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The itching is so bad today

6K views 55 replies 21 participants last post by  taerga 
#1 ·
I am very frustrated right now with Dutch's diet and I really don't know what to do.

He has been so itchy all morning. He has been licking and chewing on his legs and his belly, and he's been scratching his years to the point where he has some scabs in them. He's been doing this for a month now, but today seems really bad.

I don't know what to do anymore... We've got him on an allergy/LID bison and sweet potato kibble from Natural Balance, but it doesn't seem to be making a difference. He's been on that kibble for a couple weeks now.

I just want to find something he can and will eat that will stop giving him food allergies.
 
#4 ·
You need to try a protein source that the dog has never had. Bison shares characteristics with other red meats.

Go with a catfish based food, unfortunately there are only two on the market. Annamaet Option and Blackwood 5000. Annamaet Option is used by many vets. Catfish apparently does not create a histamine surge like other proteins.

You might also want to use Nupro.
 
#5 ·
You need to check the ingredients. Even stating fish and potato, most fish kibbles have some type of chicken ingredient or beef in it.

Go with no grains, chicken or beef. Good choice is Acana fish. No treats.

Try the Ketocor (sp) shampoo and spray from Virbac (vets). If you can, shampoo 1-2x per week (start off with 2), leave shampoo on for 10 minutes. Spray in between.

Also, check for fleas. Some dogs react and go into the scratching turmoil as well. Even with the cold.
 
#6 ·
Well, here's the things we're trying to balance right now:

Itchy all over his body.

Keep his stool firm (it's still a little soft but not as bad as the diarrhea from a few weeks back).

Give him enough protein to help with him walking on his hocks.

It could just be seasonal allergies, that would make sense, but that wouldn't explain the diarrhea... but the diarrhea could just be from us switching his foods too much.
 
#9 ·
Mostly we use a gas furnace... sometimes we burn wood in the stove, but that's a rare occasion.

I don't know for sure if it's the food.... we figured it was a food allergy because of the sneezing, the diarrhea, and the itchy bumps. The vet really doesn't know for sure either. We had him on boiled chicken and rice for a couple weeks until his diarrhea got better, and then we slowly moved him onto the bison and potato. The poop is looking better, it's still a little soft, but the itching hasn't gotten better.
 
#12 ·
Yes, I vote for benadryl. If it provides relief, you know for sure you're dealing with an allergy. If it doesn't, chances are it's something else. The proper dosage is 1 mg per pound of weight. The emergency vet told me I could give it up to 4 times a day, but our regular vet said 3 times.

Have you absolutely ruled out a staph infection? I thought for sure Shasta had food allergies, but since we finally got rid of the staph, she hasn't seemed itchy at all (although we still don't feed anything with wheat or corn in it). Good luck. I know how frustrating and awful it is to watch your dog scratching like that.
 
#20 ·
I would suggest at this point going to an all raw diet-- no treats, just the prepared raw. The forum has helpful members to assist in transitioning safely to raw.

I would avoid Nupro, it is full of flax.
 
#22 ·
Did you know that a simple blood test can check for allergens??? My dog started itching herself raw a couple years back. We had moved to a new place in Sept and she started itching just a bit by October. By the time Jan came around she was itching so much she was stressing out. Her muzzle was getting bare. I opted to get blood tests done instead of trying to guess for months about a food allergy. She is allergic to DUST MITES. Had nothing to do with her diet. I try to keep the house as clean as possible, but with a wood stove going all winter, that is next to impossible. She only starts itching now, when we start using the wood stove.

She is on a raw diet and gets Omega Dog supplement. She is also getting puppy gold supplement right now (kinda like pre-natal pills). I cant keep the humidity high enough to keep her from itching. I am now trying to apply olive oil to the areas that itch the most to see if that helps. It seems to.
 
#27 ·
If you suspect allergies, I would suggest to get to your vet for allergy testing if you prefer not to go the dermatolgist route. I am suprised your vet didnt' talk about allergy testing to you, if you suspected allergies.

BEfore you do the testing, I'd rule out an infection first. Of course, sometimes a staph infection can be secondary to allergies.

I had VARL testing done with Phoenix. Some folks/vets poo poo doing any kind of testing for food allergies. It is not 100% accurate , BUT can give you a place to start with protiens or carbs. Not every dog who has food allergies is allergic to grains, but going on a grainfree food immediately, may help. Like it has been said, bison is close to beef as far as a protien, so you may want to try the NB LID foods that contain fish, venison or duck. I would avoid all things chicken at this point. Chicken is found to be a protien in kibble that dogs are allergic to.

Many folks swear by a raw diet in helping their dog's allergies.

As Patti has said, you may want to keep away from flax, it can be a food allergen.

Another thing you could try is a homecooked elimination diet. This can be a bit time consuming to do, but worth it if you truly suspect food allergies.

Playing russian kibble roulette can be very frustrating if you aren't dilligent with reading the ingredients.

I'm guessing that have forced hot air b/c you have gas. If so, you will want to check on the filter. The biggest environmental allergies during the winter months are from molds and dust mites. You need to keep an eye on the humidity in the house. Too low, and it can cause dry skin itching....too high, and it is breeding ground for dust mites and mold. It's a very tricky balance, trust me. I have a dog allergic to dust mites and certain molds. Effective control of mites and mold would require the maintenance of relative humidity below 50 percent and keeping your house under 70 degrees (dust mites and molds like it damp and warm). Carpet, especially older carpet, is not your friend. If you have carpet, you cannot vacuum enough...ditto with dusting. If you don't have carpet, you still need to keep things swept up/vacuumed and dusted.
 
#35 ·
I would put him on vitamin C. It is a natural anti-histamine and has benefits in supporting the immune system. Start at 500 mg per day, up over a week to 2000mg(split the dosage am and pm with meals)
You can do the benedryl along with it. If your dog is structurally mature EsterC is easier on the gut than plain C, but has calcium so not recommended for growing pups.
 
#40 ·
Humidity is important...dry air makes dogs and humans miserable.
 
#45 ·
If you are heating your home is the air dry? I try to keep the inside humidity at 30%. I have parrots and they need it as well. It also helps to make the house feel warmer.
And don't forget about the vitamin C!
 
#46 ·
How did you diagnose that it was a reaction to food? I have had several dogs with allergies. While a good diet did support them overall, it did not improve their allergy symptoms significantly. Are you giving anything to treat the symptoms?
 
#47 ·
We really DON'T know what it's from. We assumed food because he had diarrhea, but now that's gone and only the rash and itchy skin remains. It could be any number of things at this point.

As I said above a couple of posts, we have him on Prednisolone (6 tablets) and Cefpodoxime (11 tablets). That's supposed to clear up the rash and the itchy skin. Other than that, we don't know... could be seasonal allergies, could be dust mites, could be food allergies... we just don't know.
 
#48 ·
Currently we have two dogs with allergies. Some people are more versed in wholistic approach to allergy treatment and can speak to that. We are currently treating it as atopy. So far antihistamines and fish oil maintain them. I had a dog so bad that we tested her for her allergens.
 
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