Dog skin problems

jen

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I posted this on another forum for dogs and no one is really helping yet anyways so I thought I would try here since you guys know me a little better and its more active here.

My boyfriends dad is having a problem with his 11 year old dog Senji. I am just going to paste in the email he sent me. I am just wondering if anyone has any thoughts or additional things he might be able to try. Anything at all. He is quite desperate. Funny thing is that the dog is not constantly itching or biting at the area. Its like she doesn't even notice it.



Senji's skin problem history:

5 years ago it started on her stomach. You recommended Bag Balm and that worked for 3 years. It would only be her stomach during the summer. The Bag Balm always managed it.

3 years ago she had ear mites but I didn't know that was the problem. I took her to the vet and he diagnosed the ear mites. I showed him the skin problem. He said allergies and ran some test which were all negative. He wanted to do more but it was expensive. The Bag Balm was still taking care of the problem. I thought since it normally happened in summer she had a heat sensitivity.

2 years ago it spread a little bit beyond her stomach and the Bag Balm didn't seem to be working. I took her to a different vet and he said it was allergies. He wanted to run a gamut of tests. To be honest I was not impressed with the whole operation at that vet. I went to a holistic vet a friend had recommended. He said he had not seen anything quite like Senji's problem. He gave me some liquid medicine, a herbal supplement and a medicinal shampoo. It seemed to put her problem in check. It didn't quite go away but it was getting better. The summer was almost over and I figured I was in the clear. As soon as I eased up with the medicine and shampoo in the fall it came back with a vengeance. I took Senji back to Dr. Bitten (yes, his real name, french pronoucend Bee tan), he gave her a stronger herbal medicine and ran some tests for allergies. Nothing really worked and no results with the allergy tests. He wanted to run more. But, again, it was getting expensive.

Since the last trip to Dr. Bitten I started doing research. I found an article on a blog that described Senji's problems to a T. This woman said a vet recommended melatonin and it worked wonders. I took Senji back to Dr. Bitten with the melatonin and got his opinion. He said it was good for encouraging fur to grow but had not heard it would solve her skin problem. He recommended the dosage.

At the same time many, many people were recommending Dynavite, a supplement for dogs. Othere swere recommending I spray Hydrogen Peroxide on the affected area. Now I have her on melatonin 4 to 5 days a week, Dynavite once a week, HP about 4 or 5 times a week and the medicinal shampoo about every two weeks. It comes and goes. It's worse in hot weather. But no solution.

I've watched the progress of the problem from day one. It appears that whatever is causing it attacks the roots of her fur, the fur dies, as the fur dies the skin becomes a mottled black/grey with tinges of red. After the fur is gone is moves on to another area to attack the fur. I've done some more research. It's not fungal which I thought it might be but it does meet the definition of a bacterial infection. None of the vets mention this during our visits. And a bacterial infection can be treated with antibiotics. I think it's why the medicinal shampoo and HP have helped manage the problem. The melatonin definitely helps the fur regenerate but does not solve the problem.

So, I've found Cephalexin has been recommended as an antibiotic against bacterial skin infections on dogs. It even behaves like a living organism (Lucas noticed it too) once the fur is destroyed in one area the problem moves to another area as the affected area heals and the fur returns it will move back to that area. It's as if if were feeding on the roots of the fur and that causes the skin discoloration. I can order Cephalexin over the internet. Hopefully it's not some fake crap made in China. I will ask when I order.

That's the history of Senji's skin disorder. What do you think of Cephalexin? Can you recommend any other dog safe anitbiotics?

This is a better before picture. Her breed is unknown, although he was originally told Basenji mix, hence her name. Any ideas?
 

momofmany

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I can't speak for Cephalixen specifically, but have had luck with antibiotics in "allergy" dogs previously.

Allergy dogs are so difficult sometimes. I have learned that when skin conditions become chronic, it is often a sign of auto-immune disease, usually of unknown origin, and almost always unnamed. The cycle of allergy flair up can often compromise their system which in turn can cause bacteria to invade their skin.

I've never had a successful diagnose with allergy tests, and have always had to find the cause thru trial and error. In one case it was food. In another case it was wool. In another case it was the chemicals in my laundry soap. In the case of an allergy cat, he was allergic to one of my dogs.

To fight this off in general, look for immune system boosters (sorry, it's been 10 years since my last allergy dog and I can't remember the name of them), and use the antibiotics to kill off any current bacteria infections. Then start down the path of eliminating things from her environment one by one and get really creative about it. Change laundry soaps, bedding, rugs, food, other chemical cleaners in the house, chemicals used on the lawn, etc. Look for anything she comes into contact with and understand what material / chemical it is made of. Then change it out.

