MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Hi everyone, I'm posting here as I'm completely lost as to what I'm doing wrong or what to do next, so I'm hoping someone can offer some advice... My girl is 8 months old and to date I have swapped to my 4th brand of dry food and have tried, beef, chicken and roo mince, and we still seem to have problems. Gosh, such a history, not sure where to start! I will try to make this as brief as possible At about 4 months old I noticed our girl was shedding LOTS for a short haired dog, and her coat was quite rough and scratchy - she was on science diet (breeder recommended it) and chicken mince. After doing some research on the content of dry foods, I realised science diet isn't all that nutritionally great, so decided to go onto Orijen instead. Though when I started trying to find a store who sells it in Brisbane, I foolishly wandered into a pets paradise (at the time I had no idea, sorry guys!), and the guy there talked me into buy Innova Puppy. We went through a few bags of Innova with varying bouts of diarrhoea (about once a fortnight) and occassionally some of it contained blood (though we had this happen once before we switched to Innova and raced her off to the vet who told us she thought it was a piece of bone she had swallowed that was too big to pass freely). When I questioned a store employee about Innova and switching to another brand (wasn't pets paradise this time), she suggested that perhaps I was feeding too much - if the dog gets more nutrients than it needs it can irritate their stomachs, so I perservered through another bag, feeding less (even tried bying a cheaper brand to mix in to water down it's potency: with less frequency of runny poos, but still occassionally. Finally, after an afternoon at the dog park and yet another runny poo with blood in it, I bagged up the poo, raced dog and poo off to the vets and got the poo tested once and for all. Results: no parasites, no guardia, nothing! Then a few weeks later, she develops red raised dots all over her body (ears: inside and out, neck, tummy - though maybe this isn't related to food, as she was bitten by a bee twice leading up to the dots). So she had a bout of antibiotics (tested for mites, none found). I then put all of the symptoms down to the food (not bones) that have been causing all the issues, and went back to chicken and rice for a week until it settled, then started making chicken mince and mashed veggies for a fortnight and bought a bag of Orijen (with rave reviews of other DOLers thought perhaps it was the answer) to mix in gradually, though the poos started to soften again. All the while, my girl's face and eyes still get quite red at times (on all foods) and sometimes her ears are hot to touch (indicating an allergy?) and she's still shedding heaps. I have spoken to her breeder about this, and she suggested I try roo meat, though she still had pink eyes and snout while I was feeding her this, more noticeable than when on chicken. So, we have now bought Eukaneuba sensitive stomach dry food, and poos are great, though the eyes and snout still get quite pink at times and ears are hot to touch, plus shedding HEAPS of hair still! I'm starting to wonder if perhaps she will just always have pink eyes and face at times (could it just be her genetics, when she gets hot?) and maybe she is just a shedder, and maybe I am an over worried mother! Though, my instincts tell me to keep looking, as I have never had a dog shed this much hair before, though some breeds are different to others I guess. The question is, how long do I keep her on any one food before I will see results such as reduced hair loss? Could she be allergic to red meat? I guess if anyone has any advice on their experiences with similar problems and worked out what it was and how to fix, that would be great, as I feel like whenever I go to the vets, if it's not obviously life threatening, then it's not really a problem. Thanks, and sorry this post is so long! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paganman Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Hey MABlover what breed do you have people will probably be more help if they know what breed.Sorry I carnt work out what breed a MAB is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 Hey MABlover what breed do you have people will probably be more help if they know what breed.Sorry I carnt work out what breed a MAB is I was hesitant to say what breed, as I posted a question in health a few weeks back and got told I had a cross breed (post went something along the lines of 'sorry to burst your bubble...') She is a Miniature Aussie Bulldog, most people have never heard of them as they are a new breed, the breeding program has only been going since 2001. She's 4th generation at least (papers don't go any further back than that), but originally to start the breed they crossed pug with french and aussie bulldogs (aussie has some british lines in it I believe), so I guess her history means she's a combination of any or all of these breeds! Having said that, I hope nobody jumps down my throat as I know if she's not a recognised breed with the canine council then she's a cross breed.... and this is a site for pure bred dogs etc etc..... but I really am just after some help thanks in advance for any help you can offer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Reading past post i believe the op has a DD mini aussie bulldog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 Reading past post i believe the op has a DD mini aussie bulldog. huh? sorry I'm relatively new to this site, what does op and DD mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laffi Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Reading past post i believe the op has a DD mini aussie bulldog. huh? sorry I'm relatively new to this site, what does op and DD mean? DD=designer dog basically a mutt or cross breed definitely not a pure breed I think you should accept the fact that you don't have a pure breed dog and move on. If you want to get help on this forum that is. Coming back to your original problem: have you tried the elimination diet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 op = original poster DD + 'designer' dog... one who is made for the consumer market.. a mix of breeds.. Have you talked to teh breeder of your dog? I was wondering if perhaps there may be others in teh family with a similar problem??Allergies can be like that. Have you tried pup on a purely fresh diet ? Using chicken or turkey.. and lots of bones, etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 op = original poster DD + 'designer' dog... one who is made for the consumer market.. a mix of breeds.. Have you talked to teh breeder of your dog? I was wondering if perhaps there may be others in teh family with a similar problem??Allergies can be like that. Have you tried pup on a purely fresh diet ? Using chicken or turkey.. and lots of bones, etc? Given the breed make up of this dog, I'd be PMing Zayda Asher who has been through the allergy wringer with his? dogs. The very first thing I'd be doing would be finding a grain free diet. Right after that would come a thyroid panel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puggy_puggy Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Maybe her hair loss is normal and you just aren't used to that amount of dog hair being around? You said she has some pug in her genetics. Well pugs shed hair all of the time. You get used to having tumbleweeds of pug hair if you own pugs. She could also be losing her puppy coat which happens at about her age and it is coming into summer so dogs lose their winter coats