My hound has grass allergies and is gnawing the inside of her haunches raw. I have been bathing the area,giving her benydryl and using the sulfa based powder as directed by my vet, but it still irritates her. Tonite I rubbed the area down with aloe and she quit gnawing. What are some natural ointments you have found that speeds healing in pink skinned dogs with this kind of trouble?

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 18, 2002

Answers

Hi Jay. I think you found the best one, aloe.

Are you sure it is a grass allergy and not a reaction to fertilizer, pesticides or herbacides that are used on the grass? If it is the grass, you will need to mow it real short or get a horse to do it for you.

-- Laura (Ladybugwrangler@hotmail.com), April 19, 2002.

Doesn't have to be grass, either, I don't know how things are there, but here one of the worst contact allergens for dogs is a feral decorative plant called "Wandering Jew", generic name Tradescantia. This would definitely cause the symptoms you see. The plant is nice and cool to lie in, but dogs can end up almost hairless and also missing a lot of skin because of the contact allergy from it.

-- Don Armstrong (from Australia) (darmst@yahoo.com.au), April 19, 2002.

Hi Jay, I agree, I think the aloe will be as helpful as anything. It is very soothing for all types of ailments. If there is any broken skin that looks like it might be infected, try using Tea Tree oil as an antiseptic. Smells awful but works! Good luck Kim :-D

-- Kim in Indiana (kwcountrygirl@aol.com), April 19, 2002.

HAve you tried changing her food? Lots of skin allerigies are related to the poor quality dog foods that are available.

-- Lynelle SOwestVA (X2ldp@aol.com), April 19, 2002.

There may also be other allergens that are causing the rash. I see you live in Alabama, so fleas can be a very common problem. Many dogs are allergic to flea bites and even one can send them into a frenzy of biting and itching. Also, many dogs are allergic to one or more of the ingredients in dog foods. Corn is the most common ingredient that can cause allergies, and also beet pulp. Many dogs that are really suffering can get relief from going onto a diet of lamb and rice, or chicken and rice. The cheap storebrand foods (like Sunshine or Ol' Roy) can be the culprit. I'm not saying they have to be on the most expensive out there, but you might be able to make a difference by just changing brands. There's alot on the net about dog foods and a search on Google can really open your eyes.

-- melina b. (goatgalmjb1@hotmail.com), April 19, 2002.

No fertilizers in use here other than worms. Grass and fleas are a possibility as I am allowing it to get 8 inches deep at a distance of 30 ft from the pen for use at the seep.

She isnt showing signs of fleas and I havent seen indications of them either. Should it become a problem, what is an effective natural deterrent for them?

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 19, 2002.

Jay,

I found the most wonderful natural product for dogs and cats. Sheesh, I am sounding like an advertisement.

Petkin 'ReliefStick' ( http://www.petkin.com )

Whitch Hazel, Comfrey, Aloe Vera, Lanolin, Glycerin - cools and sooths hot spots, rash, flean bite dermititis, eczema, scrapes, and dry skin. Moisturizes, repairs and protects.

Tea Tree Oil, Salicylic Acid, Vit. A,B and E, Benzalkonium Chloride - Reduces redness and sweeling, Speeds, healing and helps prevent infection.

Taste Deterent; active indredient: Benzocaine - Stops scratching, licking and biting. Instantly stops itch and pain.

All of this is true! This comes in a stick form like deoderant or a spray. It isn't greasy, and feels cool and refreshing on the skin (I know cause I use it on myself all the time. I have it right here next to my computer. If it good enought for my dogs it is good enough for me!) I found it a PetSmart and it is under $6.00.

This products treats the symptoms. Isn't there an allergy pill the dog can be prescribed? I don't know how the herb "feverfew' works on dogs but it is an anti-inflammatory/anti-histimine (Wal-Mart carries it) it does take from 2 weeks to 2 months before there is any noticable difference. I have not done any research on this herb for canines. Bathing the dog on a continuious basis doesn't seem like such a good idea as I would think it would dry the skin out even more. But I am not a Vet and only offer this as something to research. But the Relief Stick, I know about that and swear by it.

