# White german shepherd with bad skin problems!



## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

My dog Zeus is a white german shepherd with terrible itching/hot spot problems. He is constantly chewing or scratching. He was on puppy chow until he reached 1 year old and the local vet told me to go ahead and put him on an adult food, purina dog chow. With no prior problems before, we begin to notice he was itching and scratching. It begin to get worse and worse and the vet just kept on giving him a steroid shot about every month, which helped for about 3 weeks and it just started again. He never recommended any other solution but the shot so I took Zeus to a different vet. This doctor immediately took blood to check for a low thyroid, which it was, and gave him a steroid shot for relief. He also recommended switching his food to eukanuba fish and eggs formula along with .7 mg thyroid medication. Now, nothing has changed, Zeus is still miserable and I just took him back to the same vet, and he upped the thyroid medication to 1 mg. He stays in the house and I have yet to find a flea on him since mid-summer, so I don't think it could be a flea allergy. 

I just want to know if there's anyone out there who has encountered a similar problem. We think he may have a food allergy and I want to know what the best dog food is for a dog in this situation. 

Any help of info is much appreciated!


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## mmsteele01 (Dec 10, 2008)

I'm sorry to hear about Zeus' skin problems. Is that dog food grain free? For years our Katie had severe problems with her skin (especially paws)....and in September 2008 had a severe allergic reaction to something....we put her on Natural Balance (the non-grain formulas) in September, and she's doing much better. Hope things get better!


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## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

I really do not know if it was grain free or not. Most of Zeus' itching is under his tail, under his arms pits and pretty much all over his underside. He started shaking his head for a little while like he had an ear infection but that was not the case.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

Your poor dog definitely has allergies and the first thing you need to do is take him to see a dermatologist and possibly have him skin tested for environmental allergies. After that you can do an elimination diet to check for food allergies. Continueing to take him to your regular vet is getting you nowhere and your dog will just continue to suffer.


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## thezinger (Nov 6, 2008)

maybe its an allergy or reaction to something in his food?

i went through about 5 different foods with my dog because she was having some stool issues and was trying to find something she could stomach properly. 

i found one that worked, but then a week later she started scratching a lot. i though maybe it was just dry air because the temperature dropped a lot that week. but that passed and the itching lasted for about 3 weeks. so i changed foods again, and we are ok now. good stool and no itching. yay!

for my dog, as far as i could figure, was an allergy to grains, and i noticed she couldnt digest corn either.

if you're curious i have her on orijen large breed puppy. its grain free and high in nutrients and has fish oils, which are good for the skin and coat.


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

How old is Zeus? How much does your dog weigh? Are the thyroid meds given once a day or twice a day? When the vet upped the meds, was a blood test run?

When you look at his skin, do you see any abnormalities? How red is it? discoloration, etc?

Is your dog on Purina Dog Chow currently? If that's the case, there are some pretty easy things that you can do that should help.


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## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

He is a 1 year and 2 months and weighs 82 pounds according to the scales at the vet today. The thyroid meds are given twice a day. Blood test were run today and he upped the meds from .7 mg to 1mg. The skin is redish colored underneath with blotches of a brownish color. Mostly red but there are spots of brownish under his armpits and by his testicles. His anus is very red and he chews on it constantly. He also has hot spots on his thighs and had one of his back. The vet shaved those spots and put Zeus on a pill to help it, but every time the steroid wears off the itching and scratching continues, leaving more and more hot spots. 

When the doctor told us to change foods the first time we bought eukanuba fish and eggs. We still had a little bit of food left in the purina dog chow bag so we mixed the two trying not to waste any of it. After doing some research I realize this is not the smartest thing to do but I did not know it would make that much of a difference at first. I just want my dog to get better and quit suffering.


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

You don't by chance have a copy of the results from the thyroid test, do you? That's a pretty big jump of .7 to 1 mg for the thyroid meds, but if the values were *really* low on the .7, maybe it makes sense. The starting dose for a dog your size would be .8 or .9 mg, twice a day. If your boy starts showing more restless signs, increased panting, too much energy and driving you nuts, etc., that dose might be too high.

I haven't had to deal with any type of mites, so I hope those folks will weigh in either way, but the discoloration does match the type of discoloration you see in bad food allergies.

So, is he currently on the Euk fish and eggs now? How long has he been totally off the Purina?

It sounds like your boy has been given quite a few steroids?


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## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

No i don't have a copy of the results. The vet didn't even offer me a copy. Yes he is still on the Euk fish and eggs and has been off the purina for about six weeks. And yes he has has several steroid shots! I live in a very small town and there are only 2 local vets and neither seem to know much about a problem like this, except shoot him up with steroids every 3-4 weeks.


