itchi/dry skin with hair loss

Hi All

I don't know where to start. I've been in and out of vets/hospitals and nothing has worked for my 14th month old buddy named Titan. ok ill start off with me going to vet them selling me shampoo's that does not work and made the matter worse. I then went to the animal welfare to ask for advice they sold me a band and told me to come for injections to help clear the skin. they applied Xspot and on other revisits another brand I cant come by the name right now after all this it didn't work at all. I tried flea powder that did help at all. he has dry patches of skin with little hair behind the ears, behind the back legs and in the join of his tail and back. I had him at the BlueCross hospital when he was much younger because he had gastro but they GOD his recover out of that, my point is at that time he showed signs of dry dandruff skin didn't really bother him at that time. I asked the doctor what I can use for it he to said I should use some shampoo but not at the time and that if it should get worse I should bring him back for another check up.

Oh he has always been on the medium puppy Hills for since I got him. I'm when I look at him I feel so sad because his a great dog full of energy just hate seeing his skin the way it is and the irritation it causes him. he loves to run and play with my son and right now I need to make sure I try ever possible thing I can to find a way to cure this. oh yes something I forgot to mention the vet gave me this collar that help with the itchiness....but I noticed after day 2 the hair under the colour started falling out and I removed the colour immediately.

I feel helpless.....PLEASE HELP ME.... I read in one of the chats regarding Natures Way EfaGold Pure Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil what are the benefit when applying this to the skin and some in his food(very little).

Hi & welcome from darcy & me

Darcy suffers from dry skin & allergies, we think (the vet & I) that she has grass pollen/sap allergies. I feed her a grain free kibble as advised by the vet as some pooches can have affects from the grain. I also add sardines in oil or salmon oil to her kibble for some omega 3 & 6 to help with her skin. The coconut has great affects inside & outside the body, I often rub it in darcy's body and add a little to her kibble (it can cause loose stools) so best to start with a little bit to start, it's hard work rubbing it on as she like to try lick it of as fast a I rub it on hope this helps.

Why not come introduce yourself & Titan.

https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/f7-new-member-introductions

Poor Titan!

Could you give us a little more info about him? What colour is he, do you add any supplements to his food?

Hills isn't a good food, I'm afraid. You could try switching him to a grain free food, as grains are often a cause of skin problems. You could also try adding a couple of teaspoonfulls of salmon oil to his food every day, plus a raw egg two or three times a week.

Our dog, Barney had this from the day we adopted him. You could literally stroke the fur off his back on a bad day, along with flaky skin. We spent so much time at the vets trying to figure out what it was and we were given all kinds of treatment. Recently, his skin started to darken and he went completely bald underneath with charcoal coloured skin. It turned out to be hypothyroidism. It's quite common in staffys. It sounds scary but honestly the treatment is simple and relatively inexpensive. It's not hugely life-threatening and can be diagnosed with a blood test. Mention it to your vet... We had to ask for the test because I'd read up on his symptoms. It turned out I was right I'm not saying it definitely is hypothyroidism but its one more thing to cross off your list if it isn't xx

Caryll wrote:Poor Titan!

Could you give us a little more info about him? What colour is he, do you add any supplements to his food?

Hills isn't a good food, I'm afraid. You could try switching him to a grain free food, as grains are often a cause of skin problems. You could also try adding a couple of teaspoonfulls of salmon oil to his food every day, plus a raw egg two or three times a week.

Hi

Thanks for your reply, Titan is black with a white chest. No i add nothing extra into his food as the vet stores told me the food im giving is more than what is needed...And clearly the results are contradicting. Please tell me what food should i be using for Titan. and is it just any Salmon oil that I but at my LSM?

thank you so much for the help!!!

BarneyPup wrote:Our dog, Barney had this from the day we adopted him. You could literally stroke the fur off his back on a bad day, along with flaky skin. We spent so much time at the vets trying to figure out what it was and we were given all kinds of treatment. Recently, his skin started to darken and he went completely bald underneath with charcoal coloured skin. It turned out to be hypothyroidism. It's quite common in staffys. It sounds scary but honestly the treatment is simple and relatively inexpensive. It's not hugely life-threatening and can be diagnosed with a blood test. Mention it to your vet... We had to ask for the test because I'd read up on his symptoms. It turned out I was right :)I'm not saying it definitely is hypothyroidism but its one more thing to cross off your list if it isn't xx

WOW..."scary" it does sound....ill take him this week to the vet. So all I ask for is a test to be done to check if he has "hypothyroidism "? . you see he itches like crazy i think then he chews on the area...thus causing lose of hair and scabbing.

