I would look into your dogs entire environment, chemicals might have an affect on the immune system of your dog, food allergies often result in hair loss, or paw licking, or skin problems. Tho since manufactureers are using genetically engineered corn for dog food I would not be surprised if it had a negative affect on a dogs immune system. If you are buying dog food from the local grocery, you might want to check it for meat by products, corn and wheat, these things are not great for your dog. Little bit by little bit change your dogs food. A sudden change can cause more health problems. If you think that is what is the problem. If you live in a place which is not under snow, and you are walking your dog on grass, you might want to go somewhere else, dogs are closer to the ground and more suseptible to getting poisoned by chemicals which are used to keep grass green and without bugs and weeds, try and use non toxic cleaners around your home especially on the foors and carpet. I hope you are able to figure this thing out as soon as possible. Good luck, sorry to hear you are going through this and please keep us posted so we will know how things turn out for you and your pup

I agree with everything Mazer said. I'll just add a few.

I had a dog with food allergies. At the time I discovered the problem the dog was on a commercial dog food (14 years ago, when food allergies were not as recognized as today). The food did have corn in it. I researched this subject thoroughly. Corn and wheat are not good for dogs. They are not put together to digest it well. Which can cause problems. I have another dog that is allergic to wheat.

I have a true country vet that I consult from time to time about my dogs health issues. She is completely out of the picture and always gives me advice that is not typical of city vets. When ever I call her, she immediately will ask me if the dogs situation is life threatening. If it is not, then she will ask me relatively simple questions like what the dog is eating, where it is walking, etc. In general, all of the simple questions that have to do with day to day routine. If the dog is in a life threatening situation, then other questions are asked, and a plan is developed from there.

In your case, it sounds like you do not at this time have a life threatening situation. The dog is sick, but there is nothing that you stated that it's life is threatened.

I think you really need to educate yourself on allergies before you do much with your vets. This is a very complicated issue. Aside from food allergies, you may have dust, grass, chemical or other problems that only extensive testing and lots of money are going to help you discover.

My experience taught me to take the upper hand when it comes to dealing with vets that want to do testing. After you educate yourself, you will be able to.

Your vet already suggested a food allergy possibility, why did he/she not give you some different food the same day you were there? It seems like something is missing here.

Since there is a very good possibility that food allergy is what you are dealing with, I would get prescription food from your vet and slowly change the dog over to it.

If you decide to go this route, ask the vet how soon before you should start seeing results. If you don't see anything improving, you may need to have testing done.

Unfortunately, my experience with vets has not been a pleasant one. I'm on my 8 vet in 15 years because I felt the service I got was incompetent. Plus I felt they saw me as an open wallet when they saw me come in their door.

The fact that yours indicated a food allergy but didn't give you any alternate food, sent a red flag up for me. When you mentioned testing, that really got my attention.

The other very valuable lesson I learned, was when your pet has any type of skin issue, see a vet dermatologist. Dermatology is completely different from regular veterinarian practice.

Good luck! Keep us posted.

SG

Thank you both for your advice. As for the vet, we have not gone into see her yet. She was out of the office for a couple of days. She just mentioned that it may be a food allergy. No mention of tests, I just assumed there would be since when it comes to us humans, thats one of the first things they do.lol! She is also a country vet. Very down to earth, and does not sugar coat anything. He was put on antibiotics, neutered (a second time - another story) and had 2 visits. The total for the surgery and meds and office calls are only $140. And she is trying to get the other vet that did his first surgery for the neutering, to pay for the second surgery. I got Joey from an animal rescue league.
All of my pets have come from a rescue type situation.
Right now I have him on IAMs for small dogs. I will look at the ingredients and see what is in there. I also got to thinking, my son and husband have been sneaking the crust of pizzas to him on the weekend. I have a "strike" day when they "cook" -thus the pizza. hehe!
I may have to have a talk with them!

Thanks again!

MonaRae

My dog has the same problem with his ears. How can they know it is a food allergy if they do not do the tests? How much for the tests is lots of money? Now I worry cuz in my apartment the carpets were super dirty and smelly and I clean them every few months cuz when it rains they smell bad. Since I had my dog they have been cleaned mebbe 4 times.

