On Saturday I called the vet because Loki was not getting any relief from the pred shot, the benedryl and the anti-biotics. Plus in addtion to the obvious red itched spots, her belly skin had flat bumps all over--hard to describe, it was "textured" rather than smooth. The vet wrote a prescription for oral pred, which is really helping now.
Anyway, I was thinkin', I had just opened a new bag of Wellness dog food with the happy slogan "New, Improved Formula" printed across the top right about the time Loki started scratching.
Now I wonder if Loki is having environmental or food related allergies. :scratch: I e-mailed Mother Hubbard, and they have changed or added a couple of things--but have added no new ingedients that are new to Loki. They have replaced some of the fish with chicken and added tomatoes and a couple of other things.
Sooooooooooo, I decide to take her off the Wellness for a while, get her allergy thing under control and then re-introduce the Wellness to see if this is the culprit. (I bought a bag of the Dick Van Patton allergy dry kibble--which costs about the same as prime rib, lemme tell ya--and switched her over. Even though this is a consistantly top-rated food, I was suprised at their feeding amounts: 1 & 1/2 cups a day vs. the 1/2 cup of Wellness that I give Loki. What's up with that?)
Anybody have any input on this?
I do know it is possible for humans to suddenly become allergic to something that had never bothered them before. I suffer from allergies and became miserable when I was 16 because I had started being allergic to cats. Our family cat slept in my bed, so it caused quite a problem. SO...maybe it is possible that she is allergic to one of the ingredients in the food even though she has been exposed to them before.??? :dontknow:
I really hope she gets rid of those itchies soon!! Boy those sure are miserable and enough to make ya go insane!!! :crazyeyes: Hope you find out what is causing it real soon!
Allergies are such a frustrating thing because they are so complicated and sometimes hard to figure out. I would think it could be the food...or it could be a coincidence...or a combination of both! Too bad you don't have any of the old food left, you could feed that again and see if the itchies go away. I would say the 1.5 cups recommendation is grossly overstated (sorry Loki!). I have been considering switching to DVP kibble just for a change, from the Chicken Soup brand (Hallie seems bored with it) but there are more calories per cup in the DVP so I haven't done it yet (although I still might it sounds like a great food)..and the Chicken Soup I"m feeding a half cup a day so to give three times as much of a higher calorie food would think you'd end up with a very happy little baked potatoe doxie. :grin:
Glad the oral pred is helping her though not fun to have an itchie puppers!
[quote author= there are more calories per cup in the DVP so I haven't done it yet (although I still might it sounds like a great food)..and the Chicken Soup I"m feeding a half cup a day so to give three times as much of a higher calorie food would think you'd end up with a very happy little baked potatoe doxie. :grin
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HAH AHHAHAHAHAH! With budder and sour cream!??! Oh man. Last night DH dropped a tomato slice on Loki's back. She about split herself in two trying to get to it! :crazyeyes: Too funny!
Last night while walking Loki managed to eat SUMTHING I dunno what that was laying on the ground. After I took the girls in I wandered back up the street to take a closer look --I think it might have been a Jolly rancher-- Anyhoo, my neighbor was out walking her pit bulls, (actually one pit bull and one Pit Bull/Yorkshire Terrier mix {wrap yer mind around that}) and HER doggies were suffering terribly from the itch and both had severe bilateral and tail area hair loss and it looked really nasty. Poor things. For 2 dogs who obviously weren't feeling up to speed, they were very nice to me.
Could be the way it was cooked, ie no salt added to find they have cooked it in salt, this happened to girlfriend with a kidney transpant she ended up in hospital. Have you tried back to good old rice .
roberta
Leslie-
I have been feeding Milo -who is allergic to the world- Wellness sweet potato and fish for about a year, in the evening, he gets raw in the morning. Bought a new bag, fed it once, then noticed the infamous "new improved formula". Unfortunately not for Milo...they added barley ( a grain/grass) which he is allergic to, as well as tomato paste. I know lots of the puppers love maters, but they are related to onions and mushrooms, and are in the nightshade family, and can be deadly to some dogs. Why would a supposedly special nutrition formula add tomato to dog food? Don't they do research? Really sucks, as this was the ONLY kibble on the market that Milo could eat, as he is allergic to all grains (a form of grass), all grasses (rice), pork, turkey, lamb, legumes, white potatoes, tapioca, house dust, bed mites(!)and many trees & bushes. We had him tested for allergies last year (icky) and he has been getting shots for the last year with moderate success. Guess he will only get raw food that he isn't allergic to from now on. Good thing Canadian customs didn't look for his 10 lbs of frozen chicken necks we took on vacation...
Sorry about the rant, but as you know this is soooo frustrating.
Would you consider having Loki tested for allergies? It's decidedly expensive, but then you finally know what's causing the itchies.
Good luck. Email me if you want to compare notes.