[Alisha B]

I have an 8 month old Newfoundland and I’m honestly at a loss when it comes to him. I’ve never had a dog with sensitivities to food. Hes always had slighty lose stools since i got him. He’s been on Eagle Pack large and giant breed puppy food for months. The first couple of months everything seemed fine. I took him to the vet in the being of june for a check up and he was healthy. 2 days after he had a hot spot on his belly it cleared up a couple days later but more would show up. It’s been almost 2 months of sores coming and going on his belly. I clean the area and use a 3 in one spray to help them heal faster.
About 2 and a half months ago I noticed his skin was really dry so I started giving him salmon oil and 2 weeks later his skin was improving and his cost was shiny. When the sores stared, I stopped the oil seeing if that was the culprit but it wasn’t. I tried nupro supplement powder for large breed dogs and he had diarrhea. I give him organic pumpkin puree to try and firm up his stool but it doesn’t seem to work. Is it time to switch his Food? If so what should I give him? Aside from the licking his behavior is normal. He loves to play and run, he enjoys his sleep and eats and drinks like he should.

[Susan]

Hi Alisha,
sounds like he has Environment Allergies with his stomach sore & he probably has food sensitivities/intolerances as well, they normally come together my vet said, my boy has IBD seasonal environment allergies & food intolerances…..
A Dermatologist specialises in the skin & will work out what’s wrong but they are very expensive & depending on the Dermatologist they will just put your young pup on drugs so best to see a Holistic Vet that specialises in the skin as well, I see a vet thats specialises in the skin & bowel…
Are you bathing twice a week?? baths are excellent, washes off any allergens that are on the skin that’s causing these skin irritations, I use “Malaseb” Medicated Shampoo, it kills any bacteria & yeast on the skin, keeps the skin nice & moist & is excellent for evironment allergies, leaves the dog feeling so soft & relieves any itchy skin, you have to leave on for 5-10mins but I just wash Patch normally & masage him a little to pass a few minutes then fully rinse off, you can buy Malaseb on Amazon if you live America, I also use creams, Hydrocortisone 1% cream applied at night before bed then thru the day I use “Sudocream” on Paws, stomach, head, around mouth & bum anywhere Patch starts to itch I apply the Sudocrem stops his itch straight away, Sudocrem is a thick white cream that acts as a barrier & protects the skin, it’s for Dermatitis, Eczema, Nappy Rash, Presssure Sores, Sudocrem is normally sold in the baby section at supermarket or chemist but if you live America it’s sold on Amazon…..
My boy didn’t do well on the Eagle Pack Lamb meal & Rice, it was OK for his stomach/bowel but cause Patch has foods sensitivities the oats & barley caused itchy smelly yeasty skin & paws, he stunk after eating the Eagle Pack for 1-2 weeks, once you work out what foods your dog is sensitive too & you stop feeding those ingredients your dog will stop reacting with smelly itchy skin problems & stomach/bowel problems but if he also has environment allergies the only thing you can do is relieve his itch & make him comfortable unless you want to put him on drugs but he is too young to be put on all the drugs for allergies..

Pumkin is high in fiber it can make some dogs do real sloppy poos excellent if they are constipated or the opposite & firm up their poo’s, Patch can only eat 1-2 spoons of boiled pumkin then his poos go real sloppy….
Have you tried a single meat protein, limited ingredient kibble that’s grain free & not too high in protein? the only kibble Patch does real well on is the “Taste Of The Wild” Sierra Mountain” Roasted Lamb, the fat -15%, protein-25%, fiber is under 4%, TOTW uses purified water to make their TOTW, there’s also TOTW Pacific Stream, Smoked Salmon both these formula’s have the same fat protein % but the fiber is only 3% in the Pacific Stream formula alot of dogs with IBD, IBS stomach & bowel & skin problems do very well on these formula’s… join this Face Book group “Dog, Issues, Allergies, and other Information Support Group” heaps of really good info & what people do to help with their dogs skin problem also have you tried a probiotic? Purina Forti- Floria is suppose to be very good & has live bacteria when it was tested, always start off using 1/2 the recommended dose, I give Patch 1/4 of my “Yukult” probiotic drink, & buy K-9 Natural freeze Dried, Green Lipped Mussels, give about 2 mussels a day, but if you are going to start anything start 1 food, supplement at a time so if there’s any diarrhea ect you know what has caused it..
Baby Wipes, I buy the Huggie Coconut Oil Baby Wipes & wipe Patch down after he’s been outside if the pollen count is high, they normally tell you on the weather forecast when its high alsowhen its very windy or he starts scratching I wipe him down or bath him then apply cream….
“Canidae” make their Pure limited ingredient grain free kibbles or their All Life Stages formula’s that have grains, tCanidae All Life Stages Turkey Meal & Brown Rice Large breed is a limited ingredient formula it’s new low in fat & not too high in protein https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products

