Hi All

I expect you have read my other post on here about my dog excessively licking his feet and being completely itchy. I would like some feedback from other westie owners that have had the same problem with skin trouble, it all started with him starting to excessively lick his front feet and from this we then went to him pulling out clumps of fur from his back leg and because of him doing this he then ripped some of his fur, he did this over the course of 2 days. On taking Hamish to the vets he had to completely shave the back leg to try and get it under control and he then gave him a steroid shot and sent him home with special shampoo and antibiotics, he told me to put him onto Wafcol salmon and potato and to take him back in 1 week, he was showing signs of improving but then last week he started with a bad ear which he was scratching and shaking like mad and since then we have gone down hill, he has now got his collar on 24/7 because as soon as we take it off he goes beserk rubbing his face and body everywhere, the vet said that the ear trouble goes with the skin condition and has put him on ear drops, but he is not eating the food even if we soak it in some water and is pretty miserable. He is booked in to have allergy tests done on Friday but the vet said that these blood tests take 3 weeks to come back. I just cannot get him interested in his food at all, we have tried numerous foods before and i tried him on the Natures diet sensitive which he liked but these made his skin flare up all the more. The vet has said to persevere with the Wafcol until we find out what he is allergic to but i just wish he would eat something, he has not eaten now for 2 days and i am starting to get concerned that he will lose too much weight in a minute.
His front paws are very sore where he has been licking them in the past and underneath his pads are very swollen which the vet said will heal now his collar is on and he is not licking but he cannot live with this on forever and at some point it will have to come off but it looks like it is going to be a long haul. I would like to hear from other people in the same situation as Hamish to get some feedback on this.

Thanks
Helen

Hi Helen.  I don't have Westies myself but in the grooming parlour have come into contact with a large number with skin problems.

There doesn't seem to be a 'one size fits all' answer but two solutions have, over the years appeared to have brilliant results in a good number of cases. 

One was to feed Wafcol Vegetarian!  Lots who've had awful problems seemed to have great success, with only mild recurrences at certain times of the year, when the Vet suggested it maybe pollen etc related.  More amazing turn arounds happened when other owners fed BARF - exactly the opposite to vegetarian complete!  The results for some of the dogs was equally amazing.

I've always suggested that owners don't bath their dogs in between their 8 week appointment with me as thorough rinsing is paramount, and that's not always easy for an owner at home.

I feel so sorry for these dogs with their constant irritation.  It must be like torture to itch and not be able to scratch!! :(

I don't know if you may have tried either of these ideas but may be worth a thought??  No evidence as to why these things might work - just my experience.

Try putting into search engine robert mcdowell.  He is a homepathic Doctor from Australia.
He does on line consultations for free.  It is worth a try.

Good luck

Hi Helen, the list is really endless of what they could be allergic to as regards to barf if they're not allergic to red meat then it's a good diet because you know what your feeding and there's no additives or persevatives in it.  You could try burns dog food or james wellbeloved in duck and rice which is really good for food allergies and add a little tripe.  With him licking his feet i would have thought it was a food allergy,  where does he sleep?  do you wash your floors in bleach?  if so try non biological soap powder and wash his bedding in it also.  Grass can cause allergies aswell, it's really a trial and error learning process, so if he doesn't improve on diet it could be skin contact whats flaring it up and thats when you could try the non biological soap powder and see if that works until you get your results back from your vet.  good luck

