white dog skin issues

madlyn

my jack russell who is mainly white with a few black patches, has developed some sort of skin inrritation, she gets very itchy and scratches and nibbles her skin.
It started early on in the year and the vet put it down to a pollen allergy, gave her a course of steroids and it cleared up.
A couple of months later it started again, back to the vets and more steroids, however the vet said once the staeroids are finished give her half a antihistamine tablet a day, and up until 4 days ago that seemed to be working, but the problem has started again.
I dont think it is her food, she has arden grange light and has been on it for over a year. So other than going back to the vets for more steroids and possible allergy tests i'm baffled.
Any one else with a white dogh have similar issues and what do you do?

MrsMaz1

Hi,
My dog also has skin issues that we noticed when he was only a few months old...
the vet tried him on antihistamine tablets that worked for a short while, but started again,
we tried changing his food, washing powders etc incase it was that, but eventually he had skin tests done,
we discovered he was allergic to just about everything! grass pollen, wheat, gluten, you name it, hes allergic!
he takes 2 tavegil tablets twice daily, steroid tablets every other day and also has a monthly ammunitherepy (sp?) injection, he still has flare ups especially in the summer but its controlled now.
my advice is to have tests,even to put your mind at rest and rule anything out,
hopefully you are covered by insurance like we are because if he has allergies like mine, its very expensive! thank god for petplan.
I hope you find out what the problem is.

Rev

My white dog has skin issues. It turned out to be food. He is allergic to all grains. Processed chicken, turkey, beef, pork.

He spent about 6 months being unable to eat anything besides scrambled eggs and mashed potato.

I wouldn't be so quick to rule out food (especially as Arden grange lite is made up of mostly rice and maize, two massive allergen a for dogs) Or anything at all to be honest.

sheramber

Sensitivity to something takes time to build up so it can take weeks,months or years to reach the stage where there is a reaction.

Grains especially maize are common triggers but it can be anything. I have had a dog sensitive to wheat gluten and one to lamb. A friend's dog is allergic to rice and beef.

you could try changing to a food which doesn't contain anything that her current food contains. So you need to check ALL the ingredients and compare different foods.

Maybe a fish and potato food would be an option.

It can take 6 weeks to show improvement but in my case the itching stopped within a couple of days although the skin took longer to recover.

elsien

A lot of white bull terrier owners find a raw food diet helps. However that does still depend on the specific allergens - no use giving them chicken if that's what they're allergic to.
Any particular bit of skin - if it's mainly feet/legs/undercarriage, try wiping down with a damp cloth when they come in. Could be house dust mites - do you have carpets?
Could be any number of things, unfortunately.

Katiehound

Not quite the same result but my dog is wheat intolerant.
I feed him on a mix of Burgess sensitive lamb & rice and Skinners duck & rice.
If he gets an upset tum he gets plain boiled potato and boiled fish or chicken.

Dogs with white fur seem particularly prone to skin conditions I would think trying sensitive food would be a good route to go.

Things to try on the skin may be Anicura or Camrosa to settle the itchiness

madlyn

we do have carpets, we have been out for a walk for around 3 hrs today and she didint scratch once, but as soon as we get back home she starts scratching.
She scratches mainly around the neck but if i touch her back or around he back legs and tail her back leg starts go twitch.
And I honestly thought arden grange food wasnt full of bad things. I may go and try her on a sensitive food.

Katiehound

madlyn wrote: »

And I honestly thought arden grange food wasnt full of bad things. I may go and try her on a sensitive food.

It's not that Arden Grange is full of bad things- it may just be 'bad things' for your own dog!
Just be aware that you need to change food gradually otherwise you may have digestion problems to add to the itch factor.
Grain free is probably the best to try- especially no wheat . Some sensitive foods use rice as the basis and others potato.

madlyn

Just been and got her some arden grange sensitive, so will see how she goes with that.

AylesburyDuck

Also try Salmon oil, very good for itchy dog skin, white dogs are very prone to it.

Money_saving_maniac

My old dog was allergic to warm asphalt and also to plaster dust. Could be your carpets. I am presuming he is treated against fleas, they also pop out of the carpets?