Trying to figure out an allergen

[OurBoys]

For the past several months I’ve had to take Jake to the vet to get his anal glands expressed. His poop is firm but I still added brown rice to his diet. He’s also been on pumpkin for years. I finally asked a vet tech what else could be causing his problem. She told me allergies could also cause it and last night I caught him licking his front legs and paws like a cat…a lot.

 

Jake’s diet hasn’t changed much the past several years but I did change the vitamin gravy formula I make for them some; I replaced the puréed green beans and sweet peas with boiled puréed chicken livers and brown rice. I don’t believe the brown rice is the problem since I added it after the fact so I’m wondering if it could be the chicken livers. Is it possible for a dog to be allergic to chicken livers even if they aren’t allergic to chicken?

 

I’m going to go ahead and make up his own special vitamin gravy just for Jake (back to the old tried and true). If that doesn’t help it looks like I might have to change his kibble. I really hope it’s not the kibble but when I think back, Jake’s problem didn’t start until after P&G acquired Natura. (I feed our dogs EVO.) But then again, if Jake is allergic to chicken livers maybe he could also be allergic to chicken? I just feel stumped right now because Jake was eating EVO for years without any anal gland problems but like I stated earlier, he didn’t start having problems until after Natura was acquired. Is it possible dogs can develop allergies later in life? Or maybe he's been allergic to chicken this whole time but the allergies just not show up until later in life? JJ was the reason I had to find the right kibble and created the vitamin gravy in the first place but he and Josie are still doing great on it which makes me think nothing in the kibble has been changed. (Josie doesn't have allergies but the boys did so good on their diet I put her on it when she came to live with us.)

[juliepoudrier]

I think it's possible to develop allergies later in life. When I was little kid, I wasn't allergic to poison ivy, but I'm highly allergic now. I suppose it's possible that he's always had a low-level reaction and now that you've upped the chicken, he started reacting noticeably. Is it possible to do allergy testing?

 

J.

[gcv-border]

I really hope it’s not the kibble but when I think back, Jake’s problem didn’t start until after P&G acquired Natura. (I feed our dogs EVO.) But then again, if Jake is allergic to chicken livers maybe he could also be allergic to chicken? I just feel stumped right now because Jake was eating EVO for years without any anal gland problems but like I stated earlier, he didn’t start having problems until after Natura was acquired. Is it possible dogs can develop allergies later in life? Or maybe he's been allergic to chicken this whole time but the allergies just not show up until later in life? JJ was the reason I had to find the right kibble and created the vitamin gravy in the first place but he and Josie are still doing great on it which makes me think nothing in the kibble has been changed. (Josie doesn't have allergies but the boys did so good on their diet I put her on it when she came to live with us.)

I agree with Julie that allergies can develop later in life.

 

Regarding EVO before and after P&G acquisition: Based on what I have read and heard about P&G, I would be surprised if they didn't change (in some way) the formulation of EVO. Because dogs are unique individuals, it is entirely possible that only one dog of your 3 could be sensitive to the changes (but again, this may not be Jake's problem).

 

Jovi

[OurBoys]

Thanks for the advice, you guys.

 

Julie, around 6 yrs ago I was told a skin test for a dog was around $800. I was in the process of paying down a credit card in order to take JJ in when I came up with his diet. I went ahead and took your advice and looked online for a vet that treats allergies anyway and found one (only one within driving distance) and gave them a call. They quoted me a price of $203.95 for their skin test. That’s a big price difference. It’s still expensive but at least I feel I have somewhere to turn if eliminating chicken from Jake’s diet doesn’t work. That’s a big load off my mind. I wish I had known about them while we were dealing with JJ’s allergies. (If that’s truly what his problem is.)

 

Jovi, as long as JJ is doing good on EVO I’m going to keep him on it but like you, I would be surprised if P&G didn’t change something so I’m going to continue keeping an eye on him as well.

 

And you both were right. I asked if a dog can develop allergies later in life and was told yes they can. I’m keeping my fingers crossed chicken will be Jake’s only item to steer clear of for the rest of his life.

