Puppy Allergies! Food? Environmental?
Submitted by C-M2 on September 30, 2011 - 4:51pmHi Guys/Girls.
Need some help trying to figure out what our Ody is allergic to. He's about 4 months old right now. In the last two weeks we have noticed a few changes in his skin.
First symptoms: Hives. Only on his sides. Nowhere to be found on his belly. & Ear/Facial redness. Excessive Shedding?
We originally thought this was food related as we were feeding him Nutrisource Puppy and had recently "Upped" his servings as recommended this also resulted in his stool to be rather soft. We decided to switch him to Natural Balance L.I. : Chicken & Sweet Potato. (Thinking it is a food problem)
His stool had gotten better, some times its on the runny side. Hives continued to come back. In the morning he would be fine. Throughout the day he would break out in the same spots, and his face/ears would get rather red/pink. We decided to see if changing our detergents would help. We switched to a hypoallergenic detergent and it did not help.
Contacted a Bully specialist in our area. He recommended we put him on Benadryl 25mg 2x a day for 5 days. Keep his food source the same as well as his treats and try not to introduce anything new into the environment. Report back to him.
Result: Hive's have stopped (We're on day 3). Redness has continued. As has shedding.
Should I try to switch to a different source of protein for him? Maybe Duck or Venison? (Once we complete the cycle of Benadryl)
Anyone have similar issues?
Thanks,
Bogus
Perfect solution to your problem
send him to my house!! What a cutie
Try changing the source of protein, maybe to a fish based/grain free food? None of my dogs can eat chicken, they all get ear infections, go figure.
Unfortunately, allergies are hard to pin down, it's mostly trial and error.
Good luck
Lynn King CPDT-KA
Did he have his rabies shot
yet? Was he shipped to you?
Redness and excessive shedding could be food related...but it is rarely seen at this young age. The benadryl was for the hives. Have you stopped the Benadryl?
If you pince hair on the side of his face and it pulls out very easily then take him to th vet to have a skin scrape for demodex or staph. If he recently had his rabies shot, and his age I suspect demodex.
Same here
Dallas (9months) have the same issues (started when he was about 6months). Hive like bumps on his sides, excessive shedding, and really pink spots near his head (he broke out with 2 hotspots). I took him to the Vet back in Aug. The doctor said it was a yeast infection (it was really pink around his neck and between his paw). He also had a ear infection (brown gunky stuff) You could smell the yeast as well. Gave him Benadryl, Ketoconazole and Cephalexin for the skin issues. Mometamax Otic for the ear issue. Ear issue cleared right up. Benadryl helped kinda of. Ketoconazole and Cephalexin kept the bumps to a minimum and all the yeast went away. Didn't do anything for the shedding.
After a 2 weeks of being off the meds......bumps appeared again and skin is irritated. Back to the Vet (2wks ago) and is now on a second round of Cephalexin and Ketoconazole. Doc says its pyoderma - secondary skin infection. Hopefully this second round will help him.
Dallas is on the raw diet (been on raw since July). I switched because I thought the kibbles were causing the skin issue. He still have the skin issue, but I'm keeping him on raw. He doesn't have tear stains; he's poop is firm and less, he eats all his food, he drinks less water, and his breath doesn’t smell too bad LOL. I love the raw for him.......the production of it is a hassle, but it works for him. I started putting Halo Vita Glo Dream Coat in his food. His coat feels so good! I can tell the difference in that....I'll see what happens with the shedding in a few weeks.
Hope this was helpful.