zayda_asher

Yep, both mine were intradermal skin tested too!!! I have photos of mine with their patches ;) Wow... that's different to when I had mine done... but thinking on it mine might've both been done in off allergy season... Zayda was done at about 6 months of age and Asher was done at about 1.5 yrs. Glad to help... we all have to stick together and help each other on these issues ;) Sounds more like a yeast infection... the medicated baths work really well and also the Resichlor. I believe vinegar rinses work well for this too (I never used them)... someone else might know the ratio for that... If it is Staph then the herb Pau D'Arco has worked really well for that with Asher... Check with your Derm, but it does sound like the yeast infection... Zayda had chronic generalised Demodex... hard work isn't it? Busta and Zayda sound a lot alike!! So I notice you are in WA... are you going to Murdoch to get this done?? I believe you are in a rural area from past posts... is there someone out your way or do you come up and go to Murdoch... Who's your Dermatologist? Dan

Oh, I forgot... What sort of infections does she get on her skin: Yeast or Staph infections because I have some different treatments that can help with them too... Dan

Wow! She's got it bad... poor mite.... For the atopic allergies was she blood tested or intradermal skin tested? It can effect the results... I get the feeling she was blood tested if they are talking about retesting.... I would ask about intradermal skin testing if that is the case as this is the best and most specific test for atopic allergies. Both of my dogs are on the allergy shots (Allergen Specific Immunotherapy). Ok... things that I have found: 1) Check all your products for these things.. Some of them like Dandelion and dock family plants are used in alternative herbal treatments... dock plants are often used to treat skin complaints (some of my boy's allergies are Yellow Dock, Dandedlion and Melalueca (Tea tree) ). Eucalyptus is used a lot too of course. 2) Find out if there are any ingredients not listed on product lables (they don't have to list what they term "inactive ingredients", you'll note products that do this often list the ingredients as "active ingredients") sometimes something they are allergic to is hidden. Check with the companies... your Dermatologist can help you with that. 3) Keep those plants out of the immediate environment... Research the plants etc. and find out about them, that can help you avoid them as much as possible. 4) She's bad for the dust mite so keeping your house and her bedding as clean as possible will really help. 5) If she is fine with flea products them make sure you keep up regular, but be aware that allergic dogs sometimes have issues with spot ons (Asher has terrible problems, we have him on oral treatments now as he is also highly allergic to Fleas) 6) Ok the alternaria my girl is allergic to... we've found with her that keeping the environment as dry as possible really helps (the spores come out more in the damp (cold or humid) weather)... Keeping her as warm as posible when it is cold, drying her feet when she has been in the rain (right between toes or they get the fungal growth) all really helps. Also she gets sick in the car from this, but if we give her her antihisamines before we travel this makes all the difference. She gets really teary eyes sometimes too, so Patanol eye drops have made all the difference for that. 7) When they scratch up their mouth etc. there is a lotion called Resichlor that really helps to heal and soothe this. 8) If her coat / skin dries out with the medicated shampoo using an oatmeal conditioner can help relieve that. Ok.... that's a few tips of the top of my head... My boy is all atopic, contact allergies and chemical sensitivities and my girl is all food allergies and the mould allergy. So once you have the food stuff sorted out you can ask me about that too if you want... I'll let you know if anything else springs to mind... learning about the plants / insects really helps you to deal with and identify them... We've had good luck with the immunotherapy shots... Like I said feel free to PM me too if you want.... Dan

<Sigh> Both mine have allergies.... Busta sounds a lot like Zayda ;) What exactly are her atopic allergies... there's a lot of different things you can do to help with those... Let us know what they are and I will let you know if I know any tricks that can help! Also I think I've mentioned to you before that Zayda gets that vaginitis from one of her food allergies... so finding out what she is allergic to food wise may help to clear that up... Its hard work and it sucks watching them like this... but its great when you have it sorted out!! Feel free to PM me if you want to chat to someone that has two allergic dogs and knows what a nightmare it can be!!! Dan Forgot this: Dogs with allergies can be quite sensative to chemicals and vaccines etc. Asher still has a lump from his vaccine last December... and the chemicals in the food can really effect some dogs. It might be worth reading up on Raw feeding as this may help once you know what she is allergic to. Asher is terribly sensitive to chemicals and getting him off the preservatives etc. in kibble made a huge difference. Also Raw feeding is much easier to control what the dogs get as you feed them only what you prepare... Kibble companies often change formulas with no warning, so all of a sudden the dog is reacting to its previously ok food... they've changed the recipe!!

Cool... thanks guys :D I've actually never had a problem with fleas... we just don't seem to be bothered here and I wouldn't have known Asher was allergic to them if we hadn't had the intradermal testing done to find out everything he was allergic too (poor boy is chockers!)... but I don't want him to get bitten knowing that he is severely allergic to them! Does the Eucalyptus work for flies and stuff too? Dan

What Poodlefan said about corn is spot on.... but I will add that the other reason not to feed corn is that it is a very common and nasty allergen for dogs... now food allergies are not the most common allergy in dogs, but why risk it? If I could take away any one of my girls allergies and only the one it would be the corn... it is the nastiest of all her allergies! Oh also, as PF said, a lot of vets don't like raw diets because a lot of people wont put in the effort, chuck the dog a bit of mince and think that's it... if you can't make it balanced then its not good... Dan

Hahahaha! good idea, but that wont work with my buggers... they'd just feast and eat the whole plant if they liked it Might try some potted penny royal around the house though.... Dan

