Allergies & Ear Problems

[macka]

Look up Canine Candida (rampant yeast infection caused by grains & carbs)....the most undiagnosed yet common problem in dogs.

"External" Expression Of A Yeast Infection:

Skin Irritation

Itchy skin or feet - yes

Licking paws, genital or vaginal area - yes

Itchy mouth, throat, face - no

Rubbing nose - no

Redness, Inflammation and Odour

Underarms, Folds of Skin, - no

Inner Thighs, Between Toes, Lips - only between toes and no odour

Joint pain - no

Reoccurring Secondary Bacterial Infections

Ears - yes

Bladder - no

Skin or Feet - no

Sensitivity to light, sound, movement - no

Doesn't really seem to fit that well in this case.

[macka]

Honestly, I wouldn't go fiddling with diet until you've seen a specialist. You need to deal with allergies properly, otherwise you'll end up spending hundreds.

No point switchting to a raw diet, if the meats you are feeding are meats she is allergic to. You should do a strict elimination diet first to work out whether food is an issue, but with it being mostly seasonal, then its most likely going to be environmental allergens.

Think I might go get a scratch test for allergens done first and then evaluate from there depending on the allergens.

[~Anne~]

Look up Canine Candida (rampant yeast infection caused by grains & carbs)....the most undiagnosed yet common problem in dogs.

I did as you said and looked up the condition. It's very interesting thanks.

However, I found this article which directly contradicts your statement that the yeast infection is caused by grains and carbs.

Devil's Advocate:

This article is focused on grain free diets as they relate to canine nutrition (dogs). This information does NOT apply to cats (felines) who are "obligate" carnivores of desert origin, and do best when fed raw or grain free diets.

One of the questions I ask during these discussions of Biologically Appropriate Diets is... what period in the evolution of canines and man's development are we comparing? Research shows us there is a difference in ancestral diets - dog and man - prior to the development of the symbiotic relationship between humans and canines over 30,000 years ago. In this article I discuss the issue of grains as it relates to the diets of canines when they allowed domestication by following the nomadic tribes and lived on the edge of villages. There is some thought that the canines that became domesticated were on the lower rung of the pecking order in the pack and therefore relied on human's scraps, trash, feces etc in order to survive. To say grains are bad and meat is good is an untruth. Nothing about this movement of grain free diets is a black and white issue. Dog food companies will use these myths, theories hypotheses in order to find a marketing niche in this highly competitive market place. So please keep an open mind and consider the pros and the cons of grain free diets carefully before you decide how to feed your pet. For a variety of diet options - using balanced, common sense principles go to Blackwatch Feed Programs.

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Things to Ponder About Grain Free Diets

I get many emails asking my opinion of the new grain-free diets on the market. These are new foods and actually a spin-off of the BARF- biologically appropriate raw foods movement.

The growing holistic pet food industry has much competition these days, so they are looking for ways to reinvent the wheel and here you have it, the new grain free diets!

After all, if the public wants grain free diets, certainly they know what is best for their pets - right? Wrong. Just because the public wants it, is not a good enough reason to manufacture it. Just because it is a grain free diet, does not mean it is appropriate for your dog's situation.

Thanks to knee-jerk reactions and the propagation of nutritional myths on the internet, grains in petfoods have a bad reputation. Grains are carbohydrates and carbohydrates are not necessarily bad. Just because it is a grain free diet does not mean there are no carbohydrates in the grain free food. Instead they substitute potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams and tapioca, as other carb sources yet tapioca is a questionable ingredient for pets. More feed trials are needed on these foods.

So when people think they are using a grain-free diet, it still has carbohydrates in it and in many cases potato carbohydrates are worse for allergies, systemic yeast infections, diabetic and cancer diets - worse than quality whole ground grains used in the proper proportion.