Susan

Hi Helen - here is the response I gave to another member who's Westie has skin problems. One of my westies developed a similar skin problem when he was 12 months old (he's 7 years old next month) and was treated by a top dermatologist in Manchester which cost over £1,000 (paid for by my pet insurance). He's allergic to house dust mites, flea bites, pollens, some trees, grasses and moulds. He received desensitising injections for 12 months but they only made him worse so I decided to stop the treatment. I didn't want to put him on steroids so began to surf the net looking for ways to improve his skin. After much trial and error, I've found the only way I can control his allergies is to feed him a BARF (raw meat & bones) diet, he doesn't recieve any booster vaccinations and I tried several different antihistimines before I found one that his skin responded to and it's called Atarax (only available on prescription). He now only needs the odd tablet. I also supplemented his diet with a product called 'Restore' and this really helped his coat to grow back (he had lost quite a lot of coat). I also changed things in his home environment including having all the grass from the back garden removed and replaced with flags. All the carpets were removed (except on the stairs) and replaced with either floor tiles or laminated flooring. I began hand stripping his coat rather than clipping it which over time made a big difference to the overall condition of his skin. Of course it took several months for his skin and overall health to improve but now you can't tell he has a skin problem at all. If he does happen to get an odd spot on his skin I immediately spray some Colliodial Silver on the area and it clears up in no time. I really think you should consider changing his diet to a more healthy option and one that he will enjoy eating. A good frozen raw food product like 'Prize Choice' would be my suggestion for your dog. At the moment your Westie's immune system is serverely compromised and steriods only reduce the immune system even more which often results in secondary issues such as ear infections - so more steriods/antibiotics are prescribed resulting in a weaker immune system - and the cycle continues. Your Westie needs to be healed 'from the inside out' so you should begin by trying to boost his immune system and a change in his diet is one of the main areas you should be looking at first. He must be feeling pretty miserable at the moment especially having to wear a collar - poor little mite. Where do you live Helen?

Hi

Thanks for your reply, Hamish is pretty miserable at the moment and his stomach is rumbling like mad which proves he is hungry but just has no interest in the dry kibble even if i soak it in warm water, i just wish i could give him some food which he loved and ate and didn't make him bad!!
I live in Portsmouth, Hampshire and touch wood my vet is very good and understanding but at the moment there is no miracle cure.
You said about feeding BARF and about the Prize Choice meat but what do you then put with this to make his diet complete? I am very interested in feeding him more home cooked meals but am frightened that he will lose out on all the vitamins he needs with me not really understanding what he needs. Is it a case they just have this meat on its own, i know that complete foods are supposed to be good but at least if you cook the food yourself you then know what he is eating.
I have ordered some colloidal silver spray and was looking into the MSM 1000mg tablets to give him each day but would be interested in finding out more about the raw diet, i suppose it depends on which meat he is allergic to?
Look forward to hearing from you.
Helen and itchy Hamish

I can understand your worries about home feeding rather than a 'professionally' balanced food, but to be honest, could you do much worse than poor Hamish is feeling at the moment??
Of course he could be sensitive to meat (which is possibly why a vegetarian complete is the answer for some??) but more likely to be sensitive to the processed stuff! :)
There are plenty of barf sites on the net to advise, but they will recommend on adding one thing at a time, so you can start slowly.  The idea is to provide a balanced diet on a long term basis, not a daily basis, so don't worry about that too much.  The aim is to make itchy Hamish more comfortable!! ;)

H,

As you know I ditto what Fourpaws has said. I know she has done almost miracles with her little lad.

Hi Helen

I meant to tell you of a website you might be interested in re a raw food supplier for Hamish - it's www.landyfoods.co.uk - it's worth a look and they may deliver to your area.

Hi

Just been to my pets at home store and looked at the prize choice meat but which 1 do you use, i have brought the lamb meal but they also had turkey,chicken,rabbit, with this meat do you just give him this or do you add something else with it, i am just concerned that he cannot just have meat on its own? I am very new to this sort of feeding and don't want to give it to him without checking it out first. I also noticed the natures menu pouches that are just meat,vegetable and wholemeal rice, i did get 1 each of these aswell, but am dubious before i check them out as to whether they will make him worse, i did try the natures diet and this made him itch all the more but i noticed on somebodys post that the natures menu is raw feeding, which is different to the natures diet!! I just want my little man to eat something as his stomach is rumbling like mad but the kibble he just won't touch.