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## Fluffypants (Aug 31, 2003)

I have an allergy dog... we did see a derm and had the skin and blood testing done. Niko is most allergic to dust mites, mold, bugs and some grasses. I've never quite been able to figure out if he has food allergies since he is always itchy from his inhallant issues. 

We did the allergy shots and I believe they were helping him. We stopped a few months ago because Niko was having fits at my vet's office every time he was going to get a shot. It was taking 4 vet tech's and myself to hold him down... he is a very sweet dog, but was so stressed out over it... I had to stop. He was on them for a little over a year. They do take several months to show any sort of improvement and it's never 100%... each dog is different. Some improve 50% and some 80% and some it doesn't help at all.

We use antihistimines - Tavist, Zrytec and Hydroxyzine. All help for awhile, but not enough. Another med is Temaril-P - which was prescribed by my dermatologist. I don't like giving Niko this since it has pred (low dose 2.5 mg) and 6 mg of antihistimine. I only give this very infrequently... only during his really itchy months which December and January seem to be the worst... for him I think it is dust mites since I have carpet and can't really rip it out now.









From what I have been told... if your dog responds well to steriods... then it is most likely an inhallant allergy... could be anything in your house or outside. Personally, I wouldn't treat with steriod shots. Niko had only 1 or 2 steriod shots when he first started showing signs of being itchy... because I really didn't know what was going on with him. Also, your dog should be checked for mites... these can cause severe itching and a few members on this board found out after many months of meds etc... that it was a mite issue. It is probably a little more easily treated than allergies. My derm had me treat Niko for mites even though his scrapings showed none.... many do this because not all scrapings will come up positive for mites.

I've also tried every food out there and Niko was raw fed for 4 years... he was still itchy. He has the exact same itching as your dog... the anal itching always made me think that he had a food allergy, but with every food (even the prescription foods - which he is still on) he still had the anal itching. Niko is currently on Science Diet Ultra ZD - it's an allergy food and the ingredients are really crappy. I don't like feeding him this, but am searching around to find another food that won't upset his stomach.

You could try the Orijen Fish based food... or even Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream (I think)... I've read many have had success with these foods. They do not have grains either. Both are a little pricey, but compared to the ZD they are cheap. The ZD is $83.00 for a 27lb bag and Niko eats 6 cups a day and maintains 100lbs... he is not fat. I think it's because there isn't much meat in this food... it is a crappy food, but does help dogs with food allergies.

http://www.championpetfoods.com/orijen/orijen/

http://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/

You don't want to do too much changing of things at once since you will go bonkers trying to figure out what worked and what didn't. You can also give Salmon oil in his food - it is suppose to help with skin and inflammation... although if your dog has true allergies, it won't help that much. At least, that was the case for me.

I would hold off on the steriod shots and try antihistimines if you haven't. Sounds like you will most likely need to see a dermatologist for your boy. My previous shepherd had a low/borderline thyroid and was on .06mg of Soloxine... it does sound like your dosage is high and I could be wrong here, but your dog seems young to have a thyroid issue. I always thought it was a middle age issue for dogs. Usually with thyroid issues, the dog is tested and then given a dose of meds... the dog is retested in a month or so to see if the dosage is correct. My dog was retested every 8-12 months or so - to make sure his dosage was correct.

It would be good for you to get the thyroid results to know exactly where his range was. My dog's was on the borderline, but he was very heavy (120lbs) and was only eating 2 cups of food a day... so I chose to put him on the thyroid meds to see if I could get his weight down since being that heavy would shorten his life. My vet gave me the option to try the meds... so I would get the test results.

I've also gone down the homeopathic and holistic route, but that didn't help tremendously either... it could for your dog since every dog is different. 

Oh... does your dog smell funny at all? My dog does smell when he is really itchy... his coat was somewhat greasy like. I give Niko bath's every week or two in a good Oatmeal based shampoo. This does help too. 

Please let us know how you do... the dermatologist is probably your next step.

Good Luck!

Tanja


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## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

Funny that you mention Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream! I got him a bag of it today, and he seems to love it. Hopefully it will help over the next few weeks. I live in a small town in Arkansas and I do not think that dermatologists see animals in this area. Also, I have never noticed Zeus having a funny smell. I will have to check around to see if I can get him in to see a dermatologist! Thanks for your help


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

Be sure to ask your vet for copies of any and all blood work to keep in a file at home -- it's a good habit to get into, and then you know what's going on. Sometimes they don't tell you everything, believe it or not. 