Hi,one of my bassets have allergies.No test have been done to prove that as testing is not avaliable here.She has all the signs of allergies though.Its been trial and error.I now cook her food so I know what she is eating(good brands of dog food is not in the stores here either)hence the cooking.After awhile you learn what to avoid.Her allergies lean more to enviroment issues than food I believe.On walks I have to keep her out of grass along the roads,she doesn't get to lay much outside in the grass(shes learned to lay on the walkway) and damp ground/grass we keep her out of other than potty breaks.She breaks out with a rash on her stomach if she lays outside much on the grass.She had shots for itching for a year and that wasn't a good thing for her so I took matters into my own hands and you learn what to do.She's doing much better now,only has to have some benadryl occasionally.Good luck!Debbie

I would try another brand of food like Canidae, Chicken Soup, Wellness. I used to feed my dogs Iams too, and I've been kicking myself for not changing sooner. You can check out sites like Whole Dog Journal for food comparisons.
Jen

you didn't say where the staph infection is nor what type (strain)it is. Did the Vet do a culture?
I'm assuming it's on the skin being your vet suggested allergies and thinks the dog self induced this by scratching, but if the wound isn't healing it may be a strain that is more antibiotic resistant than others. Clearing up the staph infection is one thing, finding the route of the scratching is different.reasons could be food allergies, flea bite dermatitis, or other insect allergy, atopy, etc. You may want to make an apppointment with a dermatologist to find the route of the itching as for it not to keep continuing.

Hi Lablover4ever,

Food allergies are very complex. They will not always show up with the same symptoms. Some dogs might have ear infections, severe scratching around the face and ears, or any number of problems.

My dog that is allergic to wheat had severe diarrhea. The vet recognized that as a symptom due to wheat, I switched to a hypoallergenic food (venison and potato) and the problem stopped.

The path of least resistance is changing the food. If a vet takes a close look at what the dog eats and the daily habits, he/she may or many not be able to pin down the problem, but, the vet may not even recognize a food allergy.

With allergies it is best to ask the vet how long medication or change of food should start to clear things up. You should be able to get timing down to a day or two. If the problem isn't getting better within the stated time period, your vet has missed something, or simply doesn't know what they are doing. Poking around trying different medications every time you come into the office is not the way to tackle this either. The first one should do the job.

All of this is a very good reason to educate yourself about everything that has to do with your pets when something comes up. That way, even if you really trust your vet, as I do, you are are still aware of what is going on.

SG

Spiritual gardner thanx so much for writing to me even if this was suppose to be monaraes question. What I am doing now is giving my dog the medicine from the Vet and changed his food to no beef, wheat, corn or artificials. Any time that I have put medicine in his ears they stop itching and getting red but when I stop it comes back soon. Before that I did not change his food so mebbe this will help fix it once and for all???? He is only getting the new food now so I have no snacks for him. Do you know something that for sure will not attack his immunity? I already know he will not eat carrots. I am going to stop cleaning my carpets unless you no something that will not cause a problem??? It is old carpet and not fresh at all! I am trying everything that all of you are suggesting for me to do. How do you know that your dog has wheat allergyies? Did he get tested? Is Venison the only nonallergy food? That is what I was meaning to get but accidently got lamb and rice.

Spritual Gardner I am trying to find recipes in Cooking Forum to bake snacks for my dog. Can he have chickpea flour and eggs? Thanx.

Don't worry about this being my question lablover. Its great that we can all learn from this! I have never had to deal with a situation such as this before. My dogs before were large but loveable types. My first being a "garbage can" if you didn't watch him. Could eat anything! My second, a sharpei/lab cross, I had to watch a bit closer. He had some skin problems but the lamb and rice diet cleared that up. This is my first experience with a little dog. He is part Papillon and part Pom and part? What a combo! I appreciate all the advice here!

Thanks again!

MonaRae

Hi Monarae, sorry I stole your question!

Lablover4ever,

There are a couple of very important things you need to get correct so you pet will get well.

First. When you switch food, you need to do it very, very gradually. Not all at once. When doing this, you need to put a very small amount of new food in with the regular for about 2-3 days. Then, gradually increase the amount of new food, daily, over about two weeks, until you have completely switched. Dogs have a very sensitive digestive system. Switching food to quickly or all at once could make your dog seriously ill.