[anonymous]

Instead of wasting time and money on supplements, over the counter meds and creams that should never be used unless a veterinarian that has examined the dog recommends, by the way, many of these supplements, ointments, over the counter medications (not intended for veterinary use unless prescribed as off label by a veterinarian) and homeopathic remedies are not only ineffective but they also are not benign and can have side effects and interaction with other meds.
I would take thee dog to the vet and get the condition diagnosed, that is the first step to treatment, an accurate diagnosis. See what your vet recommends, I’m am sure he has seen this condition many times before.
Do not change his food, unless the examining vet recommends, he may suggest a prescription/elimination diet for now, at least till the dog is stable.
Good luck

This is not veterinary advice; consult your veterinarian.

[Susan]

Hi Alisha,
all the advice I have given has been Patches treatment thru Patches vet who specializes in Skin, Stomach & Bowel health….
Keep a diary & as the months & years pass you will start to see a pattern when his skin allergies are worse, it probably be in the Spring & Summer months or after eating certain ingredients the scratching, itching, gas will be worse … Best to do an elimination food trial in the colder months Winter when plants aren’t flowering & pollens arent as bad as they are in the Spring months, plants, trees, grasses all can make the dog itchy & you’ll think it might be the food he’s trialing/eating….Allergies are VERY confusing, my vet & I thought my boy couldn’t eat turkey & potatoes for 2 yrs, later I realised he can eat potatoes & turkey it was something else causing sloppy poos & itchy smelly skin barley, chicken & oats.. also after he haas had a bath keep your boy off all grass areas for a few days no walking, lying on any grass & see how he goes, does his stomach improve??? We thought grass was making Patches paws red, every morning I feed him breakfast then we go for a walk thru the park when we’d come home Patch would start licking his paws, I’d have a look & his paws would be RED & sometimes hot, 1 back paw would be swollen red & hot, so I made sure he just walked on the pathway cerment etc it turned out to be the chicken & corn in the vet diet he was eating at the time for his IBD, I did a raw elimination diet, while he was eating raw Kangaroo with blended green veggies he was fine, his itchy yeasty skin & paws all went away within 2-5 days, then I tried raw chicken breast for dinner within 15 mins after eating raw chicken breast he reacted with red hot paws, rubbing his bum on carpet, I soak paws in cold water with the Malaseb medicated shampoo, then before bed applied some Hydrocortisone cream on bum & paws cream had fixed his paws all back to normal…

You’ll get there, Winter will be coming soon in America & hopefully he’ll get a break & you can start working out the food side, what foods he’s sensitive too… vet diets are the easiest way to do elimination diets & the diet is balanced, then after eating teh vet diet you might have to trial a few but once dog is itch & smell free you start adding 1 new ingredient to his diet for 6 weeks, it can take from 1 day for a dog to react to an ingredient up to 6 weeks, with Patch I know with that day or night with sloppy poo or diarrhea skin can take up to 4 days to start to smell yeasy, carrots make his ears itchy within 20mins of eating them, then they start to smellyeasty in 3-5 days, he starts shaking his head/ear after eating something with carrot in it, the only way I knew this was elimination diet adding the carrot to home made rissoles, you start with a lean mince, I started with Pork mince made small rissole 1/2 size balls & baked in oven & added boiled sweet potato, he was fine then next batch of rissoles I added 1 whisked egg made 1/2 cup size rissole balles baked in oven, boiled more sweet potatoes that I freeze in freezer & take out as I need same as teh rissole they freeze well, he was fine with egg, just keep adding 1 new food to your rissoles & you will see what ingredients are causing any skin, stomach/bowel problems…. Good Luck..

[PATTI L]

Susan has given very good advice, she knows lots of great info on dogs & food issues
Pet food reviews Australia is another place Susan helps people with dog probs.
Susan is very kind and caring to spend time helping anyone.

