was itchy, but he didn’t have these red bumps all over his body, and he wasn’t scratching himself bloody. Now I am going to have a huge vet bill, on top of a very miserable dog. I am One very UNHAPPY customer. I should have known better. The less ingredients he has in his diet , the better. There is no miracle cure for allergies, and any product that claims to be, is lying. The only thing you can really do, is limit your dogs ingredients, find a food that has limited ingredients or feed a raw diet so that you know exactly what your dog is eating. Use human grade supplements recommended by a holistic vet, and research dog nutritionists and find one and talk to one if you can. And if you dog is allergic to pollen and grass like mine is, give them baths frequently after they’ve been outside. I use Zymox enzymatic shampoo and rinse. I also have used Dermagic and all of their products are fantastic, especially the hot spot salve. It doesn’t just sooth the itchy skin, it takes the hot spots away. I am mad that I got sucked in to this SCAM at my dogs expense!

[james m]

We have a miniature schnauzer who have itchy skin, and allergies. We were recommended blue buffalo basics salmon and potato. He has been on it for a while and does well with it. Unfortunately it’s a little too much for our current budget. Are there any other less expensive brands I should consider that are close in nutrition and allergy friendly? Thanks in advance.

[Delia W]

I have not tried this food on our English Bulldog, but several people say this has been the best choice for their dog with allergies. NATURAL BALANCE LID (no chicken). Could you give us your idea’s. Thank you. Delia Winn

[zcRiley]

ANITA, all this fantastic advice & info, huh? In case you’re overwhelmed, you can also reverse your process of elimination by eliminating everything plus all treats except for the Miracle Pack (start that with tiny tiny increments). My own pooch couldn’t wait for trial & error awhile back, I stopped everything cold turkey. Stopped the shots, the meds, everything. It was cleansing time.

START WITH: Nature’s Variety Instinct Turkey Meal Formula (Dry). It has ONE protein & does NOT contain grain, gluten, potato, dairy, eggs, chicken, beef, or fish (half of which feeds yeast/allergies etc). , just add 1/4 cup of water to your portion for moisture & the correct amount of the Miracle Pack). And absolutely nothing else. No treats. Hard to do? Yes, it is. Will your dogs survive? Yes, they will. Then you graduate to Brothers Complete Advanced Allergy Care dry food. You’ll see the ingredients & know what you just “added”. Then move on to grain free treats only.

No oatmeal anything shampoo (feeds yeast). If medicated shampoos give an allergic reaction, try Aroma Paws Rosemary Tea Tree (Yeast & Bacteria Healing Formula), it’s all natural. There’s a matching spray, too.

Trifexis is the best (fleas). Comfortis is good but not for ticks.

And lots & lots of clean water to drink. Good luck with whatever method you choose!

[BRT]

So, I decided to go with the NV Raw Venison Bites. I started them on it this evening. The person who sold me the food also feeds her dog raw and she recommended I don’t mix the kibble and the raw together while transitioning the foods. She said I should start with dinner and give them less kibble and then an hour later feed them a bit of the raw bites. Slowly do that until their dinner is completely raw. Then work on transitioning breakfast.

I took her suggestion and someone is a little gassy. I think it’s my maltese/toy poodle boy (the one with the allergy issues).

This food smells, too. They loved it, but I found the smell awful.

My other concern is that little rescue baby (shih tzu/yorkie) likes to bring his kibble into the living room and eat off of the carpet. He’ll bring a mouthfull at a time and drop it on the carpet. Obviously, I can’t have him doing that if I’m feeding him raw.

I also don’t want to get too paranoid about cross contamination. Like if they eat and then go play with a toy. Do I need to religiously wash the toy daily?

In addition to food allergies/intoleranc he also definitely has environmental allergies, as well.

I’ve never tried the food elimination diet. I’m not even sure I’d know where to start.

I also didn’t realize how expensive this food is. I guess I’ll be eating Ramen noodles for a while. Just kidding…. Anything to keep my boys healthy.

• This reply was modified 11 years, 6 months ago by BRT.
• This reply was modified 11 years, 6 months ago by BRT.

[BRT]

I have an eight year old male maltese/toy poodle mix. He’s 19 lbs. Anyway, my poor boy is struggling with allergies. He’s actually on prednisone for a week. Otherwise, he’s perfectly healthy.

He cannot tolerate chicken, beef, and lamb. He’s been on Lotus Grain Free Duck for a year and his itching is still pretty bad, so the vet and I are thinking we need to add duck to the list of foods that don’t work for him. Plus, I just found out the glucosamine chews he’s been on are beef flavored. Ugh! Now, I just switched him to a veggie based hypo allergenic chew.

I feel so bad for him and want to find him some relief. I’ve been doing a lot more research and my options are switching him to Lotus Grain Free Fish. I’ve also been researching Nature’s Variety.

I’ve looked at NV Instinct Kibble Salmon formula, NV Instinct Raw Boost Kibble Venison formula, and of course NV Instinct Raw Venison formula. I have no idea what to choose.
Of course his vet is completely against raw.

Please, please help me decide. I have to find a food that will give him some relief.

He used to be on Natural Balance Venison for the longest time and did great on it, but after the recall I never went back. Then I learned they were bought out and the food hasn’t been the same.

Thank you!