Venison and potato food is the only one that I know of that is considered hypoallergenic. That's because deer eat grass and other vegetation. Lamb's eat corn, wheat and other things that could be causing your problem.

You asked about chickpea flower and eggs. I think you should really concentrate on getting your dog well before you try any type of new food that may not agree with Joey.

Your intentions are good, however, keep in mind that you are dealing with a situation that could easily get out of control. At this time, it seems that you are managing things well. If you really want to treat Joey, just give him a few pieces of new dog food.

I discovered that my dog had wheat allergies without testing. This is because I have an excellent veterinarian who is very knowledgeable about allergies. Not something I can say about all vets. When she found out about the diarrhea, and asked me to tell her what was in the food, her first reaction was that it could be wheat.

Allergies and other diseases in dogs are getting worse due to breeding.

Good luck!

SG

I messed up again Spritiual Gardner cuz I took away the old dog food and gave the new!! He has been eating it since Saturdya!! Now I am over whelmed so I will call my brother which is something I did not want to do. Thank you for being s o nice and trying to help. I will write you back when I have it all figured out. Thanx!

Hi Lablover4ever,

I was concerned that is what happened when I read your post.

Let me say that I am well aware of your situation. I am also aware that what you are dealing with must be very confusing for you.

Please try and take this one step at a time. That way you won't feel so overwhelmed. You will also learn more about what you are dealing with, and, be able to help your pet more.

Step one.

I assume that your dog is not showing signs of diarrhea or vomiting? If not, this is a good thing.

Step two.

Your vet needs to be consulted about what happened. Ask what you should do for feeding.

Step three.

If you need to feed the dog, and can't reach the vet, continue feeding the way you have been since Saturday. You don't want to keep changing things. Then call the vet when you can and ask what you should do.

Step four. Forget for a day the ear infection. You need to get the feeding right before anything else. Keep in mind, that correct food might also correct your dogs problem.

Good luck!

SG

Venison and potato food is the only one that I know of that is considered hypoallergenic.

Actually the reason venison is used in a hypo allergenic food is because normally dogs are not exposed to it, the whole reason based on hypoallergenic diets is to serve a protein and carb main staple of food that the dog hasn't been on prior and to rid many other ingredients out as well. Examples of a hypoallergenic food would be fish and potato, venison and pot, bison and sweet pot, etc.
any food really that uses one main protien source and one main carb source with strict limitations on other ingredients is considered a hypoallergenic food.

I just started a new diet for my labs this week, because I think the older one may have some sensitivities to corn, wheat, etc just through my personal observation. So after doing a little research, I purchased Natural Balance dry food in the duck & potato variety. There was also a venison flavor, and a whitefish flavor. So far, so good. He really seems to like it much better than his original food, and the Natural Balance has got to be better for him.

My two labs were just like that...every month one of them had an ear infection. More antibiotics, more creams, antihistimines, plus one had gas really bad and needed Pepcid daily. Yes they had overgrowht of yeast too. Daily cleansing with the EpiOtic. Nothing worked...they would keep coming back.
Finally my vet mentioned it might be grain allegies. Switched them to Urban WOlf and no more ear infections!!

And I only use the Epi-Otic occassionally not daily. Its more pricey than SD or Iams but it will save you money and time and a happy dog.

SD ran me about $90 per month for my dogs, Wellness $110 and Urban Wolf(plus meat) $175.00, but I have only the yearly vet visit, so actually I am saving money. These costs are for 1 -100lb lab and 1 - 85lb lab, so my guess is your costs would be half.

Or if you want kibble Innova Evo is grain free and Wellness SImple has alternative grain.

If you decide you want to use Urban Wolf and have questions on how to feed it feel free to e-mail me at laura AT gleasonroad dot com --- just put Urban Wolf in the subject line.

I also managed to clear up years of ear infections, skin scratching, interdigital cysts, etc. by doing alot of research and switching food for our three mastiffs. I avoid all grains except rice and feed no canned food. They get Nutro lamb and rice for dry food and for wet food a variety of cooked meats, along with a little yogurt and oatmeal. They have never looked better or been healthier. I have ZERO vet bills other than checkups.