[anonymous]

Hope this helps:
By Klaus Loft, DVM
Angell Dermatology Service
Anyone who suffers debilitating environmental allergies tied to changing seasons, pet dander or household dust mites knows first-hand the misery of a scratchy throat, itchy eyes or painful rashes.
Not everyone knows, however, that our pets can experience similar allergic reactions — and other very bothersome dermatological issues. But our pets need not suffer in silence. Modern veterinary science has evolved such that advanced, comprehensive treatments are now available to treat a range of skin conditions.
Top pet dermatological issues
Our four-legged friends suffer from some of the same skin issues as we do — and several that we do not. The most common conditions we see at Angell include:
•Parasites, such as mites, fleas and mange (scabies)
•Infectious diseases, such as Staphylococcal pyoderma (“Staph”) skin infections, yeast and fungal infections and skin fold infections
•Systemic diseases, such as autoimmune diseases
•Skin cancer, such as Squamous cell carcinoma, cutaneous lymphoma, Mast cell tumors
•Allergies, such as flea allergy dermatitis, adverse food reactions, environmental allergies, etc.
All of these conditions can become serious and, if untreated, dramatically reduce quality of life. But the tremendous strides made in veterinary innovation, however, is very good news for our pets. Specifically, the testing and treatments for allergies now rivals human healthcare in its sophistication, quality of care and long-term health outcomes.
Unlike humans, dogs and cats cannot tell us about their dermatological health issues. So we as pet owners must look for the signs. The most common indicators that a pet is suffering from some kind of allergy involve frequent episodes of ear infections, red raised or open sores on the skin, constant licking or biting of paws or groin — sometimes causing wounds that will not go away.
Allergies present a particular challenge because there can be hundreds (even thousands) of potential allergens that impact pet health, from foods to pollen from grasses, weeds, trees, dust mites and more. Today’s specialty veterinary hospitals have access to the very latest diagnostic tests to get to the bottom of what’s ailing our pet. Among these tests is the Intra Dermal Test (IDT).
IDT is generally considered the gold standard of testing for identifying allergens that cause pets to suffer from chronic skin and/or ear diseases. IDT involves injections of a series of concentrated allergens into the skin to determine which of them generate allergic reactions in a given animal. The use of fluorescein — a chemical that illuminates the inflammation caused by the injected allergens in order to visualize the strength of individual reactions — is key to accurately diagnosing pet allergies, and is just one of the many ways veterinarians use new technologies to improve care and diagnostics.
The results of IDT (as well as a review of the pet’s medical history) can then inform comprehensive immunotherapy treatments to relieve suffering. Veterinary dermatologists rely on IDT to build customized treatment plans for patients called Allergen Specific Immuno Therapy or “ASIT” for short.
ASIT involves a series of injections specifically created for the allergic animal’s skin. These injections, of diluted allergens, are designed to make a pet less sensitive to their allergens over time. In most cases these injections must be continued for life to reduce symptoms, but they are highly effective. Seventy to 90 percent of pets experience a reduction in symptoms as a result of ASIT treatment. These treatments can be delivered even more easily via droplets under the tongue, perfect for pet owners who are squeamish about giving injections to their pet.
This treatment is very new to the North American field of medicine (both human and veterinary) and underscores just how far innovation in veterinary medicine has come.
When it’s time to see the vet
Many pet owners are understandably concerned about taking their animals to the veterinarian because the cost (to say nothing of the fear some animals experience when going do the doctor) may outweigh any perceived reduction in suffering. To help pet owners know when it’s time to bring Fido to the doctor I’ve compiled my “Top Ten” list of dermatological symptoms that should never be ignored:
•Intense itching of the skin (head shaking, running the face into the carpet, furniture, etc.)
•Biting at the skin that creates red, raw crusting areas of the skin
•Multiple ear infections (head shaking, odor from ears, scratching at the ears with hind legs)
•Paw licking or chewing and frequent infections of the skin in the webbed skin of the paws
•Staining of the fur of the paws and nails on multiple feet
•Reoccurring skin infections in the groin, under the shoulders, perianal areas (on or under the tail)
•Greasy scaling skin and/or fur with odorous skin
•Hair loss, or thinning of the fur
•Dark pigmentation of the skin that is chronically infected
•Sudden depigmentation of skin
Allergies and other dermatological issues can be as frustrating for pet owners and their veterinarians as they can be for pets. I encourage any pet owner whose animal is experiencing any of these symptoms to consult with their veterinarian.

Dermatology – Common Issues

[amy r]

Keep in mind that a Newfoundland primary diet is normally fish based they need the oils to have healthy coats and skin. Make sure you not only use a fish oil everyday but add in fish as well to the kibble I use salmon or sardines only In water also several times a week I add in 1200mg of fish oil daily. We had crappy skin with litte sores for awhile tried several different foods finally ended up on fromm gold lb and the above plus I use raw veggies as snacks no dog cookies at all and her skin is great and her coat is soft and shiney. Becareful not to over bath her newfs are waterdogs who have a natural oil in their coat which will dry out if over bathed with shampoos

[Melissa C]

If your dog is still itchy, try tropiclean oxy med anti itch spray. It was a miracle worker for my shih tzu

[Author]

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