My dog has been throwing up and has wet stool often. She is always cleaning her paws, scratching her ears and at her bottom (although her glands are not full or blocked). Her belly is gurgly often and there are days that she won't eat. I've had her to the vet and we switched her to a hypoallergenic dog food. She was great for 7 weeks and then it all started up again. I've started switching her from hypoallergenic to a gastro formuls this past week and now she's as bad as ever. What do I do?

First suggestion would obviously take her back to the vet as the 2 incidents may not be the same thing.

Second suggestion is to switch her to a raw diet.
Some dogs just can't handle processed, packaged food, no matter how healthy they seem to be, not to mention most dogs go crazy for raw meat!

Here is a link to a site about the BARF diet (Bones And Raw Food) for you to have a look at and see if you think it would help:
BARF Diet Specifics - Bones, Meat, Offal, Vegetables, Fruits & Other Nutrition Food Products for Pet (http://www.barfworld.com/html/barf_diet/barfdiet_specific.shtml)

My dog was diagnosed with a food allergy, but I think my vet misdiagnosed him. Before he was diagnosed he was eating pedigree lamb and rice. Then he was diagnosed with his food allergy so I bought the hypoallergenic HP, it worked for about two months.
I am know just starting to switch him over to evo, So far he is not itching anymore (or any less) but I hope it may work.
You could try feeding your dog a grain free food (Taste of the wild, Evo, Orijen). It doesn't cost nearly as much as the hypoallergenic, but is better for the dog!

-The reason I believe he was misdiagnosed is because I can give him benedryl and he stops itching.

Is this the same dog?
https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/dogs/dog-wont-sleep-her-bed-439304.html

Yes Cat1864. I posted before about my dog not sleeping in her bed but have that figured out now.

The Barf diet would be a good choice if you have the time to prepare the food. Very time consuming. But an excellent diet. You can try feeding holistic foods. I know it's a bit pricier, but in the long run you end up feeding them less, and they are getting more nutrients in their diet.

Also you can try adding Omega oils in to the diet. A can of sardines or cod liver oil, or you can purchase the capsules at your vet.

If it is a food allergy you have to look at treats as well. If you are feeding generic commercial brand treats it may have the same ingredients that is bugging him in the dog food.

When you switched the food over, did you do it all at once or gradually?

Hi Aurora_Bell,
When I switched her over I did it gradually over a period of a couple of weeks until she was fully on the hypoallergenic. She also only gets hypoallergenic treats and nothing else. This week I started slowly switching her to gastro food to see if that was any better but it may actually be worse.
When I got her on the hypoallergenic food she was great for almost 2 months. No problems, then things started again. A couple of days of vomiting, a bit of a gurgly belly, not eating anything until late evening and wet poop for about 2 weeks. We went back to the vet. She took some medicine to help with the wet poop and that worked and we started switching her to gastro food. The last 2 nights she's had me awake with her scratching and at her bottom. Today she won't eat, her belly hasn't stopped gurgling and she threw up a nasty smelling gray liquid. Wondering what to do next. Go back to hypoallergenic, try something new, raw food, etc.

What brand is the hypoallergenic? It seems like a pretty severe allergy.

What brand are the treats? I have noticed that Purina makes hypoallergenic treats, but it still has all the same carp that the dog food has in it. Kibbles n Bits makes a hypoallergenic brand too, but filled with fillers (corn and wheat).

If you have the time, a raw diet would be an excellent choice. Just remember to read up on it. Do you have a nutritionist at your vet?

I'm using medi-cal (Royal canin)from the vet which is costing a small fortune. I also have Hill's perscription diet hypoallergenic treats from the vet.
I use to feed her a lot of human food (not table scraps) but food cooked for her, veggies, rice, meat, fish, etc. I thought that was better then commercial kibble but the vet suggested the hypoallergenic. I'm not sure about the raw food thing. Mixed reviews on that.

I am not a big fan of the medi cal. I had a shih tzu and an am staff with allergies, we tried them on that brand and it made things worse. If you don't want to do the raw diet, try a holistic food, or look for an all natural dog food. Chicken soup for the dog lover is good brand, as well as Evo.

I am not sure where you are living, but you maybe able to find a natural dog food factory in your area.

I may have a look for a no grain food at my pet store and try that. I live in a small town in Newfoundland, Canada and believe me we don't have a lot of variety.
I'm a little wary of trying raw meat. My dog is 12 years old and we only adopted her last year so I don't really know anything about her history. I checked out the raw food diet and although some people swear by it others say it can make your dog sick. I know if I ask my vet she will recommend dry dog food, not people food.

I live in Canada too, the East Coast as well. Try to find a Shur-Gain in your area, or a distributer. I swear by the food they sell. It's all made in Nova Scotia with grade a meat. I use an oatmeal fish mix. It has worked wonders for my itchy dogs.

As far as a raw diet goes, dogs' digestive systems work much differently than ours. They work faster and are more acidic, making it nearly impossible for dogs to get ill from food-bourne bacteria in the way that humans do. The hardest part is the transition. They may get the runs for the first few days, but after that it is smooth sailing.

I do a mix of raw and dry dog food. My dogs mostly get fruits and veggies and than the holistic dry.

Vets know nothing about nutrition... at least not enough to recommend something besides science diet which is trash.

I'm a strong advocate of evo. There are no grains in it and is actually specialized for dogs who have diet issues. It claims to be alternative to raw diet. The Healthiest Pet Foods in the World – Natural & Organic Pet Food – Natura Pet Products (http://Www.naturapet.com)... the website has all their foods listed.