Thanks
Helen

Hi Helen - any of the Prize Choice blocks are fine - I get one of each kind to ensure that my dogs get a variety of meats over a period of time. As you've already bought a lamb block you may be better sticking to the one meat for a few weeks and if he's okay then you can introduce another meat and so on. To help him gain his appetite back you may wish to microwave/cook the meat first in a little water for a couple of minutes - let it cool and then just feed as it is with the juices. Don't overfill his dish - little and often is best until he gains his appetite back. What makes you think he may may be allergic to beef? Here is a link to the Prize Choice Website  http://www.prizechoice.co.uk/ which gives you lots more information about raw feeding. Prize Choice is a complete food - it includes meat and bone minced together. I also feed an Holistic Wholebake Biscuit called 'Natural Choice Wholebake' and I can give you more information about that if you wish. The first thing you need to do is to get your little man to eat then you can begin the 'trial and error' period to ascertain exactly what is triggering his skin reaction. I say 'trial and error' as this is not gonna be an overnight cure. As Blue said - my boy was in such a state but I knew I couldn't go down the 'steriod' route with him as they only supress the symptoms - I wanted him to heal in a more natural way. I must have tried just about anything and everything on the market to ease my boy's pain. Like humans, each dog is different, so what works for one dog won't necessarily work for another. It could take weeks or it could take months but don't get disheartened and give up - your little man is depending on you to help get him better. I live in Cheshire so Portsmouth is a little far to travel - lol. I was gonna suggest I have a look at him as it helps to see the kind of reaction his skin is having. I've done that with one of the Westies I groom who was suffering with his skin and severe loss of coat. I then recommended the changes his owners should make to his diet and environment which they agreed to do - they said they had nothing to lose and everything to gain. The difference in him in just over a month is unbelievable - he looks like a different dog - his coat has grown back thicker than it ever was before and his skin condition has practically healed -  now a happy little chappy - his owners can't believe the change in him. Anyway, I digress - you may wish to read up on the BARF diet - just do a search on the net under BARF and you will get lots of information. Please keep me informed of his progress and you can email me privately if you wish.

Hi

I am not sure how to email you privately so will have to post on here, Hamish is due to stop his antibiotics tomorrow he has been on ceporex, he is also on antibiotics ear drops that he started on Friday his ear is really red and swollen inside and smells at the moment and as soon as his collar comes off he scratches his ear to bits if we don't stop him. I ordered some colloidal silver spray yesterday for his feet, he is going down to the vets on Friday morning to have some blood taken so that they can do allergy tests on him but the vet said that these results take up to 3 weeks to come back, the vet said not to change his food until these results are through and that he needs to stay on the Wafcol but i am not prepared to wait that long as he has lost a lot of weight now and his stomach just keeps rumbling were he is hungry but he just won't eat the wafcol dry or soaked.
I think the vet is going to put him on some steroids after he has had his blood test done on Friday but i don't want him on these long term. We are in the middle of moving house at the moment and i am just hoping that the stress of moving does not make him any worse, when we first put our house on the market his skin was fine and now we are close to signing contracts i am just so worried that he is going to be stressed with the move and that this will upset him again, he also hates fireworks and gets really stressed so this is the worst time of the year for us to move, i am just so worried that with the firework season coming up and the house move it will all prove too much for him to take, or whether its me just over worrying about him!!
I am going to cook him some of the lamb meal tomorrow and try him, how much of the meat should he eat per day, would you give him the whole pack spread out over the day or not? I am going to stop the Wafcol completely and take a chance, i just want him to eat something, but just want to check on the amount he should have?
Thanks for all your help
Helen

This is just a general comment on the skin issues.

My heart really goes out to anyone of any breeds with skin and allergy issues.

Vets although we couldn't live without them are a nightmare at generalising about allergies. Some of the things I hear them recommend sometimes amazes me.  It seems to really sort it out it out or try and control it takes a lot of hard work through elimination.  Worth while hard work I have to say.

As Fourpaws has demonstrated it can work and I know how bad her dog was. It is incredible the change in him.

