Allergies

[denali]

Ok. So my youngest, Deniki, has been eating himself to death lately.

It started probably 2 weeks ago now. He had long hair and had been chewing at himself - no signs of fleas on any of our pets. Treated just in case, as well as a full bedding wash and our house was sprayed a few months ago so fleas shouldn't be around anyway.

My previous cav used to get a summer itch type thing when his coat was long- so i clipped deniki short to see, but it didn't help (didn't worsen it either).

Haven't changed our laundry detergents, his food, his shampoos, planted no new plants, havent been anywhere new he could have come into contact with anything he hasn't been before.

Ive been using the calendula and its not helping at all. His skin isn't looking red or irritated.

He's been chewing out hair around his legs, but not really his paws. Which makes me think it could be food related?

Just wanting general advice on how i would go about narrowing this down.

And whether or not this is something i should go to the vet for? I hadn't yet in the hopes it would clear up itself.

He is otherwise happy :)

Pics attached- the spots he's chewing on the worse side (the other only has two patches of hair missing), and the spot he is licking on his left leg only. He's not fixated by it at all/chewing constantly, but i figure it must be bothering him slightly if he is eating out his hair..

Any advice is appreciated!

[persephone]

Might be worth getting a blood profile done - just to see how he's going ....?

[sheena]

Ok. So my youngest, Deniki, has been eating himself to death lately.

It started probably 2 weeks ago now. He had long hair and had been chewing at himself - no signs of fleas on any of our pets. Treated just in case, as well as a full bedding wash and our house was sprayed a few months ago so fleas shouldn't be around anyway.

My previous cav used to get a summer itch type thing when his coat was long- so i clipped deniki short to see, but it didn't help (didn't worsen it either).

Haven't changed our laundry detergents, his food, his shampoos, planted no new plants, havent been anywhere new he could have come into contact with anything he hasn't been before.

Ive been using the calendula and its not helping at all. His skin isn't looking red or irritated.

He's been chewing out hair around his legs, but not really his paws. Which makes me think it could be food related?

Just wanting general advice on how i would go about narrowing this down.

And whether or not this is something i should go to the vet for? I hadn't yet in the hopes it would clear up itself.

He is otherwise happy :)

Pics attached- the spots he's chewing on the worse side (the other only has two patches of hair missing), and the spot he is licking on his left leg only. He's not fixated by it at all/chewing constantly, but i figure it must be bothering him slightly if he is eating out his hair..

Any advice is appreciated!

Could it be irritation from tiny grass ticks. Sometimes they are so small you can hardly see them & even after they have gone, the irritation last. My girl is doing a bit of this lately & it always seems to coincide with when the tiny grass ticks are at their worst. Advantix doesn't seem to repel them at all & I need a magnifying glass to see them.

[Jumabaar]

Allergies are not caused by 'new' exposures.

The way they develop is through repeated exposure causing the immune system to react abnormally. To test if it is a food allergy you need to take them off their 'normal' food and give them completely new proteins and carbohydrates because the immune system has not been primed or regularly exposed. Typically we start off with a food trial and flea trial (which you have started) then look at possible environmental causes.

It is also possible if there is an allergy that it has irritated the skin allowing a bacterial or yeast infection to move in which can also cause lots of irritation. If this is the case then a skin scrape to check that this is not exacerbating does warrant a vet visit.

[denali]

Thansk so far guys.

Some things I hadn't thought of.

Ok, will book a vet visit for blood and skin scrapings. I did think originally it could be a skin mite type thing- but my other dog had that issue a year or so ago and it didn't quite look the same. I suppose they can manifest in different ways though- so worth the piece of mind.

Could it be irritation from tiny grass ticks. Sometimes they are so small you can hardly see them & even after they have gone, the irritation last. My girl is doing a bit of this lately & it always seems to coincide with when the tiny grass ticks are at their worst. Advantix doesn't seem to repel them at all & I need a magnifying glass to see them.

Interesting, might be worth a check.

Allergies are not caused by 'new' exposures.