Another food would be wellness. They just came out with an allergy formula. Might be something to look into. Just whatever you do, don't rely on your vet for food.

Finding an allergy is trial and error. You just going to have to narrow down her reaction toward specific things, what you did, season change and more. I once heard of a dog being allergic to the swiffer solution.

Her licking her feet tells me its something environmental. Maybe request an allergy test?

You can always go to a different vet for a second opinion. Maybe your vet isn't very knowlegdable with allergies.

Good luck

Listen Lucky, can't speak for where you are living, but; I am getting pretty upset with you lumping "all vets don't know what they are talking about" when it comes to food.

Sorry, "your" vets don't know anything when it comes to nutrition, but please stop lumping them as one big whole. Lots of Vets know plenty when it comes to the health of animals.

FYI, I am starting to take animal science, animal behavior, and animal physiotherapy at my local agri collage. And we will be studying all different types of food. They don't promote one specific brand. So please stop saying VETS as in VETERINARIANS ( the people who study the health of ANIMALS) don't know what they are talking about when it comes to nutrition of animals.

If you want to promote a specific brand, fine, but please don't discredit all vets.

I agree Bella. Our vet is wonderful. Our Lab was on a special diet for a while, it wasn't the science diet, it was a store brand (can't remember the name) and it worked wonders for him.

Not all vets are bad. There are bad ones in the bunch, just like any profession, but to lump them all together and say they're all bad is not right. The vet should always be your first choice when having problems with an animal. Always.

I agree with both of you.

Some vets really do seem to not know much about nutrition (or not care) and sell terrible products out of their surgery.

But other vets (like) mine sell the best food we have available here in their surgery.

I personally don't listen to vets suggestions about food... but in saying that I have my mum plus several dozen registered breeders on call to recommend foods to me.

What works for one dog may not work for another as well.
I have heard of dogs doing really badly on some of the high-end dog foods and did really well on just cheap pedigree dry.
My mum feeds Supercoat, to her Dane, it's cheap and it works for him. She was paying triple the price for another brand and had the same results.
Whereas I have tried the cheaper brands on my Crested and he didn't do well, he does great on an expensive brand.

I agree, Kind of like different strokes for different folks. I just hate the general lump of "vets know nothing about food".

I know vets get funding from specific brands, and yes, some may recommend that brand, however; to say"vets know nothing" is a pretty bad generalization.

I take my advice from people who know - either through education, experience, whatever it takes. I don't find "all" of any profession to be bad or uninformed.

Since the topic is dog nutrition and dog allergies, stating that a lot of vets do know about nutrition is not hijacking. I still believe that the OP should speak to her vet or find a vet like mine, that does know nutrition and allergies.


Dogs are prescribed "diet food' through the vet all the time. Yet, nothing else changes.. No exercise, huge quantities of food... guess what.. the dog is still going to be fat. It could very well be a thyroid... I'm sure going to the vet for the food that has been ruled out.. but you never know. A good way to have a dog lose weight is to cut back on food, and increase exercise.


And this is why I love my vet. All the testing was done on our border collie Jasper when he was getting fat despite a lot of exercise and diet food (not vet prescribed). He also had extreme dandruff. The vet did a thyroid test, but that's not the issue. They took scrapings and ran tests, nothing was wrong. They wouldn't stop until they found out what was going on. Turns out it was an allergy, but not to the food. It took trial and error, removing things we used in our home, detergent, air cleansers, floor cleaners. Finally we found out that he was allergic to the dog shampoo we were using. Even though he only got bathed every few months, the shampoo was causing such a reaction that he'd have symptoms all the time in between. Sad thing is, we bought this expensive dog shampoo, and the only thing that works for him is mild dish soap. Go figure. ;)

As for the weight issue, the vet is right on top of it. We have a diet and exercise plan now, he goes for bi-weekly weigh ins and a checkup (for free) and he's lost 5 pounds, which is a huge deal. He's not on diet food, just smaller portions.

I don't think any of us have an issue with you offering your advice on food. My issue was with your blanket statement that no vet knows anything about nutrition, because it's simply not a true statement and unfair to lump all vets into one group just because your vet isn't great.

For the OP. I wouldn't rule out an allergy to something other then food. Yes, it does sound like a food allergy, but it could be a combination. That may be why the dog was fine for a few weeks and then it all started up again.

Any changes in the household? New detergent, new floor cleaner, anything? The licking of the paws and itchiness makes me think there's more to this then a food allergy.

Just my opinion.

Let's wait for mftaylor to come back and let us know if they found the grain-free food they were looking for ;)
I don't want this turning into a dog food war.

Alty - Normally I would agree with you on the cleaning products etc, but the stomach gurgling is putting me off that.

Mftaylor, from the other thread: she is eleven years old and you have had her for approximately a year and a half. You came here originally asking about crating. When discussing that you mentioned her stomach and bowel issues, did she have the digestive tract issues before the crating issue. Did they clear up when you figured out what was wrong with her not wanting to sleep in her bed and then reoccur?

Has she had the itching problem since you got her (if you know her history, does it go back to before she came into your house? If it predates your home, can you get in touch with her previous owner to find out what they tried?) or has it developed since she came into your home? Has it gotten worse with the changing of the seasons as well as the food?

I am wondering if there is something she is getting into and not only having contact with but maybe digesting possibly from cleaning herself like floor cleaning products getting on her feet and then she licks her feet. Any plants that she might be getting a hold of a leaf or two every now and then?

Good luck to both you and the pup in trying to figure this out.

Thanks for all the info and advice.