My point here is this, like most things in life, this grainless diet topic is not a black/white issue. There are many things we need to consider before using a grain free diet for our pet's current health situation. Now the good thing about the grain free diets is that they are generally made by very good holistic companies like Nutura's EVO, Wellness-Core. Wysong's Archetype, Dr Harvey's Veg-To-Bowl among others. Here is a list in my Raw Diet Options.

Most grain free diets have not been around long enough to see how they will do in 3-4 generations. And feed trials, if actually done, are very limited. That is, other than Dr. Wysong's diets because he is a pioneer in the field of nutrition and his products have longevity and feed trial research done on them. He is one of my heroes and I appreciate all he has done to educating us about pet and human nutrition. (wysong.net).

I do not recommend grain free diets for weaning or growth in any breed and especially for large and giant breeds. Actually, I do not recommend a grain free diet be fed as the "total diet" to any healthy breed. I even have reservations about them used totally as a cancer diet due to the high calcium levels. They are really meant for very specific uses and often for short term use - each animal's situation would have to be considered before I could ever recommend a total grainless diet to my puppy buyers.

I think grainless food is fine to use as a 5%-10% component to the adult diet using a super premium or holsitic food as the 90-95% basis of your program. For puppies past 6 months of age I would only use a couple spoonful mixed with a high quality kibble such as the Wellpet line (Eagle and Wellness foods).

Once the puppy is past the difficult growth stages (weaning - 6 months) then it is ok to increase the amount fed of a grainless diet. This is why I like the Honest Kitchen products so much, they are easier to regulate feeding. You can sprinkle a little on the puppies food and add a little water and stir - voila - you have the best of both worlds. A quality kibble with optimal nutrients, the raw component and fruits and veggies. What more could you ask in this busy world - ease and not compromising your pet's health.

It is IMPOSSIBLE regulate growth patterns on raw or grain fee diets in order to avoid developmental orthopedic diseases such as; HOD, Knuckling Over/Bowing (Carpel Flexural Deformity) OCD, and Pano.

Although it is not scientific article, I find it gives foood for thought on the subject and the writer makes some interesting points.

[SarasMum]

My dog has very similar to yours and it is a seasonal grass allergy. She gets it every spring and summer. I am pretty sure its the kikuyu grass we have but its such a big area I cant replace it.

Erny put me onto Calendula Tea a couple of weeks ago and its been fabulous at relieving the itch. I know its ok for humans for ear infections, maybe you could make some up for her and use it to clean her ears and see how you go?

[stormie]

Look up Canine Candida (rampant yeast infection caused by grains & carbs)....the most undiagnosed yet common problem in dogs.

"External" Expression Of A Yeast Infection:

Skin Irritation

Itchy skin or feet - yes

Licking paws, genital or vaginal area - yes

Itchy mouth, throat, face - no

Rubbing nose - no

Redness, Inflammation and Odour

Underarms, Folds of Skin, - no

Inner Thighs, Between Toes, Lips - only between toes and no odour

Joint pain - no

Reoccurring Secondary Bacterial Infections

Ears - yes

Bladder - no

Skin or Feet - no

Sensitivity to light, sound, movement - no

Doesn't really seem to fit that well in this case.

Those symptoms are all pretty characteristic of atopy too. Go walk a dog through wandering jew and it will exhibit those symptoms.

The key factor here is the fact you said it's worse during spring/summer - also known as the allergy season. Pollens are out and they are both absorbed and inhaled. The dog then releases histamines, which in humans, would cause hay fever symptoms, but in dogs, the inflammation etc causes them to be itchy.

The more they itch, the more the skin gets inflammed and the barriers are disrupted and you end up with secondary skin infections (staph and malassezia).

Unfortunately with these types of allergies, its not even a simple case of chopping down all the plants/trees in your yard too. As our derm said, pollens can travel from hours away and are just in the air, settling on the surfaces etc.

Rinsing them after they've been outside can help reduce them being absorbed. Antihistamines can help a little too, though it's a matter of trialing them to find one that helps.