I truly feel like im loosing around ever corner and letting Titan down. whats a good grain food that easy to come by....I live in Cape Town and things are hard to come by because its hard to find people that has good food. More than half of the store owners dont even know what they selling in there food other than what on the bag....

please help me with a list of good food...i have been goggling. Information out there contradicts, need someone who actually uses the food and actually could see a difference.

thanks

This is our recommended dry food list but I don't know if they are available in south Africa

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/dry_food

If your local shops don't have much choice you may be able to buy online?

Zaahier wrote:
Hi
Thanks for your reply, Titan is black with a white chest. No i add nothing extra into his food as the vet stores told me the food im giving is more than what is needed...And clearly the results are contradicting. Please tell me what food should i be using for Titan. and is it just any Salmon oil that I but at my LSM?

thank you so much for the help!!!

I would look for a hypoallergenic food (grain free) or try switiching to a raw diet. If you want to try raw, please let us know & we can point you in the right direction as to what to feed. If your pet stores don't sell any garin free foods, try looking online. You can often get some good deals online if you're prepared to search a bit!

Zaahier wrote:
WOW..."scary" it does sound....ill take him this week to the vet. So all I ask for is a test to be done to check if he has "hypothyroidism "? . you see he itches like crazy i think then he chews on the area...thus causing lose of hair and scabbing.
 

Yes, next time you're at the vets ask them if they have tested for Hypothyroidism, and whether they think it's worth it.

I would actually try the change of food first, though.

Ultradog is hypoallergenic & available is SA, but I can't find a list of ingredients online.

"Yes, next time you're at the vets ask them if they have tested for Hypothyroidism, and whether they think it's worth it.

I would actually try the change of food first, though.

Ultradog is hypoallergenic & available is SA, but I can't find a list of ingredients online."
_____________________________________________

Thanks Caryll..... I called around and found the following:

Eukanuba Dermatosis FP Canine Dog Dry

Before i Purchase it, what's your take on it?

It isn't the best I've seen (it doesn't have meat or fish as its first named ingredient), but it's certainly far from the worst! There are no grains/cereals in it, so that may help with allergy problems.

If it's within your price range it may be worth a try. Can you get Ultradog? I'd be interested to see what the ingredients are for that one?

We do get Ultra dog over here, have a look here (http://www.vetexpressdepot.co.za/?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=54).
Personally I feed raw and have had great results with my two. It doesn't have to be expensive if you get to know the butchers and fishmongers at your local Pick n Pay or if you have any butcheries nearby. Most of our butchers/fishmongers tend to throw out a lot of the stuff that you can feed so you can get it for next to nothing and staples like chicken backs/feet/necks etc are pretty cheap - I say this as I know just how much the vet-recommended products can add up to!

RoxysMum wrote:We do get Ultra dog over here, have a look here (http://www.vetexpressdepot.co.za/?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=54).

Yes, but it still doesn't list the ingredients! 

Exactly Caryll :-(

I'll just add my tuppence-worth on hypo-thyroidism, as my last Dobermann bitch had it. She gradually lost hair on her belly and her coat overall got thinner and thinner, but most noticeable of all was her lethargy - she got exhausted so quickly on the shortest of walks. But her skin didn't change colour and she didn't itch.

It took a blood test to find out the truth (and be warned, it wasn't cheap!) But at least I knew what it was, and she had thyroid tablets every day ever after - she picked up amazingly quickly, her coat grew back and she regained her natural energy. She had a full and happy life on thyroxin, until she died at a good age of something entirely unrelated.

Wishing you luck - please keep us updated    

Well, Ultradog is rubbish! I just had this answer to my email asking about the ingredients....

Ingredients: Cereals (4% minimum rice) meat and animal derivatives (4% minimum beef and vegetable protein extract cereal) by product, yeast, fats and oils, flavourants, vitamins and minerals. Contains EC permitted antioxidants. Contains no soya fish meal, artificial colour or flavour.

The cereal content is way too high and the meat content is way too low!

Good grief, it's completely useless!!