Any vets out there?
♥_Ellybean_♥
Posts: 1,646 Member
I am hoping a Vet can give me some advice regarding one of my dogs.
I have 3 dogs, one of them Mack is 4 years old, he is a Rott/Chow mix and the sweetest guy you could know. He is fixed and up to date on all shots. We have had him since he was 3 months old (he was our 3rd dog).
The last two years (this started last year) he seems to be having an issue a "licking" issue. He licks his paws, and his tail NON STOP and by non stop he is constantly being told "Mack Stop" because he licks and licks and licks.
Last year we took him to the vet for it and they said "it's probably allergies" give him 1mg of Benedryl per pound (he is 95lbs) and a nice Oatmeal soothing bath. Well we did this and do this, we give him an Oatmeal bath about every 2 weeks and Benedryl daily. However he still licks and licks and licks and licks.... even at night you can hear him licking!!
They said I could do allergy testing on him but the treatment would pretty much be the same. And the testing is well over $400 just for the allergy testing, not including a skin test or anything else.
Can someone give me advice on other options? I hate to pay for the testing and than they say "Give him Benedryl" and I am already doing this.. and I am already giving him a Oatmeal soothing bath.. but I feel bad for the guy, and I need a good nights sleep with out the "lick lick lick" in the background!
I have 3 dogs, one of them Mack is 4 years old, he is a Rott/Chow mix and the sweetest guy you could know. He is fixed and up to date on all shots. We have had him since he was 3 months old (he was our 3rd dog).
The last two years (this started last year) he seems to be having an issue a "licking" issue. He licks his paws, and his tail NON STOP and by non stop he is constantly being told "Mack Stop" because he licks and licks and licks.
Last year we took him to the vet for it and they said "it's probably allergies" give him 1mg of Benedryl per pound (he is 95lbs) and a nice Oatmeal soothing bath. Well we did this and do this, we give him an Oatmeal bath about every 2 weeks and Benedryl daily. However he still licks and licks and licks and licks.... even at night you can hear him licking!!
They said I could do allergy testing on him but the treatment would pretty much be the same. And the testing is well over $400 just for the allergy testing, not including a skin test or anything else.
Can someone give me advice on other options? I hate to pay for the testing and than they say "Give him Benedryl" and I am already doing this.. and I am already giving him a Oatmeal soothing bath.. but I feel bad for the guy, and I need a good nights sleep with out the "lick lick lick" in the background!
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Replies
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Oh god, mine's doing the same! Not always licking, sometimes it's biting. We thought it was just fleas to start with but we're the same now. It's always Scrap - stop!
He's a nine year old lab...0 -
Oh god, mine's doing the same! Not always licking, sometimes it's biting. We thought it was just fleas to start with but we're the same now. It's always Scrap - stop!
He's a nine year old lab...
Yea we thought fleas at first, cuz our youngest ALWAYS gets fleas, but nope not fleas...0 -
What are you feeding him?
Our dobe had allergies, licked himself raw, red skin, itchy and flakey. He is allergic to poultry. He eats Evo Red Meat Big Bites now (no poultry high protein food) and is doing amazing. No licking.0 -
don't have a dog anymore, but maybe getting a second opinion from another vet before spending all that money on allergy testing may help. I hate it when any animals are suffering, because they can't tell you what's wrong. Hope you all find an answer.0
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What are you feeding him?
Our dobe had allergies, licked himself raw, red skin, itchy and flakey. He is allergic to poultry. He eats Evo Red Meat Big Bites now (no poultry high protein food) and is doing amazing. No licking.
I'm sure the food he is eating has poultry, or maybe not. We have changed their food and it didn't seem to make a difference. We are feeling him now Rachel Ray's Organic Food, but I don't know if it has poultry in it or not.
We NEVER had this problem before prior to 2 years ago when we moved into my Mom's house to help her out. And 3 months ago we moved back into our own place and he is still doing it.0 -
Corn is really bad and wheat will do it too. We had a blue heeler allergic to chicken.0
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Do you walk him?0
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Um, we feed Scrap on that Tescos stuff. It's about 6 quid a bag I think? We did feed him on Bakers but we've all had to make some sacrifices recently
The cats lost their tinned/sachet'd food and Scrap had to downgrade.Oh no! I hope it's not that!! :noway: 0 -
I'm not a vet, but I've been a vet assistant for a few years now. One possibility you could discuss with your vet is trying to rule out food allergies before proceeding to allergy testing. If you haven't seen your vet since last year, I would highly recommend bringing your dog back to the vet before trying to switch diets on your own though. Seeing the skin condition prior to changes will help them make recommendations and they may decide to add medications such as antibiotics depending on the condition of the skin.0
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Some of the biggest allergies that dogs have are to: lamb, chicken, grains and fish.
go to: www.dogfoodanalysis.com
Rachael Ray's dog food are ranked only as 2 star foods. You may want to consider to changing the food to a higher ranked food, grain free, high in protein. I would recommend protein bases of beef or venison0 -
I'm not a vet, but I've been a vet assistant for a few years now. One possibility you could discuss with your vet is trying to rule out food allergies before proceeding to allergy testing. If you haven't seen your vet since last year, I would highly recommend bringing your dog back to the vet before trying to switch diets on your own though. Seeing the skin condition prior to changes will help them make recommendations and they may decide to add medications such as antibiotics depending on the condition of the skin.
