I'm pretty sure what my dog has is a skin yeast infection. There is lots of scratching, loss of hair, and a pungent odor. His diet is good. No grains or grain byproducts that I know of. Basically he eats Canidae with ground turkey meat and a chicken wing mixed together. I also give him an egg every day. Occasionaly I will put the juice from a can of tuna on top of the kibble. I've been reading about this on the internet and haven't really found a solution except for antibiotics and steroids. Is there another alternative? I would really like to hear some opinions concerning this issue.

Talk to your vet, have him/her perform a skin scraping to make sure. I would find a dermatologist vet in your area. I've personally seen regular vets mistreat a skin disorder. Hope this link helps.


http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:Q10...nfections&hl=en

Thank you, Greg.

Hi Butch,
Well Im glad I read your post. Im in the same boat as you... or at least a simalar one. I have been experiencing the same problem with my 11 month old GSD Kane. My problems started when he was about 6 months old. Started as dry flaky skin. Changed to a better food (Canidae) and it seemed to help. The dry skin lasted for months. Used Oatmeal shampoos and it helped temporarly. Took him to the vet and they told me he was allergic to fleas and had an ear infection. They cleaned out his ears but couldnt tell me what the cause was. He had terrible doggy oder and his ears would get a thick grey wax in them. I took him back to the same vet and again they tried to convince me that it was fleas. I finally asked my SchH trainer who he recomended. He told me of his vet who is also a specialist (dermatologist). I made an appt. and even though he was more expensive that the (crazy vet) and an hour away. He knew as soon as he saw him what the problem was. He suspected Malassezia Dermatitis with possible secondary Hypothyroidism.

In other words he has a yeast infection all over his body. Hes got the "elephant skin" under his arm pits and between his legs. Plus his ears are caked with scales again. He narrowed it down to to causes. He either has a thyroid problem which usually fights off normal yeast and it can be a little low. Or he has a defect in his immunity which is causeing him not to be able to fight off the yeast. Now the thyroid is corrected by thyroid meds of course and if it is a defect he would basically have to be on Med for the rest of his life to keep his skin clear.

He called me 2 days ago and told me that the thyroid test came back low. Thats a good thing! So he called in some Thyroid meds to the pharmacy. He also gave me a medicated shampoo that I have to bathe him with EVERY day. and a cream rinse that has to stay on his skin. The biggest challenge in the bath everyday. Its not easy. Plus I have to use peroxide in his ears a couple of times a week.

So like Greg says. Take him to the vet and have them run some tests. Not all vets know how to diagnose a skin problem. I learned that! Also you can do a search on the internet for Malassezia Dermatitis and it will give you more info on it.
Like the vet told me... you could be facing a long term commitment when it come to treating your dog. If your dog does have the same thing as Kane then hopefully its the thyroid and not a defect. Good luck and make an appt. as soon as you can. I hope this helps. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

You guys can also start supplementing your dogs with fatty acid supplementation such as Derm Caps ES. I found the best price with free shipping on kvvet.com. The recommended dose is one capsule a day but the Dermatologist and many articles on the net say to supplement with two to three a day. Here is another helpful link, even though it talks about Dalmations it has very precise info regarding skin problems that may affect all breeds. Good luck guys

http://www.thedca.org/derm.html

Thanks for the info, Chastity. It seems like this is what my dog has. He, too, has the elephant skin. mostly in the arm pits under the hind legs. This sure sounds like a depressing situation. I'll do some more research and see what I come up with. Again, thanks to you and Greg. You've been most helpful.

One more thing. You mentioned a problem with the thyroid. I read somewhere that if a dog drinks a lot, this could be an indication of a thyroid problem. Lance does seem to be drinking more lately.

Thanks for the info Greg. And Butch... Kane also seemed to drink more so I hope its a thyroid like Kane. If so then its not as bad as the defect thing. But the baths are such a pain! I run a child care fom my home so I have to bathe him during nap time and by the time I can actually wet his coat and rinse it Im more tired than a days work with kids! :rolleyes: LOL But his skin is already improving. The scalliness is easing up a bit and even though he still smells bad its not quite as bad as it was. At least now my bathroom doesnt smell like foul dog days later. :rolleyes:

Keep us posted on how he does. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Laureen, does Canidae have yeast in it? If so, that might be part of the problem. I don't remember seeing yeast when I looked at the ingredients. Of course, I'm not a good observer at times. Thanks for the suggestions. Chastity, I will keep you informed about his condition. I've started giving him ground turkey meat and chicken wings and no kibble. Maybe this will help also. By the way, would tuna packed in oil be good to add to his diet, or do any of you readers know if tuna is bad for dogs? I would think maybe the oil might be good for his skin. Thanks again.