I had my first customer recently with skin trouble. the dog is 14 years old and has been in tip top health for these 14 years.   When I saw him he had a pinky tinge all over and losing a lot of hair. A right sorry state.  It was an older lady and I felt so sorry for her.

We had a good old chat and although I hate to go against what the vet had recommended I felt I had to.

She brought this shampoo with her , a teatree type but it clearly was unsuitable. It has things like extra conditioning and extra fragrance written on the bottle.. Hello!!!  She got it from the vets. 

The problems started about 6 months ago and he has been fine for 14 years.

I asked her to tell me everything that had happened or changed in the last 6 months.

They had moved home.. grass for the first time ever, new wool carpet.  This is when nibbling to the legs started. Not the colour though.  She went to the vets and he put the dog on some kind of Hills Diet and gave her the shampoo.  Then the pink started and staining all over, hair lose etc.

This was about 6 weeks ago. Since then.  She has put the dog on tripe.  Banned it from the lounge where the new carpet is by using a baby gate, Been washing the little lad in Malaseb and keeping him off the grass.   There is definately a marked improvement.    They are an old couple as I said and I did feel a bit risky asking them to trust me or at least try my recommendations for a period of time , including forgetting the vet prescribed diet and shampoo.  Thankfully there is a improvement.

The sad thing is how many people all over are in the same situation and don't know where to turn  :-(

I am not saying this  or any other tip are miracle cures but it is worth trying.

I had one of my youngsters at the vets last week as she needed her eye duct unblocked.  ( have to say it wasn't my regular vet as he wouldn't have dared said what the one I saw said)

The first thing that came out of her mouth is,  " I don't think it is an allergy as she is a bit young".. I nearly ate her.  I told her she has a blocked eye duct and to stop generalising. I honestly thought it was very unprofessional.  She back tracked quite a bit but it wasn't right.  The bitch has no skin trouble whatsoever and touch wood I never have with any dog.

In agreement with everything Blue and Fourpaws has said.
I also have a bitch 2yrs old, who has been having allergy and food intolerence problems since she was weaned (by me!) I've been on here before, getting lots of helpful advice from others. many thanks all :D :D
I too have finally had her allergy tested and the only things that came back with no reaction was, chicken pork and oats!!!
I am seeing an homeopathic/holistic vet now with her as I wasn't happy with the way the conventional one was treating her. I think it would have been steroids next. Not on a 1 year old thank you!! Plus he was advising all the wrong foods for her. They are not nutritionalists!! I wish they'd stick to what they are supposed to know.
The vet now has had her on pollen sprays and pulsatilla spray to try and help to desensitise her. she is also on Cystease capsules to help line her gut and give her the enzymes and probiotics to help her digestive system.
I've been down the same road of changing everything that she sleeps on etc. but it does seem to be food related more than anything else.
I also have to change things very, very slowly with her as the slightest change can upset the apple cart and she ends up scratching or gets awful runs. she has to stay on the same thing (elimination diet)

I would like some advise please, if I may jump on the band wagon here, as to what natural things I can give her to help boost her immune system. I believe Aloe Vera juice is good and also is brocolli? what else can I give her?  I am also putting a few drops of apple cider vinegar in her water now as this helps to de-toxify. Am I right?
Thanks in anticipation
anne

Its very hard to imagine what owners go through with skin problems with any breed, although at times I feel Westies are singled out for this. Mine are fed on raw tripe and some Butchers dog food mixed in (no additives in this food) I find this  is fine with them.  Fourpaws, was reading back on some of your posts Hope you are well not seen or heard from you in a long time. Glad to hear your problems with your westie have been solved .  Hope your mum and yorkie Bobby are well.    If I remember, quite a while ago it was recommended to bathe the paws  in diluted Hibiscrub you can buy this from the chemist. Blue will correct me if i'm wrong on this one, but something sticks in my mind about Hibiscrub.

LOL Marguerite,

I love Hibiscrub, :-) use it for everything. It even takes the stains out the coats :-)

I use it for many things such as cleaning their ears out etc. Scrubbing my hands after grooming.

