Quote: martha regula

Don't understand the dif between quick reply and regular reply. Help?
And do I reply to everyone at once or individually?---To answer you Connie, yes--paws and legs!! that's the worse places and behind ears.

Use either quick or regular..... but no fancy stuff is available in "quick" (no smilies, for example).

How is his weight? To add fat by leaving on the skin, I would do it gradually. Sometimes extra fat all at once triggers a little diarrhea.

He is lean, but the vet said his weight was good. He is young and hasn't "filled out" quite yet. He is a big boy though. Even at 6 mos he was a big dog. I figured it was better for him to be a bit thin, less stress on hips/joints during this formative time so I haven't worried about trying to "fatten him up". His coat is shiny and full and otherwise he seems quite healthy. His appetite is usually good, not excessive and as I said, he's a bundle of energy.
He gets diarrhea now and then anyway, figured that was normal. But will start slowly and just leave the skin on a piece or two. It's my adversion to the skin that caused me to cut it off, thinking that all that fat couldn't be good.

Oh absolutely do NOT "fatten him up"!!

Keep him skinny. I make sure I can see a rib or so on my dogs (even on puppies). When they're breathing hard you can see most of their ribcage too.

When I suggested increasing the fat intake, I should have added to keep a close watch of the dog's body condition so that he doesn't put on extra weight. You're certainly right about the joint issue.

And yes, proceed slowly with any diet changes, just in case your dog has a sensitive tummy
I forget about those types sometimes. I can toss anything to my pigs and they never have trouble with it.

Fat is an essential part of a dog's diet. Fat also plays a big role in skin health so definitely don't try to eliminate too much of it!

Btw, if this whole reply/quote thing is confusing you, you don't need to use it. You can simply type in the person's name as you're replying. You don't HAVE to click on anything

 Quote: Carol Boche

Hey, I thought it was COOL to be called Yuko.....

could have been someone else and I might have gotten a little miffed.....HEE HEE

Oh boy, what an honour. Thanks Carol, I feel so important all of a sudden (oooh watch my head inflate!) HAHAHA

You guys are fun and helpful what more could a dog lover/newbie poster ask for.

I'm with you on lean dogs. I've seen too many overfed dogs. I've never tried to encourage him to eat too much. He's perfectly handsome and shapely just as he is! But I will take your advice and add a bit more fat to his diet...in small increments. And will definitely up the fish oil. As I said, he's not prone to overeating at all so I'm not too worried about him gaining too much weight.
Right now he is snoozing peacefully and is very happy that a whole community of lovely ladies is going to be helping mom work on his itchy problem.
He just can't wait to send you his pic. Mom is going to work on that.

Haha, you're funny too

If you need any help with pics - be it resizing, editing, posting - PM me and I'll be happy to help you out (to PM, click on my name, go to my profile and click on "Send a Private Message")

Chicken is often one of the cheapest meats around, not to mention the benefit of the bones being very soft and easy to digest. Unfortunately too much of it, combined with a lack of red meats does seem to cause itching in some dogs.

Not exactly sure why... maybe it's the "broth" that's pumped into the meat to inflate its weight or maybe it's that commercially raised chicken lack some nutrients the dogs need...? Just guessing here, feel free to ignore

 Quote: yuko blum

Haha, you're funny too

If you need any help with pics - be it resizing, editing, posting - PM me and I'll be happy to help you out (to PM, click on my name, go to my profile and click on "Send a Private Message")

Just guessing here, feel free to ignore

Will take you up on the pic offer after I get something on a website. Thanks!
Well, your guess is certainly more educated than mine and I would not ignore. I wonder about those commercially raised chickens too-.. I had thought that might be a contributing factor--although he gets a fair amount of red meat, it's mostly lean except the ground beef which is the cheapest and looks full of fat. And I think the suggestion of increasing the fish oil certainly can't hurt.
Will see what Connie says tomorrow since you say she's the resident expert on "itchy dogs" ha!
This has been a great first time experience on this forum. Learned about doggie insurance too, something I was wondering about.
Geez, I've stayed up way too late. And there's an itchy guy who loves his early morning hike giving me the droopy eye telling me to go to bed. Thanks again.