He has been to the vet since, infact he was there to get his shots about 4 months ago. But again they tell me the same thing, probably allergies0 -
Mine gets walks. Not always very long ones but he gets out every day. He has free access to the garden too most of the time. I've tried buying him toys you can hide food in to try keep him occupied when we're not there. Do you think its boredom?0
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Some of the biggest allergies that dogs have are to: lamb, chicken, grains and fish.
go to: www.dogfoodanalysis.com
Rachael Ray's dog food are ranked only as 2 star foods. You may want to consider to changing the food to a higher ranked food, grain free, high in protein. I would recommend protein bases of beef or venison
Thanks I will check this out..0 -
Do you walk him?
Yup he gets walked daily, as well he gets outside play 3x's a day. He has 2 other dogs to play with and a TON of toys, and he licks weather we are there or not, so I'm sure it's not boredom or seperation anxiety like ive read.0 -
Corn is really bad and wheat will do it too. We had a blue heeler allergic to chicken.
I've heard that Corn is bad, and the food we buy does not have corn in it as it's a filler.0 -
Mine gets walks. Not always very long ones but he gets out every day. He has free access to the garden too most of the time. I've tried buying him toys you can hide food in to try keep him occupied when we're not there. Do you think its boredom?
This is where I was going with my "Do you walk him" question.
My dog used to chew the hell out of her paws. She was straight up BORED and had too much energy to expend in the house alone. Taking her on walks stopped her chewing within a week.0 -
Just a thought but do you maybe think it is psychological...like with the moving theng from your mums and then to your new place??
Animals are very territorial and habitual and can (like children) get into habits that are hard to break.
We have an African Grey parrot that plucks his feathers...we have taken him to the vets and there is nothing wrong with him...other than the fact that we have moved homes 3 times in 5 years. The vets advice was that he is fine but got into the habit of plucking his feathers just like a human nail bites when they get anxious.
I know this is not really helpful other than the fact that you may not need to pay for vets fees....I think like our parrot it is just a time issue and hopefuly breaking a habit.
PS I have a dog also :-)0 -
Sorry itsbigjoesgal to jump in your thread! I'm almost relieved that someone else is having similar worries about their dog!0
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Some of the biggest allergies that dogs have are to: lamb, chicken, grains and fish.
go to: www.dogfoodanalysis.com
Rachael Ray's dog food are ranked only as 2 star foods. You may want to consider to changing the food to a higher ranked food, grain free, high in protein. I would recommend protein bases of beef or venison
Thanks I will check this out..
Rachel Ray is not listed ont he site, how do you know it's a 2 star food?0 -
Sorry itsbigjoesgal to jump in your thread! I'm almost relieved that someone else is having similar worries about their dog!
No worries hun!0 -
It may just be compulsive behaviour. And if you are constantly telling him to stop, but he carries on, then telling him to stop quickly becomes counter productive. He associates the command with getting away ignoring it. Never a good idea to repeat a command after it has been ignored. Gently but firmly prise him away from from licking then distract him with a toy then praise him for playing with the toy. Keep at this. If it fails, then fine, go back to the vet - but it has cost you nothing, plus you have played with your dog a lot, which has to be a good thing.0
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I'm a horse doc, not a dog doc, but from what I remember of my time on small animal rotations, it could be a food allergy. It makes them itchy and then they lick until they get granulomas, which in turn are itchy, so they lick them more. Big food issues, wheat and poultry. Cheap dog foods are full of them. But the good news is you don't have to shell out for a prescription food. Check what you're currently feeding for ingredients, then find a dog food without wheat or poultry, or both. Transition the food: 1/4 new to 3/4 old, then 1/2 and 1/2, then 3/4 new to 1/4 old, see if it makes a difference. (Don't switch completely unless you are prepared for explosive poo!) Wouldn't hurt to do a few days of pumpkin to help calm the GI tract. 1/4 cup per meal should do it. Now to deal with the habit of licking that is probably also a component. Try some non toxic, non tasty topicals or a light bandage on the most licked areas. Again, this isn't diagnostic (I can't do that without seeing the dog) so don't take it for the beat all end all answer, and don't get mad at me if it doesn't help! Please don't get mad at me! If you would like more info, you can contact a local vet for more advice on food allergies and lick granulomas. You could always get him a cone of shame, otherwise known as an e-collar. That's what they were made for. :happy:0
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Thanks for advice peoples
I know this wasn't my thread but lots of good advice on here!! Appreciate it! :happy:0 -
Just a thought but do you maybe think it is psychological...like with the moving theng from your mums and then to your new place??