My vets mentioned the possibility of food allergies but did not push testing. As I come from a human family with food allergies that we all figured out by doing research and regulating diet, I was comfortable doing the same with my dogs.

I found with my dogs (just like me) the allergies weren't always to the food itself, but to preservatives/dyes, etc. Which is why I upgraded the dry food as much as I could afford and abandoned canned foods.

I would suggest researching whatever "prescription" food the vet recommends (if you decide to go that route) and then discussing with the vet why the ingredients in it are right for your dog. Cynic that I am, I note that many vets have arrangements with big food producers and market prescription foods that, when researched, do not stand up to scrutiny.

Just my $.02. Good luck.

There isn't a test for food allergies. Food allergies are diagnosed by a food trial. You change the diet to a novel protein AND carbohydrate source diet, something the animal has never eaten before. The pet can eat that food and NOTHING else for 8 weeks. If the symptoms get better in that time, then you challenge them with the old diet. If the symptoms come back- viola- you have your diagnosis. Most people skip the challenge part if the diet trial worked because they are so happy that their pet is feeling better that they don't want to mess it up. But maybe the pet was allergic to a pollen or mold in the environment and the food trial timing was just coincidental. You'll find out next year when the symptoms come back same time next year despite being on the new food.

Anita- If by "agreement with big food producer" you mean "buys food to stock the hospital" you're right. I guess they also have "big agreements with drug companies" too. Most people would be pretty upset if the vet said the dog had food allergies, needs a special diet, and has nothing on the shelf to offer the client at that time. So, being a savvy business owner, the vet stocks dog food. Not doing so would be just dumb. When asked, 99.9% of vets could also suggest other diets that would address the same needs. Many people would rather just get the correct food when someone is present to guide them, rather than read hundreds of dog food labels trying to figure out if the ingredients are appropriate for their dog.

Just my $0.02.

Our dog has been having problems too and I've tried her on many of the better quality foods, such as Canidae for one. The vet also told us it was a staff infection, but it didn't clear up with treatment. So I switched her food once again to a duck and sweet potato variety and she has grown hair back in the 2 spots on her side and her belly only has a few broken out spots on it now. I brushed her good yesterday and she didn't have a problem with it like she did before, so I'm hoping this is the answer. I don't recall the brand name off hand, but I can look it up for you if you'd like and tell you all the ingredients.
Our vet also suggested she might need some EFAs too, since her skin was dry.

meghane are you the one that works for a Vet? Could you please look over my posts My Dogs Ears and To Spiritual Gardener, and give me your thoughts please? I just want to make sure I am doing the absolute right thing with switching to a new food. I think I am and had felt better but I still have worries about doing the right thing.

lablover4ever, allergies are diagnosed both in dogs AND humans by what is known as an "elimination diet" as Meghane above suggested.

An elimination diet consists of feeding only a bare minimum of ingredients for a specified period of time, then slowly adding in other ingredients to find out where the reaction to the ingredient occurs.

The ONLY commercial food that I know of designed for this specific purpose is "California Natural" by NaturaPet. It is expensive.

Quite honestly, I fed it to my epileptic dog for 3 years watching his seizure triggers for any signs and his allergies. He has both problems. We discovered what his allergies were -- and his seizure triggers -- by using this method, and then were able to switch him to a less expensive food.

If this may be the case for you, then I'd suggest that food.

The problem with many commercial foods is you can't trust the big bag label. While they may say they are "lamb and rice", if you read the fine print, they also contain corn, rosemary, and many other ingredients.

The first 5 ingredients are the most copious in a food. Look for pure ingredients. If it is lamb and rice for example, then that is ALL it should contain.

Add in other ingredients after that, and see if sensitivities re-occur.

Bear in mind, it takes about 8 weeks for sensitivities to ingredients to manifest. So make any changes sloooooooowly.

A good rule of thumb is, "the devil is in the details". It's also in the fine print on the ingredient label, not the big label on the front of the bag.

