i have a half greyhound half mutt mix female dog who has...

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Question by corduroyqueen
Submitted on 10/19/2003
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i have a half greyhound half mutt mix female dog who has severe allergies. we got her an allergy test and she has been on shots and special food (science diet original) for about 6 months with no difference. the vet has given her depo medrol injections when she gets severely bad (black skin, constant licking paws, shaking head so hard she gets sores on her ears, nibbling and scratching everywhere, loss of hair, strong smell to her skin, and greasy skin) they clear her up really fast but as soon as she is totally cleared up she starts getting bad again. we've tried medicated shampoo, aveeno baths, hydrocortisone spray and it doesn't seem to make much of a difference. we give her benedryl allergy tablets and those seem to make her drowsy but she doesn't itch when shes sleeping:) is depo medrol safe to give long term? if anyone has any sort of ideas they would be greatly appreciated!! i hate seeing her like this. she looks so depressed.

Answer by Carol
Submitted on 12/9/2003
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She may need to see a dog dermatologist. My puppy had all of the same symptoms. In my case, the vets I saw at the beginning were giving him steroids. This seemed to help at first but then made his problem worse. Vets are good for most problems. Seeing a dog dermatologist can make all the difference. When my dog got his allergy shot it was made up of the same thing he was allergic to, made just for his specific problem, not a general fix for all. I was taught to give him the shot at home since the closest dog dermatologist was two hours away. He got his shot every week. So he would become desensitized. He started out on a low dose then gradually went up in dose till his scratching was at minimal. After a year and a half he was able to get off of his shots but many dogs have to stay on the shots. My first and only visit cost around three hundred dollars which sounds like a lot but she spent at least an hour with me and solved the problem the last four vets could not solve. After that every thing was handled by phone and the shots cost very little. He was also give an antibiotic for a short period of time. He was give a people prescription for his ears, because was shaking his head a lot. Dogs with allergies will do this when they have yeast in there ears. They will also lick there paws a lot. Good Luck

Answer by Lisa
Submitted on 1/7/2004
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I have a greyhound mix who had horrible allergies. We tried everything. We finally found out that she is allergic to chicken. Almost every dog food out there contains some form of chicken or poultry or chicken by-product. You can get a dog food called Nature's Recipe Venison. It does not contain any beef or chicken. It has been a God-send. No more skin problems. No more itching or scratching or chewing. You can buy it at Pet Smart or Pet Supplies Plus if you have one in your area. If not you can order it online. It is not any more expensive than other "good" dog foods sold in those stores. Also, it is a good idea if you go to a health food store and buy oat straw. You can put it in a warm bath and have your dog soak in it for about twenty mins.. (Attach a leash to your dogs' collar and tie it to a bar in your tub or the faucet. They can't escape) You should notice a drastic improvement if you change the food and give a oat straw bath. Good Luck!

Answer by Miki
Submitted on 1/27/2006
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My doggie has the same problem and I brought her to the vet for two over years. Firstly appointments were once every four months then to once every month and then weekly. I got to find out later from the net that it was yeast infection rather than food allergies. She went through alot from itch to stink body and no fur, swollen paws, pus liquid out from everywhere and ears too. I got her the nzymes yeast removal kit and she was just able to walk and run 2 days ago. Please look into yeast infection on the web. It does helps lots. Miki doesn't like the yeast removal treats, but I mix them with her food, and when she's hungry, which she hardly have appetite during times like these, she managed to eat them up. She's getting to be prettier now, just turn 4 but had lost one of her eyesight due to this. :(

Answer by Jillian
Submitted on 5/30/2007
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I have a true hairless Chinese Crested and she has severe allergies to about everything under the sun. I have gone to a number of different vets and no one can figure it out (not to mention that I've spent thousands of dollars with different meds and tests they've tried). Right now she has been on steroids for the last 9 months but they said it's not healthy for a dog to be on them past 6...mine is well overdue. She also has steroid shampoo and i also use Nizerol, both don't work too well. She has cut up her face and body from scratching and because she's hairless she has numerous scars now. My next attempt to fix this is the dog dermatologist but I heard they are quite expensive, I'mwilling to spend the money if it works...does it?

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Answer by Jeremy
Submitted on 10/30/2003
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corduroyqueen, An itching dog is no fun indeed. Read carefully the label of ingredients on your dogs food. Many "diet" foods list chicken or lamb or beef as the primary ingredient but the next three or four items are grains such as corn, wheat, wheat gluten, corn gluten and by products of meat which is any non human part of the animal. I have a aussie that had similar problems and we finally got her on a holistic natural food and she hasn't been to the vet for allergies in three years, plus she is on no long term medicines, only her food and a dog supplement. Send me a e-mail and I will link you to some great information. flash1969NOSPAM@starband.net (remove NOSPAM)

Answer by kever
Submitted on 1/25/2005
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I have a Black Lab who has had allergies her whole life. I have done the allergy shots, they did not work. She is currently on fish and potato dog food and recieves depo shots at least every other month. She is 9 years old and is totally miserable. I have tried everything and nothing works. I can not imagine my life without her but she is so miserable at this point I am considering putting her down. Her quality of life is gone. But I am not sure what else to do to ease her discomfort.

Answer by Amy
Submitted on 1/26/2005
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just surfing by and saw your question - my dog is a mix of purebred gordon setter and lab - when he was about a year he developed dem-a-dex mange - an immune disorder involving mites - the treatment is w/ medicated shampoos so you may have looked into this but its a lot like antibiotics you've gotta keep treating after she seems better for a little while to truly kill it - ask your vet about it - best of luck - its miserable when your friend is sick and you don't know how to help. by the way my dog was in danger of dieing from this disease and now he is a fully healthy 11 years old - good luck

Answer by itchygreyhoundinFLa
Submitted on 3/24/2005
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I have a retired greyhound who has developed skin problems. He has been to the Vet and was perscribed antibiotics, anti-itch pills and a topical. It turns out my grey has a bacterial infection as well as yeast infection of his skin irritation. We changed his diet immediately and he is on the same food he has been eating since he was a pup but we've seen any improvement. We can't get him to stop nibbling at the site, so we're thinking about muzzeling him except during meals. This is becoming extremely espensive and we need help. We adore our Grey but money, unfortunatly, is a factor.

Answer by Aileen
Submitted on 1/16/2006
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my dog also had chicken allergies and my vet suggested Eukanuba FP (fish and potatoes) she loves it. i hv also given her holistic food and loves it as well and the allergies are gone however, she is also allergic to dust mite which the ocassional breakouts are different to the ones she had from eating chicken based foods. Any suggestions on treating dust mites? i constantly vacuum, wash her sheets, pillows,toys weekly.

Answer by Julie
Submitted on 6/28/2006
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Thank you. I have a 5 1/2 year old Boxer who is also allergic to poultry products and it has been a nightmare. We have had him on a prescribed diet which is $38 for a 17.6 lb bag and it works most of the time! But that's not the issue I'd pay anything for his feet to stop breaking out and for him to be happy. I'll try to Nature's Rec. Venison and let you know how it works. Thanks!

Answer by dogdoctor
Submitted on 12/22/2006
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