# Itchy, scratchy, ugh.



## DrDoom (Nov 7, 2007)

So, for the past two weeks, Bear has been getting the following:
12.5 OZ of chicken quarters (RMB)
1.5 OZ beef liver (OM)
11.5 OZ boneless chicken breast (MM)
4 OZ venison sausage

I wanted to give him more MM because he was having severely dry poop, like powder, as well as he seems to be cramping up at the dog park when he plays when his poops' like that. Don't know if the two are related, but wanted to try adjusting to more MM, and for the poop, it's working. No longer dry, now it's usuaully two wet looking, well formed little logs.
However, he is itching like crazy. His rump scabs have come back,(This is where when you scratch just above his tail he has scabs under his fur, and you can scratch until they rip off, he'll just stand there making the "Oh God that feels good noise" regardless.) and when I come home that section of his fur is very tangled and wet from where he's been scratching.
The ONLY thing that's changed from his previous diet (When the scratching was considerably less.) is that he's getting chicken quarters instead of pork necks (The pork necks had so much bone I think that's why his poops were so dry. I wanted to get him stable, then switch back to alternating between quarters and the pork necks, adjusting the level of MM he gets when he's ON the necks to avoid the dust bowl ppop.) and the venison.
Anyone want to take a guess at WHY he's got the itchies again? He had them before we switched to RAW, but they had considerably reduced since switching. He's been on quarters as his RMB before, so I'm going to say...it's the venison? The amount he's getting is so small, though. 
Any thoughts?


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## DHau (Feb 24, 2007)

Is it possible that your dog is allergic to chicken. Mine is.


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## dogmama (Nov 17, 2006)

I agree with DHau - try eliminating the chicken. Dust bowl poop isn't good, especially with straining. Is everything else OK? When they get excited, they tend to have softer bowel movements, not harder. 

How about parasites? Dog parks - people drag sick dogs in there sometimes. I'd wonder if your guy hasn't picked something up.


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## natalie559 (Feb 4, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: DrDoomHowever, he is itching like crazy. His rump scabs have come back


My guess would be fleas. Or flea allergy dermatitis and in that case it doesn't have to be fleas as in plural, it can simply be a couple fleas causing havoc.



> Originally Posted By: DrDoomand when I come home that section of his fur is very tangled and wet from where he's been scratching.


Likely from him chewing the area with his teeth. The wetness is from the saliva. If it continues a hot spot will be created in the area. 

How old is your dog? Some of us here have had really great results with using comfortis as a flea killer.



> Originally Posted By: DrDoom he seems to be cramping up at the dog park when he plays


This can sometimes be caused by lack of potassium. You can add no salt substitute, bananas or potatoes to increase the potassium in the diet.


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## Minnieski (Jan 27, 2009)

Minnie has those scabs above her tail too, and she's on comfortis for fleas. I think it's just allergies, because nothing seems to make her quit feeling itchy. I've checked her all over for fleas and haven't found a thing.


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## BlackPuppy (Mar 29, 2007)

I was going to suggest allergy to chicken, but yeah, flea allergies are nasty, too. 

Doerak was allergic to chicken and it was hard finding enough cheap alternative meats to feed him raw. I pretty much had to use a good kibble most of the time. 

And if my dogs get the powdery stools, then less bone and more meat is in order.


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## Brightelf (Sep 5, 2001)

Here's what I would do: Keep feeding him his chicken quarters, but chop 'em in half, so he gets only half a quarter per meal-- that will be enough bone.

Use a different MM than chicken, just for balance. Grimm's itchies go away when every other meal is turkey or beef as the MM instead of always chicken.

Add fish oil capsules ( 2 per day at least, at 1000 mg per capsule)

Add one vitamin E oil capsule too.

Chicken is great!! BUT-- chicken, beef, turkey, all our MMs are high in Omega 6s, these are agri-farmed meats fed corn-based diets. So, we help stop the itchies by balancing it out with Omega 3s: Fish oil! Grimm needs fish oil in the above amounts, with vitamine E, to have his chicken quarters. And, Grimm is like your boy, less bone is better for him.









You are doing a really good job with the raw. Just break the quarters in half so he gets just half a chicken quarter with his MM, instead of a whole quarter. The meal will still weigh the same on your kitchen scale, but less of it will be bone.

After a few days, you can say: "Hey, happy poops! I'll stick with him getting only half a chix quarter per meal!" or, you'll say "Poops seem kinda soft.. I'll give hima half a chix quarter with his MM for every other meal... and ever other meal he'll get a whole one with his MM." (alternate half and whole each meal for chicken quarters with his MM)

The fish oil and E, if you give him 2 capsules at 1000 mg of the fish oil, may help the itching.

I would have the vet give you a new flea treatment, it may be that this one isn't working well enough, or that the yard/house/bedding needs to be treated.


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

> Quote:4 OZ venison sausage


What exactly is IN the sausage, other than the vennie?


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## MTAussie (Dec 9, 2007)

I agree with Natalie. Alex was itching himself on his back above his tail and would get scabs also. I changed food and couldn't figure out what the deal was. The only thing that helped was steroids. 
But about a month ago I put him on Comfortis. This has finally made him stop and the scabs went away. He doesn't stand and do the windmill kick to his belly either. I would definitely try the comfortis, especially if your dog is on raw and still having problems.


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## DrDoom (Nov 7, 2007)

Do you use the comfortis in addition to something like Frontline Plus? I ask because we have HUGE tick problems, so I need something to kill them as well. The grass grows tall here in the South, lol!
Lauri,
I'm ashamed to admit this, but I don't know. It was processed, plain sausage. No spiciness or anything like that. Anyway, it's over, he's eaten it all. The fact that his itchiness had gone away mostly BEFORE I added the sausage leads me to believe it might be that. I can pretty much tell you I don't believe he has fleas. I've neevr seen a flea on him (And I spend an hour a night brushing him), I've never been bitten by a flea (And in my experience prior to Bear, if your dog has fleas they don't just stay on your dog.). I'm not saying it's impossible he picked up a flea, but I don't think so. He had these issues prior to going raw, but they seemed to go away once he was on raw, but have come back i the last two weeks. No, the more I think about it, the more I think it's the venison.
The dry poops came with the pork necks, which we've stopped, BUT I didn't add more MM at that time, like I have now. The poops are good right now.


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

Sounds like it was the sausage. Give him a good two weeks to get it all out of his system and if there is no change by then it's time to start looking at other items in the diet.


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