 

Jake either doesn’t scoot across the floor that often or he’s sneaky about it but one thing I’ve learned, if he barks in his sleep at night, it’s because his anal glands are full. When that happens, you know he has to be miserable.

[Maralynn]

FWIW, environmental allergies are waaaaay more common that food allergies. Dust, mites, pollen, grass mold, etc. Frequent cleaning of bedding, floors, etc along with wiping him down when he comes indoors ( a box of baby by the door works great for this!) can help with environmental allergies.

 

Does he get fish oil at all? It's great for the skin and has anti-inflammatory properties that can help combat allergies.

[bcnewe2]

I agree, that it could be environmental. For us this has been a strange winter. Long wet Summer too. Raven had to go on pred. to get her allergies in check. She licked like a cat too. she rarely need her glands expressed.

Mick has always had anal gland issues. I express them at least monthly, sometimes way more. But he is not a licker. I've never found him to be allergic but never looked into it for his ag's. His did just about clear up when he was on raw. And really are the best they've ever been lately. I chalked it off to a less stressful life these days.

His were at their worst when he was trialing and under heavy training. He us just a lite chore dog now and we don't trial anymore. Hence the less stress.

 

Hopefully you will get to the bottom of his bottom problems.

[Liz P]

Food allergies in dogs are actually not that common. Changing diet can help, but for most dogs it doesn't fix the problem.

 

I have noticed a difference in how dogs are doing on the Innova foods since the company changed hands.

 

Be careful when calling for quotes. Often people are told the cost of the procedure, but not any of the associated charges (anesthesia, drugs, hospital stay, other supplies, etc). I would be shocked if you can find a place that does skin testing (correctly) for that price.

[OurBoys]

Environmental allergies. I surely hope that's not it but I wouldn't be surprised if it was. My own allergies have been a lot worse these past several months. I've been sneezing so much DH has mentioned a couple of times about installing some sort of a whole house dust collector something. Come to think of it, JJ has been sneezing a lot lately too. Oh man, I hope this isn't worse than I think it is.

 

Mara, all 3 have been getting 1000 mg of flax oil twice a day for years. During the process of elimination, I will switch them to fish oil if I need to. In the past, it hasn't helped them as much as flax oil but their system(s) might have changed.

 

Kristen, I haven't had a foster dog here in a couple of months so I think it might not be stress but I'll keep a look out to see if something else might be stressing him out.

 

Liz, I know what you mean. I was a bit surprise when I was told the cost was $203.95. JJ's reg vet quoted me the first price. I figured they might have been wrong since they weren't a part of the same group. I hope I don't have to find out what the total cost actually is.

[Maralynn]

Fish oil has a greater variety of omega 3 fatty acids 3 flax oil vs. fish oil. If I thought one of my dogs was dealing with allergies, I'd choose fish oil over flax.

 

 

FWIW, a raw diet really helped Missy with her environmental allergies for several years. Not sure why, but when I switched her to raw, I went having a dog that needed benedryl all the time or she'd be licking/sneezing to having a dog that rarely showed symptoms. Her symptoms didn't pop up again until the last year she was alive. After a couple rounds of prednisone I started playing around with her diet again and started feeding 50/50 raw/The Honest Kitchen food - and the symptoms calmed back down again.

 

Based on that experience, I know that I'd try out a different diet even with environmental allergies to see if it made a difference.

[OurBoys]

Hi Mara, I'm not going to rule out a diet change. I've changed Jake's vitamin gravy and switched him over to TOTW. It still has chicken in it but hopefully not as much. Once this bag is empty, we're switching him over to EVO's Red Meat. (I hope I don't regret that.) If that doesn't work, I'll switch him over to fish oil next.

 

I've checked into whole house filtration systems. It seems they aren't really worth their money even if we could afford it so we'll be changing filters more often and I'll be vacuuming more often. We have a portable air cleaner we keep in the kitchen that works great but we need to save our money up in order to buy one for the living room.

 

I made DH go to the vet with us last Friday. (He had to take his car in for a repair and leave it. I loaded Jake up in the truck before following him out there. ) He's always believed me when I tell him what I'm told but when he heard the vet tech said "They were full. They were REALLY full!" I think he finally realized why I've been so concerned about it.