Update on Sick Holly

[Holly Doodle]

Ok, I feel VERY overwhelmed. We took Holly to the vet and he is convinced it is food allergies. He gave her a shot to stop her from vomiting, an antibiotic, a
steroid, and cream for a yeast infection in one of her ears.
I think he may be right, she does have frequent dry skin, she chews her paws, and she's been pulling fur out of her tail. He also suspected allergies since she's been getting sick so frequently in a short period of time.

My main concern is that he's a big advocate of Science Diet, and he started us on a food trial of prescription Hypoallergenic Science Diet. I asked if there were other hypoallergenic brands and he said yes but this is the one he carries and recommends. I know Science Diet is not a good food, now I have to figure out how to switch to another brand without having to switch vets! He's very set in his ways...
We have to do the trial for 11 weeks to determine if it is only food allergies or both food and seasonal allergies. I'll be relieved once we figure this out, but I'm not happy about his food choice! Ok I'm done freaking out now :).

[Nugget's Family]

Have you considered trying to find a vet who is a board certified allergist? I'd hate to see you all jump through all of these hoops and then have it be something completely unrelated to what she is eating.

I have a question for you: You mentioned that Holly has been chewing her feet. Is it possible that Holly walked through chemical lawn treatments or insecticide and has ingested it because she has been chewing her feet?

Our dood has pretty severe inhalant allergies and has been chewing her feet the past two days. She threw up this morning, too, which is very unusual for her. I thought maybe she walked through something and swallowed too much of it when she was chewing her feet. (We don't treat our lawn but some of our neighbors do and I was wondering about runoff?)

She is fine tonight, but I did call her specialist and got Nugget on a course of meds today to get her itching under control. (She's also on allergy immunotherapy injections.)

I know about your overwhelmed feeling....we were there, too, until we found the vet specialist who we really like and who has been very supportive.

Good luck to you and we'll be hoping Holly is doing better.

Susan

[Rose]

I'm so sorry to hear this! I hope you get it figured out soon and I hope you're both feeling better today.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I am so sorry for you and Holly. I hope you figure out the right foods for her.

[Christina and Cooper plus Benny]

I truly believe that vets prescribe this stuff because Hills and Iams pay for/sponsor their schools and of course they get a kick back. I also think that Hills does a great job of "educating" the vets about what is best for dogs (in their opinion.) Cooper had some throwing up problems and he just HAD to be on the Hills bland diet. I told the vet not just no, but absolutely no. I walked over and got the can and read the ingredients - byproduct. No way. I told him Cooper didn't eat byproducts. Period. What do you know, he gave me the directions for a bland diet and we used that (cooking chicken and rice and some cottage cheese) and he snapped right back. I think you have to be strong and stand up and say these ingredients are not for my dog. I wouldn't eat them, and Cooper shouldn't have to either. I have since switched vets and am much happier anyway. However, it is nearly impossible to find a vet that doesn't endorse these foods. Stand up for what your dog needs!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Gotta Agree, Karen and Jack is the place to start, as well as Ann Giesieg Kendig has just been going through this with Duke. I personally, knowing what I know from this site would skip the advice of my regular vet in the area of allergies and go straight to a pet allergy specialist. Particularly when you already know the only reason he is giving you science diet is because that's what he sells and gets kick back for. Wishing you guys the best. Keep us informed.

[Yvonne N]

Feel better Holly. Laci, hopefully you are on the right track to figuring this all out. But you should be firm with your vet. Karen and Jack can point you in the right food direction on The Food Group.

[Michele, Biscuit & Mo]

Laci, so sorry to hear that Holly is having such a tough time, but remember: it could be WORSE! You have a pup with food allergies and once you find the magic combination of food, she'll be back in business. Our doodle Penny has serious digestion problems from time to time. She's a very finicky eater because of it, even with the best food. I've found that when she has problems, we go on a chicken/rice diet or ground turkey with rice diet. She eats it and it DOES help. But it's a pain to keep making it!

The one food I've found that Penny eats with no problem is the Precise brand. You can read about them at www.precisepet.com. They have a dry lamb/rice sensitive food, and Penny eats their canned lamb with rice with no problem. She actually loves it.

Hope that helps -- keep us posted, and give Holly a hug from us!

[Holly Doodle]

I know, we may do the chicken and rice again for now. I just started researching in the food group and I'm trying to figure out our next move :).

[F, Calla & Luca]

Why not start Holly on some plain boiled chicken and rice for now?

[Dan, Judi, & Timbow]

I'm so sorry this is happening. I hope things get figured out soon. Please give Holly a big hug from us.