[Becky]

I love this site! Every time I come here I find what I’m looking for. I have a pug with this staining issue, but it’s more a saliva problem than the tears. All around her mouth and chin is stained. Her tongue hangs out of her mouth so anywhere she lays she leaves stains, and she licks her feet so they’re stained, too. Her breath has a metallic smell to it.

She’s on Rx food for bladder/kidney problems so I can’t really change her food. I do give her filtered water, for the bladder problem. I use stainless steel bowls. She’s 12 and this staining thing just came up a few months ago. She’s been on the same food and water for years. I mentioned it to the vet tech when she was in for a nail trim and she said it was probably allergies.

I’ve been wiping her face already (she’s a pug….). Any other suggestions? I wish I could stop it inside her mouth before it comes out in the saliva all over my house!

[Jean Ann]

Cardiologist Dr. Charla Jones (Austin, TX) sees my Cavaliers, and she says the high protein, grain free dry foods are too rich for my dogs. Too much protein is hard on the kidneys, etc. Also, my dogs tend to gain weight on it (bad for their hearts); their normal weights range from 17 to 19 lbs. The other dry foods that are not rated well. My Cavaliers get very high grade fish oil twice daily and are doing beautifully heart-wise. Limited ingredients have about 21% – 24% protein and doesn’t taste very good, but they’ll eat it.
Also our 6 month old, 7 lb grand dog, Lily, gets dark gunk in her ears when eating the Victor dry and she started having congestion and a wet nose wheeze when on Merrick grain-free, but that could be seasonal allergies, I guess. At a loss as to what to feed her.
We fed Muenster organic for years. NEED HELP Any help out there?
Many thanks, Jean Ann Jones

[Jean Ann]

Three Cavalier, two with MVD but stage 0. Looking for well-balanced dry food

[Mom2Cavs]

I used to love Natural Balance for my gang. I had one with intolerances/allergies and digestive issues and this food helped at that time. I also loved that they had canned and treats to “match”, making it easier to feed an intolerance prone dog. Sadly though, they have since sold to Del Monte and that makes them a no go for me anymore. If I had to use them to sort out an allergy I might….but I would search for other ways to do it first. It’s really frustrating when a food you like and trusted sells out to a large conglomerate. If I had to shop at Petco, I would use Wellness or Nature’s Variety.

[theBCnut]

Natural balance is a good tool for figuring out food intolerances and allergies, but it isn’t a food I would want to feed every day.

[Dori]

I wouldn’t. I have a dog with many food intolerances and allergies as well as environmental issues. She had very yeasty ears. What fixed that issue was going to an all grain free diet also free of corn, soy, white potatoes and any type of poultry. I avoid anything that has any type of yeast in it. Any food or supplements that I have tried with her that contain yeast of any sort starts the yeasty ears all over again. My other two dogs though not having any allergies or intolerances whatsoever also used to have gunky ears. Their ears have all cleared up also once I made all the switches. All clear now. Good Luck.

[Amy B]

Hi everyone,
I’m finding this thread quite interesting. My 2.5 year old Maltese x Pomeranian has been diagnosed with atopic dermatitis. He is allergic to fleas, dust mites and has food allergies. We still haven’t gotten the food part down pat yet and are a bit unsure what to do.
When he was younger he used to be on kangaroo mince and veggies, or beef and veggies. He seemed to be allergic to these so the vet suggested we put him on a novel protein of goat and sweet potato. He was doing well on this diet until the goat was costing us $80 per 3 weeks!
Does anyone have any suggestions as to what we should put him on?
Lisa D I also heard from a pet store employee that fish is good for them. Could you explain to me more how long your dog has been on this diet for? And also why you spray him with white vinegar?
I was told to purchase fish mince from BARF dog Big Dog pet food range (all natural) but I saw it contained fine chicken bones (only after I purchased it) but I wanted to see how he would go on dry food as well. Has anyone had any positive experiences with sensitive skin dry food products?
PS. I’m from Australia

Thanks in advance! 🙂

[meky6ra]

Yes, she has a history of allergies. She was more or less allergy free for two years, then I decided to try the WEF, then BAM! hives! I’m pretty sure that she’s had all of the other ingredients before, if the ingredients list is accurate.

When my husband and I adopted her, we didn’t know anything about dogfood, didn’t know what was in the food that we were feeding her, and struggled with her horrible allergic attacks. Her health was what made us start researching dogfoods. Before we stopped feeding her supermarket brands or Royal Canin (the food our vet recommended) I don’t know if she ate pork or not. Since then, though, she hasn’t had pork and she hasn’t been itchy until now.

I also know that she’s allergic to plastic, which is what the WEF packaging is made of. I thought that maybe it was the plastic, so tried Merrick Pork, which has packaging similar to ones that she’s been ok with in the past. WORSE hives than the WEF were the result. Now she’s back on her Wellness Simple Salmon and Peas. Her hives are going away, so this is why I think that it was the pork.

I also don’t think that a dog has to be on a dog food for very long to be allergic to something. Sometimes a dog develops an allergy over a long period of time, but sometimes not.

[DogFoodie]

So, it sounds like you’ve possibly dealt with other intolerance / allergies that your pup might have had previously. Is that the case? At first, I thought this was his first reaction ever, to anything. It seems like a dog that has any intolerance / allergy, is likely to have more.