Hi Marguerite - it's lovely to hear from you - long time, no see - lol. It was you who recommended Hibiscrub for my boy - it worked as well if you rememeber - far better than Malaseb which seemed to have no affect on him whatsoever. I don't need to use Hibiscrub at all now. Mum is fine and doing well - thanks for asking. Hope you and yours are okay?

Hi Anne - good on you for questioning your vets advice/suggestions. I also took my boy to a homeopathic/holistic vet (I did say I'd tried everything didn't I - LOL) which certainly helped him on the road to recovery. I now keep in touch with an homeopathic/holistic consultant via the net who is always on hand to help with any issues any of my dogs may have (I have 4 Westies and 1 Yorkie). What are you feeding at the moment Anne? There are many to boost the immune system  - here is a short list of a few:

A BARF Diet
Probiotics
A good quality canine digestive enzyme
Colloidal Silver (CS)
Vitamin C
Zinc (especially good for Westies)
Fish Oil (Omega 3)
Vitamin E

and the list goes on. It can get rather complicated and I'm no vet or nutritionalist - all I can do is the research so I can at least make an informed decision for their better health. The most essential and best immune system booster is to feed a BARF (raw meat & bone) diet. Here is a link to excellent site about feeding BARF http://www.westielovers.com/arf4westies/  The site is geared to Westies but relates to all dogs so have a browse - you'll be amazed what you'll learn. If you scroll down to the bottom of the page there is a link which gives answers to 'The Top 50 FAQ's for Newcomers' - this should answer all your questions and more. 

Helen - although my dogs have never suffered with ear problems (thanks goodness) I do keep a look out for natural solutions for keeping ears clean and infection free. Here's a great one:

Soak a little minced garlic in some Colloidal Silver (CS) overnight. Spray into the ear, rub gently, let the dog shake out the excess liquid and clear the rest with some cotton wool - don't poke down into the ear canal. The garlic keeps the mites away and the CS is anti-fungal, anti yeast, anti bacterial, healing & soothing.

Thornit is also good for ears.

See your vet first - if he gives his permission get some Hibiscrub from the chemist and bath Hamish with it. It did my boy the world of good - among other things which I did at the same time such as giving him an antihistamine, feeding BARF, hand stripping his coat, feeding a coat and skin supplement called Restore, etc etc. What I'm trying to say is that it's a combination of things which helps the healing process - not one thing on it's own - you just have to hit on the right combination for you dog.

Hamish could do with some Probiotics to help counteract the effects of the antibiotics he's taking. I'm also glad that you (like Anne) have decided to question your vet's advice on feeding. I always go with my gut instincts when it comes to my dogs health - again I make an informed decision based on all the information I can gather from the vet/internet/and talking to people who have/are going through similar circumstances with their dogs. If Hamish has a tendency to get stressed with fireworks you can give him a few drops of Rescue Remedy (purchased from Holland & Barratt) a few days before the fireworks really start and continue until they stop. Also - I know this sounds stupid - but it works - put one of your old tee-shirts on him and wrap it closely to his skin (not too tight) - it's supposed to make them feel more secure - it works for my boy who also hates fireworks. Of course a BARF diet will naturally help reduce his stress levels. You mention that your vet may want to put him on steriods on Friday - do you really want that - I know I wouldn't and I refused to let the vet/dermatologist prescribe any. Again, this is only my opinion and the experiences with my dog - you have to do what you think best for your dog. Instead I chose to try an antihistamine from the list that the dermatologist gave me when she realised that I was dead set against him taking steriods. The first 3 on the list didn't work at all - the 4th one called Atarax did the trick. It's only prescribed on prescription by your vet - if your interested in going down that route then have a word with your vet and get his opinion. At the moment I wouldn't worry too much about how much to feed him - you just need to get him to eat. The whole block would be too much for one Westie per day - as I said earlier - just feed him little and often - a quarter to half the block is ideal for the first few days as his stomach is empty so to give him too much at once will cause an upset. If he's not fussy on the lamb at first here are some more ideas to tempt his appetite - you could try him with a little natural cottage cheese with some tuna in sunflower oil mixed in (or just tuna on it's own) - my boys love it and it's very good for them. How about some cooked liver served with the juices - dogs love liver and again it's very good for them. I also make a chicken stock that I pour over their meals a couple of times a week. It includes chicken carcasses, or wings, or thighs, garlic, fresh parsley, a couple of tablespoons of organic apple cider vinagar (from Holland & Barratt), fresh/frozen spinach (another good vegetable for Westies) 1 vegetable stock cube (optional). Add all ingredients to a large pan of water, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 1 to 3 hours, sieve to separate the chicken bones which should be discarded (DO NOT FEED COOKED CHICKEN BONES), before discarding break any chicken meat off the bones and put back into the liquid, let cool and freeze in ice-cube trays (that's what I do). Again it's trial and error - he may decide to have an adverse reaction to one or more of the suggested foods but I'd take a chance as you need him to eat and gain some strength before you can begin to heal him. Also, I give my boys bottled water instead of tap water - just another idea for you. I could go on an on with other ideas/suggestions but try these first.