Omega oils can help the efficacy of antihistamines and can also give an anti inflammatory response. But again, I'd be on to food elimination diets before you start adding supplements, in case some of the stuff you are giving, she is allergic to.

I spent a fortune on lotions, potions, shampoos, supplements etc when Orbit was a pup, trying to find something that would give us some relief. As it turns out, he is allergic to fish, so all those fish oils I was buying him, was only making it worse. I put him on a raw diet, which of course had chicken, but after doing a proper elimination diet, realised he was very allergic to chicken, so again, I was only making things worse.

Even shampoos - he's allergic to oatmeal (both internally and externally) so all those special allergy shampoos and conditioners which contain oatmeal to sooth the skin, were actually making him worse.

[Erny]

In my unqualified capacity I'd like to make a comment on a general observation that I've made over time, when reading many of the 'allergy' posts :

I think some people think, when a diet change/improvement is suggested, that it is the diet that is being suggested as the cause of the allergy. Sometimes this can be the case, but as has already been mentioned by PF, this is not the case as often as people might think, IMO.

And if a dog's diet is proven to not be the cause of the allergic reaction/s, people tend to assume there is no need to switch diets.

However, my take on it is that the diet, or more particularly other diets, should be contemplated and wherever possible, improved for the dog. The diet, after all, feeds the whole of the dog's system which of course includes the immune system, which in itself drives and effects/affects every other organ in the dog's body. If you can improve a dog's diet, then there is a chance that you might improve/further support the immune system and if this can be done, then the dog might not be quite so vulnerable to the allergens that current affect it. So whilst a diet might not be a direct cause for allergy reactions, it might be an indirect cause and therefore worth considering rather than dismissing.

As I said - this is just my take on it.

Edited November 25, 2009 by Erny

[Monah]

Monah, it doesn;t sound liek you followed an elimination diet correctly to be honest. An elimination diet requires removing all current and previous food sources and giving the dog a completely new type of protein that they have never had beofre and therefore, would never have developed an allergic reaction to. You then re-intorduce different proteins one at a time once the allergy clears to determine what protein the dog was allergic too. It is always a protein source.

Contrary to popular belief, grains are not a common allergen and neither is food in general. Most allergies are atopic.

When it ios dietary related, kibble is often blamed but it is usually chicken and beef that are the culprits. Kibble is often blamed because they usually have traces of beef or chicken in them.

Sorry, I didn't go into all the detail, I was generalising, but yes, I did follow an elimination diet and know what it is having done several years at uni doing animal science. My fault for bad communication.

My dog was tested for doens of allergens, including all foods, and no foods produced a reaction at all. The plant based reactions were severe and she had to have an anti-allergy injection just for the drive home.

I can only go on my own experiences, which luckily have turned out wonderfully for us.

It is unfortunate that elimination diets take such a long time to prove one way or another, and then often you have to start all over again, meanwhile the dog is suffering. A very quick and true diagnosis can be made via testing. THen at least you know for sure and can get on with treatment. Even if it is a food, at least you know and don't have to try weeks or months of trial and error.

I agree with your post Erny, esp. when people feed their dogs all sorts of rubbish.

Another thing is that some areas have many more cases of allergies than others. Hervey Bay apparrantly is one of the worse areas for animal allergies (and even human!) because of the amount of certain plant materials here. Elsewhere my dog probably would not have developed an allergy.xxx

[stormie]

In my unqualified capacity I'd like to make a comment on a general observation that I've made over time, when reading many of the 'allergy' posts :

I think some people think, when a diet change/improvement is suggested, that it is the diet that is being suggested as the cause of the allergy. Sometimes this can be the case, but as has already been mentioned by PF, this is not the case as often as people might think, IMO.

And if a dog's diet is proven to not be the cause of the allergic reaction/s, people tend to assume there is no need to switch diets.

