TheCheekyMonster Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 Gus has been getting really bad allergies to something in our backyard... I have no idea what it is, all the plants that are irritable to dogs are not in my backyard anymore. It has been nearly 4 weeks and he gets really bad welts all over his back and hind legs, they never go away they just die down then flare back up again. I have been washing the area with phisohex to clear the bacteria but the ones that go away are still turning a terible brown colour. How do I pin point what the cause is, I am not with him all day, the OH was home today and messaged me saying he needs antihistamine asap because his flared up very bad this time, I asked what he was doing and the OH said nothing at all they have just been laying in the sun all day..... I did rush to the vet to get some tablets but there must be a better way to prevent this from happening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stitch Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 Allergies can be environmental or caused by insects or food related, etc.....have you eliminated anything from the list of possible causes?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 (edited) Allergies can be environmental or caused by insects or food related, etc.....have you eliminated anything from the list of possible causes?? Yup, spoke to his show trainer last night (She knows dallys and has had them for about 35 odd years), she said to take the egg out of his diet because thats the only "new" thing thats been introduced that I can think of. Edited April 10, 2012 by TheCheekyMonster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stitch Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 So what are they eating at the moment? Do you use anything for flea/tick control? Do you use any pesticides in the backyard? So many things and my ESP isn't working that well today!! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 So what are they eating at the moment? Do you use anything for flea/tick control? Do you use any pesticides in the backyard? So many things and my ESP isn't working that well today!! :) Nala will get the same reaction when she eats corn.... so we make sure all the food is corn free Gus will get 1 cup of proplan chicken and rice with 1 egg (every second day) and tbs flaxseed oil (daily) Dinner he will get chicken mince or wings or frame but always chicken. There are no pesticides in the backyard He is on comfortis The only thing I havent tried is stopping the egg... so I have started that as of today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruthless Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Could it be fly or mozzie bites? Bruno's got a heap of them [it's been happening all summer] but luckily he doesn't seem bothered by them. Fortnightly medicated baths are stopping them from turning into anything nasty. I'm glad winter's coming. No more skin issues for a few months! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 Could it be fly or mozzie bites? Bruno's got a heap of them [it's been happening all summer] but luckily he doesn't seem bothered by them. Fortnightly medicated baths are stopping them from turning into anything nasty. I'm glad winter's coming. No more skin issues for a few months! Well that was also another thought (the mozzies) but there are soo many like his back looks like an outback road So im going to start spraying the cloth over his crate before I put him to sleep, I bath him weekly with aloe and oatmeal forumla and every 2nd or 3rd day wash it with some phisohex on the area just so it doesnt go that nasty brown colour (not a good look for shows). Nothing seems to be helping, even the antihistamene did not do much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 (edited) IME there is no "one fix" or no "one way" to work through things in an effort to find out what the cause to Gus' reaction is. I have spent quite a lot of money, not to mention more than quite a lot of time and energy, on working through Mandela's issues, but I guess I could spin those things down a little, as suggestions or tips that might help to at least rule-out possible causes, if not rule them in. 1. Blood test via Dr Jean Dodds USA for thyroid. 2. Saliva test via Hemopet/Dr Jean Dodds USA for "Food Intolerance". I've done a bucket load of other things that I'm not reporting here because they didn't tell me anything useful for Mandela (other than the fact that things are good and/or normal). But please don't think that the above two things are ALL I have done and am doing. Take into account that allergies aren't things that always show up immediately. The body might be intolerant to something, but doesn't show a reaction until it is exposed to the substance often enough that it can't deal with it, and so we begin to see reactions via the skin etc. Eg. I fed my boy chicken when he was younger - it was later that he began to react to it. So for diets .... yes, the obvious is to look at what we've changed and get rid of it to see if that is the culprit, but if it is not, then we need to go back and look at each different protein and begin to unravel things. It can take a while and a lot of patience. As everyone knows, I have used the Calendula Tea a lot as this has eased the skin and stopped rashes, hives and other reactions from becoming secondary skin infections. Because it helps by soothing the skin it also tends