I’d probably compare the rest of the ingredients just to be sure. I’d hate to see you rule out pork. Maybe keep it in your back pocket (figuratively) to try again another time just to be sure. My thought was that it could been another ingredient or an environmental allergy…, or depending on the type of reaction, it could’ve been a problem with the food (an ingredient, a chemical, preservative or some sort of chemical reaction).

And, I don’t believe you have to have had prior exposure in order to illicit a response. I have a pup whose food intolerances have me confounded. I believe his food intolerance issues started as a result of vaccinosis as a tiny pup. He’s just turned two and there are very few foods I can feed him. I never know what he’ll react to and I always have a food spreadsheet going.

[pearl i]

Hi,

Our 10 month old puppy has had continuous itchy skin since we brought him home: licks/ sometimes bites the inside of both groin areas, and his front paws, one more than the other. When we got him from the breeder he was IAMS (chicken protein), then has switched to Orijen LBP (chicken protein), and is currently on Acana Pacifica (fish protein.) He started Acana about a month or so ago, and is still itchy. This week was his second time visiting the vet for antibiotics, antihistamines, cream, etc (not prednisone this time, as he was prescribed that in April for the same issue.) Our vet believes it to be a food allergy as per his age, she wants him to continue on Acana Pacifica and give it some more time. However, she mentioned possibly trying venison or rabbit if Acana Pacifica doesn’t work out.

I researched a bit and found Natural Balance LID, it has high reviews in regards to relieving allergies, but the ingredients are listed to average- below average according to this website. I would like to switch him over to another dry food that is highly ranked with a different protein that he has not tried: venison, rabbit.

Anyone have any feedback related to this? Recommendations for a dry food?

Thank you in advance!

[Tina]

Anyone own a Golden Retriever? If so what do you feed yours?
My Golden Retriever Angel is 8 years old and has these problems;
*dry skin
*itchy skin
*red skin
*scabs all over back, chest and tail
*weak hip and joints
*Gains weight really quick
*eats very fast
*Very gassy
She is on Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Senior along with Hill’s Science Diet Large Breed Adult and Wellness Simple Salmon and Potato mixed in. She has only had chicken her entire life. These are the brands that she has tried as a puppy and a adult;
*Eukanuba Puppy
*Purina Pro Plan Puppy
*Purina One Adult
*Hill’s Science Diet Large Breed Adult
*Royal Canine Golden Retriever
*Blue Buffalo Large Breed Senior
*Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Senior
*Wellness Simple Salmon and Potato
None of these I was happy with and none of them did the trick except for Royal Canine (kinda). What can you suggest? I’m open to ANY suggestions, including all life stages dog food. She will eat anything and I mean anything at all. My only stipulation is that I can find the brand in multiple stores. She never gets bored of the same brand or flavor.

Thank You All

[ladyquixote]

Hi all, first want to thank ya’ll for all the great info you supply here. Have been gathering nutrition info for about a year now and have some major budgeting concerns regarding planning cooked meals for my two dogs. Background: Eldest dog, Gracie is 12 y.o./55# (she is much bigger than standard Aussie) and has major yeast and anxiety problems. Found an alt vet last March who prescribed a variety of chinese herb powders which have significantly helped both problems but still a work in progress. Second dog, Tonto is about 3-1/2 (turned up at my front door emaciated last year and ended up part of our family). He weighs about 60 and is experiencing airborne allergies, due for vet check tomorrow for further input. Both are Aussie mixes.

Foodwise, they were on a mix of the 5-star dry no-grain dog foods since beginning of last year, then began adding the usual recommended toppers plus supplements and then transitioned to all-cooked meals over the last three months. It’s quickly begun taking a lot of my time to prepare meals, so this evening I sat down to figure out my monthly cost. Until now I would go out and buy enough food for a week so the cost bite wasn’t so noticeable.

I knew it was getting too costly but the final tally ended up being $15/day for two dogs! Way, way too much. In addition to the food, there are the supplemental herbs and now monthly visits to the alt vet to check progress which should end once both dogs level off with their itchies.

I’ve removed cottage cheese, carrots and rice which make great fillers because both dogs’ itchies worsened. So more meat takes the place.

My question to you is this, if I switch back to at least level 4-star dry dog food and toppers what would you suggest would be the right ratio between the both?

Gracie’s daily calorie target: 1037, Tonto’s daily calorie target: 1280
Here is a sample 1-day meal divided into two meals for Gracie:
— Chicken Liver pate, (chicken liver smothered then pureed): 2 TBSP 47 Cal
— Chicken Hearts, (lightly smothered then chopped fine): 1-1/2C 402 Cal
— Turkey, Ground; 93% Lean: 1-1/4C 425 Cal
— Mixed Veggies, 1 Cup Cooked then pureed: 40 Cal
— Pumpkin, Canned; 2 TBSP: 13 Cal
— Berries, 1/2 C: 36 Cal
— Alternate Every Day: Either 1-Egg or 1/2 tin Sardines in Water: 65-72 Cal
— Supplements include, Probiotics, 1/2 tsp finely ground eggshells, 1-multi, fish oil or coconut oil.

I’d be interested in your input as well as hearing what your average cost per day is for two medium sized dogs! Thanks so much.