around now. Some people have reported that beef causes their dogs to have skin problems. Others have said that chicken causes more hotspots to occur. Usually with kangaroo it is to rich for the dog and makes them have runny poo, I haven't heard of it causing skin irritations. What sort of bowls do you use? Plastic water bowls and toys can often cause skin irritations. Replace all bowls with metal ones and remove all plastic toys. It's seems to me that your girl did best when she was on just chicken mince and mashed veggies. Why not try her on a complete BARF Diet with no grains and all fresh food? Has she every been on antihistamines? Go grab some human Claratyne from your chemist and start her on one tablet a day for at least a week and see if it improves anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 Reading past post i believe the op has a DD mini aussie bulldog. huh? sorry I'm relatively new to this site, what does op and DD mean? DD=designer dog basically a mutt or cross breed definitely not a pure breed I think you should accept the fact that you don't have a pure breed dog and move on. If you want to get help on this forum that is. Coming back to your original problem: have you tried the elimination diet? Once again I have fallen into the trap of asking for help and having people posting stuff that doesn't help me, just makes me feel like I'm a terrible person for not owning a 'pure breed'. As for accepting the fact I don't have a pure breed if I want to get help on this forum; I don't have a problem with it, just the attitudes I get regarding it. I'm not naturally a nasty person, and there are some things I think but don't say, and I guess I'm a true believer in 'if you don't have anything nice or helpful to say, then it's best not to say anything at all', which is I guess why I get so upset when people post things that aren't all that friendly. Don't we all have the same common interest at heart, the health and wellbeing of our dogs? And are you making a point that if I don't accept my dog is a designer dog, then nobody will help me? I don't want to argue about the breed of my dog which is why I never mentioned what she was in my initial post - if I did, I would have created a post about the breed, instead of her illness. As for the elmination diet, I went back to chicken and rice, no diarrhoea but her face was still pink and she was still shedding - then I switched to roo meat, with no change, if anything more pink in the face. She has had beef mince recently by accident, and her skin was really pink. I don't really know what else to do, which is why I asked how long should I wait to see results (especially with the shedding) - perhaps she is just naturally pink on her white bits? She has a white face with a patch over one eye, and I only noticed how pink she is after she had the antibiotics (when she was on them her face wasn't pink at all, just normal - does that make sense?). She has been pretty good on the Eukaneuba sensitive stomach, just not sure how long to wait and see if the shedding stops. Though today I mixed in a bit of Orijen (no more than 25%) to see if there was any change, and instantly she has the farts...! My other concern is, the Eukaneuba is not specifically for puppies, so I'm worried she may not be getting the nutrition she needs, is there anything I should add or supplement? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Once again I have fallen into the trap of asking for help and having people posting stuff that doesn't help me, just makes me feel like I'm a terrible person for not owning a 'pure breed'. Try reading ALL the posts.. .not all are about this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 thanks puggy puggy and poodlefan! Your help and suggestions were exactly what I was after! Yeah bought the orijen puppy because it's grain and beef free - started re-introducing it this morning, but she has the farts today something shocking! Maybe you're right, perhaps I'm just not used to the shedding, it is like tumbleweeds around the house, twice a week I sweep up clumps off the floors. I'm surprised she still has any with the amount she loses. I try to brush her with one of those rubber glove things, but she still manages to shed in the house something shocking. I'm thinking maybe I should go and get some of the barf (chicken) and see how she goes, as ideally I'd like her to have more fresh food in her diet. She has metal bowls as well, I think she'd chew it if it were plastic! Thanks for the claratyne tip, will see if that changes her skin tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 Once again I have fallen into the trap of asking for help and having people posting stuff that doesn't help me, just makes me feel like I'm a terrible person for not owning a 'pure breed'. Try reading ALL the posts.. .not all are about this. Sorry poodlefan, I was busy writing that message when yours and the other responses were posted - didn't know they were there until after I had posted my response. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dogsfevr Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Is she actually correctly pigmented ?? ie her eye rims are they black or pink?? You may find she lacks full pigment . As for roo i feed that to my white english setter & it turned him orange. " if I don't accept my dog is a designer dog, then nobody will help me? I don't want to argue about the breed of my dog which is why I never mentioned what she was in my initial post - if I did, I would have created a post about the breed, instead of her illness." People ask what breed because it is well known that some breeds require certain diets or a better not on certain diets. For example if someone suggested a certain brand of food for my breed it would be a disaster . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 She has one full black rim and one that is half and half - black pigment is in blotches and accounts for about 50%. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MABlover Posted November 28, 2008 Author Share Posted November 28, 2008 Here's a pic of her face so you can see the redness, and the amount of pigment she has. This was taken this morning, this afternoon she is less pink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teebs Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Welcome to the world of bulldogs, our brit had nothing but problems from the day we got him. The Aussie is a bit better, but does get some pink from time to time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laffi Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 I think maybe fish oil might help. btw I was not attacking you. Just trying to say that if you don't call it a breed people will not get upset and you will actually get help People here love mutts too, but not new breeds'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paganman Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Would sun damage have anything to do with it could it be sunburn? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teebs Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 I think maybe fish oil might help.btw I was not attacking you. Just trying to say that if you don't call it a breed people will not get upset and you will actually get help People here love mutts too, but not new breeds'. Aussie bulldog - I dont agree with... but am okish about it (have to be, member of my family has one and it isnt worth fighting over it) mini Aussie bulldog... how can there be a mini, if they Aussie hasnt even been approved a a ANKC breed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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