Anyone else with sick or special needs dogs?

Im pretty sure Im the only person in existence with a dog with asthma..And yes we have switched his foods around and so far its not helped.All our dogs are currently eating Lamb and Rice Naturals(Diamond).
Instead of the normal skin allergies his allergies strike his lungs and he gets severe coughing and wheezing at least every month or sometimes we are lucky and its less often.
He is a 6yo boston terrier and now has lost most of his hair except a strip down his back like a mohawk, due to steroid use. I am worried because its getting worse, his meds have been upped and he has reactions more often.I doubt he will make it another 5 years.It just sucks.
I also have a 4 yo rottie mix we rescued that has severe hip dysplasia but we do have the pain under control at this point.
Anyway sorry for ranting, its been a really bad weekend for our boston and we are taking him in monday for another sterioid/allergy injection.

So who else has sick or ongoing health issues with their puppers.

All the brachycephalic breeds are prone to asthma. Not just Bostons, but also French bulldogs, bull dogs, certain spaniels. Have you done any online research to find other ways to deal with it? Steroids are extremely hard on the body, and having to use them long term as you have described is going to have an impact on the body. There are things you can do to compensate, giving SAM - E, and Milk Thistle, for example. I highly recommend you find a holistic vet near you and take the dog in, see what that specialist can suggest.

Hip dysplasia, yes, my Willy has this, my RB Marlin had it as well. I use the monthly Adequan shots, it helped Marlin for 4 years and was fantastic. It is also helping Willy. There is a start up period of 2 shots per week for 4 weeks; after that, you go to what the dog needs, most are every 4 weeks. You can save money by getting a prescription from your vet, and ordering the Adequan online at Drs. Foster and Smith. I was able to give Marlin his shots here at home (My Dad is diabetic, I gave him his insulin shots, so I was used to giving injections, just needed the vet tech to show me where to give it and how to avoid the nerve). Willy, on the other hand, has to go in for a vet tech appointment monthly, as he will bite me if I try to give the shot. He is FINE with the tech, silly boy! A vet tech appt is less costly than a vet appointment, so that helps, too. Willy had xrays in Sept 2013, he has extensive arthritis in both hips and both knees, with his left side much worse than his right. So the Adequan treats the inflammation and pain from that as well.

My dogs and cats are rescues, so having health issues are common here. Willy has chronic dry eye (there is a long technical name, but that is what it is like, dry eye) so he has to have eye drops. He has prescription drops morning and night, and artificial tears every 2 hours or so all day long.

My RB Sugar had a recurring nasal polyp, and had lavage for that 5 times in the 5. 5 years she lived with me.

All you can do is love them, keep them comfortable, and enjoy the time you have with them.

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Originally Posted by Freedom

All the brachycephalic breeds are prone to asthma. Not just Bostons, but also French bulldogs, bull dogs, certain spaniels. Have you done any online research to find other ways to deal with it? Steroids are extremely hard on the body, and having to use them long term as you have described is going to have an impact on the body. There are things you can do to compensate, giving SAM - E, and Milk Thistle, for example. I highly recommend you find a holistic vet near you and take the dog in, see what that specialist can suggest.

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I know nothing about the breeds being mentioned, nor asthma in dogs. Do you think a raw diet would help sort this out?

A tiny drop of anything coming from a cow will set her off in a horrid way after a day or 2 after she ate that tiny speck of a drop. She'll throw up red blood and will poo red blood. If left un attended it'll be huge amounts of blood coming out both ends until her inside kill themselves. So its very serious for poor Digi.

Once I put Digi onto raw (over 4-5yrs ago), she rarely has an outbreak, and doesn't react as aggressively to cow (just gives me more time to spot the issue & treat it at home /her vet). It'll still kill her if left untreated, but she doesn't need to go anywhere near a vet 99% of the time as its treatable at home ( /her vet).