[Jenna]

Hi Paige

There has been some research done into protein sources that are similar (chicken and turkey eg) that suggest that there may be a connection between sensitivities to both. However without trying, you won’t know. Many times food intolerance runs concurrent to inhalant and environmental allergies, and often the symptoms are the same. You are very limited in what is available based on your criteria, so I might give a single source protein turkey or duck and option, and I might not rule out grain, rather choose one that has had limited exposure like Oatmeal etc. I use the GO! Sensitivity + Shine. Are you sure that chicken and Salmon is out, as many foods using those protein sources contain many other carbs that contain protein such as alfalfa, flax, carrots, eggs, etc.? Is home cooking an option? You could have a nutritionist formulate something, and this could work?

[Harpers Mom]

Merrick is a rich food so it is common for dogs to have runny poos if they aren’t used to something like that. I would look for a food maybe slightly lower protein, but definitely get off Science diet, not a good food. I’m not too familiar with weurva, but others on here are. Why type of skin problems do they have (allergies, dander, etc)?

[Melissaandcrew]

What type of skin issue do they have? Schnauzers are not a high skin issue breed do I surprised yoj h as ve more than one with food allergies?

[Susan]

With food allergies dogs can have hive like lumps over their body, red itchy skin & diarrhea & other symtoms, it doesnt happen straight after eating, can take a couple of days for the reaction to show, maybe he needs his fur trimmed as summer is coming up if ur in America..vets normally have real good shampoos & conditioners for dry skin, I found shampoos & matching conditioner with oatmeal have helped my boys skin..

[Susan]

Hi, Omayra has ur little man been fleaed? as that is probably causing his itch, a nice bath & a good flea product like frontline should keep the fleas away Frontline make a really good spray, I dont know if it can be used on pups u’d have to check..food allergies are rare especially a 3month old pup, only around 5% of dogs will suffer food allergies, some may be intolarant to certain foods, & have food intolarences also look at the Fat% on ur treats alot of treats are high in fat & you can only give a few treats a day as they can cause diarrhea & muchy poo.. its best to use ur dogs daily kibble (Blue Buffalo) as a treat when training…..make sure you keep up with his worming….sounds like u are both sharing ur little boy so make sure that you both arent giving treats at different times & just use some of his kibble as a treat…
Someone else will have to help with the Raw as my boy is on kibble & home cooked chicken & pumkin..sounds like ur little boy has a loving caring home..

[Omayra R]

Hello all.

My sister adopted a puppy last month and he is the first dog to be our family member. He will be 3 months old tomorrow (June 8th).

We were told to feed him dry mixed with wet 4 times a day, up until July 19th. After that, 3 times a day dry.

His dry is the Blue Buffalo holistic life protection brand, and his wet is Wellness for puppies. For training treats we have Organix peanut butter cookies and Fruitables pumpkin and apple flavor.

Now his poop is finally coming out solid, but at the end it’s a little mushy. From my understanding, poop must be solid and not that smelly. At first he was pooping diarrhea, but that was before he got his deworming shot. After the shot, no more diarrhea but would like it his poop to be more solid and a tad bit smelly. This morning he pooped a lot! He hasn’t pooped since. I asked my sister how often does he poop now and she hasn’t been paying attention, so bare with me. As I don’t live with my family and the dog. I stay over the weekends to watch over him. Since I have a more flexible schedule, I can take him to the vet etc.

I notice after he eats, he gets itchy. I’m wondering if he has any food allergies? I know this mix is prone to skin sensitivity. I want that itching to stop. Also read that tear stains are more proned to his food, not breed. We clean his eyes often but would to see that decrease. It’s not excessive though.

Can anyone here suggest me a new diet, please? I’m looking into the raw brand route but i’m not sure how many times a day with these foods. Sorry, this all so new to me.

I’m also in the process of looking for a well reputable holistic vet. I’m just do terrified of all the horror stories with vets and diets I’ve been reading online.

We want the very best for our little guy.

Thank you 🙂

[Susan]

Yes, Shasta 220 is right.. treating the outside is just as importatnt with dry itchy skin, you need a real good medicated shampoo that kills bacteria (yeast) I use Medicated Malaseb shampoo & bath every 5-7 days as soon as Patch starts his scratching its bath time…His feet are real bad at the moment cause we are having heaps of rain so I fill a shallow bath & put a couple of caps of Detol Antiseptic lotion in water & soak his feet they smell awful like corn, you can smell him when he sits next to me like a bad yeasty bread shop a real yukky yeasty smell, after I soaked his feet, then I washed his feet in some Medicated Malaseb shampoo the reddness has gone & he has stopped licking… so we’ll sleep tonight..try to get a medicated shampoo that kills bacteria of the skin.. with food low carbs no potatoes, sweet potatoes, any foods that converts to sugar are NO good as they make yeast… scratching can start the bacteria breeding & spreading, so bath weekly…. If you cant find Malaseb look for Paws (Pure Animal Wellbeing) Nutriderm Replenishing Shampoo & Conditioner for dry itchy skin.. I bath in the Malaseb shampoo then the Paws Conditioner, the conditioner u leave on their skin to moisturise & soften the skin..u’ll need to do this routine probably for the rest of his life even though they start to look real good & stop scratching you can then maybe bath fornightly, in winter Patches itch slows down, then when summer is back so is his seasonal allergies..