Animals are very territorial and habitual and can (like children) get into habits that are hard to break.
We have an African Grey parrot that plucks his feathers...we have taken him to the vets and there is nothing wrong with him...other than the fact that we have moved homes 3 times in 5 years. The vets advice was that he is fine but got into the habit of plucking his feathers just like a human nail bites when they get anxious.
I know this is not really helpful other than the fact that you may not need to pay for vets fees....I think like our parrot it is just a time issue and hopefuly breaking a habit.
PS I have a dog also :-)
Great concept, only he has been doing it for 2 years now.. and it never stopped... My mom use to complain all the time about it.. cuz he slept in her room.. and now that we moved we are complaining about it!
BTW, my Aunt has a parrot as well that does the same thing and it can often be caused from boredom as well as stress.0 -
Damn thought this was gonna be about veterans. Oh well hope your dog gets better0
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I'm a horse doc, not a dog doc, but from what I remember of my time on small animal rotations, it could be a food allergy. It makes them itchy and then they lick until they get granulomas, which in turn are itchy, so they lick them more. Big food issues, wheat and poultry. Cheap dog foods are full of them. But the good news is you don't have to shell out for a prescription food. Check what you're currently feeding for ingredients, then find a dog food without wheat or poultry, or both. Transition the food: 1/4 new to 3/4 old, then 1/2 and 1/2, then 3/4 new to 1/4 old, see if it makes a difference. (Don't switch completely unless you are prepared for explosive poo!) Wouldn't hurt to do a few days of pumpkin to help calm the GI tract. 1/4 cup per meal should do it. Now to deal with the habit of licking that is probably also a component. Try some non toxic, non tasty topicals or a light bandage on the most licked areas. Again, this isn't diagnostic (I can't do that without seeing the dog) so don't take it for the beat all end all answer, and don't get mad at me if it doesn't help! Please don't get mad at me! If you would like more info, you can contact a local vet for more advice on food allergies and lick granulomas. You could always get him a cone of shame, otherwise known as an e-collar. That's what they were made for. :happy:
Thanks this helps a lot! We have transitioned there food from time to time so we know the routine... infact we transitioned tem from what my mom was feeding them when we lived here (she had dogs too) to what we wanted to feed them when we moved. I think I will take this advice and consider switching foods.0 -
It may just be compulsive behaviour. And if you are constantly telling him to stop, but he carries on, then telling him to stop quickly becomes counter productive.
Thanks! I've wondered about about this with mine as he flinches when you tell him 'no:!' but does it again almost straight away!
And I saw a post above about food allergies. This just didn't occur to me, thank you! I've been buying the chicken type foods a lot but will deffo be cutting them out in future!0 -
What are you feeding him?
Our dobe had allergies, licked himself raw, red skin, itchy and flakey. He is allergic to poultry. He eats Evo Red Meat Big Bites now (no poultry high protein food) and is doing amazing. No licking.
I'm sure the food he is eating has poultry, or maybe not. We have changed their food and it didn't seem to make a difference. We are feeling him now Rachel Ray's Organic Food, but I don't know if it has poultry in it or not.
We NEVER had this problem before prior to 2 years ago when we moved into my Mom's house to help her out. And 3 months ago we moved back into our own place and he is still doing it.
It very well could be the food. If you can afford it, I would recommend feeding something more nutritious and of higher quality. The best food I have found for the money is Diamond Naturals. It's about $30 for a 40lb bag, and the ingredients are great for the price. 10x better than anything you can buy at supermarkets. 0 -
What are you feeding him?
Our dobe had allergies, licked himself raw, red skin, itchy and flakey. He is allergic to poultry. He eats Evo Red Meat Big Bites now (no poultry high protein food) and is doing amazing. No licking.
I'm sure the food he is eating has poultry, or maybe not. We have changed their food and it didn't seem to make a difference. We are feeling him now Rachel Ray's Organic Food, but I don't know if it has poultry in it or not.
We NEVER had this problem before prior to 2 years ago when we moved into my Mom's house to help her out. And 3 months ago we moved back into our own place and he is still doing it.
It very well could be the food. If you can afford it, I would recommend feeding something more nutritious and of higher quality. The best food I have found for the money is Diamond Naturals. It's about $30 for a 40lb bag, and the ingredients are great for the price. 10x better than anything you can buy at supermarkets.
Thanks I just looked it up, it's a 3 star dog food, we have no problems paying more for food. We pay $26 for a 18lb bag of food now.0 -
This is excellent advice and I hope it's followed.0
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