Lets see if I can answer some questions. I've had Charlotte for 1year and she is now about 12 years old. I know very little of her history. She is an Italian grayhound mixed with beagle. When we got her the SPCA thought she was slightly under weight. I took her to my vet who said if she is it's only slight and not to worry about it. She's very active and muscular. She was raised on "Kibbles and Bits" dog food (I know, bad) and her previous owner said she was always skinny. She does have the grayhound look so she may look thin. We started to gradually switch her from the Kibbles to Purina Adult dogfood and some med-cal gastro formula when she's not feeling the greatest(Now I know not best choices). I would also feed her human food mixed with the bought because my opinion was that cooked chickenbreast, rice and peas was better for her then dry kibble. Ever since the first week we had her she has had stomach problems. Wet to runny stool, very gurgly belly, vomiting, and days when she doesn't want to eat. I started seeing another vet due to location and wanting a second opinion. This new vet did tests and blood work and everything came back fine. She did think Charlotte was slightly underweight and wanted her to put a little weight on so her ribs were not so prominent. She suggested all her symptoms may be allergy related, likely food. We gradually switched her to medi-cal hypoallergenic. She was pretty good for about 7 weeks. I cut everything else out of her diet, no treats or human food. Then it started again. We went back to the vet and she figured she must have gotten into something and to keep going but not to re-introduce any old food yet for another 6 weeks. She had also dropped 1/2 a pound. She hasn't gotten any better so last week the vet suggested to switch from hypoallerdenic to the gastro formula. We did that for less then a week and she was worse then ever so I've stopped the gastro completely.

After checking on-line I've noticed other sympotoms she has that suggest allergies. She is constantly cleaning her feet, sometimes sticking them down her throat. She's scratching at her ears and mouth often. She's has several ear problems over the past year that clear up with drops but come right back. She's at her bottom often although her glands are fine and no worms. She sheds A LOT. She bites at her feet and legs (no fleas). This is all in addition to the gurgly belly, vomiting, diarrhea, and lack of appetite.

I've decided to try her on another food and have been researching some brands. Today I bought Canidae dry and canned to try. It's grain free and salmon flavoured. I'm thinking try grain free and go from there. It may take some trial and error on brands and flavours but it has to better then the food she's on now. I was also looking at Wellness, Nutro and Merrick's Before Grain and Orijen.

Any suggestions or advice? I just feel so bad for her when she's not well and where she's older I don't want the food I'm feeding her to be causing problems. I'm new to this dog thing. She's the first dog I've owned since I was a child (over 20 years ago).

Also, found out the likely cause of her kennel/bed problem but her vomiting and diarrhea around that incident may have been a combination of allergies and stress.

Thanks everyone.
Michelle

Has her thyroid been checked?

Try the new food, from what I can see online it looks like a good brand. I almost want to put money on it being a grain allergy. The things you described are my dogs symptoms to a tee. After 1 week of grain free food, she was almost 100%. Check to see what the omega oil count is in her food. You also may want to try adding a table spoon of plain yogurt in with her supper.

Have you had a chance to see if there is a Shur Gain distributor in your area?

I checked and there is no shur gain distributor here. That was the first food I checked. I just looked at the canidae bag and the omega 6 is listed as min of 3.7%, the omega 3 is listed as min 1%. Is that good?
Also, should I give her yogurt if I'm still not sure exactly what's she's allergic to? I use to give it to her before but stopped when the vet said to cut everything out for 8 weeks and then if she's symptom free start re-introducing different foods.

I would never go against what your vet told you, but I would ask them if they think it might be okay to give them a table spoon of yogurt. It can possibly help with the bowl problems.

That is a fairly common omega count in a fish based food. I am actually surprised there isn't more. I would also just ask if they think adding extra omega would be okay.

You said it yourself it's going to be trial and error. I would try the grain free product you have now. If you are absolutely desperate, you could get an allergy test done. I know here in Nova Scotia they run $100-$200. I also know that NFL. Runs much higher. I have family in the Belle Isle, they pay a small fortune for their vet bills. A regular spay or neuter is anywhere from $600-$900.

Are you giving any table scraps now?

Thanks for all the advice.
No, she is not getting anything else besides the dogfood. I've started with 1/4 new food and 3/4 old and she has the hypoallergenic treats. That's it.
I expect allergy testing would be very expensive but I may look into it. She had blood tests done a few months ago and that was about $350 not including the pet visit itself.
Also, what would I add to her food to get more omegas? Vitamins, oils, etc?

A can of sardines would do the trick, you can purchase Omega oils from your vet. They run about $12 for a bottle of 60.

Another thing you could ask your vet about is bennadryl for when she is going really crazy chewing on her feet and what not.

I don't think chewing feet is a reaction from food. Don't rule it out though..

Have you changed any of your house hold cleaners? Fertilize the grass? Take her out into the country?

I once knew a horse that was allergic to leaves. During fall, he had to be moved to a different pen because he would have severe allergic reation if he ate the leaves, or even laid in them.

Your pooch may be like that horse.

When did all the itching start? Was it always like this and just got worse? Or is it something that just popped up?

Both my staffies would chew their feet. It was a food allergy.

She's been pretty much doing it since we got her a year ago. The last few months though she is shedding like crazy and not just her undercoat which she does twice a year.
No we haven't changed anything. I have several allergies to a ton of things too so I'm aware of what's in the house.
I will admit that sometimes she's not as bad but she's had many of the symptoms pretty regular for the past year.

Have you ever looked into the cost of an allergy test? How has she been the last few days on the grain free?

