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I am fostering the sweetest little OES girl. She is blind and deaf and has arthritis and an itchy skin condition on her neck and her belly (actually it is all over). We are going to the vet on Tuesday afternoon. I took off her collar and cut all of the hair between her paw pads ( so she doesn't slip and slide on my floors and remove the wet mats there) and cut off the mats on her belly (the skin under neath was raw). She had been professionally groomed on Friday by the previous foster families groomer. She smells bad so I also checked and cleaned her ears (removed yellow gunk). I stopped giving her her Beneful (that's what previous foster family had been feeding her -- plus table food like veal parm). I know that allergies can cause ear infections and itchy skin conditions so I put her on what my guys get -- Flint River Ranch Fish and Chips (Trout and Sweet Potato) and Probiotics -- she's not eating much but I think that's ok as I think she's too heavy right now. What can I do to keep her from scratching until Tuesday? Since her neck and belly are so raw is there a kind of collar that you know of that I could use to help steer her around until her skin heals? Any other suggestions on living with a blind dog?
Marie |
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You probably can (and maybe should) give her some benadryl, but I am unsure of the proper dosing for a dog, so I looked it up.
According to the University of Tennesee SkinVet (Verterinary Dermatology) here is the proper dosing for antihistamines for dogs.
Source:http://www.utskinvet.org/pe/antihistamines.pdf
Please remember I am NOT a veterinarian; I don't know if these drugs are safe in any particular breed. I believe the source for the chart to be reliable. |
Also, it has been proven that antihistamines only work on 10%-30% of dogs even if they do have allergies. If you don't see an improvement, don't assume it is not allergies. With dogs and cats, allergies, regardless of whether they are inhaled, topical, or ingested, almost always react with the skin, rarely with sneezing etc like us.
Also, a yeast infection of the skin is common with dogs, and can be spots wherever, or all over... most commonly the ears (inside and out), face, bum, belly and lower legs. Though a topical bath usually twice weekly helps control it, oral medication is the only thing that really works.
The yeast getting out of control in a dog is due to an underlying problem, so you need to find out why even if that is the diagnoses or it will never stop. It may be allergies, or it may be an immune system problem or some other illness stressing the dogs' system and making it unable to keep the bacteria at bay. Giving yogurt often helps for this reason, to help keep the bad bacteria at bay, but it isn't a cure for an underlying problem. |
I just woke her to give her the Benedryl caplets. She was even scratching in her sleep. Thank you Ron for looking up the dosage.
Willowsprite,
I put Probiotic powder ( http://www.flintriver.com/ProductInfo.asp?pi=Probiotics-Overview.htm ) on top of her food -- which she ate very little. Would you add plain yogurt to her food too?
Marie |
| Marie, my guys love yogurt so I use it as a treat, they eat it right off the spoon. I don't put it in or over their food because if they don't eat it all it makes the food nasty. Good luck with your sheepie girl. |
| The probiotic powder is the same as the active ingredient in yogurt so I see no need to do both. (meaning the active bacteria cultures) |
| Marie, toss a t-shirt on her. It'll keep her from scratching but the cotton won't irritate her. |
| Any luck with the antihistamine, Marie? |
Poor baby girl!! 
I hope the change in food helps. |
The Benedryl did not help. A tee shirt is a good idea. It would also help keep her flakes of the carpet too...
We went to the vet today and have a full plan of action for her. Look under rescuing a dog --"Senior Female in Florida" for the full report...
It's GREAT news.
Marie |
