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My young dogs fur and skin and well being is falling apart

5K views 14 replies 9 participants last post by  secondchance 
#1 · (Edited)
Hi, Please excuse my Ignorance on pet care, but that is why I'm here
I have read the adds for these tonics , supplements, but how do I know what is bogus and overpriced,and which ones really work, guess I need to explain my dogs ("Oreo") symptoms in detail

I have never seen a dog this miserable as far as itching , dry skin flaking dandruff , biting, hair falling out , bald spots ,dry hair, hair changing from black to orange.I thought it was from fleas,but when I bathed her and treated her there were hardly any fleas

I went to pet smart a month ago and changed her dog food from dry pedigree to dry Iams lamb only as suggested by a neighbor..I bought her medicated shampoo for 10 bucks, and purchased a spray that makes her smell better and supposed to moisten up her hair..I also got her advantage for fleas and ticks..I got her a new collar,brush and some other stuff

Although she is showing some improvement her coat is shiny , but she still has dandruff and she still eats herself and scratches and shakes her head..she is still bald in her biting spots but I see stubbles of hair coming through... she also is still lazy..She could be more active for a young dog IMHO. And I see signs of her eyesight not being as good as it once was, my wife dis agrees with the bad eye sight..OK! it is arguably not as good ... Oreo is 5-6 years old ..

Now I might get flamed but I have to ask:
I have to mention I'm going to start taking omega 3 fish oil because my cholesterol is shooting up
(I'm 37 but I love me some fried chicken and shrimp:).
I'm a little apprehensive about sharing human supplements,But then again would that not be the same ingredient that is in the pet supplements.. I'm also curious as to what opinions you guys might have about me sharing my human supplements with Oreo as well.. she is around 25 pounds

All this dog does is listen and want to be petted. and she stinks a bit. I have never seen a dog this respectful .. All she wants is love and I never really liked a dog that much until we got Oreo for our daughter that was suffering cancer and a leg amputation..she is part of the family for sure:cool:

Any suggestions on how to treat her is most welcome..Especially if it comes from experienced people on a budget.. Thank you for reading this
 
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#4 ·
No and I do not have the money... I have a shlew of medical bills ..millions:(literately..
My dog is happier and showing Improvement ... I think she will be back to normal if i get her adequate nutrition and something to keep her from itching..
I feel I just need to find the proper products and she will be fine. obviously the products I have purchased are not enough...I don't know if the food I bought is adequate..people tell you anything to sell you and product these days..I'm just seeking the truth on that matter as well.That is all the vet is going to do..But please correct me if I'm wrong. educate me.
Thanks for the reply:)
 
#3 ·
As trumpet said, of course you need to bring your dog to the vet.

Assuming that you have done that already, my guess (just a guess) would be that you need to switch the food. The food you mentioned is not a high quality food. I would suggest researching a RAW diet (from what I've learned here, what people have said about their experiences, this may be your answer..)

I have also heard that fish oil is a very good thing.

Of course, discuss all this with your vet, except keep in mind most vets are uninformed about nutrition.
 
#5 ·
http://www.kateconnick.com/library/cushingsdisease.html In the middle of the page there are the symptoms... My dog has it and it occurs in dogs from ages 6-7 and up... I had to do my research myself to figure out my dog had it... I try to be on a budget but when it comes to a sick dog it takes alot... If your dog shows around 10-12 of these symptoms Ask your vet about a test for this... It is around 300 bucks but will ease the knowing... The meds for the disease are 120 a month for me...
 
#6 · (Edited)
http://www.kateconnick.com/library/cushingsdisease.html In the middle of the page there are the symptoms... My dog has it and it occurs in dogs from ages 6-7 and up... I had to do my research myself to figure out my dog had it... I try to be on a budget but when it comes to a sick dog it takes a lot... If your dog shows around 10-12 of these symptoms Ask your vet about a test for this... It is around 300 bucks but will ease the knowing... The meds for the disease are 120 a month for me...
Thanks for the link. I needed that.very informative..
With the symptoms listed about cushings seems far worse than what my dog is showing ..
She is really normal except for her dry skin and biting herself.. And she does not run around as much , maybe i should put as she is less hyper ..I mean she is still happy wagging her tail,etc..she just jumped on my lap..But I am concerned about her being less hyper,.. and not finding food when I throw it sometimes ,which is what I'm using to indicate her eye sight going down hill...My wife thinks the dogs eye sight is fine,And she considers the dogs energy level o be normal... so i could be a worry wart..
It may be nothing but age in that aspect,but I say better be safe than sorry

But If I have to I will take her in..it is 175 dollars in the area just for a visit here...
And the groove is right about the vet not knowing a lot about supplements and nutrition. I have brought oreo in before (over nothing:rolleyes:).I'm a former body builder and I can tell you that the man knows very little about Nutrition , hormones, and I don't see how he can understand the correlation with steroids and hormones and the positive and adverse effects ,even if it is with dogs...