I'm waiting to talk to my vet on Tuesday. I'm going to look into allergy testing then as well as mention using benadryl and omega oils.
I'm giving her a tbsp of yogurt with her supper and she's only getting 1/4 of the grain free food mixed with 3/4 of the hypoallergenic. She seems good. Happy and playful but still itchy and shedding, I know it's too early to see a change but she's got an appetite and not vomiting, although she's still has pretty wet poops. I'm hoping I'm on the right track. I'm thinking she may be allergic to corn. The gastro food I tried to introduce for a few days last week has corn as the first ingredient and she was really ill then. Also, she would eat gastro food throughout the past year if she wasn't feeling well.

The wet poops may be because of the change in diet. Dogs don't handle sudden change to their food well. If this new diet is working, the wet poops should go away soon. :)

Please keep us posted on your progress. Also, pictures are always welcome. :)

Let's see if this works. Hopefully, here's a pic or 2 of 12 year old Charlotte.

AWW she is gorgeous! I can't believe I forgot to ask for pics.

She's beautiful. I love her coat. :)

I don't remember if you mentioned her breed. Is she a beagle mix? I definitely see beagle in her.

She's so sweet.

We were only told Italian grayhound mix but we assumed it was mixed with beagle.
She does have a very nice, soft coat that always feels clean with minimal washing; if it would just stay attached to her that would be great.

Hi all, back again with up-date and question. Charlotte's been doing pretty good so far. She hasn't had any incidence of vomiting but she still has wet poop and many other symptoms, although some not as bad. This is last day of food transition, 3/4 dry canidae grain-free salmon and 1/4 dry Hypoallergenic + 1/3 can Hypo. Tomorrow we will be all fish and potato.
Wondering about her starting to dry heave. She has done it in the past on occasion, usually if she's at her bottom she'll urge and heave but nothing comes out. I use to say she turned her own stomach at her bottom. Haha. The last 2 days she has started dry heaving a lot especially throughout the night. She'll get up from her bed and dry heave once or twice and go back to bed. It propably happened last night about 6 or more times, and still happening this morning, although no vomit. Wondering if anyone has any ideas on this. I did introduce a new treat 2 days ago and am wondering if that could be doing it. Pure Bites freeze dried fish. It's only ingredient is fish and she loves them. I'm going to stop the treats for now to see what that does, but in the meantime does anyone have any experience with this?
Thanks

Wow your poor girl sure has a sensitive tummy! I can't say for sure, but it almost sounds like indigestion. Kind of like heart burn for humans. I'd be really cautious on introducing any new foods into her diet. Does the fish treats specifically say what type of fish is in them, or does it just say fish?

There is products on the market to help with firming up their poops, look for a product called pet flora (or flora pet, I can't remember :) )

There is no chance of a blockage of some sort is there?

I'm holding off on the treats for now. The only ingredient is whitefish and whitefish is one of the ingredients in her dry salmon food she's eating now.
I do have some powdered medicine from the vet for diarrhea from a previous visit. I may start giving her that again for a few days.
I don't think she could have a blockage. She's been to 2 different vets in the last year and been seen at least a dozen times. They would have checked for that I assume.
She has done this before on occasion (just not to this degree) so I'm hoping it goes away and it's nothing serious.

Well hopefully the white fish is Cod or another deep sea fish. It's the deep sea fish that have all the rich omega fatty acids. Thanks for coming back and keeping up updated. We worry about the ones who don't ever come back and tell us how they are making out.

We had grilled salmon two nights ago. My GSD LOVES fish and had a nice portion.

She had diarrhea yesterday and my husband and I are fine. My other dog didn't eat the salmon, she's also fine.

Don't know if this is at all helpful but for whatever reason fish gave my dog a problem.

Is she used to eating the salmon Judy? Or were there any spices on it that may have upset her tummy?

Ok now what?
I stopped giving her the new fish treats but she's still dry heaving. She generally does it over night and morning. It eases off and I don't hear her doing it as the day goes on. Could it be something with her food or the fact that's it's dry food? I give her both wet and dry just as I always have. I don't like to mix them because then she doesn't chew the dry at all, everything goes down whole. I'm also giving her 1 tbsp of plain, organic, non-fat yogurt every day as well.
Judy, I'm giving her the fish flavoured food and no grains to see if I can find out what's she's allergic to. Supposedly fish is a good choice to start with for allergies. She's been on this type for a month now, slowly introduced of course. This is the third food she's been on in the last 4 months, I don't know if I should switch her again yet. I want to keep her on it alone now for 6-8 weeks to see if the allergy sympotoms go away. So far some have lessened but that has happened before with other foods as well.
Back to the dry heaves. Is this something to worry about? Should I book a vet appointment if it keeps up? I just feel like all I do is take her to the vet and they don't really do much.
Also, I seem to be having so much trouble finding her good quality dog food and trying to find out what she's actually allergic to, would I be better giving her human food I prepare myself, such as salmon and rice only for several weeks for example. I'm starting to wonder if she's reacting to some preservative or something else in the food. I use to always give her cooked food plus her dog food because I was afraid she wasn't getting the right nutrition, then my vet didn't agree with giving human food, dog food was better. So we went strictly dog food. Any suggestions or advice on this, and if I keep switching her food is that going to cause her problems as well?

Is it actual dry heaves, or does it sound like she is inhaleing really deeply, and making a retching sound? (A reverse sneeze)

Dry heaving accompanied by persistent coughing is usually a sign of respiratory illness. Does your dog spend time in the woods? Walking etc...

Dry heaves may indicate that your pet has internal parasites, internal infection, food allergy, bloat, liver dysfunction or has swallowed and ingested a poisonous substance (such as bone meal fertilizer).