 Quote: martha regula

. . . now he is snoozing peacefully and is very happy that a whole community of lovely ladies is going to be helping mom work on his itchy problem.

Hey! If I were sensitive, I'd be offended . But I'm not. . . and I'm not.

To be sure, you'll get lots of good advice for dealing with these problems, but the realities are that there may not be any absolute or clear cut answers, at least not right away. DAMHIKT! (if you're new to forums, you may want to bookmark a page like this. )

In addition to trying possible diet changes, supplements, etc., you should probably consider some antihistamines to provide relief when there is intense discomfort. You can read about them
here.

Personally, I've tried Benadryl (OTC and very cheap) but it did absolutely nothing. Atarax worked well with my previous dog, and I'm just now trying it with my current one. No experience with the other two.

For really bad problems, prednisone is a "magic bullet" and pretty inexpensive. But it carries the typical risks associated with long term steroid use - liver damage, etc. In my case, I've chosen to use it for instant relief in very limited amounts for a very short period when the dog is extremely uncomfortable. I may give a 2-3mg dose 2-3 times a day for a day or two (for a 65# dog) and taper off to nothing as opposed to the prescribed dose that is easily 3 -4x as much for a longer period. It's something to consider as long as you weigh all the pros & cons.

Bottom line is, this process may take a while and you might need to provide some relief for your dog while you tweak things.

Mike

I feel compelled to tell you that I am 99.9% sure that my 1 1/2 year old Terrier/Husky mix is allergic to chicken. He gets yeasty, itchy paws and my whole hallway smells like nacho cheese when he's affected. No chicken, no cheese!

To the O.P.:

Mike is one of the experts, BTW. He has struggled through the whole thing (books, diets, meds, trials.....), and he knows a LOT about allergies.

Here is the info I promised you to get started on:

http://www.leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=10&Number=155649&Searchpage=1&Main=16306&Words=hydroxyzine&topic=0&Search=true#Post155649

http://www.leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=10&Number=156859&Searchpage=1&Main=16418&Words=hydroxyzine&topic=0&Search=true#Post156859

http://www.leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=10&Number=145873&Searchpage=2&Main=15455&Words=hydroxyzine&topic=0&Search=true#Post145873

http://www.leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=10&Number=132720&Searchpage=2&Main=14272&Words=hydroxyzine&topic=0&Search=true#Post132720


But I would also make a vet appointment for getting two-week antihistamine trials (dogs react differently to them; only 30% or so get relief from them but I consider that worth the try), starting with hydroxyzine and then chlorpheniramine (Benadryl is one of least successful), and definitely up the fish oil.

I know you will have questions, and we're here.

By the way, if you notice any odor (yeasty, cheesey), which you said you have not, you should mention it. :>

Hey! If I were sensitive, I'd be offended . But I'm not. . . and I'm not.

Didn't mean to offend Mike, you just weren't online at the time! Shall I amend: lovely ladies and fine gents

To be sure, you'll get lots of good advice for dealing with these problems, but the realities are that there may not be any absolute or clear cut answers, at least not right away. DAMHIKT! (if you're new to forums, you may want to bookmark a page like this. )

Thanks, cool site!

In addition to trying possible diet changes, supplements, etc., you should probably consider some antihistamines to provide relief when there is intense discomfort. You can read about them
here.

Don't think he's in "intense discomfort" but definitely some discomfort.

Bottom line is, this process may take a while and you might need to provide some relief for your dog while you tweak things.\

Thanks Mike for the suggestions. This is very helpful. Am going to try some diet modifications first and then move forward. I realize this won't be quick or easy...but nothing worthwhile usually is!
Martha