The way they develop is through repeated exposure causing the immune system to react abnormally. To test if it is a food allergy you need to take them off their 'normal' food and give them completely new proteins and carbohydrates because the immune system has not been primed or regularly exposed. Typically we start off with a food trial and flea trial (which you have started) then look at possible environmental causes.

It is also possible if there is an allergy that it has irritated the skin allowing a bacterial or yeast infection to move in which can also cause lots of irritation. If this is the case then a skin scrape to check that this is not exacerbating does warrant a vet visit.

ok, they are fed raw- so get a variety of proteins including fish, beef, lamb, roo, chicken and turkey.

How would I go about testing these?

ie. what is the length of time to test one specific protein for before moving to another?

I assume the start protein would have to be the most novel of all of them, hope it stops the itching to then check which starts it again?

He has also been getting into the cat biscuits. I have stopped that now and feed the cats on a table as i have a feeling they could be the cause. But we shall see..

[Dave-o]

How old is he and how long have you been feeding the raw?

What else does he eat?

[denali]

How old is he and how long have you been feeding the raw?

What else does he eat?

He is now 2 years old :) and has had the raw food since the bag of food he came with as a pup ran out.

I actually believe it is an environmental thing now. His food has not been changed at all however he now does not scratch near as much.

It flared up last weekend after a trip to a friends at Hervey Bays- so i am assuming it is an allergy to some plant or grass.

I just manage the flare ups with calendula :)

Seems to be working so far.

[Dave-o]

Ah, that could be the issue then - perhaps he's allergic to "The Bay" :D

I hope it clears up. It's worth keeping an eye on as intolerances and allergies build up over time from feeding the same food over a long period.

[Tara8430]

Allergies are so very frustrating. My abbey has flair ups I feel it's something environmental but it's just about recognising now before she over reacts.

No yeasty smell there Denali?

[Erny]

Start with blood work up - especially a full thyroid panel test. That's my suggestion to begin with. Then think more on not what he is allergic to, but WHY is he allergic to it, why isn't his system coping. I'd avoid using any and all outside chemical treatments (directly and indirectly) as this can knock a system needing support, even further - where possible.

I've covered a lot in my boys checkered and very sensitive health history and come a long way. To take that extra step I've recently seen dr Anne Neville at east west vet (vic). She said I'm on the right track with what I'm doing and have done for my boy. We've changed nothing other than adding in some Chinese medicines the purpose of which is to remove heat from his body (I knew he was a 'hot' dog, so to speak) and give further supplement towards stabilising his gut. One extra addition to his food is lettuce as it is a cooling food, which I think is great although doubt by itself it would solve - just one extra thing to supplement his already very good diet with. Am also treating via physiotherapy as skeletal and muscular issues can sometimes affect digestion (and if digestion isn't right this can manifest in so many other different ways including skin issues).

I'm not saying this is what you should do for your dog and I hope it is a more simple matter for you to find a solution to than mine, but just an insight as to where to begin your focus - ie from the inside out. But blood work plus faecal test is a good first base to begin with. For the thyroid test, I wouldn't bother with Aussie testing and would only have faith in the testing via dr Jean dodds in USA.

ETA : I also found dr Jean dodds saliva test a good guide to help steer on the right path. This will give you an indication of what food proteins your dog might be sensitive to. To me, it's not conclusive, but it was a starting base to work from. If you do the thyroid test via dr Jean dodds would be handy to get saliva test done at same time. A couple of disadvantages is that the saliva test is based on sensitivities to meat proteins in the USA. IE cattle over there may be raised on food different to ours. That's why to me the results are a guide more than a 'given'. Also, they don't test for roo meat sensitivities as that is not a common meat source for USA.

ETA : just read that the symptoms only seem to occur when you've been to the Bay. If this is the case and it's easy to avoid, all the background testing and supplementary treatments might not be worth the effort. Glad you're able to manage the symptoms with the good Ol' calendula tea :D

Edited April 30, 2015 by Erny