[Kay G]

I am currently feeding Fromm GF dry & rotate the proteins. I also had in raw toppers once or twice a day. I have 3 Springers and 1 Cavalier. My oldest Springer (7) has numerous health issues which I have been told are immune related, one being bad allergies/yeast. He has had double ACL surgery, sees a chiropractor regularly and on supplements for his joints, immune system etc. but he just doesn’t seem “right”. After doing research, Nature’s Logic was suggested to me because it does not have the starchy carbs that feeds the yeast (potatoes, peas etc.) that is in the Fromm food. My only concern is the millet in the Nature’s Logic. I bought a bag of Chicken to try, so we will see how he handles it. I am also leaning toward switching the other three dogs over to Nature’s Logic mainly because it is easier for me to feed all four dogs the same thing….. does anyone have feed back on this they could share with me?

[Akari_32]

You guys may recall, my moms dog, Bentley, is always itchy. Right now, his back half is almost completely bald, and his skin is bright red. No matter what we do, what foods he’s on, what protein and carb sources the food has or doesn’t have, fleas or no fleas (obviously we strive for no fleas, but we have some sort of freakish super fleas around here, and he’s so small he’s like a flea magnet in the grass). It just doesn’t matter. We yell at him for scratch so much that he actually goes and hides so he can scratch. Crafty little terrier… Lol

He also smells. Doesn’t matter of he just had a bath or not. He’s stinky. I think it’s a yeast thing?

I’m 99% sure most of it has to do with seasonal allergies, as he gets much better in the winter, and almost all his hair grows back by the time is warms up again for spring.

I always hear of these stories of these dogs that are doing terrible on any kibble, no matter what kind it is, and then they are put on raw and all their problems go away, or are greatly reduced to the point where they can actually be dogs again.

Does anyone have tips on how I can do an extremely cheap raw diet? And is it cheaper to go with a RMB base and not supplement calcium, or to do mostly muscle meat and supplement the calcium, etc associated with bones? Money is defiantly an issue, but we can’t have this freakish Chinese crested/poodle/terrier Frankenstein love child looking thing. There is a Save-A-Lot near the house, which I know would help with the cost, but I’m not sure the quality of their meats. We usually shop at Publix or SAMs Club for meat, depending on what we need. We also have Winn Dixie. I know they do great deals on meat, as well.

He’s about 8 pounds, very active (so fat isn’t too much of a problem), and loves him a good raw bone (I’ve given him chicken necks, pig knuckles, a few others before).

And back on the supplement thing again, is it possible to feed raw with no supplements? What supplements are some cost effective ones?

I’d love to hear of some of your recipes and weekly meal plans and such, as well 🙂

[Bobby dog]

Hi Kritterlady:
The only suggestion I have for enticing your dog to eat coco oil is trying to melt it and see if he will lick it out of his bowl.

Only one of my cats will eat coco oil in his food, but it can’t be mixed completely in (or melted) because he won’t touch it. I have to hide a small solid amount in his food. The other cats will not touch their food if something is hiding or mixed into it. Sometimes they eat it alone in solid form or melted, when all else fails I just rub it onto their fur. My dog absolutely loves it no matter what and if I don’t watch him he will lick it off the cats fur! lol

Sometimes added supplements don’t agree with our pets and he may also be telling you this by not eating it.

As for the honey I have never had a pet with seasonal allergies, but definately would try either local raw honey or local bee pollen if they did. Since honey doesn’t interest him, I would look into bee pollen. I would imagine it is easier to administer. Here’s a few links with more info on bee pollen and honey. Good luck!

/forums/topic/bee-pollen/

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/10_9/features/Bee-Honey-Products-Help-Canines_15967-1.html

http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.ca/2014/01/honey-good-for-dogs-cats-honey-is.html

[Tina]

Anyone own a Golden Retriever? If so what do you feed yours? My Golden Retriever Angel is 8 years old and has these problems;
*dry skin
*itchy skin
*red skin
*weak hip and joints (she is on cohesion for this)
*sometimes over weight
*eats very fast
She is on Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Senior along with other small bags of stuff mixed in. She has only had chicken her entire life and as a younger puppy/adult was on;
*Eukanuba Puppy
*Purina Pro Plan Puppy
*Purina One Adult
*Hill’s Science Diet Large Breed Adult
*Royal Canine Golden Retriever
*Blue Buffalo Large Breed Senior
*Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Senior
None of these I was happy with and none of them did the trick except for Royal Canine (kinda). What can you suggest? I’m open to ANY suggestions, including all life stages dog food. My only thing is that I need it to be inexpensive, not cheap but not like $80 for a 24lb bag.

[Shasta220]

I only just skimmed through the posts, so I might be a replaying record – but if you’re not able to track a food suspect, it might be environmental allergies. I heard you mention mosquitoes – that’s very possible, also some dogs are sensitive to grass, pollen, etc.

Maybe try adding a little spoonful of raw organic LOCAL honey to his food daily and see if that eventually helps. I’ve heard of honey working miracles on itchy allergy dogs. If you want a “quick fix”, then you could try Benadryl (or the equivalent for dogs, I’m assuming you can find allergy tabs)

[ab1028]

I do rotate foods. Right now he is eating Orijen adult, and he has also eaten Acana Pacific, Wild Prairie, Grasslands, and Now! Fresh. I am wondering if it is seasonal allergies as well. There is also a strong possibility that he is getting bitten from mosquitoes. During the winter, we were supplementing his food with fish oil and he was definitely not as itchy. Not perfect, but not bad either.

Thank you so much for the links!

