Bad Dog Dandruff and Hair Loss in NM

[mwormser]

CATLADY711, I went to the Vet and he did an allergy test. It takes 2 weeks to get back. If allergic, the company makes a serum.

SHEPGIRL Still on raw food. He loves it.

FLATCOAT The vet said stick with the raw food diet for a couple of weeks. If the condition still doesn't change them try the Nutrived OFA.

ZIPPYCAT The vet said to hold off for now the the Shepleys MTG.

All of you thanks for your input.

Jet is still on Cephalexin and Prednisone.

I just hope something works although all the Vets say he has a chronic problem and he will not be entirely get cured.

Jet will be 12 next year and he is still a happy go lucky buddy. The skin condition really doesn't seem to bother him much. He's a trooper.

Martin and jet

[polarpooch]

Sounds similar to what our old poodle had when he got to his senior years-around 11 or 12. He was scabby, flakey, had lots huge patches of hair missing, and all the hair on his tail fell out. He was a mess. And he smelled awful. After many tests (including cancer tests and allergy screening), lots of money, lots of drugs, it turned out to be his thyroid that was causing most of his problem. (which had been tested before, by the way) The vet put him on a dose of medication for the thyroid, and it helped him quite a bit. He never did totally recover from the condition, however. It was something we just had to manage. He required baths in a special treatment shampoo, and an Rx salve for his scabbies when he'd scratch open a sore (which happened less frequently after the thyroid meds). Sometimes he'd need to be on a course of antibiotics, because his sores would get infected. We also gave him benedryl and a low dose aspirin occasionally, on vet's recommendation, just to make him feel better. But he never seemed to mind any of it. He lived till he was 16. Don't know if this helps. But I can say, it sure was a maddening process trying to figure out what was wrong with him. Best of luck.

[mwormser]

Thanks Polar,

Jet went to the vet yesterday. He did an expensive allergy screening and a thyroid test. He has been on thyroid pills since this horrible experience started. Maybe his thyroid has changed. Maybe a higher dose. One vet lowered it from .8 mg and is now getting .6 mg.

martin and jet

[shepgirl]

You have to give the dog about a month for his system to clear up on raw. Then his immune system starts picking up and it just disappears. You could try bathing him with a medicated shampoo every second day to help the itch and the pain. Good luck, I know it's no picnic.

[mwormser]

Thanks Shep, He gets a bath (shhhh don't say it too loudly) at least once a week with 4% Chlorhexiderm shampoo. He looks great after for about 4 days then the dandruff comes back.

His thyroid test came back. He is in the normal range but on the high side of normal. Which can cause other problems.

He gets a patty of duck in morning and night. It's mixed with a little Force.

Luckily my brother owns Long Leash on Life, a pet food store in Albuquerque.
longleashonlife.com. (They don't sell anything on their web site) He is just too busy. Recession has not hit any pet food store.

martin

[shepgirl]

Chlorhexiderm is a good shampoo used by many vets for skin conditions. I know giving it time is really hard but I guess it's like some conditions in humans, they just need time. If you don't see improvements in a month I would do another blood panel. Sounds a lot like food allergies.

[gargoylegabe]

hi martin and jet.

i was looking at your pictures and it looks damn similar to what my black lab mix has. kind of white clumpy scabs that creates a lot of dandruff and bits of hair loss. i believe i read that it doesn't itch excessively, which is consistent with my dog snefru, although it looks like it should itch him more. anyway, i'm curious as to your current findings. i wish you luck, and thank you for sharing.