However, my take on it is that the diet, or more particularly other diets, should be contemplated and wherever possible, improved for the dog. The diet, after all, feeds the whole of the dog's system which of course includes the immune system, which in itself drives and effects/affects every other organ in the dog's body. If you can improve a dog's diet, then there is a chance that you might improve/further support the immune system and if this can be done, then the dog might not be quite so vulnerable to the allergens that current affect it. So whilst a diet might not be a direct cause for allergy reactions, it might be an indirect cause and therefore worth considering rather than dismissing.

As I said - this is just my take on it.

Erny I completely get where you're coming from, but often, allergic dogs can be allergic to both environmental allergens as well as food. I agree with getting the dog on the best possible diet, but I think it's important for people to follow path to diagnosing the cause first, and once that's achieved, then look at changing the diet.

The sooner people get to the cause of the allergies, the sooner they can start making as many changes as possible to improve the situation. Simply suggesting a change to a raw diet is completely pointless if what the owner is still feeding, the dog is reacting to. I'm all for a raw diet, and feed Orbit a completely raw diet, but I have to be careful what he eats, because he is allergic to many different meat proteins. He's allergic to everything - food, the environment and also contact issues. But by keeping his diet as strict as I can, means I can help minimise his discomfort. It might only reduce his itching by 5%, but when you're dealing with such an allergic dog, it makes all the difference.

Like I said, I completely agree with keeping the dog as healthy as possible to help with the issues, but I think simply suggesting owners switch to raw first, without doing a proper strict elimination diet, is poor advice, as its only going to prolong a diagnosis.

p.s I want to get hold of some calendular tea and hope it helps gives us some relief through the awful summer months - where's the best place to get it? Can you get it in bags or is it better to get it and strain it yourself etc?

[Erny]

Simply suggesting a change to a raw diet is completely pointless if what the owner is still feeding, the dog is reacting to.

Wasn't suggesting otherwise, Stormie (or at least I didn't mean for my post to read as though it did) . That's why (in part) I wrote this :

And if a dog's diet is proven to not be the cause of the allergic reaction/s, people tend to assume there is no need to switch diets.

(Italics added).

Like I said, I completely agree with keeping the dog as healthy as possible to help with the issues, but I think simply suggesting owners switch to raw first, without doing a proper strict elimination diet, is poor advice, as its only going to prolong a diagnosis.

I think you've misunderstood what my point is, Stormie.

Paraphrasing for clarification :

Just because diet is ruled out as the cause for the allergy, doesn't mean that it shouldn't be addressed and improved where possible. As with improvement, a diet can boost the immune system, which in itself may help the dog's own system to NOT react to certain other allergens.

p.s I want to get hold of some calendular tea and hope it helps gives us some relief through the awful summer months - where's the best place to get it? Can you get it in bags or is it better to get it and strain it yourself etc?

To my knowledge, it does not come in 'bags' (as in 'tea bag' style). But then, I didn't know until recently that you could get it as a cream/lotion, either, so it is worth asking your Health Food Shop (which is where you get it from). I simply use a cut down stocking, put a couple of table spoons of the calendula in the toe and use the stocking as I would a tea bag. No need to strain it then. You just let it steep and when ready, remove the stocking (I squeeze out the excess water) and the 'tea' is ready to go. I turn out the stocking to throw away the used calendula tea, let the stocking dry and re-use when required. Let me know how you go, if you would? I hope you get the success that I and others now have .

Edited November 25, 2009 by Erny

[2tollers]

I don't know if you'd be interested in trying something like Hair Analysis. There's a guy in Ballarat, who, from what I've heard, has had a lot of success with allergies. His name is Barry Templeton and people from all over the place send him hair samples. I have his phone number if you're interested.

[Erny]

I don't know if you'd be interested in trying something like Hair Analysis. There's a guy in Ballarat, who, from what I've heard, has had a lot of success with allergies. His name is Barry Templeton and people from all over the place send him hair samples. I have his phone number if you're interested.

