could my apartment be making my dog sick?

[Jen W]

Dory just turned 2. In her first year she was never sick. Then when she turned one I moved to a new apartment. A month later she got sick (diarrhea and puking). A few months later she got sick again. At first I figured it must be that she has a sensitivity to duck, since the first time she got sick was after trying out the duck variety of her food and the second time was after she had a duck wrapped pork chomp. So I told everyone not to give her duck and considered it done.

But about a month ago she got sick again and now again this morning she is sick. I know she hasn't had any duck or anything unusual. She hasn't gotten into anything to account for "dietary indiscretion" as the cause of her sickness. And it's the same symptoms every time - middle of the night diarrhea that turns bloody on day 2. A bland diet for 5 days clears it up.

When I realized she was never sick the fist year I had her when I lived in my other apartment I started wondering if my apartment could be making her sick. It's a brand new apartment, I am the first occupant, but maybe the carpeting? The water?

Has anyone heard of something like this? I just can't figure out what's causing it and of course the vets are of no help at all, only wanting to prescribe her an antibiotic without any proof that she has a bacterial infection.

[Jen W]

I know it makes absolutely no sense, Karen. I keep telling myself that it can't possibly be my apartment b/c it didn't start right away when I moved in, her sickness wasn't always constant, it doesn't impact me, etc. And yet, every time we come up to my friend's she gets better and every time we go back home she gets sick again.

Based on your earlier advice I had her regular vet run a GI panel that they had to send out before Christmas. The results were with normal and neither her regular vet nor the IMS put her on any medication. She finished her last dose of Panacur on 12/23 and was sick even after she finished that.

Her food is the same in both places and if anything, she gets more treats at my friend's house than at my place where the treats I give her are only elements of her bland food diet (so I piece of chicken or beef as a treat but here I saw him give her a bite of pear and a piece of cheese). Her toys are the same. She gets tap water in both places. She really really loves my best friend, but I doubt being away from him could cause chronic diarrhea, especially since once he's out of eyesight I'm pretty sure she forgets about him. She seems just as happy and playful when we are home. There are a lot of dogs in my neighborhood at home, but if she were picking something up from them it would show in all of the tests we've run.

I know it doesn't make sense. But how else to make sense of her getting better here and getting sick when we return. I am also acutely aware of the fact that I am desperate for an answer since we've been dealing with this for so long that I may be seeing links where there are none, but this is the closest thing to a reason I, or her vets, can come up with.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Well, I have a dog with IBD, and I can tell you that there is no rhyme or reason to the timing of flare ups, and the causes of both the disease and the flares are unknown. But if the vet and the IMS are not mentioning IBD to you, then that's probably not it. It really is a mystery. 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Does your apartment have a carpeting that is glued down? I know that schools have that kind of carpet and it is not unheard of for some teachers and students to be sensitive to either the materials in the carpet or in the 'glue.'  Might there be mold in your apartment? Is there a plant she eats when you take her potty?  Is there some kind of spray that is used where she goes potty?   I don't necessarily think of diarrhea as a symptom, but I thought I'd throw it out maybe to give you another direction to pursue.

[Jen W]

That's interesting, Nancy. I do think there could be mold in here. It's new construction (so really tight!) and always condensation on the sills, that frankly, do look a little black. I know you can't see mold spores, and I don't know how mold would impact a dog's GI system, but it would also make sense in that the frequency of her bouts became more frequent once the weather turned and I shut the windows. I have a call in to her internal medicine doc to see what he thinks. Thanks for the idea!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There is mold everywhere; it's not always black or deadly either. There are molds on any surface that is always wet, like the inside of a dog's water bowl if you don't wash them frequently, and the inside of your water pipes. Outdoors, there are molds on the soil, on leaves, everywhere. The mold spores are in the air, and are a very common allergen. JD tested positive for only one mold, but there are many Atopic dogs who have tested positive for multiple molds. However, again, the symptoms of these mold allergies always include itching, and rarely include GI symptoms.