Hello and welcome to the forum. I’m sorry that your Doberman is so poorly. I too was going to suggest trying a raw, home cooked or wet diet as that would help avoid the storage mite problem. I was told by a company representative that some dogs have problems eliminating the yeast that is found in some commercial foods so changing to another food may help with that too. If you do decide to change food to raw it is important not to mix it with kibble. The recommendation is not to transition but to stop kibble one day and start raw the next. Regarding the candida (fungal infection), is it in his mouth and digestive system? If so, has the vet treated him for it?
I am not sure about the dust mite problem because it is hard to eliminate them in the home. If you could keep him in a room without carpets or furnishings that might help. Also use bedding that can be washed at 60 degrees might help. I have read that steaming helps get rid of dust mites.
Hi Dottie
Thanks for your reply. The fungal infection is actually in his armpits and he has frequent ear infections which are all part of the dust and storage mite allergy.
As you say its so hard to get rid of dust mites as the little blighterers are everywhere, especially at this time of year when the heating gets turned on.
I wash his bed once a week in a 60 degree wash, have replaced most of the carpets in the house to hard floors and have any remaining carpets and curtains steam cleaned professionally but he is so sensisitive to this allergy he is still suffering badly.
I started him on Atopica from the vet yesterday and it made him very sick (apparently this is common with this drug) but because of his size this is going to cost me approx £175 every 2 weeks.
I spent hours last night researching diets for a dog with allergies and they all lead to the same recommendation ‘raw’.
To be honest this terrifies me. I know they are dogs not human and their systems are different and they come from wolves etc etc etc but its not something I’ve any experience of.
To be honest I would rather ‘cook’ them a homemade dinner but if raw is the way forward then that’s what I’ll do.
I also have a female Doberman who has liver disease so I believe a raw or home cooked food would benefit her as well.
Do you think home cooked is an option?
Thank your again for your reply its very much appreciated.
Please don’t let it terrify you, axlrose. I do understand your fears, being fairly new to raw feeding myself, but they are unnecessary, I promise - and it’s much easier than you think it will be too if you use a good complete raw food, no fuss, no mess and very little smell.
I spent ages talking to the people at Nutriment before I took the plunge. Why don’t you give them a call and just have a chat about it? They really are so helpful and knowledgeable, it has to be worth a phone call before you write the idea off. The positive changes I’ve seen in my little boy since switching have been incredible.
I too perfectly understand your concerns about feeding raw. I have very recently had a spell of this with mine and I too was nervous. This is why I chose a prepared raw meal in the form of Nutriment. Also, I do not have the freezer space and did not want to have raw animal products about the kitchen, particularly as my OH is elderly and immunosuppressed due to long term steroid therapy. I would recommend these prepared raw diets - there are more, but the main ones are Nutriment, Natures Menu and Natural Instinct. However, for large dogs like yours it might be a bit expensive. The Nutriment people are on the helpline and would be able to advise. You wouldn’t lose anything by giving one of them a trial for a couple of weeks or more.
As for home cooked - yes, it is a good option IMHO, as long as you get the proportions right. I cannot remember exactly what they are but there is loads of information on the Internet. Off the top of my head, I would imagine it is something like 50 to 60% meat or fish, 20% vegetables and 20% carbohydrate although you could adjust things to suit. Of the carbs, my understanding is that sweet potato is a good one to go for although I know that David speaks well of brown rice and oats as long as they are very well cooked (until stodgy).
The dust mite is a real headache and I almost feel like saying that maybe he would be better housed (for at least part of the day) outside in a covered kennel and run. However, that is a bit extreme and he could well be more distressed especially as he is used to being in the house. It does sound as if you have all bases covered with regards to trying to eliminate the little blighters.
I have to say that I am so sorry to hear of your predicament. It must be uncomfortable for your dog and very difficult for you to see him so unhappy. Also, the expense must be crippling. I do hope that a raw diet might help. If you try the Nutriment do not be worried - it is exactly like feeding a tin of dog food. No handling of the meat - just spoon it into the weighing scales and feed.
I’ve been messing around far too long so I picked up the phone and had a long conversation with a lady from Nutriment and have placed an order for food and treats. I actually feel really positive now so fingers crossed.
As regards the itchy Doberman - do you think I should stop the vet prescribed Atopica ? As I said he only started it last night and it made him sick and gave him the runs which is a ‘normal’ reaction to this drug.
I very much hope that the raw diet helps. You might have the delivery tomorrow. I have found that if it is ordered before early afternoon it usually comes next day. As for the Atopica I haven’t had any experience of it. Personally I would be reluctant to give anything that made the dogs poorly but I can only advise for you to telephone the vet to ask what he or she thinks about the matter. If they expect the reaction to diminish and the outcome is expected to improve his condition then it may be worth sticking with it until the initial reaction wears off. It’s a tough one. :-\ The only other thing that crossed my mind (and this may be of no use whatsoever) is that PetalCleanse is a product for reducing allergens from the dog to sensitive people but I am wondering if it might help reduce the dust mites on your dog’s coat. Just a thought and as I said, might not be of any use.
Please let us know how you get on with the raw feeding.
