I have posted about this before but would really appreciate some advice on what to do next. We last had Harvey at the vets two weeks ago this coming Friday. He had a skin scrape which didn't show anything sinister and was given a steroid injection and a course od AB's. The injection lasted approx four days and he was back to scratching on the Tuesday. I have waited for the course of Anti Biotics to finish which was Monday and I bathed him on Tuesday evening which offers a relief to him. I have contacted Dorwest this morning and spoke to a lovely man who asked me lots of questions about Harvey's lifestyle and diet - I explained that I feed him Origen six fish and give sea jerky and freeze dried cod & kelp treats and he mentioned that I am giving him way too much protein and this could be adding to the problem. He advised that I feed just boiled chicken and sticky brown rice with added Dorwest easy green for about five weeks along with Garlic & fenugreek and mixed vegetable tablets. Is it possible that the Origen is too high in protein and can too much protien in a dogs diet cause allergic reaction? I am going to take his advise and try the bland diet....i will try anything.

My next question is, where do we go from here re treatment? My vet mentioned allergy testing and desensitization therapy? I have googled and googled and seem to find mixed feelings on this line of treatment. I would love to here from other people who's poor dog/s have suffered allergies and itching who can share their (hopefully) success stories and offer me some tips and advice which I will be so grateful of.

My Gordon setter is allergic to cheese and something else but we don't know what it is. She gets really itchy ears and also itchy skin, we give her anti-histamine (the generic equivalent of original piriton) and although it didn't help her ears (yeast - now getting treatment) it did stop her from scratching her body. She gets Pets At Home light adult complete.

One of my Papillons was like this. The one and ONLY food he can eat is Winalot cans. If he gets just that he's 100 % fine all the time.

Moose my eldest Lab has had allergy tests as she was getting re-occuring ear infections and her nose peels. She is allergic to house mites and dust. We had her ears cleaned under GA and made a double effort on doing as much vacuuming as we could and it has been alot better until recently.We have had under floor heating pipe leaks and so we have floors dug up and plaster ripped of a few walls so the place is like a bomb site. To keep the dust levels down has been impossible and so her bad ears have come back again with a vengence.

I also changed her over to barf about 3 years ago and that helped as well.

We decided not to go down the route of desensitisation as I think we weighed up the pros and cons and the % likelyhood of it not working swayed us into not having it done and also the amount of vets visits we would have had to make !

I would get the allergy test done and then decide after you see what the allergens are and if there are any things you can do to avoid them.

Has your dog had any blood tests?

My ACS has lots of food allergies. Last year we tested him for thyroid and he has indeed autoimmune thyroidits. Because the lack of thyroid hormone affects their immune system, allergies can often be caused or aggravated by a hypothyroidism. So it would definitely be worth testing. (You would need a comprehensive test that also shows the antibodies).

I have never heard of too much protein causing food allergies. It is more likely that one or more of the ingredients cause a reaction.

It might be worth putting him on a very bland diet (rice and one type of meat) to see whether it makes a difference. If it does, then there is a food allergy and you need to investigate more.

Since my ACS has been on thyroxine, he has not had any further skin infections. He still itches sometimes if he gets hold of something he shouldn't (as the allergies are still there), but his immune system can now deal with it much more efficiently.

Setting aside that the nice man from Dorwest wanted to sell you a load of their products, and the diet he suggest would be way too low in calcium for a five-week period  ... high protein causing an allergic reaction is nonsense.  Not knocking Dorwest product, they are excellent, but they do want to sell them and are a bit biased.

You've assumed I suppose that fish is unlikely to cause an allergic reaction, which is true for most dogs.  Yours may be the one that is allergic to fish, or as another poster said, to some other ingredient in Origen or elsewhere.  I personally would invest in allergy testing because he may not have a food allergy at all; and you can drive yourself crazy trying to find something that works, to no avail. 

Apart from that, if you do want to test different foods I would recommend you make it up yourself if at all possible, cooked or raw.  It really is the only way to be absolutely sure what he's eating. 

We had bloods done at the vet a couple of years ago because of skin allergies in one of mine. She is allergic to beef, rice, chicken, oats, wheat, different grasses- you get the picture. lol.  She is now on Burns venison and brown rice - it was the lesser of two evils.  Her ears have always been affected - I clean them with a mixture of apple cider vinegar and water(50/50), helps if it is a yeast infection.    my vet also practices homopathic remedies which have been a blessing. I think the test cost about £200 but this was payed by her insurance as is her homopathic treatment.  If you can get the allergy test done itwill give you something to work with.