[Dori]

Hi Serena. I don’t feed any kibble but definitely canned would be better. Kibble food generally has a lot of different ingredients in them similar to most kibble foods including whatever binder they are using to keep the kibble in tact. Your dog could still have issues with canned food depending on what her ingredient intolerances are but it’s easier to keep track of ingredients and intolerances. A lot of dogs with allergies and intolerances do better on canned, imo, than kibble.

When I first started doing an elimination test with Katie, the first ingredient was chicken. Then discovered that she is badly intolerant of all fowl. It’s not the same with red meats. Beef, Bison, Kangaroo, Rabbit, Goat, Lamb, Vennison will have completely different reactions from each other. Katie cannot eat Lamb or Goat but she does fine with all the others so far anyway.

If you’re going to switch to canned food please try to make sure that the cans themselves are BHA free, No Carragean (sp?) and also look for the least possible ingredients made from human food ingredients. My rule is that if I can’t pronounce or would not eat it myself then my dogs don’t eat it either. Another way you can feed your dog is to try rotating with freeze dried foods. Closer to raw, but not exactly. There again, keep in mind what the ingredients are (human grade) and what he may have an issue with. I’ve had my hands full with Katie and her allergies and intolerances since I got her at 9 weeks old. She’ll be 5 years old on 6/24/14. It’s been a challenge and she and I have suffered through it. She always comes up with something she once ate that can no longer tolerate. Some of her latest have been alfalfa in any form and kelp in any form. So you just have to keep trying.

Oh, with the canned or any food, just cause it says Beef doesn’t mean that they haven’t added somewhere in the ingredient list chicken fat or lamb or some other protein so please please please read all the ingredients. Good Luck. Sorry it took me so long to respond. I’ve been busy with my older gal Hannah, almost 15 year old Maltese who was finally diagnosed yesterday with bladder cancer so, understandably I’m in denial and totally freaked out. My best to you and your dog.

[Darenka]

While I do a rotational diet switching between dog foods, everyone in my house gets the same dog food from 6 month old to 15-year senior. It makes my life easier and unless there is a specific reason (allergies, kidney, liver disease or such) there is little compelling reason to keep numerous bags of dog food around–everyone benefits from good protein no matter what the age. Blood work on seniors is perfect even with proteins in the 30%+ category. They just get fed less to make up for a more sedate pace. Does the Foxhound get fed prior to exercise or gulp his food? If the throwing up continues, talk to your vet and rule out an illness.

[neezerfan]

My last dog had food allergies and we fed her only zd until she stopped having symptoms. Then we tried one food at a time for a few weeks to see if it caused symptoms. If it did, we started the whole process over again until we found a food that worked. When I used it about 6-10 years ago it did not have chicken in it. It had hydrolysed protein so it would not trigger allergies.

[Bobby dog]

Hi ab1028:
I give unrefined organic coconut oil internally and also use it externally for both my dog and cats. Initially I used it to help alleviate and improve some skin conditions both had. Now I use it for maintenance to keep their skin and coat healthy and moisturized; I really like the results. I feed it a few times a week and apply externally to one cat that has dry skin patches.

The most improvement in their skin and coats came from changing and improving their diets. You wrote that you tried to limit food. One suggestion I have for you is to try dog foods with different proteins (and starches if you feed kibble) to see if it may be a protein (meat or plant source) that does not agree with your dog. Keep the ingredient lists of each food and compare them if you observe a reaction to determine if they contain common ingredients that may be the culprit.

Another thing to consider is maybe your pup has seasonal allergies. I have never had a pet that suffered from this, but there are several posters on DFA that do. If allergies were an issue I would consider feeding local bee pollen or local honey to my pet. Here’s a link to a DFA forum on the subject and also a few articles about bee pollen and honey:

/forums/topic/bee-pollen/

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/10_9/features/Bee-Honey-Products-Help-Canines_15967-1.html

http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.ca/2014/01/honey-good-for-dogs-cats-honey-is.html

Here’s some links to articles about coco oil you may find helpful, good luck!

http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/the-health-benefits-of-coconut-oil/

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/16_11/features/alternative-treatments-updated_20861-1.html?pg=3

http://ottawavalleydogwhisperer.blogspot.com/2012/02/coconut-oil-is-good-for-your-dogs.html

[Happy Dog]

Yes the vet gave some anti-histamine pills. When its really bad, I give the dog 1 pill and he’s fine (& very sleepy). But once he’s off it, its scratchy-scratch.

I feel the same about the oatmeal shampoo. It worked great with my previous Chi (passed last year at 14yr), made her all fluffy and soft feeling, smells great!
On Happy (the JRT-CHI mix), it seems to have the opposite effect – makes his fur dry and smells more ‘dog’ after 1-2 days of the bath.

Just wondering:

Canned vs Kibble. Canned is better (thanks for the Mercola link to Dr Karen Becker). Would canned food be less likely to cause allergies although it may have a similar ingredient make up as the kibble? I have been feeding grain free kibble with the exception of the Acana & Lamb. Could it be possible that the way kibble is processed just isn’t very good on the whole for dog with allergies, regardless if it is grain free or grain inclusive?

And would an allergy to a certain protein mean the dog would be predisposed to be allergic to similar proteins for example:
Chicken -> Duck, Turkey (all birds?)
Beef -> Bison, Kangaroo, Lamb (all red meats?)

