[Jeannam2008]

I have a 9 year old female cocker spaniel who has had skin allergies pretty much her whole life. A while back she started chewing at the hind leg and between her paws. She'd chew so bad it would break open the skin and bleed. We recently got her shaved down because she was getting mats in her hair.

She still chews occasionally but not as severe as she was... now we are finding this little white spots that look like big dandruff that is matted to her skin.

Anyone that could help me out I would be more than thankful. We've been to the vet and were told to give her Benadril (spell) We also use hypo-allergenic shampoo on her.

 

[deege39]

When I first adopted Donatello, I was pulling little white scabs of skin with tuffs of hair out of his fur... Well, the longer I had him the more his hair was falling out. Bald spots all over the place...

At first I thought he was allergic to his nylon collar. Then I cut out all extra treats from his diet. I started washing all my clothes and blankets with hypo-allergenic detergent...

Well, with some diligent research and study myself, before I spent loads of money for tests from a vet, I changed his food once again... I was changing his food left and right... I was advised to give him Benadryl too, all that does is mask the symptoms and provide little relief.

I then put him on a "corn-free" diet... The food he eats has no type of corn in it at all... Since he's been on that... No more bald spots! His hair is growing back in, he doesn't itch or lick at his paws near as much. (His bald spots weren't as progressed as your dog's, but looked very similar.) Many dogs are allergic to corn, beef, and chicken and are now developing allergies to lamb.

Have you tried changing the food to a corn/grain free meal? Donatello's dog food is made with Turkey.

 

[Jeannam2008]

Well I feed Chloe Beneful Healthy Weight what would you recommend I switch her over to?

 

[deege39]

Okay, well look on the ingredients and see if there's corn, corn syrup, corn meal, anything with corn... Look at her treats, see if the ingredients are the same...

If all else fails, tell your vet you want her tested for *food* allergies... Food allergies can servely effect the skin&coat of dogs.

Unless I'm missing this completely and you already know what her allergy is??? I'm not sure...

 

[Jeannam2008]

I read the ingrediants and there is corn chicken and corn meal.
Back when she was a puppy we did change her food to something call blue buffalo I think, but after awhile we switched over to Beneful.

What food would you recommend?

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2750079

That is the food we used to feed her ^

What about feeding her Purina Pro Plan Shredded Blends Natural Adult Dog Food

 

[TomN]

What kind of tests were run on the dog?

Thyroid checked?
Skin scrape for parasites?

I'm not a vet but just from looking at your pictures I'd say you are dealing with more than just an allergy and some other form of skin disease with that much hair loss and scaling. Possibly some form of Alopecia.

I would suggest having the dog looked at by a specialist, as in a Veterinary Dermatologist. Your vet should be able to recommend one.

 

[deege39]

Donatello is on Nature's Recipe Farmstand Selects from PetSmart.

It's made with Turkey and other real vegetables, no corn!

TomN boasts another good point, you might very well want to take her to the vet and insist on getting a skin scrape.

However, I didn't do that, I took the risk of just changing the food and it worked out for me; I would do whatever you're most comfortable doing, if you want to try changing the food and if that doesn't seem to clear it up then most definitely pay a visit to the vet.

 

[Jeannam2008]

She's not lossing any hair we actually shaved those areas down b/c the hair was so matted we had no other choice.

 

[cshellenberger]

Well I feed Chloe Beneful Healthy Weight what would you recommend I switch her over to?

IF you suspect food allergies, switch him to one of the Wellness 'simple solutions' foods or to **** Van Pattons Natural Balance in either Fish and sweetpotato or Duck and potato. I've had great success with these foods and allergic dogs.

Common (food) allergens for dogs are:

Lamb
Beef
Chicken
Corn
Wheat
Soy
Rice

It's also VERY common for dogs to be allergic to environmental items such as grass, carpet, certain ingredients in soaps and cleaners. I would advise a skin allergy test to eliminate environmental allergies.

What kind of tests were run on the dog?

Thyroid checked?
Skin scrape for parasites?

I'm not a vet but just from looking at your pictures I'd say you are dealing with more than just an allergy and some other form of skin disease with that much hair loss and scaling. Possibly some form of Alopecia.

I would suggest having the dog looked at by a specialist, as in a Veterinary Dermatologist. Your vet should be able to recommend one.

I agree, those conditions should also be eliminated and Thyroid is FAR more common than ANY allergy

 

[jsawvel]

Usually skin problems are caused by digestion problems. So, you should work on improving the health of your dog´s digestion and liver.

You may consider probiotic supplements.

Also, dogs aren´t designed to eat grains, which are basically grass seed.

I have heard a lot of good things about raw meat diets for dogs.