UPDATE....
I have been giving Joey Natural Balance Sweet potato and duck dog food. He has also been on a antibiotic and chortisone medicine for about a week and a half. He is starting to look and feel much better. My vet is concerned that this may NOT be a food allergy, rather an immune system disease such as Lupus. I am going to keep him on the new food, as he is such a little guy, it doesn't cost that much compared to my large dogs that I have had before. His fur is looking great. I am hoping that the fur will grow back in the spots.
The problem now is that he is hungry ALL THE TIME! lol!
The poor thing has to get dizzy spinning in circles evertime he thinks he is going to get fed! lol!

I will check in in the future and let ya all know how its going. Anyone out there with experience with this type of disease, please let me know your comments. I am concerned over the little guy, and my vet and I are doing alot of research over this.

Thanks everyone! I hope this thread has helped others!

MonaRae

Thanks MonaRae for the update,

I am somewhat confused. You said that the dog is getting better since you started the new food. If this is the case, why is there a concern about Lupus? What specifically has gotten the vet's attention about this? Was there blood work done?

You should be able to get information on Google about Lupus. Just punch in "dogs with lupus".

The hair should grow back without any problem. I had a dog that lost about 1/2 of her fur and it all came back.

Good luck!

SG

Sorry for the confusion. Yes, blood work has been done.
My vet was out of the office for a period of time. Since I could not get him in right away, she suggested that we start with the different food. A week or so after, I was able to get him in. That was only a week ago.When she examined him, she made the comment that this could be a form of Lupus. He was running a temp, had open, crusty sores at his mouth, ears and on the pads of his feet.
We live in the "boonies" here, so it sometimes takes time to get results back. As for the food, she encouraged me to keep him on it. She put in on the medicine, stating that that would be the first line of defense to get his temp down.
The sores are healing up. He no longer has a temp. She also gave me some topical ointment, but he doesnt like to leave it on. lol!
It seems the other treatment of steroids would be the next step if it comes back positive for Lupus.
If we can keep it in check with the topical ointment, we will not go the route of steriods. We will cross that bridge when we get there.

Thanks!!!

MonaRae

Thought I better give the brand name of the food I got since I mentioned it. It's Evanger's duck and sweet potato. The canned food doesn't have any grain in it.

Well, got the blood results back. It is Lupus. Its the skin type of Lupus. It does not affect the internal organs at this point. My Vet and I are looking into what will be best for Joey. I don't have the particulars of his test, as she called me at work. This type can come and go. Right now he is whining at me because I am at the computer instead of messing with him! SPOILED! She also said that there have been good results with Homeopathic type treatments. He has finished his meds for the time being. We will not start steroids until he has another outbreak.
We are going to continue with his food, as his fur is looking great! I just cant keep him full! He is hungry all the time, now that he is feeling better.

Sigh.....we are going to be ok. He knows that I wont give up on him. I cant - he tried to protect me from the Schwans man tonight! lol! He got a treat from him, and now he is "all better"

Thanks everyone!

MonaRae

I'm glad you have an answer. That's better than wondering and worrying all the time.
I'd be interested in hearing about the treatment and how it goes. I brought a kitten through distemper with homeopathics. A 2 week battle with several ups and downs. Our vet was amazed she pulled through it. Only 1 of her 3 siblings made it, but she never bounced back to a normal rowdy kitten like ours did.
I wish you and your fur baby the best!

I have a five and a half year old Lab that has also developed a food allergy in the last month. He has been eating Eukanuba for his entire life. He recently started licking his lips constantly after eating and has been burping a lot. He is also restless at night and you can tell that his stomach is bothering him. He has also been scratching more. We took him to the University of Illinois veterinairy clinic a couple of weeks ago. They did an endoscopy where they looked at his esophogus and stomach. They said that he had a hemmorage in his esophogus, lesions in his stomach, and that his stomach was swollen and inflamed and filled with fluid and bacteria. They are calling it a food allergy and prescribed pepcid ac and ammoxicillan along with IVD Potato and Venison food. I was already in the process of switching his food to Blue Fish and Sweet Potato before we took him to the U of I clinic. He was doing well with the fish and sweet potato for the past week and a half but last night he started licking his lips again and he was very restless during the night. I will be starting the switch to the potato and venison food today. This is so frustrating, my dog is my baby and I can't stand to see him in pain. Has anyone else had stomach problems in their dogs that were caused by food allergies? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.