my grandfather recently passed away, and i now have his mini long haired Dotson. she had Original been mine a couple years ago because i had rescued her, but then could not keep her so my grandfather had taken her, she has had skin issues that the vet keeps giving her pills and shots for. i am trying to find a cheaper way to treat it. shes been itching a lol and i am worried shes going to itch so much she will become raw. is there any human shampoos and conditioners that will work good for this? i believe she just has dry skin, my grandmother isn't completely right in the head and every animal that has been in that house has had skin issues because she liked to spray them with febreeze and chemicals to make them smell better. i have had lilly for almost two weeks now, and i really need some advice, i cant afford to bring her to the vets for the shots and pills. so far i have given her a bath with baby shampoo and then sponged her with a water/ apple cider vinegar mix which is supposed to help itching. but now that i think about it wont it also dry her skin out more? ohh and see refuses to eat dog food, no matter what kind i get her she will only eat a few pieces, but if she can get to the cat food she will eat till she is full. this morning i put veg oil and some apple cider vinegar in her food and got her to eat a little bit, but not much :( any advice would be greatly appreciated
Answers & Comments
Verified answer
D*A*C*H*S*H*U*N*D!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
STOP scrubbing it to death!
Yes,it WILL eat what it;'s fed...the minute you STOP caving in.
Pick up the cat food.
STOP pouring crap all over it's ration.
You don't say what color she is or what you are feeding her so I will try to cover as much as I can. I have bred Dachshunds for 30+ years and only had one dog with skin issues. He had malassezia which is a yeast problem. He went almost totally bald at 6 months old before one vet figured out his problem. Bathing him with a Chlorhexedine shampoo once a day for a week and then once a week for a month cured it. However, he was also allergic to corn, wheat and beef. So I had to find food that didn't contain any of those for him. Fortunately this was about the time companies were coming out with lamb and rice and chicken and rice foods. He did very well on those.
I would put her on a food with no corn, no wheat, no beef and some dachshunds also cannot tolerate beet pulp. Keep her on the food for at least three months before deciding if it is working.
As for her not eating dog food. Put her food down for 20 mins and put some garlic powder and warm water on it. If she doesn't eat it; pick it up and she doesn't eat that day. She may go three days without eating but she will eventually eat. If it isn't food allergies causing the skin problems then it could be the contact allergies from all the sprays. Don't bathe her very often and when you do, use an oatmeal shampoo. No perfumes in it.
EDIT: While grain free is good for some dogs, my Dachshunds got intermittent diarrhea on the grain free foods. I feed Purina ONE Lamb and rice and they do fine. While grain free foods may be good for some dogs, they are VERY expensive and not everyone can afford them. A good food with no corn, or wheat would be a good way to start.
The breed is called Dachshund. Not Dash hount, not Dotson.
Have you changed your dog's food? Go grain free (eg Natural Balance). Lots of dogs are allergic to corn, wheat, etc. and the first sign of allergies to them are incessant itching. Keep your dog away from cat food, it's too high in fat and protein and it's not nutritionally balanced. A Dachshund can't afford to be fat, it's really hard on their joints, back, and internal organs. Move the cat food so the dog can't get to it.
Add some Omega 3 fatty acid to your dog's food. Dogs love the taste and it helps their skin and coat as a side benefit. Your vet can tell you how much to use, it's based on your dog's weight. It's a question you can simply call in.
In addition to the pills, add a holistic liquid that you squirt onto the food. It's called Scratch Relief from Dr. Goodpet. You can buy it at PetSmart or WalMart. Add however many drops are the right dosage for your dog's weight to each meal.
There's also now holistic allergy pills for dogs. Not sure where you live, or even what country. You can add that to your dog's food as well as its regular allergy pill. If your dog is taking Vanectyl-P, that medication only works on environmental allergies, not food allergies. Most pet stores have a holistic section where you can obtain these items. They look like tiny little spherical chocolate sprinkles.
If your dog refuses to eat her own food, persist. No healthy dog will starve itself. She will eat when she gets good and hungry. It won't hurt her to fast for a day or two. It might help clean some toxins out of her system. Going grain free may even help lessen any smell she has since dogs with allergies often smell really bad.
You need to stop bathing your dog so often. Frequent bathing aggravates the skin problem. It strips the natural oils that the dog secretes to protect its skin and help weatherproof its coat. Simply damp wipe the dog if you need to. Stop with the soaps and stuff.
I have a Golden Retriever with multiple allergies, both food and environmental. She cannot have grains or poultry. We have no idea what environmental allergies she has without investing in expensive and inconclusive testing. We manage them instead.
We have switched her to grain free salmon and sweet potato kibble. Every morning she gets her measured meal. I add Scratch Relief drops to it. I add Omega 3 fatty acid to it. I put in half a prescribed allergy pill and a holistic allergy pill. She also gets a thyroid pill (she's hypothyroid). The same happens at night.
When she has an allergy attack, I up her Vanectyl-P sometimes as high as 3 pills per meal depending on how bad the allergies are, and add Benadryl into the mix (ask your vet before trying this so they can tell you yes or no, and advise a dosage). It should help get the allergies under control (if environmental is part of the issue) in a couple of days then I can immediately cut her back to her normal doses.
Keep your dog's ears very clean. Often dogs with floppy ears tend to get infections or even yeast infections (which smell really funky) frequently. Dogs with food allergies suffer them even more so. Get some unscented baby wipes. Take one out, wrap it around your finger, and get in there to clean the ears out. Do this at least twice a week. If the baby wipes dry out, don't worry. You can even buy a gentian violet holistic ear cleaner from pet stores now (gentian violet, witch hazel, borax). Clean the ears outside if you use this, gentian violet stains so wear sweats or something you don't care about.
Good luck!
Don't put veg oil and apple cider vinegar in her food. Have you ever tasted that? Just give her the normal dog food you feed her and fresh water. She will not starve herself she will eat when she is hungry. I assume Dotson should be Dachshund. You are trying to find cheaper ways to treat her skin issue. Wow, I really hope she doesn't end up with a back problem which Dachshunds are prone to because the surgery to repair it is over $5000. My mom has two Dachshunds and one has had back surgery and there is no cheaper way to fix it.
Please do not give her apple cider vinager! This is high in acid and NOT good on her stomach.
Only bath her in OATMEAL dog shampoo or even AVEENO or St. Ives has an excellent oatmeal soap.
My guess is she may have allergies. The best place to start is GRAIN FREE kibble. My dachshunds eat WELLNESS CORE reduced fat and my chihuahua eats Blue Buffalo wilderness. Co worker has a golden doodle that has allergies. Tey changed to grain free and he no longer has a proble. So....do your homework, research dog allergies and check out this site.
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/
My guess is the problem will stop as soon as you change to grain free. Do not buy supermarket dog food. Check Pet Smart, Pet CO and farm and home stores.
DASH HOUND, DOTSON? WTF? If you can't afford vet care, the dog needs to be surrendered to an animal shelter, where the dog will get the needed care, then adopted out to a responsible home. My dog was itching, a lot. For $43.00, he had an exam, a Cortisone injection, and just like magic, no more itching.