Well as per the advice from the lady at Nutriment I’ve given both my Doberman their first raw dinner. She told me just to swap over from their original dog food without any blending over a period off time. They gobbled it down but then they are both very greedy. Within 10 mins they have both curled up and fallen asleep. I know (hope) this won’t happen but I’m sitting here waiting for some sort of eruption of either vomit or poo (from the dogs that is - not me!)
I felt just the same when I gave mine their first meal of Nutriment. I only gave it to one of them in case there were any problems. Actually there were none. The little one was deeply suspicious of it when I tried her with some but now wolfs it down. By now you will know if it has been OK and I do hope it has. You will gradually get more confident with the product. I really hope that it helps improve the health of your dog.
Started feeding raw Friday evening and was just about to sit down and post how well it was going when the dog with the allergies began to have vomiting and diarrohea, I’ve also noticed that he has flaky skin on his coat which sespite the allergy he only ever gets when stressed. Is this dettox do you think?
What I need to know is should I feed him tonight?
Many thanks
I am sorry to hear about this. Just a few weeks ago I read up about detox because it was referred to on a Facebook group that I had joined. TBH I do not understand it but it seems to be recognised and I only found one website where the author refuted it. Having said that, I could be wrong but I would not put this down to detox. Equally, it might be nothing to do with the raw food - he could simply have picked up a bug. Usually when this happens many people tend to starve the dog for 24 hours, just making sure that they stay hydrated with plenty of fresh water. I usually have a syringe of Prokolin or similar in stock and that can be helpful. If you want to feed him I would probably go for something light such as cooked chicken or scrambled egg.
I’m not sure about the dry, flaky skin. One of mine had it for some time but it completely disappeared once I changed them all onto Gentle and latterly Nutriment. Her skin and coat were particularly bad when they were on James Wellbeloved.
I hope that your boy is better by the morning. If not, perhaps another visit to the vet might be necessary. However, I would not necessarily blame it on the raw food.
If I had a choice of stopping the new food and stopping the Atopica, I would stop the Atopica - hopefully the change in food will help with the allergies and thus stop the itching
Axlrose - I am just wondering how things are with your dog? I hope that the diarrhoea and vomiting have settled down and he is feeling better. I remember how worried I was when I started raw food but luckily my lot took to it very well indeed and without incident. From speaking to other people, their dogs have had no problems either. I do hope that it wasn’t the raw food that upset him. Please could you let us know how things are?
Hi
I spoke to Nutriment who were fantastic and advised me to stop the raw food and keep on with the Atopica just to see what happened. I hated going back on Oscars but I knew it would be a good bench mark to get to the bottom of what was causing his sickness. In a nutshell he started to itch a lot more but wasn’t sick. Tonight I cooked him up some mince and veg (on advice from my itchy dog who are also very helpful) and within about 10 mins he vomited the lot back up again. My other Doberman thought it was her birthday and Christmas all rolled into one as she gobbled it up before I could stop her.
I have looked into freezing the dried Oscars but as someone on a random forum pointed out this will kill the mites but their bodies and poo are still present so won’t really help.
I also need something that won’t feed his yeast problem and have absolutely no idea what to do now. I am going back to my vet on Monday or a review of the Atopica but doubt they will offer me much help with my feeding problem.
It seems that what is good for his dust / storage mite allergy and candida doesn’t agree with his stomach.
Any advice as always would be much appreciated.
Many thanks x
Have you tried any of the wet foods? Although it would work out a bit more expensive, it might be worth a try. Naturediet might help as it is quite bland. A few of us on here are quite keen on cold pressed food. I use Gentle for my dogs and it has suited them very well. I don’t know if there is a storage mite risk with this kind of food. Cold pressed food has a short shelf life - around 6 months.
It rather sounds as if the vomitting is due to the treatment rather than the Nutriment. Such a shame because it would have eliminated the problem of storage mites.
Thanks Dottie. Having had time to think logically about him vomiting up the cooked mince so quickly after eating it I’ve come to the conclusion that it was probably simply because he’d eaten it too quickly. This morning I gave him the same food only i fed it to him in small portions making him wait between ‘servings’. I also shut the other dog out of the room as she is a food thief.
He’s been fine so far so fingers crossed.
I think I was in panic mode last night !
Well done for spotting that. Just wondering if something like the Green Feeder might be of use? Other than that, putting the food in a Kong is great fun for the dog. Mine get softened Gentle (frozen) in a Kong each morning when they come in from their walk and they love it. It’s a great way of giving them their food or just for a treat.
Thank’s that’s a great idea. I’ve just slowly fed him some more mince and veg in small portions and making him wait inbetween. He still ate what he was give very quickly but at least it wasn’t down in one gulp like it was last night before he was sick. I also put it in a large flat bowl so he had to chase the food which slowed him down very slightly. So far so good, he curled up snoring his head off so hopefully he should keep his dinner down. I feel much more comfortable actually cooking their food so I really hope this works out.
A trick I’ve used in the past is to spread the food out on a large non stick baking tray and then put the tray down on a hard floor. The poor dog then has to both chase the food round the tray and chase the tray round the floor, it can slow them down wonderfully ;D.
You can get immunotherapy for your dogs allergies if you don’t resolve the issue with changing his diet. Woould work out less expensive a month than trying all the different foods. There is approx an 80% success rate so worth a try?