I ordered the Mercola Probiotics. Hopefully some probiotics would help.

[Dori]

Hi Serena. One of my dogs has a lot of food intolerances as well as environmental allergies. Definitely going grain free will help. Also try to avoid foods with corn, soy, white potatoes and too many peas. As far as the shampoo is concerned, notwithstanding the fact that oatmeal shampoos are typically recommended for itchy dry skin, my girl does much worse when shampooed with an oatmeal shampoo. I’ve tested this out with her. I use dog shampoos for sensitive dogs, usually soap free are more gentle.

[Happy Dog]

Thanks for the replies.

Yes, I did go to the Vet. The 1st vet ruled out any issues. Same with the 2nd vet. They felt it’s either food or environmental allergies or both.

You’re right, the lamb and apple has oats in it. I decided to stop the lamb kibble and get back on 6fish. The next time, will probably rotate on the canned formulas..at least I can just get a can to try instead of committing to a bag of kibble.

[Shasta220]

I’m agreeing with Amy. Maybe try an elimination diet…if you’re switching Kibbles, try to make a list of identical and different ingredients and which kibble he did good or bad on.

There’s that possibility of environmental allergies as well. I think you can get allergy pills for dogs, so you might try that if you’re pretty sure it’s not food related. Try giving raw local honey daily, too. I know many people who swear by it for theirs and their dogs’ allergies.

Only way to see if the shampoo does it is by ditching it and seeing if that makes any difference. My lab is occasionally itchy, so I use a medicated shampoo (I can’t remember the name of mine, but Malaseb is very similar I think).

You also might try another shampoo: Shea Moisture African Black Soap shampoo. It’s not designed for dogs, but it is an organic shampoo that has ingredients to help dandruff and itching. I use it myself and we loooooove it. (You can prob find it online, but it’s usually at Walmart, Target, and Walgreens for about 10$)

Shampoos usually won’t fix a problem though, just mask it. Get a skin scraping done to make sure it isn’t something like mange. Best wishes and hopefully you can get through this!

[LexiDog]

Have you had him to the vet to be checked? When my dog was itchy, I took her to the vet and he did a skin scraping on one of the itchy spots to check for mange. The skin scraping didn’t show any signs of mites. Even then she was still treated for Sarcoptic mange to rule that out because the mites can rarely be seen under the microscope. I treated her with Revoluiton and still saw no difference. So it was probably not Sarcoptic mange. Then you have to look at environmental allergies and food allergies.

The one thing that stands out is that he started getting itchy again when you added the Acana Lamb & Apple. If it is the old formula (I don’t think the new one is available for purchase yet) it is grain inclusive. So it could possibly be due to the grains. One way to find out if he is sensitive to one type of food, you could do an elimination diet. I personally have not done this, but others on here have. So they will be more helpful with that.

As you will find out that some types of foods are better than others. For example, canned is better than kibble. Homemade raw is better than canned and so on… You can check out Dr. Karen Becker’s rankings at http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2010/07/21/13-pet-foods-ranked-from-great-to-disastrous.aspx

[Happy Dog]

Glad to have found this site, it’s a wealth of information.

Needing some advice for my dog I adopted from the local shelter last August.
He came with the itches, pink/red patch on his belly, under his chin, face, around the eyes etc. Fur was really coarse yet greasy to touch. Chews his paws till it bleeds.

The fosterer recommended that we put him on a fish kibble. They weren’t sure what he was allergic to but it may have been chicken. So we put him on Wellness Simple –Salmon & Potato. Since then he has gone through:

Wellness Simple
Wellness Core Ocean
Acana Pacifica
THK Zeal
Orijen 6Fish

Topper: Fish 4 Dogs Salmon or Trout Mousse. Cooked salmon or any other fish once a week.

He was on Orjen 6 Fish till recently. We had him on through 3 bags, and he gets 1/3 cup + 1 /4 pack of Fish4Dogs Fish Mousse per meal. Twice a day.
He actually did quite well on it, less itchy, and started putting on weight. Still chews his paws though, I think he may have some allergies to grass. He was also getting quite chunky.

I thought I should started rotating him on different protein so he can eventually get some variety in his diet and went for Acana Lamb and Apple.
Before I committed to the Acana Lamb & Apple, I mixed a can of lamb and tripe to his kibble and he ate fine.

He’s been on it for 2 weeks. I mix the Acana Lamb & Apple (1/4 cup) with the Orijen 6Fish (1/4 cup). I had the kibble serving reduced as he was putting on weight.
I also switched to an oatmeal shampoo.

He seems to be worse now. Scratches more, the dry coarse fur is coming back, pink around the eyes, nose and under his arms, paws. One ear seems to be red inside, the other is fine (is it normal to have 1 inflamed ear instead of both?). Smells more ‘dog’.

So should I ditch the kibble? Or could it be the shampoo?

I was hoping he could eat more than just fish based food. I’d like to have him on a mix of kibble, canned food and homecooked meals 2x to 3x a week. Raw – I can get Primal, Addiction and some THK.

He didn’t do too well on THK zeal though. Went through 2 packs of the Zeal. He was pooping 4x a day (poop had stalks and bits of stuff that.. doesn’t seem digested), ate lots of grass (grazing like a cow), and was losing weight that’s why I put him on 6Fish. I though he needed more protein.