-- westbrook (westbrook_farms@yahoo.com), April 19, 2002.

Another question: When I first started using the aloe, I bathed her with unscented general purpose Octagon brand soap (I was instructed to use this for myself for heat rash) and added aloe to the rinse water. How often should I restrict her bathing to?

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 19, 2002.

Hi -- we are just now going through this with one of our dogs, and went to our homeopathic vet. She gave our dog Mercurius Viv (a homeopathic remedy), which has, so far, been working like a charm. For us it's a seasonal allergy with her; she went through it last year (same kind of rash as you described), we used the same remedy, and it worked then, too. Benedryl (either cream of tablets) didn't work to heal relieve the itch/rash while the remedy took affect. But if the alow vera is working, I'd say keep using it, even if you have to reapply it often. If your dog ingests it, it sure won't do her any harm!

Good luck with it!

-- Andrea, Big Flats NY (andreagee@aol.com), April 19, 2002.

The Aloe seems to stop the itch. I had to wrestle her down the first couple of times, now when I bring the spear in she flops on her back waiting for the goo treatment.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 19, 2002.

I have found homeopathic remedies to be extremely effective with my dogs and cats. You can buy prepared remedies in liquid form or tablets. They have mixtures for allergies in general, or specific tree pollen, grass, dust, for anxiety etc etc. One of the nice things about homeopathic remedies is that you can either apply it to their skin and let it absorb or put it in their water, which is extremely helpful with cats! The liquid has alcohol in it for a preservative, so they won't like it straight. My dogs like the tablets and eat them willingly because they are made with milk sugar base. I had an old lab who had a leaky bladder and the remedy by Hylands for bladder irritation worked wonders for her. Sure saved me alot of laundering of blankets. Also, the same dog had a long recovery time on her blanket once after some major surgery and developed bed sores on her elbows....deep ones. After much experimenting and trying various ways to pad her elbows etc, I finally poured tea tree oil straight into the open sores...(.we were desperate..) and like magic the healing began! She did not seem to mind this one bit. Her sore healed in a little over a week...completely! I have a cat has an allergy to something that comes in on the firewood (I think) and goes into an itching frenzy every fall. After spending bucks at the vet for an allergy shot each fall, I learned of the homeopathics. Now that is what I use, just for a couple weeks at most in fall and it takes care of it till the next year. Also, I am in agreement with the above regarding the possibility of food allergies. Is really hard to isolate the culprit, but worth it if you are sucessful. Good luck.

-- Barbie from N. Idaho (think_peace51@hotmail.com), April 19, 2002.

I am pretty sure your dogs is allergies also, but like the other poster above I wanted to make people aware of nutritional deficits that can cause hair loss and itchy skin. We had our old dog for over 13 years and he ate anything we gave him and looked good, but when he started getting older he got what I thought was mange. He scratched terribly. The vet said since he was old his stomach wasn't as efficient at digesting his food, to buy him a very high quality feed. It worked like a charm. All the itching stopped and the hair grew back.

-- debbie marler (dmar101@gotmail.com), April 19, 2002.

Jay, how do you know it is allergies? I ask because one: you did not mention her age. and two: don't know if your vet has done any blood testing on her. Many things, as mentioned above can cause these symtoms. Thyroid imbalance is a common one. If what you are doing is not working, follow up with the Doc on further testing. It doesn't do any good to treat for something she might not have. Just some ideas. :) LQ

-- Little Quacker (carouselxing@juno.com), April 19, 2002.

She's 5 years old and it subsides in the fall and winter and is at its worse in april/may. This is the third year this has happened.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 19, 2002.

I would skip using general soap and use a quality dog shampoo for either sensitive or allergic skin. I think a lot of them contain oatmeal. Dogs have a different skin chemistry than humans and washing a dog that has a skin problem using human soap can actually make the dog worse. Dog shampoo will cost a couple of bucks more, but it can make a big difference.

