Food Allergy Question?
 

I have a bloodhound that gets yeast under his chin and lower down his neck. He doesn't itch anywhere else. As far as we know it's caused by a food allergy. He's presently on prednisone which I hate! :( I've had him on Nutro L&R, Wellness Fish & Sweet Potatoes, Natures Best Venison, Natures Best Vegetable and now Nutro Ultra. Trying the Ultra I think was a stupid move but I listened to the girl in the store. All it's done is give him dirty itchy ears. I kept him on every food for a couple months but he's on the Ultra now and I don't want to continue with it. He also eats from a ceramic dish.

I'm at a loss what to do next? :( I've tried narrowing down ingredients but can't figure out what I might be missing. I've thought about putting him on a natural diet but honestly don't know where to start? Any advice would be greatly appreciated and I will cook for him if I have to but because of my own laziness and he's a large dog it would be nice if his food came out of a bag. Any suggestions please!! :D

I don't know if this means anything but he has had an intestinal infection, I think caused by pistachios he ate(bad mom) and has had what the vet thought was an allergic reaction to a bug bite. Not sure what bug, I'm guessing maybe a bee?

Others on this web site can offer you more info on brands of food than I can.

However have you tried Medi-cal Hypoallergenic or medical vegetarian? You can only get these from a clinic and they may? be alittle more in way of $. But it sounds as if your guy is very allergic to almost everything and constantly changing foods probably isn't helping.
I will honestly say that there may? be better foods, but I've always loved medical and always used it with great results for my own dogs.

Luba always recommends yougart, yougart should help.

What about duck and potato? Ask your vet, get a pamphlet on a vet recommended food and compare ingredients and the guarenteed anaylisis (Sp?) with other foods.

As I said others here are more educated on foods than I am, but my own personal experiances have lead me to trust and love medical :)

Thanks for your suggestions SSAC. The food my vet carries I think is called Candine or something like that. I'll check into it and Medical. I know changing his food isn't helping him but I hate the thought of having him on Prednizone for life. :(
Vet's not open today so I'm off to the dog food store to read more labels and I'm sure I'll leave just as :confused: as when I walk in.

Could it be "Canidae"? Yes, this whole dog food thing has gotten very confusing ;) . Try checking out the manufacturers on-line before hitting the pavement. Most of them list their different formulas and ingredients. You might even type "dog food comparison" in your search engine and see if someone already threw together a comparo chart for you. :)

He might do well on a raw diet. Prednisone will greatly reduce his life span if he stays on it.:(

Have you tried cleaning and drying the folds in his skin every day? A lot of wrinkly dogs do seem to have this type of problem.

If you want to try a raw diet, I'll give you a link to get you started.

Hmmm thats a tough one

Are you sure it's a yeast infection for sure?

There is a product in health food stores called Yeast Busters, would yu consider a natural alternative?

Taking your dog off dog food all together and cooking for him may be a good way to start to boost immune system.

Thank you for all your suggestions. I'm not sure how to reply to several quotes so I'll do it this way.

<<Could it be "Canidae"? >>

That could be it! I've compared the brands I've used on the net but there's so many I don't know all the names. I just tried looking for a comparison chart but they seem to be done by companies that are selling "their brand" and they compare it to mostly crappie brands. Great idea though!

>>Are you sure it's a yeast infection for sure? >>

It's a simple test the vet does and it's positively yeast. He get's a quarter tab of Prednisone every second day and when I try to leave it till the third day he starts scratching again.

>>Have you tried cleaning and drying the folds in his skin every day?>>

When he eats/drinks we pat him dry with a paper towel, not a tea towel, obviously not when we're not home. I've tried everything from washing him a couple times a day with Selsun Blue Shampoo and using Gold Bond powder, tried Tinactin and a Calendula salve, I couldn't find the cream. They were all things suggested to try but he's allergic to something he's eating so yeast is a continuous problem. I'm most grateful he'll get in the tub on his own. :D

>>There is a product in health food stores called Yeast Busters, would yu consider a natural alternative?>>

Yes, yes, yes! For right now the Ultra has to go. I picked up Natural Balance Pot&Duck. I'll start him on this and it'll give me time to read up on an alternative. Yeast Busters?

Please send links to any info on natural diets. I've tried reading about them before but I could never find a complete diet of how much meat, veggie etc he would need for his weight(135lbs). What supplements would he need? This might sound stupid but can I cook the meat?

I really do appreciate any info. It's at the point I think I have no choice but to cook for him and before I do, I really want to make sure he'll be getting what he needs.