skin disorders
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| Sigh... I was hoping others would reply. All I can do is share my opinion... you need to follow the advice of the specialist. With mine, his problems first appeared with his chewing off hair on his left front leg... his hair was long. We did both dermal and RAST testing too... not enough came back to do anything with. Mullberry and wheat... I don't see how mullberry could drift in from miles away in the middle of winter. He was getting spelt in treats but that was removed over 6 months ago with no improvement. I'm certain allergy tests won't always tell us everything a dog is allergic to because they simply don't test for everything. If we can find the cause, like your basic mold and dust mites, we can try to reduce exposure or desensitize the dog for it. If we can't determine the cause, we have no hope of eliminating trigger. You sound like me... I don't know which one works best or which is the safest. We had the best results with yeast problems using Malaseb shampoo but the FDA took it off the market. At the moment, we're treating pyoderma and staph... waiting for biopsy results to come back to see if it will shed any light on what the heck is going on. I've never experienced such horrible skin on a dog.  For yeast, washing every 3-4 days with an appropriate shampoo seemed to help. Controlling the yeast may help your dog avoid staph in the future. When two of mine had yeast issues, I kept them short so the air could get at the skin and to keep the dog cooler and dry. If the dog is scratching/chewing, you might also use a shirt as a barrier... if she doesn't break the skin, she may not get another staph infection. Here are some shampoos for yeast- Universal Medicated Shampoo is said to be an antifungal, antibacterial. It says it's gentle for routine use. It also works for seborrhea- http://vetoquinolusa.com/pages/pro_derma.html . Also mentioned are MPA Seba-Hex™ Shampoo and MPA Miconazole. I haven't tried those. I'm going to talk with my vet about these two for my dog with pyoderma... EPI-ClO2 (also mentions yeast) http://www.stonemfg.net/images/brochure ... 0Sheet.pdf http://www.stonemfg.net/images/brochure ... ochure.pdf Vet Solutions BPO-3 (pyoderma) http://vetoquinolusa.com/pages/pro_derma.html Food can play a big roll in yeast problems. Did you do a food trial to see if it's a food problem? If I were ever to do one again, I'd do a home cooked diet with one protein like cooked pork along with vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, green beans. I'd do it for 10 weeks and ask if anything else should be added to balance it (but would NOT cloud the trial results or add to the yeast problem). I would not go with the $80 a bag z/d ultra again but that's just me... mine developed yeast while on it. http://oesusa.com/BBs-Feet.jpg He's currently on Wellness Core- Fish. Yeast can also be more of a problem if a dog is or has been on an antibiotic... had this happen with one of ours with allergies but also on an antibiotic off and on for a year due to a bladder defect. You might ask whether a good dog probiotic would be of any benefit. Years ago when when we had this yeast problem, we stopped all Milk Bones, Pupperoni, wheat, corn, peanut butter, carrots... treats were the holistic kibble and vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, green beans... and cooked meat (if on a food trial, only the cooked meat approved). Has her thyroid been tested? When there are skin/coat issues, thyroid testing is probably one of the first things we need to eliminate as a cause in this breed. Sorry I don't have a bag of magic tricks. All we can do is keep trying... |
Wow, Jaci! So surprised to find you in this thread too!  I'm sorry that Abby is struggling with this. Oscar sometimes gets skin issues that coincide with his grooming. I think that brushing with a straight pin brush, and shaving with clippers can irritate the skin enough to cause flare-ups. Also, you never know what cooties from other dogs are on those brushes and blades, so I provide my groomer with ones that she uses only for Oscar. Oscar's skin issues started when he was about two years old, and he struggles with them to this day. He gets garden variety staph infections, as well as drug resistant versions (MRSI, Pseudamonas). We kill one bacteria, and another one takes it's place. The root of Oscar's problems lies in his crappy immune system. He has Immune Mediated Disease, so basically things that a normal dog can fight off, he can't. Normal everyday bacteria can get out of balance on him very quickly and become pathogenic without intervention and the correct antibiotics. We combat his issues in a variety of ways. First, he eats only venison and rice dog food. We tried everything else, and I mean everything else (beef, bison, lamb, chicken, fish, special diets, etc.) without success, until the venison. His kibble is his treat. Second, he gets a full bath every 10 days to two weeks, and he gets shaved every six weeks. The shorter his hair, the easier it is to see what is going on with his skin, and to get on top of it before it gets completely out of control. We use chlorhexiderm shampoo for general cleaning, as it's safe for frequent bathing, and KetoChlor for his paws (yeast overgrowth). Love the KetoChlor. It's very gentle, and smells like baby aspirin.  I tried the shampoos for pyoderma and seborrhea, but found the chlorhexiderm shampoo works best on Oscar. Third, Oscar gets probiotics, in powder form that I mix in with his food. It helps support his crappy immune system. Last, but not least, I check his skin over every day, so I catch things as early as possible, and can get in to the vet for a skin scraping when something crops up.Due to Oscar's immune issues, he will always have to be on meds to help manage his skin and his tummy (IBD), but with careful balance and management, we are able to keep the additional antibiotics down to the bare minimum. After seeing our vet, a holistic vet, a chiropractor, and an internist, and getting all of their input, this is the best way we've found to keep Oscar in the best health possible. Hope you find some relief for Abby. Laurie and Oscar |
Quote: Wow, Jaci! So surprised to find you in this thread too! Smarty-pants  Seems we frequent the same threads  |
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