Because of the steroid shots and the added strain of allergies, I would consider putting your dog on a multivitamin, with some extra nutrients to support things like allergies. Belfield's MegaC might be a good option for you:
http://www.belfield.com/megac500.php
It essentially is a multivitamin/mineral with higher amounts of vitamin C. There are other products out there, but this one came to mind just now.

If this type of supplement and the change in food doesn't help, I'd be pretty shocked.


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## Maraccz (Sep 3, 2005)

The vet offered a shot but not Prednisone pills? It will offerer longer term relief but since it is a steriod is not ideal for long term use. You said that there are only two "local" Vets. What about non-local? I live in area w/ LOTS of Vets...I still traveled over a half hour to find a good one. Thankfully they opened a office near me...and gave me a job 
The Taste of the Wild food is great. My white girl is on that for her digestive issues. Make sure you are NOT giving ANY OTHER FOOD, TREATS etc. That could make allergies not respond to change of food.
Good luck...


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## Maraccz (Sep 3, 2005)

The vet offered a shot but not Prednisone pills? It will offerer longer term relief but since it is a steriod is not ideal for long term use. You said that there are only two "local" Vets. What about non-local? I live in area w/ LOTS of Vets...I still traveled over a half hour to find a good one. Thankfully they opened a office near me...and gave me a job 
The Taste of the Wild food is great. My white girl is on that for her digestive issues. Make sure you are NOT giving ANY OTHER FOOD, TREATS etc. That could make allergies not respond to change of food.
Good luck...


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## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

Ok so Zeus is on his second bag of the new dog food and the itching has started again. His skin is turning a blackish color in some spots and the constantly chews at his anus. I started him on prednisone pills a couple weeks ago to help him cope with the itching. At this point, I have no idea what to do. I have not found a dermatologist in this area that treats animals. It's hard enough to get in to see a doc as a human, much less a dog. I guess my search continues until I find a skin doctor somewhere in Arkansas.


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## gagsd (Apr 24, 2003)

Your state may not, but all of the sirrounding states do. Try this link, go to the "find" button and then click on the states.
http://www.acvd.org/


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## Brightelf (Sep 5, 2001)

Would you consider doing a raw diet? You could begin with it as an elimination diet, or, just begin raw and see how it is to go without grains. (even great kibbles like Taste of The Wild may have irritants that are common allergens to dogs, such as barley and flax)

The folks in the Raw Feeding section here are so helpful and knowledgable! My dog hasn't had skin issues since being on raw. Just an idea. And if you have a SamsClub, Walmart, CostCo or BJs in the area-- raw can cost even less than the more expensive kibbles!


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## LJsMom (Jan 6, 2008)

How about allergy testing for Zeus?

http://www.vetallergy.com/pages/testingpanels.html


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

I would do a trial of homecooked food, a true elimination diet, but add supplements to support the skin, etc. Starting with blood allergy testing, for me, was a great start. The steroid shot will just suppress the immune system, and down the road, you will probably start getting side effects from that.

I'm also wondering if there might not be a mite type issue -- I think that middleofnowhere had an itchy dog that had mange????


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## clayzwarren (Jan 3, 2009)

At this point I cannot afford to take Zeus out of state to a dermatologist, although I really wish I could, because he's our boy, and I feel so bad for him to have the problem that he does. I will consider a raw diet but I need help on that. What does a raw diet consist of? At this point I think its something other then that. Is it possible that there's something in the house he is allergic to, such as the carpet? He stayed in the house as a puppy and never had a problem, which does not make since to me that it could be something in the house. 

I feel so bad for my boy! Could someone give me a basic list of what to feed on a raw diet? 

P.S. Sorry for taking so long to post again, Been really busy and I greatly appreciate everyone trying to help!


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## Your Dog Obsessed Hooman (Jan 27, 2021)

Take them to the vet. My dog started stress licking himself until parts of his skin went raw because he ate some leaves from our backyard.


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## Your Dog Obsessed Hooman (Jan 27, 2021)

clayzwarren said:


> At this point I cannot afford to take Zeus out of state to a dermatologist, although I really wish I could, because he's our boy, and I feel so bad for him to have the problem that he does. I will consider a raw diet but I need help on that. What does a raw diet consist of? At this point I think its something other then that. Is it possible that there's something in the house he is allergic to, such as the carpet? He stayed in the house as a puppy and never had a problem, which does not make since to me that it could be something in the house.
> 
> I feel so bad for my boy! Could someone give me a basic list of what to feed on a raw diet?
> 
> P.S. Sorry for taking so long to post again, Been really busy and I greatly appreciate everyone trying to help!


Well, raw food is a bit tricky. I'd recommend cooking him chicken breasts, carrots, and peas.


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## Fodder (Oct 21, 2007)

12yr old thread, closing


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