It could definitely be something in the food that she is eating that is causing this. You may want to consider the allergy test at this point. Is there a veterinarian college near you guys? How close are you to St. John's Nfl?






Dry Heaves (http://www.gopetsamerica.com/dog-health/dry-heaves.aspx)

When our lab was younger he went through stomach issues, vomiting, diareaha, heaves and itching. He was being fed science diet puppy by the breeder so that is also what we were giving him. Our vet suggested Nature's Recipe, its made for food allergies and his stamach isuues and some of the itching stopped. After a year we put him on Nature's Recipe healthy coat and that helped more with the itching(our dog is a chocolate lab so he is more prone to skin irritations) but then we started putting a raw egg on his food twice a week. Now his stomach and skin are in good shape. I'm not a vet or and expert but just like different people are sensitive to different things I'd think dogs are the same. Just a thought but do you have well or city water and what kind of water was she drinking before? The chemicals or minerals in the water may play a role.

Ok, I've been watching videos on-line of the reverse sneeze, that's not what's she's doing. I can't find any for dry heaving that look like what she does. It's also not kennel cough because she had that last year when we first got her and it's not the same.
It looks and sounds exactly the same as when she gets sick and vomits, except there's no vomit. She'll get up do it once and lie back down, but she'll do it a good 6-8 times through the night and/or morning mainly. It seems like she retches 2-3 times and then opens her mouth to vomit and there's nothing.
I think I'm going to take her to the vet, only thing is I won't get into until next week now. I'm not near a vet college but I am close to St. John's.
She has also stopped eating her breakfast in the mornings now. I feed her twice a day and now she may not eat until late afternoon or evening. I'm thinking she doesn't really like the salmon Canidae because she usually eats in the morning unless she's not feeling well, and those are the days that she has a gurgly belly, vomiting and diarrhea, which she hasn't been having. Is it too much to switch her food yet again, gradually, or should I stick with this one for a while?

Playing around with her food again, may cause more issues. But it really is trial and error to find a food that will work for your girl. You don't want to wait until this food is completely gone to switch over, so it might be a good idea to switch now.

With the dry heaving I would want to contact your vet again, especially since she isn't eating normally. She is eating something that is upsetting her tummy terribly. The only other thing I can think of would be a preservative allergy. You may want to consider the BARF diet.

Thanks for all the advice, but I just can't go the BARF diet. I'm not fully comfortable that raw meats are a good idea, especially where she's older and has some digestive issues.
I did decide to switch her food again. I really believe she doesn't like the salmon Canidae. She wouldn't eat it yesterday at all, not even later in the day for supper but she ate her yogurt and the canned salmon dog food fine. I tried her again this morning and she wouldn't eat again but when I gave a piece of the new food she ate that no problem. I bought Nutro lamb and rice. I'm thinking maybe the fish is not for her. I have the dry dog food, canned and dried lamb lung treats which I will slowly introduce.
I know it's trial and error but I'm starting to feel like nothing is going to work. I did call my vet and can't get in until next week, unless it's an emergency of course. I'm keeping an eye on her just in case.
I will admit that she's not vomiting, having full diarrhea or having a gurgly belly, but that has stopped for times in the past as well and keeps coming back. Also she just doesn't seem herself lately. The dry heaving has me concerned, the lack of appetite and she's shedding even more if that's possible, and she's still have very wet poops on a regular basis. I did read on a few review sites that some dogs got wet poop and shedding when on the Canidae food so that's another reason I decided to switch from that one.
I'll keep everyone updated on her condition. Hopefully we will have good reports.

Thanks for keeping us posted. I hope this new food works for you. Keeping my fingers crossed for you guys!

Update for Charlotte:
She was up ALL NIGHT last night, coughing and retching and some vomiting. Now I think it is kennel cough. I took her to the vet and he thinks it may be kennel cough but he did some tests because of her age and heart murmur and says her heart is enlarged as well, but her lungs were clear and blood work was good. She's on pills for the cough and we have to go back later for heart meds. So, right now the allergies seem to be the least of my worries. On the bright side she's on steroids now which should help with some of her allergy symptoms.
Again, thanks for all the advice.

Oh my! Sorry to hear all of this. I hope she has a speedy recovery. My dog has a heart murmur too. Your poor girl sure is having a rough go!

Can they week get any worse?
Had to bring Charlotte back to the vet. She was up 2 nights with coughing but last night she started breathing rapid and heavy. It continued through to the morning. Also whenever she lies down she starts coughing so she wouldn't lie down. She's so tired now she 's falling asleep standing up and then waking as she tips over. She's still coughing but now water is dripping from her mouth when she does.
So the vet says now that it looks like congestive heart failure. She's filling up with fluid and that's why her breathing changed. She has 4 meds to take now and got a shot out there. She's pretty pitiful to see. I'm wondering how I can get her to lie down and sleep. She's exhausted but won't lie down. I guess she finds it harder to breath lying down too. Also she's not eating anything. The meds I have to give her tonight are suppose to be with food. What should I do there? I'm cooking chicken and rice for her to see if that will entice her.
Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

I know my dog Lady has a heart murmur, some days are worse than others, but it really affects her when she laying down and when she first gets up. The vet suggested this bed that is on an incline, I made one because they were ridiculously expensive, but Lady won't go near it.

Did your vet say it was okay to give her meds with cheese? My dog always likes cheese. What about another meat product? Like hot dogs or beef? I know you don't want to play around with her food because of allergies, but at this point getting her meds into her is most important.

Michelle, I am SO sorry about Charlotte. You must be pulling your hair out right about now. I am going to post your thread in our chit chat thread, and ask for more help.