I truly believe steroids to be a worst case scenario and used only when you absolutely need to ..In humans or pets..With the cushings it seems to be needed ..There is no since in a dog or human suffering. even if it involves the use of steroids or narcotics(this is where I normally get mad with the government:p).But my dog has only been like this only for a month and a half and is showing progress ..
All but the itching is progressing as her shampoo treatment and other stuff is wearing off ( I assume)..

It will be a while before I can bring Oreo in to the vet,,And to be quite honest I have very little faith in that guy..But for now I would like to help her skin condition until i get 300 bucks and 125 a month extra on my budget..

Obviously from reading you guys have a lot of faith in the vet for what I consider a treatable condition and I'm sure it is with good reason..I will take your advice..but right now I simply can't do it.. But i can afford some of the products that I have been researching for dry skin and fur health..just don't know which one..but I'm researching..

Thanks again
 
#8 · (Edited)
Now yer talking..NUTRITION(oops sorry did not mean to shout, I just got excited) because I can afford that one ..
And yes I have.. I am concerned on how good the Iams lamb food really is ....
I was feeding her pedigree because the bag and a lot of others have said it was good. and the bag said it was good.. heck who knows I ain't eatin it..
I will read the P.M. about Nutrition, Thanks a lot groovygroomer

Now yer talking..NUTRITION(oops sorry did not mean to shout, I just got excited) because I can afford that one ..
And yes I have.. I am concerned on how good the Iams lamb food really is ....
I was feeding her pedigree because the bag and a lot of others have said it was good. and the bag said it was good.. heck who knows I ain't eatin it..
I will read the P.M. about Nutrition, Thanks a lot groovygroomer

HEY "RawFedDogs" WHERE ARE YOU, HELLLP !:)
Sorry that will be the last time I shout .. Thanks for letting me know about the Raw food..that may have been 20 bucks down the drain for the other stuff, I'll learn . Next time I buy food that cost 20 bucks will get some good stuff.. When ever I find out what it is from reading the post from "RawFedDogs"..
The downside If raw food involves t-bone or any other nice cut of red meat my dog will starve , it will just give me an excuse to buy a bunch of steak and eat it myself..

Still no suggestions about what tonics or oils though:confused:
:cool:Thanks again everyone
 
#10 · (Edited)
In reading some of rawfeds post could not help but notice the discussion about feeding the dog as a vegitarian... I think the original poster of the thread was concerned about the dog being allergic to dog food. Or perhaps him or his vet had Assumed allergic reactions were associated with meats / certain foods,or whatever..I don't know he kept important details to himself.
here is the link to the thread;
http://www.dogforums.com/5-dog-food-forum/37920-vegetarian-dog-foods.html
Quite an interesting and funny thread..

Rawfood informed the veggie poster that a dog being allergic to meat was like a cow being allergic to grass.. I also read up on this and Rawfood is more than likely to be correct..there is nothing to prove allergies to meat in dogs..however I confirmed that a dogs body is set up for a meat diet and this is all based on years of scientific findings..

Now this brings me back to where my neighbor suggested Iams ..The vet informed him that the dog food with pork and beef was causing his dog to itch because his dog allergic to chicken and beef and pork... Now my neighbor only feeds his beagle Iams lamb as the vet suggested and the dog is back to normal..No more itching and his bald spots are gone ... There is obviously more to this...The vet is wrong about the allergy to meat..It's probably the garbage that comes with the food ..Perhaps the vets are just confused about what is going on with these dogs reactions..

obviously the veggie poster had all his faith in the vet and had no interest in what the posters were telling him . That is Smart to listen to qualified people only. But he could have been a little more open minded, also just because someone has a dergree you still need to do your own research..they are human and humans are not perfect....It's always good to get a 5th opinion

I assume He was going to deprive his dog nutrients with vegetables because a vet ( a professional that knew what he was talking about) told him his dog was reacting to meat ..

Screw a vet when it comes to nutrition..I truly believe now that the bagged dog food is inadequate or just poison.. . You don't need to quit feeding your dog meat... I'm going to this Rawfood diet A.S.A.P. and buying a daily tonic for my dogs skin now. and omega supplements... I believe this will be the cure for my dog, and my neighbors dog..And possibly the veggie mans dog as well..... I'll let you guys know if I need the vet or not..

Take care



Awesome, I was just reading about this supplement ... I appreciate the help from all of you more than you know...
 