Helen - how is Hamish doing? Is he eating yet?

Hi

Sorry i haven't replied earlier, i have been busy at work and also we are moving in 2 weeks so it is bedlam here at the moment!! Good thing is yes he is eating i got the lamb prize choice meat and as soon as the bowl goes down he scoffs it all up and looks for more, we started off giving him 1/2 of the pack in 2 meals per day but then increased to the whole pack over 2 meals and he is still looking for more, were he has lost a lot of weight you can feel his back bone sticking through so he has got a lot to make up. I am just wondering whether the meat on its own is enough for him as he is still looking for more food, will this on its own put weight on him eventually or should i be mixing something else with it?
He went to the vets yesterday to have his bloods taken and he was such a good boy, the vet said the results will take 3 weeks to come back and has put him on steroid tablets in the meantime he has got to have 1 twice a day for 5 days then 1 once a day until we get the results back, at the moment his skin doesn't seem any better but it is very early days as i only started him on the meat on Wednesday.

Thanks for asking about him and i will keep you informed as to how he goes
Helen

I'm so glad that Hamish is now eating and enjoying his food - poor baby - he must be starving. Helen - Prize Choice is a complete meal - it has minced bone as well as meat which is about all he needs so you shouldn't need to include anything else for the moment except the supplements that were mentioned in earlier posts. Later on you could try mixing a biscuit mixer in but it may set his itching off again. At least he's eating - that's the main thing. If you think he won't have a reaction - you could try him with a bit of yoghurt, cottage cheese, or tuna in sunflower oil in the morning. As I said - it's gonna be trial and error at first - just include a new food gradually and see how he goes. Let me know when you get the test results back - okay! Did you inform your vet that you've decided to feed Prize Choice to Hamish instead of the food he recommended - and if so - what was his reaction?

Hi

What supplements should he be having with the meat as i didn't take note of these sorry, i was more interested in the prize choice meat and getting him eating!! At the moment i don't want to add anything else like yoghurt or tuna with the meat because he is still licking like mad and i want to get him settled first, i thought by now with the steroids in his system he may have stopped licking and scratching but at the moment there is no improvement, he just rubs his face like mad up against the furniture and scratches the minute his collar is off i know its early days but i just hoped to see some sign of improvement and be able to leave the collar off a bit more. He goes beserk when he gets out the garden and scratches his face like mad with his back foot so we have got to make sure the collar is on before he gets out there now!!
He has got sores round his mouth where he has been licking constantly with the collar on and his fur around the mouth is constantly wet, we tell him off for licking but he just does it again in no time, could i use the colloidal silver spray on his mouth or not? Also when you spray this on the feet do you spray the pads with it or the front of the feet? And how much can you spray on at 1 time?