And it could very well be that she's responding to multiple things. If changing out something changes the appearance of it but doesn't clear it up, keep looking.

Sending that you can get to the root of this.
 
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jen

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Thank you SO MUCH. I did forget to mention that EVERYTHING concerning laundry soaps, floor cleaners, were all changed to all natural environmentally friendly versions. He is extremely picky to only use certain things in certain places as far as cleaning purposes go. That didn't really seem to have an affect on Senji's skin problems. When I think of immune system boosters the first thing I think of is Lysine. I think I am going to suggest, based on a few opinions that I have received, to go with the anti-biotics and Lysine.

Please keep any comments or thoughts coming I really appreciate it.
 

sharky

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dumb ?? has a skin scraping ever been done??

what is the dog eating??

Does it get better with a certain season??
 

2dogmom

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Jeeze that poor dog.

Skin problems are just about the trickiest things to diagnose in dogs because there can be so many different causes - allergies, mites, illness, bacterial infection, mange etc. Personally I think the visit to the "holistic" vet was a waste of time - I agree with sharky that the first step is skin scrapings. It sounds like there was an assmption about it being allergies and that could be totally wrong.

I'm including a link on causes of hair loss, there are plenty.
http://www.peteducation.com/article....2+1593&aid=421

Stuff like hydrogen peroxide and bag balm isn't medicine- it's hit or miss home remedies. There could be something deeper going on.

Melatonin is recommended for seasonal flank alopecia, which has some similarity to what those pics of Sanjii are showing.
http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dhairlos...onal%20disease

There are canine skin specialists and if it were my dog and I didn't trust a regular vet to make the correct diagnosis then I'd seek out a specialist.

Good luck and I hope maybe there was a nugget of help in my post here. sorry if I rambled.
 

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I keep telling people this, but get him 3v caps.



If the tests you did are all coming up as negative, then its likely that there is no problem and that he is just not getting the proper nutrition. 3V Caps is like a supplement. It will make the fur and skin all shiny by replenishing with Vitamin A, D, E and Omega-3 fish oils. There's reviews in that link above too, those people experienced a difference. It works if the dog has itching or not, probably he is getting fed too much table scraps or something and not enough other nutrients. Or the food is not getting digested properly.

Let your boyfriend's dad and Senji know right away.
 
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jen

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She has had 2 scrapings which turned up nothing at all. She eats nutro and it's the chunks in gravy for mature dogs and chunks in gravy for weight management. He has tried a number of different diets and changing food has done nothing for her skin infection.

He is very strict about no table scraps but he has cooked her chicken and rice before and does on occasion. He currently also gives her Dynovite suppliment, which I think might be something similar to the 3V caps? Do you guys know?
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by Jen

She has had 2 scrapings which turned up nothing at all. She eats nutro and it's the chunks in gravy for mature dogs and chunks in gravy for weight management. He has tried a number of different diets and changing food has done nothing for her skin infection.

He is very strict about no table scraps but he has cooked her chicken and rice before and does on occasion. He currently also gives her Dynovite suppliment, which I think might be something similar to the 3V caps? Do you guys know?
If it was a allergy induced infection then it might take 6-12 months of a food to clear it ...

I will look up dynovite
 

white cat lover

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Atopica is what my Izzy was put on when she was chewing herself into hot spots. Not sure if it would work in this case.


Is it possible it is an auto-immune disorder? Bad analogy - but grandma has huge nasty scaly spots on her skin as she has an auto-immune disorder.
 

2dogmom

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Since the skin scrapings didn't turn anything up then I would think the next steps would be blood test and/or skin biopsy.

One more thought - what is the pH of Senji's skin? Dogs have fairly neutral skin (like 7-8 pH) while humans have more like 4-5 pH, which makes them much more susceptible to skin ailments. But pH varies a lot among different dogs so some dogs are even more susceptible than others.

There is something called "black skin disease" (!) which affects males mmore than females. I don't think anyone knows for sure what causes it although it seems to affect certain breeds and be related to testosterone levels.
http://www.pommania.co.uk/blackskindisease.htm

Here is one more link re a similar ailment.
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Dogs-701/hair-loss-7.htm

I would really try to get Senji to a skin specialist - or if that is too far away, send the pics to one and see if you can get a better answer. I never have a real good feeling about asking people on the internet over complicated things.

Good luck.
 

cococat

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Originally Posted by Jen

She has had 2 scrapings which turned up nothing at all. She eats nutro and it's the chunks in gravy for mature dogs and chunks in gravy for weight management. He has tried a number of different diets and changing food has done nothing for her skin infection.

