Time to move to raw??

[Wylie's Mom]

I understand the frustration of possible allergies bc I've been through it down here in pollen-ville with 2 of my kiddos. You are smart to focus in on her paw chewing bc it is indeed a cardinal sign of allergies. So, that's great of you to notice it and to keep an eye on it. Btw, how old is she?

I feed raw and I really love it. Mostly I use the Primal brand (duck). I've been using it about 5 years. If your kiddo is a picky eater, it may be worth trying raw bc there have been some other picky eaters here who then go crazy for raw. So for that reason alone, it may be worth trying it.

As for the allergies, food allergies are rare - but they do happen; only about 10-15% of the time. That said, I do think it helps enviro-allergy dogs to be on low allergen type foods. How does her skin look....especially on her belly, armpits, groin, back etc -- any red patchy areas, any inflammation at all? If yes, then def get a skin scraping asap to see if she has a skin infection.

I'm going to paste a thread here, it's a thread about how to approach allergies if you're suspicious they may be present (and I think you're correct in that they are present): http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/die...tart-here.html

[IDPiper]

Originally Posted by Maximo

If she prefers the canned wet food, there are canned choices that are nutritionally complete diets and not just toppers.

She won't eat them so I tried her on the grain free LID and also bought some of the toppers thinking I could get her to eat her kibble with it. Well, she'll eat it for one maybe two meals and then she won't touch it. She's such a picky little poop!! Her vet suggested a sensitive stomach feed the last time she went to the vet because she felt that she had colitis. I gave her the Science Diet i/d and it was a big no go. Her intermittent diarrhea has subsided.

This morning she had some Evanger's Pheasant mixed with some Evanger's Super Premium Pheasant and Brown Rice kibble. She did eat almost all of the kibble with her canned. She only left a few pieces of the kibble. We'll see if she eats it for more than a couple of meals. FINGERS CROSSED!!!

[IDPiper]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

I understand the frustration of possible allergies bc I've been through it down here in pollen-ville with 2 of my kiddos. You are smart to focus in on her paw chewing bc it is indeed a cardinal sign of allergies. So, that's great of you to notice it and to keep an eye on it. Btw, how old is she?

I feed raw and I really love it. Mostly I use the Primal brand (duck). I've been using it about 5 years. If your kiddo is a picky eater, it may be worth trying raw bc there have been some other picky eaters here who then go crazy for raw. So for that reason alone, it may be worth trying it.

As for the allergies, food allergies are rare - but they do happen; only about 10-15% of the time. That said, I do think it helps enviro-allergy dogs to be on low allergen type foods. How does her skin look....especially on her belly, armpits, groin, back etc -- any red patchy areas, any inflammation at all? If yes, then def get a skin scraping asap to see if she has a skin infection.

I'm going to paste a thread here, it's a thread about how to approach allergies if you're suspicious they may be present (and I think you're correct in that they are present): http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/die...tart-here.html

She is a year old. She's a rescue dog so that is why I'm concerned that it may be a habit. She only does it when we are playing (on the floor, on the bed, on the sofa) and when she goes to bed at night. She also scratches her ears but she has no ear infection and I keep the hair plucked out of her ears. The vet gave me an ear wash to clean her ears with but I see no change in the scratching. This is another thing that will be addressed with her vet when she goes back in for her booster vaccines in a couple of weeks.

[IDPiper]

Originally Posted by kjc

I'd also have her teeth checked specifically. She may have a bad tooth that bothers her when eating kibble.

I've read about some dogs doing fantastic on a raw diet. It wouldn't hurt to get your vet's opinion on switching her over. He may have more tests in mind to make sure it would be beneficial for her.

The vet checked her teeth at her last appointment and said that she does have horrible teeth and that she has retained one of her canine baby teeth and maybe another one??? I will have these pulled out when I have her spayed.

I already asked her vet about a raw diet and she was a total b!tch about it! This was my first and also my last time seeing this vet. I just went to her because my regular vet was in surgery the day that I needed to go over.