Dog Allergies?????
 

Hey everybody, hoping someone might have some ideas. In the last month or so my dog has developed problems that I have never seen her have in the past. She is almost 3 years old. She has been on the same food for about the last 2 years(costco chicken and rice).

-About a month ago she started getting eye buggars pretty regularly. It is the worst in the morning. i usually wipe it out with a tissue but it does come back through out the day to some extent.

-in the same time frame she seems to itch/scratch a lot more then usual. She is on her flea medicine so I a pretty sure that is not it. In the past the only time she really scratched much was when she had fleas.

-More worriesome is in the last week or two she has licked/chewed on her lower legs and created a couple hot spots/rash/scabs?

I am wondering if it could just be allergies? I am not sure it the climate makes much of a difference but I live in seattle and we have had a crazy stretch of dry weather. I am not sure it has rained a drop for a month or 2. Anybody know if that could have any affect on allergies?

I was just hoping someone might have some ideas but if things don't get better soon I am going to take her to the vet.

Here is a pic of the dirty stinking mutt.

http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphoto...34107480_n.jpg

Definitely get her checked, my mom's dog had some skin reaction and lost half it's fur for a few months, and dry scaly skin.

My dog had allergies real bad a few times when she was younger, she'd get bad eye boogs and chew raw spots on top of her front legs. Trying to remember what we did, been so long ago. I remember giving her allergy medicine, feel like it was 1/2 pills 4 hour anti histamines, but best to ask the vet. We weren't supposed to let her rub her face on the ground/grass and had to wipe her face down with damp rag when she came inside and limit her time outside.

We tried tons of different foods and some made a difference, some didn't. I think the winning combination was chicken meat plus rice and zero wheat/grains.

edit: more I think about it, food was the final solution for us. She was on uber expensive organic allergenic dog foods for almost a year, then we moved her to cheaper stuff that's available at large chain stores, target.. here's what she's been on for years with no problems. http://www.iams.com/dog-food/iams-he...lesome-chicken

I would change food before anything. Just like for humans, dog food contains more and more ingredients like preservatives, fillers, artificial flavors, and grains. Dogs aren't supposed to eat grains! It's a cheap filler. It may not be the food, but it's an easy fix if it is.

The pet stores sell natural, grain free foods like Merricks. We switched to a high quality food after my dog developed bumps, became itchy, and started losing his fur. He recovered back to a healthy state within 1 week of switching foods. Like your dog, he ate the same food for years prior to developing an reaction.

Sorry if I am not much help. I would take her in to your vet.

I can not tell you how happy I am with the health of our dogs and their coats. We feed Natures Variety Prairie Lamb And Rice with a squirt of ProBiotic Salmon Oil on top.

http://www.naturesvariety.com/Prairi...kibble/chicken

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product...=1&topnav=&s=1

Thanks everybody. I talked to the vet and made an appointment for tuesday next week. He said I can try benedryl to see if that helps in the mean time. I am pretty sure it is not her food as I have fed her the same food for the last 2 years with no problems. Plus Costco dog food actually get good ratings. It isn't a cheap walmart type dog food with a bunch of fillers that have been linked to dog allergies.

I guess we will see if the benedryl helps. I still have a small suspicion it is the hot and dry weather we have had. I don't htink it has rained in about 60 days here. If not hopefully I have an answer sometime mid next weeks and figure out a way to get her feeling better. She is with me pretty much all day, every day(I take her to work with me every day) so it is hard to see her not feeling great.

We switched up to grain-free and poultry-free food for our dog when he lost a bunch of hair last summer. Skin cleared up within a week. Makes buying treats a bit more difficult but the feed store around the corner sells dried fish skins he goes ridiculous for so problem solved.

Is this the same Costco dog food that was recalled for Salmonella contamination in May of 2012? I just checked, if it's the Kirkland brand, it contains all kinds of grains and garbage.

People eat grains their entire life and suddenly develop an allergic reaction to gluten. And as I mentioned, my dog became allergic to the same food he was eating for years. It happens. Just saying, it's worth a shot. Much cheaper than a vet.

Apologies, that recall may have happened earlier. The article may have just been posted May 12.

I'm allergic to cats, maybe your dog has the same problem.

Our dog has allergies and the vet said stay away from Chicken for her and she used to get a shot but they will no longer due the shot for her. We fed her the Blue Diamond ( I think) and I have recently switched to another brand upper end low grain high protein no filler food but also got a flea and oatmeal bath as well as hot spot spray which I can spray on her directly if she starts to scratch. It smells like eucalyptus and stops her scratch right away. She was scratching all night and it drove us nuts but after the bath and spray it stopped after a few days. She is also on Frontline for flea and tick.

Good Luck,

The very same issues happened to my oldest dog a couple of years ago, right around three years of age. We always gave hiim the same food without issue for three years and one day he developed all of these skin problems that lead to infected hot spots and vet visits, multiple times. At the suggestion of the vet, we switched him to grain free food and it's been amazing. We use Blue Buffalo and everything has improved with him. He stopped itching, no hot spots, his coat looks much better and he lost weight. I really recommend trying to switch the food and see what happens. Good luck to you.

I agree with the others. Fed my weim the same food for 2.5yrs and all of a sudden started having issues with her, switched up the food (same brand) and all went back to normal.

Found out she also had another allergy...my ex. So needless to say her allergies went away and we got to enjoy the dog park again:)

I use pro plan any flavor but chicken. My vet told me that many dogs have allergies to chicken flavored foods. So now i just use lamb or beef

Try a good oatmeal bath as well to try to help with dry skin and itching. I know it is not a permanent solution but may help to soothe the pup for a bit.

Thanks everybody. I didn't realize they could all of a sudden develop an allergy. She is heading to the vet tuesday unless something changes and we will see what they say. The eye boogers have me thinking it might be something more then allergies. I have pet insurance so if it is anything like an infection it will be mostly paid for. I am actually hoping it isn't a food allergy because I can't stand the idea of having to feed my dog food that is almost triple the price of the food I currently am feeding her.

Just remember that just like in people food, every brand is going to lie and say it is "Premium Natural Food". Look at the ingredients. Avoid anything with a chemical **** storm in the ingredients, and anything with wheat or gluten.