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

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/d...ed-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... 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.

Quote:

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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.

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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