Big Paws Only Dog Forums
BPO Medical Forum => Medical Conditions & Diseases => : my3dogs January 26, 2006, 11:10:55 AM
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Here's a copy of the email that I received.
Any suggestions are appreciated.
I've also included one of my favorite pics of Molly from before the hair loss started. She loves her kitty. ;D
Here's the email:
Wendy,
Can you post this for me?
Molly is a 5 yr (almost 6 now) old Basset. She has been very healthy. She had been eating Lamb & Rice food until Dec. 2004. That is when I decided to start her on a weight management food.
Feb. of 2005 I noticed a small balding spot on the scruff of her neck.
Her coat was always really nice and thick.
I thought maybe she was shedding out. I took her to the vets in the Spring for her annual shots etc. Other than the vet saying she needed to lose about 7lbs, he thought she was very healthy. He contributed the hair-loss to a strange winter and wet spring and that he had noticed many dogs shedding differently this year.
Well, she continued to "shed" all summer. I took her to the vets in November. Her body can't handle the yeast production, so she is on meds for that. Her blood work came back negative for Hypothyroidism and they don't think it is Cushings. We will finish the medication that she is on now, then try to decide if it is food allergies. The hair on
her whole torso has thinned so much that you can see her skin. Any thoughts?
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Have you tested her thyroid? In some dogs hair loss is the only symptom.
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I would do two things
1) Switch her food ASAP
and
2) Give her baths with tea tree shampoo. They make it for dogs. It is a natural antibacterial/antifungal shampoo that will not only stop any kind of skin ailment that may be going on, but it also will soothe her skin. If you can find it in a lotion or ointment, get that too.
One more thing, this is what I do with the horses, not sure if it would work with dogs, but you can prob. look it up...I give them iodine baths for any kind os skin infection/ hair loss......agai n not sure about its use on dogs, but it might work.
Good luck! Please look into the tea tree products, that would be your best bet in my opinion!! And switching the food of course!
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The same thing happened to my inlaws sheltie and they got an allergy test done. Turns out the cause was an allergy, to what I don't remember; but they gave him an allergy shot and all his fur grew back and he was just fine.
Nina
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Funny...I just had a conversation about Baloo and his possible food allergy to Lamb. I second the advise given and also add flaxseed oil (Solid Gold) and 1 egg to the food. Wheat germ can also be used but I wouldn't if there is any possibility of grain allergy. Food alergies can show up at any time regardless of how long they've been eating it.
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OMG. That is the most ADORABLE picture! I just love Bassett's - they are so sweet!!! ;)
This also happened to my MIL's Westie, Wally. He first started losing the hair on his belly, then it crawled up under his chest, then it went down to his feet (above his toes). He practically had no hair left in all these areas.
The vet finally (after many attempts and allergy tests) diagnosed him with allergies to certain environmental factors (different types of grasses, dirt, plants, etc). He was given some sort of allergy medication (which didn't help much). He was eating Iams or something like that. She switched his food to Solid Gold Wolf King (the vet didn't recommend it, she heard it from a friend) and his hair immediately started growing back!
Here's a picture of Wally when the hair above his feet was just starting growing back (you can see his black skin underneath). He's got all of the hair he lost back now!
Best of luck with sweet Molly, I hope she gets her hair back soon!
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Hi, I'm Molly's(&Tilly's) mom. Although my Basset's aren't "Big" dogs, they do have "Big" Paws, and deep down inside they think they are big dogs  :)
I just joined this forum, because I want to say thank you for the advice. 14 more days on the yeast medication for Molly, then I will start trying your ideas. thanks again
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thanks, they are pretty cute. I had a Choc. Lab and an Aussie about nine years ago. These girls are almost the size that my lab was, except they have short legs :)
I will try getting pictures of Molly's hair condition in daylight tomorrow.
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Molly & Tilly are so sweet - I LOVE Bassetts! ;)
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Molly had her bath in Tree Tree shampoo today. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. She HATES water!! Doesn't even like to get her paws on the wet grass :D I even trimmed her nails. I also picked up some Solid Gold Wolf King dog food. The ingrediants look really healthy, not full of by products like some other foods. Let's keep our paws crossed :)
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Welcome to BPO rickie Id say your babys belong here. I am thinking of getting a Bassett hound .Are they good with kids?? How are they with other dogs?
Molly and Tilly are beautiful.
Coonie
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Molly had her bath in Tree Tree shampoo today. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. She HATES water!! Doesn't even like to get her paws on the wet grass :D I even trimmed her nails. I also picked up some Solid Gold Wolf King dog food. The ingrediants look really healthy, not full of by products like some other foods. Let's keep our paws crossed :)
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Glad Molly's bath wasn't as much of a 'production' as you thought it would be! If the Solid Gold Wolf King works for Molly anything like it did for my MIL's dog - I'm sure her fur will be back in no time! ;)
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Guess her bath was worse on me :) It was TEA TREE shampoo not Tree Tree :) I can't speak for all Bassets, but our two are wonderful with everyone!! They follow my 2yr old grandaughter around every where. When Molly was a puppy, we made sure to socialize her, and I also made sure that she would not be food aggressive. Tilly just came to us as a 3yr old, but her prior owners did a wonderful job with her. She is just a sweet. I really like this site!!
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I can tell you that Molly is great dog. She's playful and fun.