So what base would you put those things in? I don't want anything that will be oily or yuck on their coats... Dan

Oh, should probably also say that they do get garlic in their food and one of my dogs is flea allergic! Dan

I've just been told by someone else that lavender is really good for the mozzies - for us too... I get eaten alive, so I will definitely be trying that! Not heard of the lemon grass before... Dan

Hi all, wondering if anyone has any ideas for natural insect repelants? Can't have tea tree or pyrethrum (one of my dogs is allergic)... but something a bit less chemically would be good! Ta, Dan

Scratching could be vaccine reaction / build up towards vaccinosis... I still think it is allergies... and these could be related to the vaccine as well... google allergies and vaccines... Dan

Just about anything, excepting the ones like onions... mix colours, reds/organges, greens etc. Don't use a heap of pumpkin, too much can constipate or cause diarreha Dan

To me this and the fact he may be having panic attacks is a sign that he is not wholly mentally healthy and possibly physically healthy (sometimes behavioural issues have physical roots)... Hence why I suggested a behaviourist... If the thing with his foot has gotten worse then what's to stop it getting even worse if you don't find out what is going on and put in some work on those issues... He sounds like there is something on his mind to me.. Dan

Well unless he thinks something has happened to set this off?? Dogs don't normally just whig out and get panicked! Maybe clarify with the vet and get the opinion of a behaviourist just to see... Vets don't necessarily know a huge amount about behaviour issues... Let us know what happens... Dan

Dogs who have hypersensitivities due to allergies tend to be really uncomfortable when you scratch them too.... When mine are in full flight of allergy they will actually pull away from being belly rubbed because its just too much. But when they are fine, skin clear, no hypersensitivity they want really vigorus scratches / rubs... If it is Atopic (air born) allergies you can consider Immunotherapy Injections. This forces the body to get used to the allergens and deal with them in a better way... Its expensive, but at least 75% of dogs have some improvement... Both of mine are on it. Zayda has done great with it... Asher hasn't been on it long enough to tell yet... Dan

hmmm, if it were me then I would probably look for a second opinion... maybe see a behaviourist as well... that sort of anxiety attack when he seems to have no SA just doesn't add up to me Dan

Do you know for certain that this is all he does? Have you videoed him to see what he does when you are out? If he does not have separation anxiety I would question why he would wake up and panic about you not being there... a panic attack of that nature, to me, would be a sign of severe distress and that should have manifested in other noticeable way I would have thought... Having said that though there is always one that doesn't fit the rules (I know I own a couple of these types of dogs ) and maybe that is how he expresses his SA... but it would be very unusual... Dan

Does he have separation anxiety? What is he like when you aren't at home? Dan

Although I am sure that some dogs are just more ticklish than others it is worth being aware that extreme hypersensitivity combined with things such as a lot of itching is one of the indicators of an allergy.... Dan

I have recently read some information that Killed or live modified vacs are sometimes worse for immune suppresed dogs because of the agents that are incorporated into them to keep the viable... I'm sure if you did a google you could find the information... Dan

Yeah... we all learn as we go! Its a real education isn't it??!! We were thrown right in the deep end with Zayda because she is such a severe case - her Derm uses her as a case study! Good vets are key - ours are all knowledge sharers too... very useful! No problems! A lot of vets who don't understand allergies well will use the Hills d/d diets which are the "allergic response" ones or the Euk Fish & Potato, but these are designed for dogs where the elimination diet is done and allergens known. Having them on one of these whilst trying to do the elimination diet means that some dogs will potentially still be exposed to an allergen. A lot of those diets, such as the fish and potato, still also have mixed animal fats in them which normally include beef / lamb tallow - not so good if they are allergic to those protiens too!! Good luck with the breed specific thyroid stuff... apparently a lot of vets don't know about this stuff unless they've come across it for some reason, so it may be worth trying to find someone who does a lot of work with GSDs if you can... Cheers, Dan

I know with some breeds (such as Akitas) they say that the "normal level" in a hyperthiroid test is too low for the breed, that they actually need higher levels to be working properly... Ever seen anything like this in regards to GSDs?? Could be an issue... My dogs flourish on raw diet, much easier to control what they are getting... but I think at least one of yours, Holly, did not do well on raw? The Hills food for elimination diets is Ultra z/d ... a lot of dogs lose wright on it because the protients have been hydrolised to break them down so they don't cause reaction. To start an elimination diet the dog should be on a source of protein it has not had before so as to clear out the system. Dan

No problems Dan

Intradermal skin testing for atopic allergies is good. Its the same test they use for people where they prick the skin with allergen and look for a reaction. Ours cost about $280 by the time you take into account a full day in hospital, sedation, and the actualy testing. Don't go for blood testing if they offer it for food allergies, these are not worth it and my dermatologist wont even use it because they are broad and inconclusive. The best testing for food allergies is an elimniation diet and the success of this is dependant on you and how careful you are as you are the one doing it. A good dermatologist will teach you how to do this and coach you through the process. Dermatologists are like any body: there are good and bad ones... I can only speak for mine and say that she is very good. It is a lengthy process and it is expensive (specialists normally are). But in the long run, IMO, it is cheaper in money, time and emotional cost than trying to constantly treat symptoms without knowing what you are actually dealing with. Sorry, I'm on the other side of the country, so not sure of any Derms in your area... maybe one of the Queensland people will know.... Dan