#11 ·
I recently used Calm Coat on my dog & was absolutley amazed. The itching & skin irriation went away almost immediately. Its rather cheap so I think its worth a shot. I bought it at a local shop for about $10 but you might be able to get it on their website cheaper. I have read other posts about an anti-itch kit with a shampoo and treat but have not rtied those yet. I jsut used the spray. Anyways give it a shot! It worked well for me.
 
#12 ·
Years ago I had a dog that itched, scratched, smelled and her hair was falling out. It was her thyroid and monthly medication (wasn't expensive) relieved her. You might want to compare those symptoms.

I just recently switched Molly to raw - it's actually cheaper than the kibble which I was paying $2. a pound. I feel better knowing what I'm feeding her.
 
#13 ·
It's perfectly fine to give fish oil human supplements - 2500 mg mixed in a little low fat cottage cheese or plain yogurt goes over real big with dogs. The fish oil is better than flax seed oil for dogs because they can assimilate the fish oil, and fish oil will improve the skin, coat, and any allergy symptoms.

I would switch to a food that is grain free, as grains are more likely the culprit causing problems. It may cost more, but you feed less, and I've seen dramatic improvement in skin and coat with dogs I've fostered (my own are fed EVO, a grain free kibble). In addition, sardines in olive oil once a week. They're cheap, and highly nutritious.

Her symptoms may be allergy related, however, do be aware that it could also be a thyroid problem. Check her ears - you said she shakes her head, so she may have an ear infection. The Blue Power Formula on the Health Forum will give you the ingredients and instructions for use. I had a foster Shih Tzu with horrible bacterial/yeast infection in his ears that was resistent to everything the vet gave me. I used the Blue Power Formula, and the infection was totally gone by the beginning of week two of use. (My vet had me write down the ingredients and instructions for him, he was so impressed!) All the ingredients are very inexpensive.

EQyss Micro-Tek Shampoo and (leave in) Spray are by far the best topical products out there for itchy skin (providing immediate relief), plus it heals, and is antimicrobial and fungal (gets rid of yeast infections, bacterial infections, rain rot on horses). Astronauts in our space program used this for decontamination. I always have a bottle of the Micro-Tek Spray on hand for insect bites (immediate relief of a wasp sting), scrapes, and sores of any kind for both dogs and humans. BTW, I have no affiliation with EQyss! It's been around for years, and it really does what they say it does! (I buy it from KvVet Suppy online, because they don't charge for shipping, and have the best prices.) To read about EQyss products, check out www.eqyss.com

Good luck to you!
 
#14 ·
When my dog's coat became dry and brittle and he developed an itchy bald spot on his hind leg, i bought him Solid Gold Seameal because i read reviews on it and it seemd to fix the problem for other pet owners. and it really did. the hair grew back pretty quickly and he stopped biting and licking the area. i would also spray some tea tree oil on the spot to help with his itching and scratching.
Lately i've been adding salmon oil to my dogs' food and it's done wonders for their coat! it smells bad...but all my dogs' coats are soft and shiney! i get it from puplife.com for about $14 they have a few brands on there. I'm sure they work just the same. idk, it's just something to consider. i'm also pretty sure you can break the capsules from your supplements and squeeze the oil into your dog's food too. i know that they do sell the fish oil in capsule form for dogs too.
:)
 
#15 ·
You aren't entirely correct about the meat food allergy thing... on the right track though. Dogs can have allergies to specific proteins (generally the ones that they are exposed to the most, like beef or chicken) and in these cases feeding them a diet with a restricted protein source (often fish, venison, buffalo..) will help to clear up the problem. With reference to the veggie food thread.. the vet had not recommended a veggie food to the poster, it was for their own personal interest (we gather anyways). So in that thread when we were talking about dogs being allergic to meat we meant as a whole, it is unlikely that you will find a dog who is completely intolerant to every animal derived protein (if this does happen it is very rare).
I am just guessing here, but I imagine part of the reason that dogs develop allergies to specific proteins is because of the quality of the protein they are being fed, but I don't know if that is true or not.
I do agree with you that processed kibble is inadequate for the average dog, and am also considering making the switch to raw. I am excited to hear what kind of improvements you see from your change in diet.
I don't know if this holds true for raw diets as well, but generally when you switch a food it can take some time before you start to notice any changes (in the vet world when talking about kibble they say it can take up to 3months) so don't get discouraged if your dog isn't miraculously better overnight.
As far as dealing with the itching right away, try giving baths with lukewarm water (on the cooler end of the spectrum because heat inflames the skin) and a collodial(sp?) oatmeal shampoo, that should ease some of the discomfort. You may want to talk to RawFedDogs about this more but it is possible that you wont need to give any supplements with a proper raw diet (I really don't know but I have a hunch Rawfed will though). Maybe just something to soothe the itching until you can make the switch. Good luck!
 
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