Thanks
Helen

Helen - if you scroll up on this thread you will see my post about supplements to help boost the immune system - here is the list I gave:

A BARF Diet
Probiotics
A good quality canine digestive enzyme
Colloidal Silver (CS)
Vitamin C
Zinc (especially good for Westies)
Fish Oil (Omega 3)
Vitamin E

Yes, you can spray CS on his mouth (and inside too) and also spray his pads and front of the feet. You can use the spray several times a day - and spray enough to wet the area - it doesn't matter how much you spray - it's very safe. Is he still eating and have you seen any improvement in him yet?

Hi

I've been reading all about your little westie and my heart goes out to you.  I too have a little westie, Belle (who I just adore!), who's in exactly the same predicament - sometimes I just want to cry seeing her in such discomfort.  She's had two dozes of steroids (which made her very poorly and they did nothing to help - she was on prednisone and another one which I can't remember the name of) and one doze of antibiotics.  After the second lot of steroids I vowed never to go down that route again, so I started her and my yorkie (who also started scratching!) onto raw food two weeks ago. My vet said that my yorkie had harvest mite but that the mites were almost dead, but he couldn't tell me why she has little blisters on the top of her legs just like my westie - he could only suggest putting them on steroids again to "help build up their skin"!  Goodbye to that vet!  Anyway, I started the raw food diet a week ago and, even though, I haven't noticed any improvement yet, she's not getting any worse and she loves mealtimes now - which is great because she's a very fussy eater - she also gets sulphur tables 3 times a day, some zinc, calcium c, omega 3, 6 and 9 oils and evening primrose oil - so hopefully I should see some improvement soon.  She's happy in herself and loves cuddles but has lost a lot of hair and her skin is very pink and sore - so I understand fully what you're going through.  I, too, am one of the 'virgin' raw meat feeders but am determined to do the best for Belle and Holly.  I'm preparing their food myself (I'm sure I'm not doing it properly) and I'd like to try Prize Choice or Nature's Menu but can't find a stockist (I live in East London).   I heard Dr. Harvey's is very good but can only be bought in the US and the shipping cost is $90!  I have though sent away for 'Missing Link' a supplement to use with their food and am awaiting delivery of that.  I see from the messages that Hibiscrub is very good, but again, I can't find a stockist - can you suggest somewhere I can purchase it - perhaps by email - and the colloidal silver spray?

Hibiscrub is available from Boots. Ask at the pharmacy counter. :)

Hi

Sorry to hear you are in the same position as me, its so heart breaking to see them attacking themselves and not be able to help them. You just want a miracle cure but unfortunately this doesn't happen overnight but fingers crossed we will soon be on the road to recovery and have happy healthy dogs again!!
The colloidal silver spray i brought from www.worldwideshoppingmail.co.uk, the bottle cost £6.95 and delivery was free, it also arrived really quickly and i would recommend buying from them. At the moment it does not seem to be stopping Hamish from licking but i am not sure whether it is a preventative from them licking or whether it helps to heal the skin, perhaps somebody may be able to advise more on this that has used it a lot of times before.
Hamish has improved since being on the BARF diet, but is still licking his feet when his collar is off unfortunately, so when we are out and at night he has got to have the collar on all of the time as he cannot be trusted, i thought being on steroids would have stopped him licking his feet and scratching but at the moment they do not seem to be doing any good at all, so as soon as his course is up he is not having any more of them as i feel whats the point, i am still awaiting his allergy test results so should know more in a couple of weeks time.

Good luck and hope your dogs get better soon, if you have any questions or just want a chat i am happy to exchange ideas about them, as its good to talk to other dog owners as you can pick up some good tips and hints along the way that vets would not bother telling you.