I have heard of some good results through hair analysis too. Never tried it myself, but IMO it would be worth a try. Actually, 2tollers, would you mind PMing me his number?

I thought there was someone down this way somewhere (Mornington area?) who did this too, but can't recall who told me.

[~Anne~]

Monah, it doesn;t sound liek you followed an elimination diet correctly to be honest. An elimination diet requires removing all current and previous food sources and giving the dog a completely new type of protein that they have never had beofre and therefore, would never have developed an allergic reaction to. You then re-intorduce different proteins one at a time once the allergy clears to determine what protein the dog was allergic too. It is always a protein source.

Contrary to popular belief, grains are not a common allergen and neither is food in general. Most allergies are atopic.

When it ios dietary related, kibble is often blamed but it is usually chicken and beef that are the culprits. Kibble is often blamed because they usually have traces of beef or chicken in them.

Sorry, I didn't go into all the detail, I was generalising, but yes, I did follow an elimination diet and know what it is having done several years at uni doing animal science. My fault for bad communication.

My dog was tested for doens of allergens, including all foods, and no foods produced a reaction at all. The plant based reactions were severe and she had to have an anti-allergy injection just for the drive home.

I can only go on my own experiences, which luckily have turned out wonderfully for us.

It is unfortunate that elimination diets take such a long time to prove one way or another, and then often you have to start all over again, meanwhile the dog is suffering. A very quick and true diagnosis can be made via testing. THen at least you know for sure and can get on with treatment. Even if it is a food, at least you know and don't have to try weeks or months of trial and error.

I have only dealt with a couple of cases, one severe, but even then I didn't consider it a lengthy time period. Within 3-4 weeks of the novel protein being introduced and all other food soruces withheld, the dog began to improve in a major way. The reintroduction of each food item didn't take very long. With most food items, she reacted within an 1-24 hrs and the food was immediately ceased causing the reaction to dissappear just as quickly so we were back to a clean slate within a day or two and ready to introduce the next item. I guess we were lucky with her though that her reactions were so clear and definite.

I wasn't aware they could test for food allergens apart from eliminating food types? Can you give me some more of your experience. Did they do this via blood tests or something else? I thought it was only atopic reactions they coudl test for? I really find the whole subject of food and environment allergens interesting. SO many dogs seems to suffer them now and so many are just dumped on cortisone still without seeking the cause.

I also agree with erny in that anyone, dog or human, needs a good and balanced diet to help their system overall.

I don't know if you'd be interested in trying something like Hair Analysis. There's a guy in Ballarat, who, from what I've heard, has had a lot of success with allergies. His name is Barry Templeton and people from all over the place send him hair samples. I have his phone number if you're interested.

Can you give more info on this?? What are they analysing? What allergens do they test for in this way?

[2tollers]

I don't know if you'd be interested in trying something like Hair Analysis. There's a guy in Ballarat, who, from what I've heard, has had a lot of success with allergies. His name is Barry Templeton and people from all over the place send him hair samples. I have his phone number if you're interested.

Can you give more info on this?? What are they analysing? What allergens do they test for in this way?

Sorry but I don't know alot about it. I do know that poisons, drugs etc can be detected in hair and that hair stores information for a fair while. If Erny talks to this guy she might be able to let you know more.

It might not work for everyone but if nothing else is helping it's worth a try.

[sas]

I don't know if you'd be interested in trying something like Hair Analysis. There's a guy in Ballarat, who, from what I've heard, has had a lot of success with allergies. His name is Barry Templeton and people from all over the place send him hair samples. I have his phone number if you're interested.

I had hair analysis done for my dog, spent around $200 for it HOWEVER I later found out the person who did it was diagnosising through vibrational engery not an actual scientific hair analysis. I'm all for alternative theraphies but what a load of crap!