to reduce the urge to itch and this too helps in reducing the risk of secondary skin infections developing. So the Calendula Tea is an "in between" aid to buy some time and potentially avoid needing to turn to chemical drugs to assist. It certainly has bought me the time I've needed to get things closer to being under control. In Mandela's case, I'm hoping maturity is going to see things establishing to something akin to a normality. Of course, I'm aware of wishful thinking, but I don't believe it is out of the realms of possibilities. Someone said (in this thread??) that allergies are forever (or something like that). Is that really true? I mean, I have heard of children who grow through peanut allergies and end up being able as an adult to eat them, yet as a child could not do so without dire consequences. ETA: Mozzies can make the body look very bumpy indeed. And I guess it is the same as with people ..... some dogs attract more mozzies and react worse to their bites than others. Mandela does. Wearing PJ's (lightweight - eg. T-shirt material or lighter - for warm weather) can help stave off the mozzies. Edited April 11, 2012 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruthless Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Yeah, but just one bite can cause an allergic reaction. Not every lump and bump is necessarily a bite. Does he seem uncomfortable? Maybe the best you can hope for is management until the cooler weather comes :/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruthless Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Someone said (in this thread??) that allergies are forever (or something like that). Is that really true? I mean, I have heard of children who grow through peanut allergies and end up being able as an adult to eat them, yet as a child could not do so without dire consequences. Chopper and Angel grew out of the vast majority of their skin issues. Since Trixie and Bruno are both dilutes I don't hold out much hope for them, but we're pretty good at managing them every summer so we'll just deal with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 (edited) Thank you everyone for the advise!, I think the sooner we pin point whats going on the better, Id like to enter him in more shows, but its a little bit not practical with all these lumps.... he does not seem to fussed by them at all. Edited April 11, 2012 by TheCheekyMonster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dotdashdot Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Cleo had issues like that a few months ago. I feel it was a combination of her not agreeing with the ProPlan (first food she's had with wheat in it) and sandflies/mozzies which were really bad at the time. So I changed her food and we installed a bug zapper and I sprayed Permoxin at dusk when the bugs were worst. I must say she improved a lot after this. Dallies don't look good when they go that browny colour. Aloveen shampoo and conditioner didn't go astray either =] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stitch Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Advantix will help keep mozzies away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 update!!!! I was rolling his skin today to try and see the tip of the lumps, THEY ARE BITES!! and I saw what I think was a few fleas but they were pretty big, he is on comfortis so im not sure why he is infested with fleas "if thats what they are" the lumps are all bites and they all have dried blood (which is probably what the brown stain is).... what do I do, obviously my vet is pretty stupid since she has only suggested comfortis but insisted the lumps were from a grass or plant allergy. my poor baby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Her Majesty Dogmad Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Found bites on my Iggy today, all on the underside but I'm not convinced she only has bite issues, could be some sort of allergy as they have little hair underneath. Changed the bedding again, unfortunately at the moment she is confined to a smallish space having broken her leg 3 months ago. I also wondered about Mozzies but it's turned so cold I doubt they are around in the house now. A mystery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Her Majesty Dogmad Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 got up this morning and all red lumps and bumps have gone bar one which must be a mozzie bite - phew. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 Well Gus's have flared up..... what else removes fleas! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stitch Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 As I said, use Advantix! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumabaar Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 (edited) As I said, use Advantix! Can that be used at the same time as comfortis?? ETA- looks like other people have Edited April 11, 2012 by Jumabaar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheCheekyMonster Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 As I said, use Advantix! Can that be used at the same time as comfortis?? ETA- looks like other people have Yeap this is what I was thinking considering his so god dam sensitive to everything would it be safe to use both?? If so im off to get it now!! OH said to also bomb the laundry and back yard and wash his bedding in vinegar>? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now