Itching and no fleas

[Heather & Brinkley]

Hey!

Brinkley has been itching a lot lately. I think I can pinpoint it to the warmer weather change as we live in a hot area... But I don't really know.

I'm also wondering if he could have a food allergy but he is on Orijen. He actually itched a lot before I made the food switch and it really cut down once he began eating Orijen so until now I thought it may have been a grain allergy.

I KNOW for a fact it isn't something scary as mange because my friend's very young Doodle had been itching a lot, to the point that he lost his fur. The puppy tested negative for the scary version of mange and they treated him for the other type of mange that doesn't show up on a scrape test. Since Brinkley had played with him I had Brinkley tested, and we also treated Brinkley for the lesser of the two evils as a precaution. Plus, my friend finally narrowed it down to a chicken allergy.

Brinkley isn't his losing fur and he doesn't have any raw spots, except one tiny spot on the bottom base of his tail... But I don't think he ate it raw. Instead, the itching wound some of his fur pretty tight last night so I think it is pulling... So I will cut the mats he created so he gets some relief.

But if he doesn't have fleas what else could it be? I'm leaning towards dry skin. Awhile back my vet said I could put a little bit of some kind of oil in his food but I can't remember what kind or how much!!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

It sounds a lot like environmental allergies to me.  The past few days Murph has been itchy too.  This happens to him at times when something is blooming that bothers him.  Thank goodness it's always temporary and a 10mg Claritin always helps him.  I'm sure Karen will respond.  She's our "local expert" on allergies.

[Heather & Brinkley]

Oh Claritin! Didn't think of that. How much does your Dood weigh?
And I will wait for Karen and others as well. Thank you!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Murph weighs about 58 lbs. 

[Heather & Brinkley]

Ok, thanks. Brinkley weighs 61lbs

[F, Calla & Luca]

Lots of us use Evening Primrose Oil. I use the 500mg capsules from Puritan's Pride. I give Calla 3 of them daily and Luca gets 1, because Calla is bigger and more likely to scratch. I think it helps  a lot. You'll find lots of info in the food group mainly I think.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yep, it does sound like seasonal allergies, and this would be the time for them to show up. It's a miserable year for them. The fact that the itching improved with the switch to Orijen points to seasonal allergies as well, not because of the lack of grains, but because of the higher Omega 3 fatty acid content and low Omega 6:3 ratio; that's why JD's allergy specialist recommended it for him originally. (Plus the lack of storage mites).

The Claritin dosage for dogs with seasonal allergies is actually triple the human dosage-JD gets three 10 mg tablets once a day. You could try giving two and see if it helps. Give both at the same time.

As F mentioned, evening primrose oil helps too, and when given with antihistamines, the effects of both are enhanced. You can give 1 to 3 500 mg softgels a day. F gave you an online source, but you can also get them in most stores that sell human vitamins and supplements; I buy Jack's at the local Safeway grocery store.

Fish oil may also help, but he's getting plenty of that from his food, and too much can cause some dogs to get diarrhea.

Frequent baths help. Use a good oatmeal shampoo or one formulated for allergies, and leave the lather on for 10 minutes before rinsing. No hot dryers, air dry or cool dryer only. Wash Brinkley's bedding at least weekly, brush him daily, and wipe him down when he comes in from outside, especially his feet. If it is pollen allergies, he's bringing it in with him, so this helps to eliminate it from his indoor environment.

If he does start to lick or bite at himself to the point of redness or hair loss, he's going to need some help from the vet.

[Heather & Brinkley]

Thanks! I will get Claritin. One more question. Are all of these oils okay for dogs that tend to get bouts of pancreatitis due to high fat content?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The EPO softgels are tiny little amounts of oil and should have no bearing on dietary fat content. The fat content of fish oil capsules is higher, but still not significant. It's only when you start getting into the kinds of oils that you squirt or pour on the food that you raise the dietary fat percentages, so you may want to avoid that.

[F, Calla & Luca]

The amount of oil is very small but I don't know for sure. Calla eats breakfast immediately after her pills and she always eats every bit. So she has a lot  of kibble followed by water to spread the oil in terms of digestion. Some people spread the oil on the food but I put the pills in the back of their throats. I wonder about the fat content of food and pancreatitis in general although I know it's always mentioned. I also wonder if it's the kind of fat if true. Certainly these are not saturated fats, since they are liquid at room temperature, like animal fats would be.

[Heather & Brinkley]

Thanks! I'm going to look for some later today.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Speaking only for evening primrose oil, there are volumes of clinical research showing that it is indeed easily absorbed and utilized by dogs and has a proven therapeutic effect on skin inflammation and itching. As to being easily digested, oils are fats not carbohydrates, whether they come from plants or not, and the digestive process required for dogs to digest plant foods does not apply to any type of fat. I can assure you that Jack and every other dog who is taking EPO has no trouble digesting or utilizing it. Dogs do have trouble utilizing certain types of Omega 3 fatty acids from plants, such as flax seed, but in the case of evening primrose oil, we are talking about GLA being converted, which is a whole other ballgame.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Andrea, all Omega 6 fatty acids are not the same. Gamma-linoleic acid is not like most other Omega 6 fatty acids. It works along with EPA and DHA to fight inflammation and counteract the affects of arachadonoic acid, which is the bad kind of Omega 6 fatty acids.

Not all omega-6 fatty acids behave the  same. Linoleic acid and arachidonic acid (AA) tend to be unhealthy because they  promote inflammation. GLA, on the other hand, may actually reduce  inflammation.

The Immune System and Inflammation

Both EPA and GLA appear to have positive effects on immune function and inflammation. By blocking the pro-inflammatory prostaglandins, EPA tends to improve symptoms of asthma, atopic dermatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, Raynaud's disease, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis, and gout. In a recent study using high levels of GLA (1.4 grams) from borage seed oil, patients with rheumatoid arthritis experienced a significant improvement of symptoms. In several studies, GLA relieved the symptoms of eczema and atopic dermatitis and reduced the amount of skin area that was affected. Studies using GLA have also shown clinical benefits in patients with autoimmune disorders such as lupus and multiple sclerosis since GLA's anti-inflammatory mechanism is slightly different from that of EPA; it appears to complement EPA's anti-inflammatory activities.