He is very strict about no table scraps but he has cooked her chicken and rice before and does on occasion. He currently also gives her Dynovite suppliment, which I think might be something similar to the 3V caps? Do you guys know?
2 suggestions. A holistic vet.
http://www.holisticvetlist.com/
And read up on feeding a better food for her
http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles.htm
 

magicchic

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It's possible it is mange. Even when they do skin scrapings, they only actually SEE the mange 50% of the time. So, even if they see nothing with the skin scraping, doesn't mean that it's not there.

Tell him to try giving the dog childrens' Benedryl. Yes, it is safe for dogs. If it's skin allergies, then it should take care of it.

Our Pitbull had some serious skin issues, so we switched him over to Science Diet Sensitive Skin food, and it's worked wonders for him. He also gets a weekly bath in Sulfur shampoo. So, you could also try that.

One thing that pops in my head is hot spots, since he said it gets worse with warm weather. Both of my Goldens (one is now deceased) suffered from them. But, with the hair just falling out...that doesn't sound like a hot spot. My dogs would pull their hair out from itching.

I'll place my bet on mange or allergies though. The vet could try to treat the dog as if it does have mange, and see how that works out. Which, again, you would want to bathe the dog weekly with a sulfur shampoo, and then give the dog the prescribed medicines. Treating the dog as if it did have mange, wouldn't hurt the dog. And if it doesn't help, then they would need to try something for allergies. With food allergies, it's difficult to pin point what it is that's causing the problem. He could also just try the bland diet. But I would try the other things I posted first. (treat for mange as the last option.)
 

doggie mom

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Hi-
Our 12 yr ol Rhodesian Ridgeback looks just like the dog in this picture. It started after 10 days on clavamox ( bitten on the face by another dog). After the ABX was finished She first had what looked like a red rash then became black. It is on her legs and belly. The vet has not idea, suggested more ABX. She has been scratching some and chewing at times but does not seem to bothered. I have washed her and sprayed with a chorohexidene / antifungul spray. She has been on Benadryl for a week. I washed all her dogigie beds. Our other dog seems fine. We have not changed our dog food. I thought it was perhaps fungal from the ABX but everything I can find. About dogs is that it is rare for them to get a fungal infection after treatment w ABX. The vet wants us to give more ABX and it that doesn't work then steroids. She is starting to loose some of her hair now on her hind legs. Any suggestions. We have already spent $500.00 with the vet.
 

sharky

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Hi-
Our 12 yr ol Rhodesian Ridgeback looks just like the dog in this picture. It started after 10 days on clavamox ( bitten on the face by another dog). After the ABX was finished She first had what looked like a red rash then became black. It is on her legs and belly. The vet has not idea, suggested more ABX. She has been scratching some and chewing at times but does not seem to bothered. I have washed her and sprayed with a chorohexidene / antifungul spray. She has been on Benadryl for a week. I washed all her dogigie beds. Our other dog seems fine. We have not changed our dog food. I thought it was perhaps fungal from the ABX but everything I can find. About dogs is that it is rare for them to get a fungal infection after treatment w ABX. The vet wants us to give more ABX and it that doesn't work then steroids. She is starting to loose some of her hair now on her hind legs. Any suggestions. We have already spent $500.00 with the vet.
What is the food ??? Has blood work been done ? I ask cause as a senior dog issues may arise ...
 

carebearbaby1

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linkfarm

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We put our German Shepherd onto a little organic apple cider vinegar. It has cleared up her hot spots and her skin is really good now

Hope this helps
 

zohdee

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I am hoping that Fiona doesn't get that this summer.  Keeping dry and a good raw diet so she has no allergies is a good start.
 
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rona

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Hi Sharky.

I was reading some of your posts from years ago regarding cat food and struvite crystals. You really seem to know your stuff so I was hoping you could help me. My cat who has a history of struvite crystals was just diagnosed with eosinophilic IBD. I am trying to find a canned food low in phosphorus and carbs but am so confused at this point. I tried Primal turkey raw but he won't eat it. I also tried Evo canned but he wouldn't eat that either (nor would any of my other cats). He only wants dry cat food so I just don't know what to do next. Can you please help/advise what to do/try next? I really would appreciate it. Any advice would be valuable.

Best,

Rona
 

sharky

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Hi Sharky.

I was reading some of your posts from years ago regarding cat food and struvite crystals. You really seem to know your stuff so I was hoping you could help me. My cat who has a history of struvite crystals was just diagnosed with eosinophilic IBD. I am trying to find a canned food low in phosphorus and carbs but am so confused at this point. I tried Primal turkey raw but he won't eat it. I also tried Evo canned but he wouldn't eat that either (nor would any of my other cats). He only wants dry cat food so I just don't know what to do next. Can you please help/advise what to do/try next? I really would appreciate it. Any advice would be valuable.

Best,

Rona
sending you a pm 
 
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