Hi I have one more question Kenny our little house dog is chewing all the hair off his back side from about the waist down. He does'nt have fleas, and I thought It was because I was bathing him to much so I quit that, and he's still doing it does he need a moisturizer or is there something I can give him. I dont like to see him scratching all the time and he would look so much better with full body hair. He asked santa for fur pants but didnt get them. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks Ronda

-- ronda (thejohnsons@localaccess.com), December 27, 2000

Answers

My little dog had a similar problem not too long ago. He chewed around his rear end till he made a sore. It looked horrible. I took him to the vet. His anal glands were impacted. Seems that especially little dogs have problems with this. A vet has to empty them from time to time. My little dogs problem was so bad that he had to be anesthetized or it would have been too painful for him.

-- Amanda in Mo (aseley@townsqr.com), December 28, 2000.

Check out "Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats," by Pitcairn. Very good book with natural healing alternatives.

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), December 28, 2000.

Another one is Herbal Handbook for Farm & Stable by Juliette de Bairacli Levy.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), December 28, 2000.

Your dog might be allergic to an ingredient in the dog food. A friend of mine had her dog tested and found the dog was very allergic to an ingredient in the food she was buying. She changed dog food and the dog never had any more problems. Only problem is that it's quite expensive to get the test.

-- Betty (Mich) (bolffs@voyager.net), December 28, 2000.

If you find that your dog needs those glands emptied you can take Kenny to a groomer for a lot cheaper than a vet(after his initial diagnosis visit). Our groomer here clips toenails,empties gland,checks and cleans ears,trims hair around paw pads and tail for $5. And then sprays them with nice puppy smell well. Well worth the trip! Q.

-- Queen (queenbuffness@hotmail.com), December 28, 2000.

Try rubbing the dog with zinc oxide (baby diaper creme) where he is itching. I don't know why, but it seems to help. Try it for 3 or 4 days, once each day.

-- (ratdogs10@yahoo.com), December 28, 2000.

After ruling out impacted anal glands, I start my dogs on Lipiderm oil. It's really good for their skin/coats and is not too expensive. It comes in a gel cap now too. If you use the liquid, be sure to measure it with a plastic spoon that you will never use for anything else.....the stuff stinks and the smell sticks to anything ! (thank the Lord they came out with the gel caps !!!) The dogs seem to really like the taste of it on top of their dog food. It can be bought at any pet store.

-- Monica (zpepenovia@excite.com), December 28, 2000.

thanks everyone I took Kenny to the vet this morning and learned how to do the anal gland thing uck!!! funny thing my family didnt like hearing about it over breakfast.. he was o.k. but I found out he has an allergy we are going to try making absolutly sure its not a flea allergy first then if its not that I'll have him diagnosed for what kind of allergyit may be. thanks again for all your helpful advise ronda

-- ronda (thejohnsons@localaccess.com), December 30, 2000.

Hi Ronda, I urge you to try my surefire dog allergy/flea and tick eliminator/dermatitis remedy, equal parts garlic powder, kelp powder, and nutritional yeast, mix well and administer two teaspoons a day (for small dogs under 30 pounds) with two teaspoons of corn oil, add this to the dogs food every day. Hint- if you use dry food, mix the corn oil in first, then mix in the dry powder, the oil makes the powders stick to the dry food. Dose for dogs over 30 pounds is two tablespoons of powder and two tablespoons of corn oil added to the food every day.

This formula will cure, not just repress like the use of steroid products will, all forms of skin allergy, dermatitises, and flea and tick infestations, regrow lost hair (sorry, only works on four-legged critters), and restore health and vitality to the skin and haircoat. Also is good for the general health and well being of most any mammal with a haircoat, horses, cats, goats, cattle, and the like.

It takes about a month to see the full effects of this supplementation, but it is truly remarkable, my vet is consistently amazed at the effect it has on other folk's animals he recommends it to. All three, the garlic, kelp, and nutritional yeast are available through most larger health, or bulk food stores, or by the pound from Frontier Natural Products Co-op, 1-800-669-3275. You must be a co-op member to order, but it is only 10 dollars, and you then purchase everthing wholesale, not retail, much cheaper! The garlic is 3.75 a pound, the kelp is 5.75 a pound, and the nutritional yeast is 10.75 a pound, and the three pounds of mixed product last a long time. Good luck!

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), January 02, 2001.