My pup has severe allergies and one of the things he is allergic to is fish.

I think you really need to have your boy allergy tested. You could try an elimination diet but that wont help if he has enviromental allergies.
We are about to start the desensitization therapy. I'll let you know how it goes.

christine,

Why would you feed your dog a food in which is largely rice when you say she is allergic to rice?

When the allergy testing was done I was given the percentages in what area she was allergic to i.e. beef 92%,oats 85%, wheat 80 % , and so on. The lowest reading was brown rice.

I'd cut all food out that he is even just remotely allergic to, at least until his system is stabilised. When a dog is allergic, then the tiniest amount can cause major problems. How about feeding a potatoe or sweet potatoe based food instead.

Potato was high on the list of allergies as were mixed grasses.  She is doing very well now, but it was a long road.

Thank you to everyone for your replies - I really appreciate it.............. **UPDATE**..................

We have been back to the vet tonight and decided that we need to have Harvey allergy tested in order to get to the root of the cause but we have to wait because Harvey had a steroid injection recently and the test wouldn't be accurate. we have been sent away with a two week course of Atopica as the test can be done with this in his system.

The vet doesn't believe that Harvey is allergic to a food because he has been on so many different diets - all 'hypo-allergenic' but none have relieved his symptoms. She has advised that we just do the airborne allergen test as it is looking highly likely that Harvey's problem is something to do with grass because he seems to get far worse at around this time of year and when I think back, Harveys problems only started when we moved to this house - we used to have a terraced house with a paved yard rather that a lawned garden which we have now - it might just be a coincidence I don't know. I'm not sure about just doing the airborne test because then we will never know if there is a food causing problems too - I know that the vet is trying to keep our bill down as we are not insured but I can't see the point in doing half a test really.

Understand, I guess if you want to feed a manufactured food it's hard to find one that works if you have dog with a long list of food allergies.

Hiya,

I would ask for the food allergy one aswell - My girl was on a few hypo allergenic diets while trying to figure out what was causing her skin probs and, part of her allergy problem turned out to be rice and soya, aswell as lots of outside influences, she had a small amount of rice in her diet and removal of that alone has made quite a big difference to her.  Unless you have tried each diet for a period of about six weeks and have used one which is a portien source that was unique to your dog that he hadn't had before, and not given anything else during that food trial then you can't rule out food being at least part of the problem.

It will be more expensive in the long run if you have other allergy tests and they don't prove anything because food is causing the problem.  I hope you get it sorted for him.

Just jumping in on your thread to save another.
My young goldie has been itching herself on her tummy and biting as well for about 10days now,ive changed all her bedding 2-3 times but still itching as yours luvhandles.
Im off to the vet tomorrow and see if her glands needs doing...maybe but no signs.
She has JWB TURKEY AND VEG no cereal,which she has been having about 3months now,so no rice or grains.
I do find she is only itching during the night and early morning....very strange.
If she does not stop soon,she will also have to have some tests done.
Hope you get your Harvey sorted soon.

Goldie,

If she is only itching during the night and early morning it may be that she is allergic to whatever she is sleeping on at night.   Laundry detergent and fabric softner are two very common things that can cause allergic reactions.

Hi Cairnmania.
Yes i think you maybe right,i have put cotton covers on her bed tonight and a new towel and see how that works.
They have had fleece ones so maybe to hot as well.

Hi goldie,
sorry to hear that you are having problems with your girl - make sure that you wash her bedding with only non-bio detergent. Harvey tends to scratch like crazy first thing in the morning too, Its horrible isn't it when they are itchy and you can't help them. Three days into the Atopica treatment and Harvey seems happier and not quite as itchy as he has been - he has an extra waggy tail today which is brill to see :)

Harvey tends to scratch like crazy first thing in the morning too
In my experience, that points to food too.  Why not try raw for a week?  Or if you really want to feed complete, then Wafcol Salmon & Potato or their Vegetarian one.  That is the order that I've seen success with Westie skin problems - raw giving the quickest and best results and Wafcol the next best. :)  So much better to deal with the cause rather than the symptoms.