Any suggestions? I could go back to 6Fish, or I could go with another fish kibble like Core Ocean?

[Nancy A]

Hello, We have a mini long-haired Doxie mix (with what, we wish we knew!) who has food protein allergies, and a long-haired Chihuahua mix (again, the mix is a mystery) who has had frequent bouts of pancreatitis (he has been stable for quite awhile now). We prepare the food for our allergic dog using a product called BalanceIT.
https://secure.balanceit.com/
BalanceIT was created by a vet (formerly on the UC Davis faculty) and products include supplements for making homemade food as well as a product that you simply add to a protein source (if vegetarian, either nuts or tofu) and gives you the recipe. I’ve recommended it three times on this forum today alone (I swear I’m not an employee, it just works for us). Good luck–when our little guy ends up in the hospital my husband thinks I need a psychiatrist (I probably do).

[Nancy A]

Hello, We have a mini long-haired Doxie mix (with what, we wish we knew!), who also scratched himself silly. We learned from the doggie dermatologist that food allergies rarely respond to steroids (the “P” in Temaril-P is prednisone). His scratching did not respond to steroids, which indicated a food allergy. His food had just about every common allergen (see article on this site regarding allergies). We switched him to a buffalo-based canned food (he hated it) because it was unlikely he had been exposed to that protein (he has a tender tummy and many of the novel proteins and hypoallergenic foods are higher in fat). It took about 2 weeks, but his licking stopped and he was cone free! After 6 months we were told we could add one of the proteins contained in his previous food. Because he loves, loves, loves chicken, I poured some homemade chicken broth on this food. Within about 24 hours, he was attacking his body again. He is now on an all-beef diet, which is hard to find because it seems like there is some kind of chicken in every food or it is too high in fat… sigh.

If you find that it is a food allergy–and you can figure out the offending ingredient–you may want to consider a product called BalanceIT. BalanceIT was designed by a vet (formerly on the UC Davis faculty) and products include supplements for making homemade food as well as a product that you simply add to meat if you want to make homemade food. I understand from our vets, as well as a recent peer-reviewed study, that it is extremely risky to make food for your dog without the proper supplementation:
http://news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=10666

With vigilance and a good plan to rule out problems, you will figure it out. Hope this helps. Good luck.

[GizmoMom]

I believe food is a factor in ear problem. Some dogs are allergic to chicken. Does your dog have other issues that might indicate allergies?

[jane c]

a raw mix -no potato – chicken OR beef with fruit/veg/eggs/alfafa/kelp etc. but she really does not like it.
I am considering going back to kibble-Horizon Legacy.
Maybe because I have to dispose of raw when she leaves it…
DFA says “10% of allergies are food related”
so food is not a huge factor in the ear problem?

[GizmoMom]

What are you currently feeding?
Best food for dogs with ear problems are grain-free and starch-free.

Avoid food with grains, potatoes, and sweet potatoes.

Allergies can also cause ear issues. Try to figure out which food your dog reacts to.

[Angela R]

Can anyone help me decide what is the best food for my English Bulldog – we live in a hot and humid climate and although she did really well on the Royal Canin English Bulldog food, this is not available in my new country of residence – for ease I changed to the French Bulldog, but this has more fat content and she picked up weight, after trying various options including K9, Orijen and Acana – non of which she either liked or just gave her an upset tummy, we ended up with the Royal Canin Obesity from the vet and she has lost weight, and we are now managing her weight with difficulty. I did not want to keep her on a medicated diet and the vet suggested due to bone issues that I should mix it with the Royal Canin Mobility diet – unfortunately during this time on both of the vet products she was itching, red and starting licking her paws that it drove us all crazy. I understand that it could be allergies from outside factors, but she really has never been quite as bad – I therefore decided to change her again (always changing her diet over time…) and decided on the Zignature brand of dog food which is supposed to be allergy free. Although she loves this food – and has stopped licking as badly her face and paws are still quite red but she is definitely picking up weight again as the fat content is higher again, but my biggest concern is the amount of water she is now drinking on this food, and the amount of poops she is having (she used to eat and almost go immediately – now it is 3 to 4 times a day and sometimes at night which she never did before) and she has a serious gas problem which she also never suffered before and it is causing her some distress… I have just bathed her and noticed some little red spots appearing on her tummy – she is full of “beans” and happy and as active as she can be in this heat and humidity but she seems uncomfortable and does not seem to be able to relax as much as she did before… I really am not sure that this new food is doing her any good and now trying to research alternative options but I just don’t know where to turn? Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated. I cannot do raw as with the cost of meat here is ridiculous and with the heat and humidity – I just dont trust it and also she was not that keen on the K9 anyway! We can’t get everything here but the latest one on my agenda is the Pronature? Thoughts?

[Mike Sagman]

I can understand your frustration with some of the topics that have been created by other members.

However, these forums were never intended to limit any discussion to “the Editor’s Choice foods” as you suggest. The only restriction here is that one must be a member to participate.

And although ideally it would be nice if members would stick to subjects related to which dog foods they consider to be the best, we also recognize the need for many pet owners to introduce additional topics that are important to them and their pets.

So, these discussions frequently include topics like cancer, allergies, kidney problems, cost savings and (yes) even dog treats. The only time we feel compelled to delete threads is when they have nothing to do with dogs.

And of course, as a member, it’s always your choice to select which ones you choose to read or reply to.