Right now not worried about food allergies at all. I cooked up the chicken and rice and veggies but she only ate the chicken so I poked pills in that and hand fed her. She wouldn't even eat pill pockets or yogurt which she usually loves. I don't know what I'll do in the morning because she's not usually a morning eater. I'll try cheese if she won't eat the chicken.
Thanks again

I'm sorry to hear about Charlotte :( would she maybe lay down with you laying down? I know you don't want to try the raw meat diet but.. My grandparents dog refused to eat, and she also needed pills, they fed her handfuls of raw hamburger. She wouldn't eat it just out of a bowl. You could try feeding her out of your hand (you may or may not have tried this). I'm really sorry if none of these help but I'm thinking any suggestions may help!
I hope she feels better soon, just try to make her as comfortable as you can (which seems hard.. )

What has the vet diagnosed with this dog? She sure has a lot going wrong with her...

You said she was a rescue, correct? I hate to say it, but her being sick is probably why she was in a rescue in the first place.

The only thing I can think of is not a very good outlook. My moms dog, who died from cancer of the bladder and kidneys, became a very sick dog for a lot of things. She would throw up food randomly throughout the years. We had her on a special diet for about 6 months and she did OK on regular food afterwards. The vet said she had a reaction to the preservative in the dry food. We thought maybe it was just a bad batch, but after the cancer showed up everything made sense.

Has your dog been tested for any type of cancer? The vomitting, lethargic behavior, not wanting to eat rings a lot of bells. Either her known conditions are effecting her that bad, or its something else.I would almost lean on something else more so then what is going on right now.

I would strongly suggest to test for cancer. Her symptoms keep changing.

I am so sorry your dog is sick, I truly am. I know its hard to watch them wilt and you not having a clue what's wrong. My heart goes to you :(

Thank goodness, Charlotte is improving. We've had a few sleepless nights but last night she actually slept in her bed from 1-6am. It was great. We had been lying down with her, but when she'd start to drift off she'd end of coughing or have more trouble breathing and have to get up, but she's coming around.
She kept eating the chicken if I hand fed her so that's we did for a couple of days to get the meds in. Now she's eating a bit more.
I knew she would probably have problems because we got her at an older age. The SPCA did say that due to her age we may just be inheirting someone else's problems. She's 12 now and I'm not expecting her to be perfect health wise, but this was a big scare.
When she gets better from this I think I'm going to start making her food myself. I'd rather be feeding her high-quality foods that I cook myself then commercial dog food. I have to admit that all the horror stories I have read on-line regarding certain dog foods killing or making pets ill did enter my mind when she got sick so fast. Also she doesn't seem to really enjoy the dry kibble very much so from now on cooked salmon and chicken and veggies, etc. I'm going to have to check on-line for good ideas to ensure she's getting good nutrition.
Thanks for all the good wishes

Here are some webpages on feeding raw diets. You don't just want to feed your dog a meat source, there are additives for vitamins and other supplements that must be added to a meal.

Natural Diet: Don't "Just Do It" (http://www.caberfeidh.com/NaturalDiet.htm)

Home Cooked Pet Diets,Home Made Recipes And Pet Nutrition (http://www.2ndchance.info/homemadediets.htm)

Bones and Raw Food Diet (http://www.katberard.com/hol_bonesandfood.htm)

Each site has their own recipe. Like with the dry food, you're going to have to figure out what works for you...

Good luck

Thanks, I've been looking into some sites regarding real food. There's still a ton of things to consider. Who thought food would be so difficult?
I found a couple of sites regarding commercial dog food. Has anyone heard of Orijin? It's made in Canada and looks like a really high quality. Their site is www.orijen.ca/
Also I found a site that lets you rate dog food based on the ingredient list. It's www.acreaturecomfort.com/ratingpetfood.htm
Any comments on either? Thinking about mixing human food with dry dog food to ensure all vitamins and minerals are being met and also to help with teeth cleaning.

My sisters dog eats orijin, it's very high in protein so you have to be very careful when giving it to older dogs, I would go with evo instead of orijin.

That's what I was wondering. What could be some problems in feeding a high protein diet? Also, if I'm mixing it with human food as well would that matter?
Also, I don't think EVO is available where I live. Any thoughts on Wellness Simple for allergies? It's suppose to limit it's ingredients to one grain (rice) and one protein.

I wouldn't recommend Orijin to your dog Mftaylor. Evo would be a much better choice, especially if you get a weight management or a type specific for older dogs. Wellness is a good choice, you just need to be careful of the protein. What kind of human food are you feeding her?

What about the protein do I need to watch out for? Charlotte is an older dog, 12, but she is highly active and not overweight, she may actually but a tad underweight.
I use to fed her human food all the time but stopped due to vet advice regarding allergies. When I did feed her I always mixed it with her dry kibble because I was afraid ahe wouldn't get the right nutrition and the dry kibble would help clean her teeth. I would cook her a protein (chicken, beef, salmon mostly), a carb (usually rice, sometimes oatmeal, toast or potatoes) and a veggie (usually peas and/or carrots). I would like to keep cooking for her but with all the info on-line I'm afraid I'll leave out something crucial so I would rather mix it with dry food. Of course I will have to limit her food to specific ingredients until we figure out this allergy thing.

To be honest, I've been doing some additional reading, and I spoke to one of the professors at the local agricultural college about high and low protein diets for dogs, and I found some new information. I think I was basing my high protein diet thought thinking about less stress on her organs, as in the past people have always been told that high protein diets are hard on kidneys especially in older dogs.

