Rudolph Posted August 20, 2009 Report Share Posted August 20, 2009 I recently took my 1.5 year old male BC ("Rudolph") to the vet b/c Rudolph had diarrhea with blood (he also had low energy, itching w/no evidence of any sort of bug, and he developed a small, pencil-eraser sized, bald-spot by his eye). I have been feeding him a lamb and rice blend of Eukanuba (I don't have the name of the exact formula handy) for at least the past year. He didn't have any problems with the food until recently ... he used to eat it right up, but for the past 1.5 months, he has been turning up his nose at it. The only way I could get him to eat his food was to top it with something. The vet ran a bunch of tests on him and determined that Rudolph did not have giardia, parasites, or anything viral; the tests indicated a bacterial overgrowth. The vet said he thinks Rudolph probably has food allergies, and the symptoms he was exhibiting are consistent with that (diarrhea, low energy, itching, the bald spot). So now Rudolph is on antibiotics and a hypoallergenic food (Hills Prescription Diet Z/D). Any thoughts? Has anyone experienced this? Thanks for your input ... I just want Rudolph to go back to his happy self! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aljones Posted August 20, 2009 Report Share Posted August 20, 2009 I've actually just gone through something very similar with Ody, so I have a little experience here. (I'm sure other folks have more information to share, as I know I've read quite a bit on this or other BC boards about food allergies.) I think the process we took Ody through is fairly standard, and it sounds like the same path you and Rudolph are on: feed the hypoallergenic food exclusively for a length of time (we did 10 weeks, with a vet check at 5 weeks and again at 10) and, if the symptoms disappear or are at least seriously reduced, conclude your dog has a food allergy. My vet explained that, at the conclusion of a food trial, most of her clients just continue to feed the test food for the life of the pet. However, being both curious and interested in having other food options available for Ody, we've begun the "challenge" part of the process, where we are adding one new ingredient to his test/trial food to see if he reacts to it. My vet gave me a list of common food allergens for dogs and suggested we try each one in turn. Honestly, we've gotten lazy and have just kept up with the first "challenge" food (beef) for the last few weeks...we need to move on to something else. When we're done with the challenges, then, we should be able to pick new foods for him by avoiding the ingredients to which he has had a reaction. One of my friends here locally has had a tougher time identifying her dog's food allergies and finally had to have the dog allergy tested, which gave her a very specific list of things she cannot feed. But so far (fingers crossed) the food trial method seems to be working for us. Good luck to you and Rudolph! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted August 21, 2009 Report Share Posted August 21, 2009 I don't know...can't a dog just get a bacterial overgrowth without it being related to allergies? Last year some time, Alex was feeling "off" and had diarrhea for a day. When it became laced with blood, we went to the vet. The only thing they found was a bacterial overgrowth. We got antibiotics, I feed him a bland diet for a couple of days, and he was fine in no time. We continued to feed the same brand food afterwards and it hasn't come back, so I know it was not food/allergy related. It sounds like your dog isn't so crazy about the food anyway, if he's been picking at it for the last month. For the price you pay for Eukanuba (not a quality food, IMO), you could try a better quality food and see if he likes it and does better on it. Just a thought before you go into allergy testing or elimination diets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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