My bulldog seems prone to skin allergies, please help!!?

We adopted a bulldog in March of this year, he was 18 months old. In the 7 months that we've had him, he's broken out in skin allergies twice and was placed on antibiotics / antifungal medication by the vet. It's costing us a fortune!!





He typically gets small red bumps on the top of his head. He also gets what look like 'hot spots' on the rest of his body.





When we bathe him, we use hypo-allergenic shampoo. We were feeding him Royal Canin, but recently switched to Nutro.





Any help would be appreciated.

My bulldog seems prone to skin allergies, please help!!?
The first step would be to identify what is causing the reaction. Your vet will happily sell you meds and overpriced shampoos forever if you allow it.





If you suspect food allergies switch to a true allergy formula like Natural Balance Venison %26amp; Brown Rice (they have 2 other allergy formulas) or Wellness Whitefish %26amp; Sweetpotato. A true allergy formula will have no corn, wheat, soy, or eggs and will have a single source protien and a single source carbohydrate. Feed nothing but this food for 4 weeks. On the first day of week 5 introduce one new food item to the dog (in addition to his regular food). Feed this item for 3 days. If you see a reaction you have identified an allergen. Wait until day one of week 6 to introduce the next item. My dog has 4 protien and 1 carbohydrate allergy, so it is important to continue the test even after you get a reaction as you dog may suffer from more than one allergy.





Dogs can also be sensitive to anything from laundry detergent to grass.





A good shampoo to use would be NUSAL T or LYTAR. The NUSAL T will cost less, and smell better.





For info on the dog foods visit


http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com or http://www.oldmotherhubbard.com





To order NUSAL T visit


http://www.valleyvet.com





For treats that are compatible with a venison or fish diet visit


http://www.petextras.com
Reply:No beef in dogfood, dogs can be highly allergic to beef and no treats with beef either. Then I'd have vet give allergy shot to stop the crisis and stop bathing which can irritate and dry the dogs skin. Multivitamins, no beef!!!
Reply:The reason the treatments haven't worked is because they contain some very harmful ingredients which are detrimental to your dogs skin. Can you stay away from the commercial foods, as they are contributing to your dogs skin problems, apply some 100% pure coconut oil, (Nui brand pronounced new from you health store) this is a pure product that has anti-biotic, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial properties. The coconut oil will take the heat out of those nasty hot spots. I only ever use the family's organic shampoo on my dogs skins, I have changed their diets from commercial to organics, I do have to resort to using Advantage Flea Treatment (it's the only chemical I will allow) and everything is oakey dokey now.
Reply:Unfortunately, one of the health issues some bulldogs experience is skin problems. If you adopted from a shelter you don't have the opportunity to find out if the parents suffered skin problems. Most reputable breeders try to breed out skin problems.


Consult a canine dermatologist who may be able to pinpoint the problem quicker than a small animal veterinarian.
Reply:im no expert, but i have 3 dogs and they all eat different food, as one gets skin irritaitons with beef the other with chicken. I have always trusted lamb and rice formula. but do an experiment. buy 3 different dog foods, one beef, one chicken and one lamb%26amp;rice and try a different kind each week, you might notice a difference between foods.
Reply:You should really check out holisticblend.com My dog is a real allergy sufferer and I switched him to this food and I also began adding a tablespoon of flaxseed oil to one of his meals each day and I have seen a major difference! The corn, BHT, and meat byproducts in commercial dog food are not good for your dog and the omega 3 fatty acids in the flaxseed oil make your dog's skin and coat beautiful. I really suggest you give it a shot...the food at this website is not very expensive and flaxseed oil is cheap and readily found in your local supermarket.
Reply:It mostly comes down to food, but can also be from fleas or from products in the environment, such as cleaners. Switch foods first. You should not feed corn meal, which is the the #1 allergen. I don't feed Royal Canin OR Nutro for that reason. I live in WA state and feed what may be a regional brand from Oregon called Castor %26amp; Pollux Natural Ultramix. The first three ingredients are chicken, turkey, and dried turkey meal, followed by barley or oats or something. It contains 2 types of fish meal, and dried fruits and veggies, along with amino acids and flaxseed. Watch that flaxseed, and feed only the listed amounts, or you'll be dealing with loose poop. IF your dog does get diarrhea, feed it some canned pumpkin.





Basically, a dog food should be about 30-35% protein from meat, and of the first 5 ingredients, 3 should be meat, poultry or fish. NO ground corn. NO meat by-products. The Castor %26amp; Pollux site tells you that they buy the same chicken your store does. This is hard to find in a regular pet store, although Petco in the Pacific NW sells Castor %26amp; Pollux and several other holistic or natural brands. You might be better off buying at a large farm supply store in your area, if you have one. There are duck and potato formulas, fish and rice, lamb and rice, even buffalo and venison. Ask the counter person about non-allergenic foods, they're very knowledgable. One farm store in my town carries 30 holistic brands.





As far as bathing him, don't, unless he smells bad, it just dries out the skin. The very best thing that you can do for his coat is get a good natural bristle brush and brush him every day. It keeps the coat clean and shiny and soft and fresh smelling.





As to the allergies and hot spots. If your local Petco doesn't stock this they can order it for you. It's an 8 oz bottle with a red label and Collie type dogs on the front and is called Hot Spot Spray. It has ONLY 3 ingredients: Tea Tree oil, Chamomile, Aloe Vera. I think the company name is Natural Botanicals but it's been a long time since I've seen it. If you can't get this stuff go to the health food store and get tea tree oil, tincture of chamomile and refrigerated aloe gel and mix your own.





When I got my rescue basset she had a major skin rash from flea bites and the world's cheapest dog food. She had little hair from her shoulders to her butt, no hair on her butt, and was beet rred on her belly and limbs. I sprayed her down with a natural flea spray and wrapped her in a towel for the ride home, fed her some good food, then sprayed her down and masaged her with the hot spot spray. By the next morning there was no evidence of bites and her skin was pink. She stopped shedding as she walked. 24 hrs after I got her she looked like a different dog. I massaged the hot spot spray into her whole coat several times a day for a week, and by that time she no longer had a rash or dry skin. She was a mass of flea eggs and I spent one night picking off of her from head to toe for 6 hours, but by the end of that week she had new hair growth.





The vet will charge you a fortune for stuff that doesn't cure your dog and never will. I spent $22 total and healed a dog myself that any vet would have put down on sight, she was so badly neglected - her owners didn't care about her. A lot of dogs find themselves in adoption over this very issue, the owners do care, but can't afford the treatments, do just enough to get the dog looking good, dump it, and someone else adopts an allergic dog, with no resource but their vet, who often hasn't got a clue either. You may have to try a lot of small bags of food to find something acceptable for a long term cure, but the hot spot treatment outlined SHOULD bring your dog immediate relief. Spray it on, or scoop it on, rub it in, let the dog dry. Mine had never had anyone care for her before, and was positively goony everytime I massaged her. She was 7 mos when I got her, and at a year she still trots over and collapses on her side at my feet for a belly rub! Brush gently until the hot spots are healed BTW.





Please write to me directly if this doesn't work. Red bumps does sound odd and is outside of my experience. Best of luck! This is a very common problem that too many people spend WAY too much money on and that most veterinary schools don' t teach.