How ever, on the other hand and not to contradict myself, truth is that there is no reason to feed a lower protein diet to most healthy senior dogs. While lower protein diets have traditionally been recommended for senior dogs, we now know that a protein-rich diet is especially important for older dogs, because their systems are less efficient at metabolizing protein. Recent studies show that healthy older dogs may need as much as 50 percent more protein than their younger adult counterparts.

When a dog doesn't get enough protein in their diet, they actually break down their muscle to get what they need.

Your vet, or speaking to an animal nutritionist would be your best bet, and I am not a vet nor am I am nutritionist, I am only basing my answers from what I have learned at either school or the shelter where I volunteer, or my own experiences with pet owning.

Thanks Aurora_Bell. Charlotte has a re-check on Wednesday so I'm going to bring up diet then.

Update:
Charlotte is doing MUCH better. She had her re-check and the vet was very pleased with her recovery. Her x-rays were clear and her heart doesn't look enlarged. I'm weaning her off her meds and the vet thinks it may have been pneumonia, not heart failure. We have to keep an eye on her to see how she reacts to the lower dose of meds. If she gets sick again then it's heart failure and we will put her on heart medication.
As for diet I am giving up commercial pet food and going with home cooked. Right now I'm giving her anything and everything although as she gets better she is showing some allergy symptoms again. Once she's 100% and off the meds I will introduce 1 protein, 1 carb, 1 veg and 1 fruit for a month to see if I can figure this allergy thing out. I'm suppose to pick novel foods that she hasn't had before but I'm having trouble with the protein. She's had just about every meat. I'm leaning towards lamb or salmon. I'm going to use couscous because I've never given it to her before and carrots and apples. There are just too many horror stories out there for commercial dog food and she doesn't seem to enjoy them much anyway. She is definitely much happier with the home cooked.

Oh great to hear! I was getting worried there. I think she will love the home cooked meals! You are such a wonderful mommy to Charlotte and she is lucky to have you!

Again, thanks for keeping us updated, feel free to stick around offer help when you can. You might enjoy this thread as well.

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/lounge/pictures-our-pets-416334.html

Ok, Charlotte is now on her new homemade allergy diet. She's eating salmon, couscous, carrots all drizzled with a little olive oil and apple or banana. We are on day 3 and of course way to early to see any improvement. I am hoping she will start to feel some relief soon. Lately she's been really itchy and upset tummy.
Also, since cut her meds back her cough has started to increase so she's fully back on one med and has another re-check on Wednesday. The vet thinks we may have to put her on heart meds then.

Ok, Charlotte is back on Furosemide twice a day and now Vetmedin twice a day. I'm hoping her cough will go away and we can all get back to normal.
She's doing well on her homemade diet. I'm increasing the amounts because she has lost some weight since her last vet visit. The house and Charlotte constantly reek of salmon which wouldn't be so bad if I actually liked salmon.
Hoping she's finally on the mend.

I hope so too Michelle. You have sure been through a lot with Charlotte. You are a great mom, and she is very lucky to have you. It makes me smile, because I know what you are going through as far as the food thing goes. I had to walk miles for a Shih Tzu. She had a stroke, and she lost a lot of teeth, so we had to make her special food, and as she got older she became increasingly fussy. And on top of that she developed allergies. At the end she was 13, on her last leg, we fed her what ever the heck we could get into her.

I hope miss Charlotte is on the mend as well. Thanks for keeping us posted.

You're a great mom! Most people would have said screw it and put her down, but your going to the end of the earth to make her better! I love hearing story's like this one and it makes me feel that the human race is a little less cruel (Yes, most days I think that). I hope she gets better quick and if not at least she has a mommy who will stick with her while she is sick!

Ok, wondering about allergy symptoms. Charlotte has been eating a salmon, couscous, apple, carrot, oil diet for a month now. I know it can take up to months for symptoms to go away. She has not had any diarrhea at all and no vomiting or gurgly belly. Also she has gone from pooping 5-10 times a day to 1-3 times. She still has the itchy ears, face and butt. Bites and licks her feet and sheds like crazy. She was licking and dragging her butt so much the other day she had it red. I'm starting to think she may have both allergies and food intolerences and maybe the allergies could be environmental or seasonal. Any suggestions? I'm also thinking that if it is food related that maybe she's allergic to the carrot or to grains. That may be my next step although a little wary on feeding her just meat and veg for 2 months.

It could be the couscous, but like you said it could be environmental. Has your vet okay'd you to give her bennadryl? Works wonders on itchy pets.

I've been meaning to call and check about the bennadryl. She's already on two medications and I didn't want to put her on another, especially if I'm trying to pinpoint the food allergy and was hoping the itching going away on its own would give me some answers. If she's on bennadryl how will I tell if the diet is working?

The thing is you won't. But she will be comfortable. Some dogs have environmental allergies, and there is nothing you can do about it.

Thanks Aurora_Bell. I spoke with my vet today and she said to try her on the Benadryl, 25 mg pill up to 3x a day. Charlotte weighs about 20 lbs. She just got her first pill and I'm hoping she find some relief soon. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks Michelle. Bennadryl has been my dogs saving grace. She has food and environmental allergies as well.
I REALLY appreciate how you have kept us updated. Poor Charlotte had me worried. I am glad she is starting to feel better.

All my friends on here call me Bella. :)

I meant to say, it sounds like your new food is really doing wonders on her tummy. Glad to hear you found something that works.