[sas]

I don't know if you'd be interested in trying something like Hair Analysis. There's a guy in Ballarat, who, from what I've heard, has had a lot of success with allergies. His name is Barry Templeton and people from all over the place send him hair samples. I have his phone number if you're interested.

Can you give more info on this?? What are they analysing? What allergens do they test for in this way?

Sorry but I don't know alot about it. I do know that poisons, drugs etc can be detected in hair and that hair stores information for a fair while. If Erny talks to this guy she might be able to let you know more.

It might not work for everyone but if nothing else is helping it's worth a try.

http://www.justgreyhounds.com/hairanalysis.html

[Erny]

I had hair analysis done for my dog, spent around $200 for it HOWEVER I later found out the person who did it was diagnosising through vibrational engery not an actual scientific hair analysis. I'm all for alternative theraphies but what a load of crap!

I presume from your post that the person you went through didn't help any?

I've left a message for Mr. Barry Templeton to call me back. I just want to discuss at this stage and I'll make a point of asking what method/s he uses for analysis - thanks for alerting me, Sas. Not sure whether I'll go ahead with it yet.

ETA: Have spoken with Mr. Templeton. I explained in brief (even brief was long ) health history and Mr. Templeton (with a serious laugh in his voice) suggests he is going to be a challenge. I've decided to give it a whirl. Can't hurt to at least see what the diagnosis is.

Edited November 26, 2009 by Erny

[2tollers]

Thanks for the link SAS. Your experience doesn't sound good.

[sas]

I think it's all well and good having plenty of different options when one is at their wits end but people need to be more honest about how they are doing stuff i.e. Scentific vs hovering ones hands over hair and getting 'feelings' on what is wrong with the dog.

Hopefully this guy is more scientific.

[sas]

I had hair analysis done for my dog, spent around $200 for it HOWEVER I later found out the person who did it was diagnosising through vibrational engery not an actual scientific hair analysis. I'm all for alternative theraphies but what a load of crap!

I presume from your post that the person you went through didn't help any?

I've left a message for Mr. Barry Templeton to call me back. I just want to discuss at this stage and I'll make a point of asking what method/s he uses for analysis - thanks for alerting me, Sas. Not sure whether I'll go ahead with it yet.

ETA: Have spoken with Mr. Templeton. I explained in brief (even brief was long ) health history and Mr. Templeton (with a serious laugh in his voice) suggests he is going to be a challenge. I've decided to give it a whirl. Can't hurt to at least see what the diagnosis is.

Ah no.

They said there were weakness in his brain......right....and?

I'd be interested in how Mr. Templeton does his testing.

[schnauzer_love]

I wasn't aware they could test for food allergens apart from eliminating food types? Can you give me some more of your experience. Did they do this via blood tests or something else? I thought it was only atopic reactions they coudl test for? I really find the whole subject of food and environment allergens interesting. SO many dogs seems to suffer them now and so many are just dumped on cortisone still without seeking the cause.

I'm new to these forums but am interested in the subject of allergies as my dog suffers quite badly from them.

I took my dog on Tuesday to the Dermatologist and she had the scratch test and was allergic to almost everything on it, but the Dermatologist said I will still need to do an elimination diet as as they don't test for foods on the scratch test because the results are not accurate for foods. So Kangaroo and potato has been on the menu since, and my dog hates it and is always acting like she is starving, but I guess we will just have to persevere with it. We're going to start with the injections shortly, shes on ear drops and anti fungal tablets for a few weeks first to sort out the secondary problems that allergies caused her.

I also bought Calendula Tea yesterday from the health food shop, brewed it and then sprayed it on my girl before bed last night and it was the first night in weeks she didn't wake me up in the night needing to be scratched and rubbed and didn't seem to even wake herself to scratch, so I'm pretty happy with that and hope it continues if i use it every night. She hated being sprayed though, even hid under the bed when i let go half way through and had a sulk.