Helen and Hamish

Hi Helen

Thanks for your reply - so happy to hear Hamish has improved a little - Belle is a lot chirpier too since being on it - but now I seem to have another problem.  This morning I found blood on the kitchen floor.  Belle had gone to the toilet in the middle of the night (which is so unusual for her) and there were little spots of blood on the floor with one (worryingly) large spot and some blood in her bed (she had also poo'd but there was no blood in it).  I'm not sure what to do - she doesn't seem to be affected by it - but I'm concerned it might be caused by a shard from the lamb bones I gave her Tuesday and Wednesday which may have cut her inside or she has picked up an  infection of some kind.  Have you had anything like this happen to Hamish?  I'm taking her to the vet for a checkover to be on the safe side.

The steriods didn't do anything for Belle either (she was on them for two weeks) - all they did was run her down and make her feel ill.  I've just bought a supplement called "Missing Link", it's a dry granular powder you sprinkle on their food - it's all natural, human-edible quality whole foods and food concentrates and has flax seed, freeze dried bone, dried, fish meal, carrot, kelp, sunflower seed, blackstrap molasses, etc in it.  On other websites, (US/Australian) dog owners swear by it - it seems to be very popular and claims to promote general health & well-being, better digestion, healthy skin & coat, reduced allergies, etc, so I'm going to give it a go and if I get a good result, I'll let you know.

Hi All

Sorry i haven't updated you for a while about Hamish but here goes, things have been very bad for my little boy over the Christmas period and he has been back to the vets today, i took Hamish for a 2nd opinion as i was not happy with my vet, on going for the 2nd opinion in November the new vet did skin scrapings and sent them off these showed that he has a profuse growth of staphlycocus and a profuse growth of malassezia (sorry if not spelt right), he put him onto 6 weeks of antibiotics for the staph infection and malaseb shampoo for the malassezia, he has been on this now for 3 weeks but with no improvement, he also re did the allergy tests and also tested for food allergies which my 1st vet would not do, we are still awaiting these to come back, he has put him onto Atopica to control the atopy that is the root cause of the problem but these other two infestations have set in because of the underlying atopy, so we need to control these to try and get him more under control, he has been on the atopica for 2 weeks but in this time has deteriorated even more!! He has lost all his fur on the front paws and down his breast bone at the front, he has got to wear the collar 24/7 because as soon as you remove it he rips his fur until it bleeds, he even has to eat with it on poor little mite. Over the christmas period his skin was burning up and he could not settle at all he also has got bad ears again which goes with the skin problem, he really is in quite a state at the moment with no sign of improving which the vet said is very worrying, he didn't expect great improvements but he said other dogs have reacted quicker on these drugs than Hamish is and have certainly not got worse, he has today given Hamish an anti-inflammatory injection but he said that this will not last long and he has got to go back on Tuesday for another injection, he is hoping that this may give Hamish so relief from the constant itching all the time and hopefully we may then be able to try and leave the collar off for short periods of time, his quality of life at the moment is non existant because he has now had the collar on for nearly 4 months and there is no sign of being able to leave it off.
I really don't know what to do i just want to make him better but it seems that everything we are trying just isn't working, he seems so miserable and is not really interested in his food at the moment either.
I will keep you all posted as to how he gets on.
Helen and Hamish

Hi Helen

I cannot remember if I posted to you on another thread about yeast issues, I know I have posted re Malassezia several times in response to WHWT owners and other itchy dogs; the following links may help you:

[link]http://www.westiemed.com/malassezia/[/link]
[link]http://www.dogaware.com/specific.html[/link]
[link]http://b-naturals.com/Apr2002.php[/link]

Unfortunately vets see 20% of conditions 80% of the time and often, like human doctors, do not consider all the issues and, vets are only human, some have more knowledge than others, some have attended better courses than others (not all vet degrees/unis are viewed with the same degree of "awe", whatever some people think) and others do not think outside the box, and yet still others have a prejudice against allergy testing, skin scrapes et al, why I cannot imagine but as you and many others have found you practically have to force the issue with some  vets/practices.

Food and supplements can greatly improve your dog's condition but it will not be instant, there is some superb advice in the Lew Olson and Dogaware sites in particular and, although US based, there are equivalent products in the UK.

A Homoepath/holistic vet can also be of great assistance.

Wishing you well