Allergy to chicken? or something else going on?

[Maya and Mike]

Here's the history. Sammy was originally being fed Blue Buffalo puppy formula (chicken based, not grain-free). We kept him on it when we got him from the breeder thinking he was used to it, but the runny poops were not improving. He did have Giardia at one point, was treated, but the poops continued to be runny. At that point we transitioned him to Orijen Puppy (also chicken based, but grain-free). He seemed to be better on it with the stool, but has always been a little itchy. More recently he had runny stool again, took him to the vet, and again Giardia. We treated him with a course of Panacur which cleared that up, stools were inconsistent- sometimes solid, but lots of loose. 

This week we have been adding more pumpkin and a bit of yogurt and pre-/pro-biotic chews to help with the healthy bacteria in his belly. All seemed to be improving.... BUT....

I'm beginning to think that Sammy may actually have a food allergy. This morning I noticed red bumps all over his belly and no sign of fleas. Now that I added the yogurt, I'm not sure if it's the dairy that's bugging him, or if it is indeed the chicken. He's always been a little on the itchy side and the runny poops (as I mentioned before) have been somewhat of an issue from the start (and we've always fed him chicken). 

Help!!??

[Nga Phan]

I don't have a solution...your post reminds me if the situation we have with Eva currently. She's 7 months old and since we got her from the breeder, she's been to the vet 4 times for Colitis...runny stool with straining, all times tested negative for Giardia.

She would be good for awhile and then the runny stool happens again. In the last 4 weeks, she has not gotten completely better. It's on and off. I've been feeding her just bland food, boiled chicken breast and rice for while...she would get better but as soon as I add in other things gradually (like cooked Primal nuggets - Primal is raw food that she has been on when she doesn't have tummy problems but I cook it now if I mix in with her chicken/rice). I can feed her chicken and rice all her life and that would be fine but I'm worried about her not getting enough nutrition that's why i wanted to get her back to the Primal (though cooked)...But as soon as Primal was more than 1/2 of her food, she has runny stool again so now we are back to the chicken/rice. In the lats 4 weeks, whenever her stool is runny, she has red bumps on her tummy and groin area...the vet told us that it's stress related and would go away on its own...and it usually does get better when her tummy issues clear up.

I don't yet know what it is but I'm beginning to think she has Inflammable Bowel Disease or Irritable Bowel Syndrome that is easily aggravated by stress, too much fat in the food, etc....but I really don't know and will have to get her to the vet again next week. The reason I have not taken her back to the vet is they keep prescribing antibiotics for the inflammation...which I think too much is messing up her tummy as well...but I don't know what other options there are...

By the way, when I feed her chicken/rice, I add eggshell powder for calcium, pre/probiotics and digestive enzymes. I just ordered Psyllium husk power, which is a fermentable fiber, said to help withchronic Colitis...will report back if she gets better with it.

I would be curious to see what others say...as I'm at my wits' end with Eva. Good luck with Sammy.

[Maya and Mike]

I spoke with the vet a few days ago (before the red bumps showed up and I was worried just about the runny stool), and she suggested that it may be a chicken sensitivity. I wanted to keep him on the food and try to add stuff to bulk it up (Ark Naturals Gentle Digest, yogurt). We were already giving him pumpkin previously, so I really don't think that's the problem.

His belly looks awful and he doesn't seem like himself this evening... I'm beginning to worry a bit.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There is a HUGE difference between Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome. The latter, IBS, is stress related and can be controlled with food. 

The former, IBD, is an immune-mediated, incurable disease which requires life-time dietary and drug management. It has nothing to do with stress. My guy was diagnosed two years ago, and it's pretty devastating. I sincerely hope that your puppy doesn't have it.

IBS is a possibility, we do have a number of dogs here who have it. Most of them have done best with the Honest Kitchen dehydrated raw diets. Low fat, high moisture diets work best for dogs with IBS.

I would consider switching protein sources, remove chicken from her diet, and I would also get a good probiotic like Proviable DC. The repeated antibiotic treatments could very well have caused the ongoing problem, it's happened to many dogs here. (A lot of breeders overdo the worming meds, too, and that can cause GI problems.) It's crucial that a dog be given a good probiotic any time they are on antibiotics. 

[Maya and Mike]

I actually got a sample of the Honest Kitchen a few weeks ago. Sammy loved it and his poop looked great- no runny stool! I actually thought of switching him to that brand but thought that it was too low in protein. Is that not the case?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It's lower in protein but hard to compare to the protein percentages in kibble because it's a different form of food and contains so much moisture as fed.  But some of those who do feed it add their own extra protein to it. The different formulas have varying protein percentages as well, some are higher than others. I'd use it as is to start with. Which formula did you try? The Embark formula has worked well for many here.

[Maya and Mike]

I tried the Thrive formula (which is also chicken based). :-/

Embark is turkey- would that be ok? or should I steer away from that since it's poultry?

Love is beef based... 

I ended up feeding him the Orijen Red for dinner. The pet store I go to (frequently during the past week) was so kind- they gave me a 5 lb bag for free so I could switch him over and see if things improve on a beef diet.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Turkey is fine; the protein molecules are different than chicken; most dogs who do have chicken sensitivities do very well with turkey or duck. 

The Regional Red contains various red meat protein sources and the only beef is beef liver. It was JD's favorite of the Orijen formulas. (Of course, it's the most expensive, lol).  

[Nga Phan]

Thanks Karen for clarifying IBD vs. IBS...I hope she has the latter. I'm currently using Gentle Digest, as suggested in a few discussions on here, but is Proviable DC better? If so, I'll switch.

Eva was on Honest Kitchen Embark before but she could not gain weight and didn't quite digest it right, she was going number 2 a lot (like ~6 times a day, all normal not runny) and there was undigested food in her stool. That's when I switched to Primal. I'll get her on HK again once she's more stable on chicken/rice. Hopefully with the probiotics she'll digest it better this time.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Gentle Digest is a good product, but Proviable has more different strains of good bacteria and is "better" in that sense. It's a good idea to use both.

 

[Nga Phan]

Good to know. I'll try it out right away...

[F, Calla & Luca]

Sometimes dogs get red bumps on their bellies from contact allergies. These can be from beds containg cedar chips. Of course other culprits can be to blame too.

[Maya and Mike]

I don't think its his bed. He's had it for a few months, and no issues till today.

I guess it could be contact- we were at the dog park today....

ugh.