Update
Charlotte is on Benadryl and it is helping. She still has some scratching but it doesn't seem as bad.
She's still on her hypoallergenic, homemade diet and is doing very well. We have introduced chicken and no problems with that. I did give her some peanut butter the other day and she ate something off my mother's floor. The next day she was sick. Wouldn't eat and very bad gas. Not sure if it was the peanut butter or the mystery snack. I'm staying away from peanut butter for now anyway.
Charltte still has a cough due to her heart problems. The vet has upped her meds again and if it doesn't stop she has to go back in a couple of weeks for more x-rays.
Overall she's doing very well, although she is not back to her old self and we're wondering if she ever will. It's like our 12 year dog went from energetic puppy to old tired dog in a month. Sigh.

12 years, is a good life Michelle. Just remember that! :)

Thanks for the update, glad to hear she is doing better.

Ok, thought about starting a new thread but figured all the background info is already here.

Had Charlotte to the vet today because she is still coughing even after her meds were increased. The vet took another x-ray to check for fluid build-up related to her congestive heart failure. The x-rays appear clear but my vet thinks she may have lungworm and this could be causing the cough. Glad that it's not fluid build-up considering she's almost taking the max medication for that now. My question is can she have lungworm even if I'm treating her with advantage multi? I thought that covered lungworm and she was only treated with it 2 weeks ago. It does not refer to lungworm on the box (unless it's under another name) but on-line it says it treats for lungworm. I have deworming meds to put her on now (along with all the other meds she's on).

Also, we had her heart murmur checked and it has gotten much worse within this last month. Last month the vet said on a scale of 1-5 with 1 being low Charlotte was a 1-2, today she's coming in at 4-5. She has recommeneded getting an ultrasound of her heart to determine the best course of treatment. I have to travel over an hour for this test and it's going to cost almost $500.00.

I have to say I love my dog. I want her to be healthy, happy and comfortable but I'm starting to wonder if all these meds, tests, and various diagnosis are doing her any good in the long run.

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

At this point Michelle, the decision in your alone. You know her better than anyone here. No one can help you make that decision.

I have my doubts about it being a lung worm, but I know that her heart murmur can cause her to cough more. Is the vet not taking the murmur into consideration with all the coughing?

My vet has never made any suggestion of the heart murmur being associated with the coughing. In the beginning she has said the coughing is likely due to fluid build-up from congestive heart failure and based on the x-rays.
Now she says that with the new x-ray it may be due to lungworm or irritation of the trachea. She says that although the murmur is worse the heart is not any larger then it was before.
She seems to talk about the murmur as a different aspect from the coughing and congestive heart failure.

On another note. I'm not suggesting stopping further treatments or meds, especially if it will help Charlotte in the long run, but I'm wondering if everything so far has been necessary or if it comes down to I'm willing to pay so she's getting more expensive options and treatments that may not be needed or in her best interest.
I think I'm starting to lose a little faith with so much happening in so little time. She went from being great to having a cough, diagnosed with kennel cough and treated. The steroids made her worse and she had trouble breathing. Then diagnosed with congestive heart failure and fluid build-up. Treated. Cough remained, increased the meds. Still on ear drops and benadryl for allergies as well as diet restrictions. Back to the vet and now suggested ultrasound for the heart and lungworm for the cough, even though being treated with advantage multi.
I guess I'm starting to feel like the vet hasn't been right and we're just trying all these different possibilities.

You could try another vet, get a second opinion. Your vet seems to be guessing and checking, which is expensive! Ask around another vet may know more.

I've considered that but then I'm practically starting all over again. This is the third vet we've been too, although the only vet lately for the recent problems. I had one I liked last year, but really out of the way for me so I got 1 closer. Wasn't too happy with her so got this one at the same clinic after an emergency appointment. She seemed good but now I'm wondering.

Just go to another vet and say what the problems are with her (the ones you know forsure) and then tell them the other symptoms and ask what they think it is... They may have a suggestion or two to bring up with the other vet.

Lady has a heart Murmur, and one of the symptoms of the murmur is coughing! I know it would feel like starting all over again, but you can get your records and try another vet.

Update:
I took Charlotte to another vet and it was pretty much the same, although she was much more helpful in explaining things and she did say that the cough may not go away completely.
Now I'm trying to decide if she should have the ultrasound or not. I'm leaning towards not. I understand it's only a diagnostic test, it won't fix her, it will only help pinpoint her problem and then maybe give us a better course of treatment if any. We have already decided we will not put her through surgery, she's 12 and I don't know how well she would handle it. Also, talking with the vet I think the ultrasound itself may be stressful on her. We have to drive over an hour to the appointment and then drop Charlotte off for up to 5 hours. They can't give an exact appointment time and the test itself could take up to 2 hours. Also, there's a possibility she may have to be sedated which I didn't want to do due to her age and health problems. I think the stress of the day would be too much for her. She has major separation anxiety and gets very stressed at the vet.
Charltte is on vetmedin right now for her heart and it's suppose to one of the better meds. She's on a healthy homemade diet and getting lots of omega 3 for her heart. She seems content so I think we are just going to wait and watch for awhile.
I'll keep everyone updated with how's she's doing.
Thanks again for all the helpful advice.
Michelle

Thanks for the update. I think you are making the right decision.

Update on Charlotte:
Charlotte passed away this morning. She was loved and will be missed.

:( I'm so sorry for your loss.

Please, accept my sincerest condolences on your loss. :(

I am so sorry for your loss.

Susan

I'm so sorry mftaylor.
She is in a happy place now, playing on the other side of the rainbow bridge, don't worry, you will get to see her again one day, until then she can play with her doggy friends up in heaven.

Michelle, I am So sorry to hear this. My deepest sympathies for you and your family.

Here is a thread you might want to post on.

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/lounge/all-our-gone-but-never-forgotton-furry-feathered-scaly-friends-488689.html

I hope you decide to stick around.