Thank you for the advice westcoast. Why would you say that scratching a lot in the morning points towards food allergy? I wouldn't really think so due to the fact that first thing in the morning, its a good 12 - 13 hours since he has last eaten? - please correct me if I'm wrong though. He always starts when (if weather is dry) he goes out for his first wee - he sits on the patio and scratches no end but if its raining, he does his business as fast as possible and then come inside and scratches  :-(
I am not confident enough to feed a raw diet - never will be, I can cope with giving the odd chicken wing but thats about it - I would make up a cooked food if a nutritional expert gave me a recipe and feeding amounts but the thought of doing it alone frightens me because I worry about missing out essential nutrients. Harvey has been on Wafcol salmon and potato which didn't make the slightest difference in fact we have tried most high quality hypo allergenic diets including the veterinary specialised ones which haven't helped at all.

The vet doesn't believe that Harvey is allergic to a food because he has been on so many different diets - all 'hypo-allergenic' but none have relieved his symptoms.

My Jesse was on lots of diets too trying to get his digestive system sorted (vomitting, diarrhea)! It turned out that ALL dried food make him vomit... regardless of the ingredients!

Just because there isn't a suitable dry food out there (or you haven't found it yet), doesn't mean there aren't any food allergies! I would definitely test for food allergies too!

I do remember her itching this time last year,and put it down to grass or feed. It stopped after a few weeks and didnt have to take any thing further.
Hopefully that will happen again soon.
She has cereal free food and fresh clean non bio bed.
As you say its horrid when they itch,she does bite her tummy and back legs mostly,more than leg action scratching.
Had her glands done today,not much in them.

Glad Harvey seems better.

oooooooo that could be my answer Cheese... Noo was sick on cheese the other day, upset her a lot. She ssemed ok the next day after plenty of TLC, now she has pink skin and is itching loads especially around her ears and underbelly... I wonder if it is the cheese i gave her, was only a tint sliver... ???

could be, that's how it affects treacle.

My experience with allergies is human not doggy, but quite extensive; both of my sons and I have allergies to many things differing in severity - my eldest son with a life-threatening allergy to peanuts.  What I do know, in people, is that: allergies are to proteins;  there can be a build up of allergies before symptoms show eg on a scale of 1 - 10 your dog may show symptoms at 7 made up of say - grass pollen allergy - 2 , fish allergy - 3 and dairy product allergy - 3 giving a total of 8 which will show a reaction.  If you reduce this level to below 7 [or whatever your dog's level is] the symptoms will go away.  In humans major causes of allergies are; spring - early summer, grass pollens; aapring and autumn - tree pollens; foods most common - white fish, dairy products, peanuts [a legume not a nut], nuts, eggs, red meat,plus  cats, dust mites and various chemicals can cause reactions too - are you doing any spring cleaning?
Advice given on food is too keep it simple - lamb is the least likely to cause allergies and so is boiled rice.
Also, rather than steroids have a think about anti-histamines.  Steroids aren't good for long term use - I've got steroid induced cataracts, not to mention damaged skin through topical steroid use - they have theri place but try alternatives if you can.

I've found this product helps - immune aid for dogs - I had one that kept getting the rosy pink feet and wanting
to chew her feet.

For product info
http://www.gwfnutrition.com/prod_immuneaid_dog/index.htm

Cheaper to buy it here
http://www.jointaid.co.uk/immune-aid-for-dogs-p11

Tried her on it after talking to one of the people on the stand at Crufts.
(I already use the Joint aid for my older dogs and this does what it says on the packet :) )
The 'rosy' effect disappeared as did the chewing. Stopped her thinking all ok - and it started to come back.
Have started her back on the immune aid and less itchy and the 'rosy glow' is fading again.

Might be worth a try?

HI , my Gsd amber , has just been and had the allergy blood test done , i too read mixed reactions to the test itself from diffrent people , but went along with the advice from my vet ! Since having the results back , and finding amber was allergic to lamb , beef , cows milk , dust mites and storage mites i have changed her food to jms wellbeloved duck and rice and she has wainrights duck and rice meat to try and keep the proteiin the same ! Unfortunatly like u i do tend to feed amber a variety of treats which add to the protein , since changing her diet she has stopped all the itching and is genrally back to herself now !
Good luck