I would continue to treat her as per the vet, but also put an Elizabethan collar or cone on her. She needs to leave that area alone for an extended period of time. Unless you are with her 24/7 and you never sleep, then she will be able to undo all your good work in a couple of minutes of chewing. Dogs actually get used to wearing the E. collar and become quite comfortable in it.

A while back our youngest dog had an operation on her foot and she wouldn't leave it alone afterward. She grumbled & whined about wearing a E. collar at first, but the next day she was jumping up on the bed like normal. Annie found out that she could bash us really well with the E. collar and that became part of the morning wake up ritual. Annie would jump up on the bed and bash us with her Elizabethan collar until we got up to make her breakfast. It was a very effective way to get service.

-- Dash (forthechix@yahoo.com), April 19, 2002.

Jay,

There have been some great homeopathic remedies posted here...

I can't express strongly enough to you to look into changing her diet. Five years old is around the time the food we have been feeding our animals start to show up as problems...(depending upon the size, environment, and breed of the animal...year 3 to 5).

Providing wholesome natural foods is as easy is making one more serving, especially for a dog.

It is very important to cleanse your dog's system from the waste and by-products in processed dog food.

Not only will her skin condition have a great jump start on healing, you should see a brighter and spunkier dog...

It is what being healthy is all about..

-- BC (katnip364@aol.com), April 20, 2002.

I dont think its the diet as the dogs and cat eat what I eat with the exception of some meat daily, where I skip a meat with my meal every two days.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 20, 2002.

Might check out this article: http://www.healthwellexchange.com/nutritionsciencenews/nsn_backs/Jul_9 9/petallergies.cfm

"Essential fatty acids (EFAs) lubricate dry skin and control inflammation.9 Adding flaxseed, fish, safflower, borage or evening primrose oil to a pet's food is an easy way to increase EFA consumption. Monounsaturated oils such as avocado and olive oil can also help reduce inflammation.

Essential fatty acids play a part in controlling the prostaglandins involved in inflammation. Omega-3 fatty acids increase production of the anti- inflammatory prostaglandins.14,15 Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid deficiencies can cause eczema, another irritating skin condition. Flaxseed oil and fish oil are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids.

Gamma linoleic acid (GLA), an omega-6 fatty acid, is converted in the body to prostaglandin E1, the anti-inflammatory prostaglandin. Rich sources of GLA are evening primrose, borage and black currant oils. GLA supplementation can soothe rough, dry skin.14,16"

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), April 21, 2002.

Thanks for all the ideas. I plan to start adjusting her diet even more and continue the skin treatment. It isn't getting worse at this time and if there isn't sharp improvement by Tuesday morning, its off to the vet even though she isn't fond of that.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 21, 2002.

It could be corn in the food, lots of dogs can't eat corn, try rice based food, for a change.

-- lacyj (hillharmony@hotmail.com), April 21, 2002.

I've had big problems with itchy dogs. With some investigation I concluded it was sarcoptic mange. 4 Vets disagreed with me. The 5th Vet finally agreed when the dogs were so bad that they were "text book classic" We started an Ivomec treatment with immediate results. However this was short lived. After 2 years of research, and arguments with Vets I concluded that there are resistant strains of mites. I believe the resistance is a direct result of the over-use of Heartworm medication. Our current Vet seams to concur. In the mean time the dogs have developed a hypersensitivity to all sorts of irratants. I took a totally different aproach to resolving the problem by looking at PH levels. I now bath the dogs every 2 to 4 weeks (depending on how itchy & dirty they are) with a good Human shampoo (for dry hair, as regular can overstrip the natural skin oils). The key is to alternate the Ph levels of each bath. In the first bath I add 2-3 cups of white vinegar for about 4-5 gallons of water and let the dogs soak for 10 minutes before shampooing. In the second bath I use 2 cups of plain Borax (Mule Team in the launry soap section of your grocery store) for their presoak. The dogs seem to know this works and look forward to their bath. If you try this, do be sure to give the dogs a good rinse with cool water after the shampoo. If any one else has had a simular situation I'm currious to hear what you tried. Robert

-- Robert Bortlisz (robert.bortlisz@3web.net), May 12, 2002.