[Kim D]

Any suggestions, ideas will be much appreciated!
Fostering dog for 2 weeks, he was on food from rescue Diamond Naturals, I didn’t like amount and way poop looked and he was extremely thin, but no itchies. Also he came from a mostly concrete environment to country life…aka lots of grass.
I switched to Earthborn Holistic (because I had no idea the WHOLE other premium dog food market even existed before 2 weeks ago)
He started chewing at his paws, then legs, then all over itchy.
Now hots spots on legs from chewing, massive hair loss (which I know for AKitas happens 2x/year).
Diarrhea last Friday – Sunday. Fed only rice water, rice and chicken…still itchy.
Back on Earthborn and started Vitahound introduction.
Being a rescue, I am sure his prior food was not the best quality. BUT he did NOT have these sores. Could it actually be seasonal allergies that would take 2 weeks to show up or is it change in food?
I would love any recommendations for a dry kibble that could help with skin problems and help him gain healthy weight. I just feel like there is still way too much information to digest!!!! Thank you in advance!

[Anonymous]

Please check the search engine here: /forums/search/allergies/
Lots of information that you may find helpful, come back if you have more questions.

This is from one of the SkeptVet’s blogs, an excerpt from a response to a comment about allergies. Hope this helps.

“In general, diet trial involve picking a new primary protein source and strictly eliminating all others for 2-3 months before any change is likely to be seen. And there are many sources of allergies besides food proteins, so diet change may not dramatically improve symptoms, in which case other causes have to be investigated. I would strongly suggest working closely with your regular veterinarian or, if it is possible for you, with a board-certified veterinary dermatologist. Allergies require lifelong management tailored to the individual needs of the particular patient, and there is no simple or quick solution”.

NuVet Supplement=Same Old Snake Oil

Anther site: http://www.allergydogcentral.com/category/symptoms/

Integrating Myths and Nonsense with Standard Advice for Allergic Pets

excerpt is from above link (click for full blog and comments)
“There is no research to suggest that the saliva testing is useful for identifying food allergies. It is sold based on questionable theory and anecdotes, which have little evidentiary value. And as far as uncontrolled testing, at least one dermatologist has run the test in dogs with confirmed food allergies responsive to diet change, and the test results were highly inaccurate”.
Other blogs that you might find helpful: http://skeptvet.com/Blog/2015/07/no-vet-for-my-pet-veterinary-nurses-can-sell-woo-too/

Canine Nutrigenomics by Dr. Jean Dodds: Science as Windowdressing

[Susan]

Hi Kim, it looks like the new food may be the problem with his skin & dirrhea, I know within 1-2 days if a kibble isn’t right for my boy, he starts to have red itchy paws, itchy ears, skin & sloppy poos….. With the Earthborn kibble which flavour are you feeding, the grain free kibble or their natural kibble?? also the Earthborn grain free kibbles have higher protein % & fat% this could be causing the Diarrhea or your boy is sensitive to an ingredient in the Earthborn kibble causing the itchy skin & diarrhea….

I would look for another kibble with limited ingredients with similar ingredients, same protein & around the same fat % & protein % that’s in the Diamond Natural kibble you were feeding also rice look for a kibble with rice, my boy does best on kibbles with rice, I’m introducing Earthborn Ocean Fusion very slowly at the moment, the Ocean Fusion has the least ingredients out of all their flavours but it has sweet potatoes & potatoes second & third ingredient, something I’m very worried about potatoes being a starchy carb, my boy gets bad yeasty skin, paws & ears from certain high sugar carbs in kibbles, but the Earthborn Ocean Fusion doesn’t have any peas or tomato pomace which is hard to find a kibble that doesn’t have peas….
“California Natural” has their Lamb & Rice it has just 4 ingredients or their Chicken & Rice has just 5 ingredients… I few people I know their dogs have skin & bowel problems & their dogs are doing really well on the California Natural kibble, they add some sardines or boiled chicken to beef up the kibble a bit, even if you just feed the C/N Lamb & Rice till his skin is better again then start adding a new ingredient every 2 weeks to see if he starts itching again then you will know what foods he’s sensitive too..also get some antifungal shampoo like Malaseb medicated shampoo & bath every 5-7 days my vet said as soon as I saw Patch starting to scratch bad bath him in the Malaseb shampoo… keep us updated on how he’s going….
http://www.californianaturalpet.com/products/1181

[Kim D]

Actually, if I changed him back to the Diamond Naturals he was on when I got him and the itchies clear up then I know it was the food, right? If they don’t clear up then it might be something here in his new environment that is causing the itching…right?
I’m mean attempting to keep it simple, which I think first look for the obvious…2 things that changed in his life…location and food.
Just thinking aloud…

[Pitlove]

Hi Kim- Seems like a lot is happening at a fast pace with your foster. Went from being fine on Diamond to itching and loose stool in 2 weeks. The loose stool could certainly be food. My dog (and my cat actually) let me know very quickly via their “output” whether or not something is agreeing with them. My cat will throw up instantly if she eats beef and my dog will have diaherra (sometimes explosive) if a food doesn’t agree with him and he gets very bad gas on beef.

For his upset stomach; if he has been eating Diamond his whole life, he probably doesn’t have a diverse enough amount of microflora in his gut to handle the diet change. If you didn’t tranistion him to Earthborn, that is most likely the cause of the diaherra. If you did, you might have needed to give him more time switching. If you gave him even more than 7 days to switch, maybe there is some stress playing a role from the rehome?

For the itching; there could be an ingredient that he is intolerant to in the Earthborn that’s not in whichever Diamond Naturals you were feeding. Compare the 2 ingredient panels and see if something jumps out at you as being different. Look at everything including stuff lower on the list. You can certainly try to go back to Diamond and see if that helps. Or a food that mimics the ingredients if you want to stay away from Diamond.

Not sure where you live or if he came to you from a different state, but down in LA where I live, environmental allergies in dogs is like an epidemic because of the climate. So it could be a change in climate depending on where you live or where he’s from.

If you want you can almost treat him like hes an 8 week old puppy and just keep his food the same til he adjusts. Sometimes going to a new home especially for a dog thats in foster care can be hard on them. Keeping him on Diamond will also give you an idea if it’s the food or the environment. If he goes back to no itching and diaherra, it’s probably the food. If the diaherra clears up, but the itching continues it could be the environment.

On one last note, make sure you check him for fleas as well. Akitas have some pretty intense coats that fleas can hide in, so really look hard for them. Just in case.

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Pitlove.

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