I've heard Tilly is wonderful but I can't tell you from experience because I haven't met Tilly yet (hint, hint). ::)
-Wendy
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vet's will rob you blind
better off just cutting her usual food down
might be alergy, might be ?
i use special vitamins on all my dogs, no matter what food i feed them
this stuff really works, not store bought or the stuff the vet pushes on you..if interested e mail me ill give you the info and 800 #
billie4121@aol.com
http://rhodridge.com/index.html
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Just emailed you. Thanks to everyone for all of your suggestions.
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here are some pictures of Molly's back. This was before her "tubby". She use to have a pretty thick black shiny coat.
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I hope the food helps too. Very pricey though :( I paid almost $2 a pound. She's worth every penny though :)
She hasn't been itchy at all... this is so confusing. The yeast meds have been working, she doesn't have a greasy feeling to her anymore. The tubby helped as well. guess i best go tend to my outside critters.. 2 horses :) this site can be addicting.
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It will be a week tomorrow that Molly has been on her new food. She hates it!! I bought some of the Solid Gold canned food, and mix just enough in to coat the morsels. She has 9 more days of the meds she is taking for the yeast control. After that, we will probably be back to the vets. She is still chasing the cat and playing with Tilly. She still loves to go out for her romp around the yard. At night when we are watching T.V, she lays next to me. While she is sleeping, she shivers, and sometimes her teeth chatter. I always cover her with a blanket. Do you think this is due to lack of hair? She doesn't seem to do it during the day. Any thoughts out there???
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Just in case things don't improve, what kind of heartworm meds is she on? I had a Dane who was very allergic to Ivermectin (heartguard) and her hair fell out in a very similar pattern. As soon as we switched to a different medication her condition improved rapidly. We wasted a year on special foods and cortisone shots before we discovered the real cause.
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She was tested for Hypothyroidism, even had the blood shipped to Michigan state for indepth testing. Levels came back normal. What is funny is that this morning she ate all her food :) She must of known that I reported her on here. I am watching her closely for any changes, both good and bad.
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Hey rickie, sorry I have been a little slow lately. How has the tee tree been working for you? Any improvement at all? I am keeping my fingers crossed for you. Have you thought of looking into Nutro Natural Choice food or Nutro Ultra? Just a thought, I know the natural Choice has been said to improve skin conditions.
check it out if you want
www.nutroprodu cts.com
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Update on Molly. We are on week 2 of the Solid Gold Wolfking mixed with a bit of the canned food and warmed in the mic for about 15secs.This is the only way she will eat it. tomorrow is the last day of the meds she is on for the yeast problem. I have only given her 1 bath in the tea tree shampoo (2wks ago), I have been putting a tea tree oil mixed with some vitamins on her coat(what is left of it). Her trembling is concerning me, and I will be calling the vets tomorrow. I need to find out what else they tested for in her blood work. Everything I read sounds like it could be cushings. Reading things on the web can be scary though, and I hope that I am over-reacting. She is the sweetest dog, and I just want her better.
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Aw - poor Molly. I hope everything works out alright - definitely let us know what the vet says about the bloodwork.
Sending positive thoughts your way! ;)
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has the tea tree ointment helped at ALL?
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My Basset has had food issues all her life. I finally gave up on commercial food took to making her own using Sojos [http://www.sojos.com], cooked ground turkey/pork, & veggies that I grind about once/month. Her digestion improved but she still had very flaky skin & sometimes gets a rash on her tummy. A friend suggested I put a raw egg in her food. I did that about 4 times/week for 2 weeks & saw a big difference. I maintain it with an egg 2x/week. She still gets the rash sometimes but I find it's mainly when her and hubby's seasonal allergies flare. When that happens, I give her children's liquid Benedryl.
   I just found a new holistic whole food called Performatrin Ultra [http://www.performatrinultra.com/] & am going to try it. It is very similar to Nutro Ultra but PU has more whole ingredients & added digestive biotics/enzymes. Also, PU has 2 formulas; one with only chicken & the other with only lamb. I prefer to stay away from chicken.
BTW, it took almost a year of vet visits, including with an internal specialist, before we were told to try staying away from beef, chicken & wheat. [I already stay away from soy because of its link to bloat.] I asked about testing & was told they were not very good for their cost; something about inaccurate results, I think. Hopefully they have improved in the last 5 years.
As for her trembling, have you been taking her temp? I wonder if she has a fever. I know Holi will get shivers when she's not feeling well.
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I think the tea tree has helped a bit. I really haven't given everything time to "kick" in. I know with things like this, there is not a quick fix. I just want her coat back to the way it was. Good thing is that her activity level is still up. Thanks for your help and concern :)
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Hmmm, I am just thinking that if it is fungal or bacterial, the tea tree will clear it up. But, if it something else, the tea tree wouldn't help. So, if it is helping her, that is a good sign!! Hang in there!
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I spoke with our vet this afternoon. He felt that if it were Cushings that the blood count for the liver would have been elevated, and it was normal. I will pick up the medicated shampoo form the vets and give her a bath twice a month as he recommended. We will now concentrate on the possible food allergy. I am going to continue her on the SolidGold for a month, then possibly switch her to IVD. He was not certain what to think of her trembling. Possible that she could have a vertabrae (sp?) out of allignment. She doesn't seem to be in pain though. I'll keep you all posted. :)