Lboo

My dog has pimples on her back and belly and has flaky dandruff. I was reading some of the food recommendations and wanted suggestions and also suggestions on shampoo that's good for her skin. I know not to bathe her very often, but the shampoo I have isn't anything special. It's supposed to help dry skin but its just oster brand stuff. Bailey eats nutro salmon food. Any suggestions on how to get her skin healthy and flake free?


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My4BadDogs

Are you sure it's food related?
Have you had her tested for anything medically? A skin scrape or anything?
How old is she?

The only reason I ask is because I just went thru this. Pimples and flaky skin.
Turns out didn't matter how many times I tried different food she had puppy staph, only thing that took care of that was a full round antibiotics. After test after test of other things.

However,
To answer your question, now that her other issues are cleared up I feed Wellness Salmon and Potato. It's grain free, soy free and single protein based (my vizsla has food allergies)
She also gets fish oil daily for a healthy coat

Do you have pictures of the pimples and flaky skin?

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Lboo

She is a year and a half. I've had her seen at the vet and she claimed that it was yeast.. But I think the vet I saw is not accurate because after treatments it still isn't gone. I don't believe I have a pic, but I can get one when I am home.


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Lboo

Actually you can maybe tell from these pics I have


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Lboo

see her neck


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CedarGrove

(I'll apologize first because this is complex and I tend to skip around so if it is confusing, I'm sorry. Break it apart by paragraph)
What it appears that your dog has is a staph infection that is complicated by yeast infection. I've been through this thoroughly with two dobermans. I can tell you that if your dog is still intact, you may combat this until you spay/neuter. Too much hormone(sexual maturation) or lack of some hormones(hypothyroid) are many times the cause, but I'll also say that it can be caused by ingredients in your dog food, or environmental. One of my dogs, after I had him tested, we found he had food sensitivities and environmental and the other one, it was strictly hormonal (lack of hormone).
First thing to do is get a vet to diagnose it and get antibiotics (simplicef, cephalexin, baytril).
You need to understand that a dog's skin sloughs off and renews all of the dermal layers every 50 days. The staph bacteria penetrates more than one dermal layer and more often than not, goes deeper than we can see.
Your vet will probably give you 10 days to two weeks of antibiotic and it will be important that you follow up and get more, and keep going back for more until you've either gone past the 50 days, or you do not see flaking or black spots on the skin around where the sores (pustules) were. If you stop too soon, it will appear healed for approximately 2-3 weeks and then right back to where it began and harder to get rid of each time and more $$ spent at the vets office.
For the yeast, which is the primary problem, you will need a good shampoo that is meant for yeast infections. Miconazole Nitrate or Ketoconazole will be the main ingredient you want in your shampoo. You will need to bathe your dog no less than once a week, two times is ideal. You may need to continue that for up to 15 weeks, sometimes longer if you aren't able to eliminate the cause of the yeast infection.
You will want to look into a diet change because often diet causes a ph imbalance, which can bring on yeast, but also hormones will do it. The staph is secondary to the yeast.
Next, you need to understand the staph bacteria and yeast are both natural on our skin and our dog's skin. What is happening is an overgrowth of both. There are numerous causes of an overgrowth, but if you understand that both are opportunistic, then you'll understand that when the immune system has ebbs and tides (ups & downs), like when your dog goes into season, or maybe your dog is sensitive to ingredients in her food, and the immune system is not keeping up with the onslaught of toxins that ingredients become when your dog is sensitive, thus creating a negative environment that bacteria(staph) and fungus(yeast) love, therefore multiplying in great numbers very rapidly.
Patience and perseverance will help you out. Oh, and one other thing, please have your dog tested for hypothyroid. Low thyroid is more common in red dobermans but is prevalent in both. I hope that this will help you out in your oncoming battle. Please feel free to email me if you have other questions.
I wish you luck in getting answers and solutions. This can be so worrisome and devastating to you when you don't know what is happening.

stryker2

Which Nutro is it? Ultra, Max, Natural Choice?
I would try switching foods. I also would try and go with a Grain Free. Try Acana, Orijen, Wellness Core, Fromm, Addiction, By Nature Organic, Natures Variety, Wysong, Earthborn Holistic Grain Free are some. Do a slow switch over 7-10 days.
Most important also feed good treats. Nothing made in China!

Some supplements we use for skin and coat are a raw organic egg, 1200mg Fish Oil (we use Natures Bounty) Just make sure there is no Soy in it. Look below the Supplemental Facts Box where it says Other Ingredients or
Contains fish (anchovy, mackerel, sardine) ingredients. Or use Krill Oil. We also give a 400iu of Vit. E with the fish oil. Also canned Sardines in Olive Oil, Organic Pure Cold Pressed Virgin Olive Oil, USDA Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil. We also add Life Line USDA Organic Icelandic Ocean Kelp.

For shampoo I would look on the All Natural Pet Products | Homeopathic Remedies for Dogs & Cats | Only Natural Pet Store site.

Look at Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor all about foods.

My4BadDogs

I agree with the others. Looks like staph. Looks exactly like what Gemma looked like. And I put her through the gamut of tests before putting her on antibiotics.
I did a full panel thyroid, a fungal scrape (twice) and something else the vet wanted to test for all came back negative. She was already on a skin care regiment that the vet agreed with (fish oil, low allergen food, etc). Part of the problem with our length diagnosis was that I was washing her weekly in antibacterial anti fungal soap so until I stopped that it didn't look like staph to my vet. Finally when I stopped and brought her in one day for a treat the vet said, that's staph, and we started on a six week antibiotic round to fight it.

I know how frustrated you are. I've been fighting this battle for 2 months and lots of testing. Stick to your guns with your vet, if they didn't do a skin scrape and just said fungal... Well your vet problem just guessed. If your vet isn't willing to run other test or prove that it's fungal, seek a second opinion.
Best of luck.


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Lboo

The vet did a skin scrape and she was on antibiotics but not for that long. She's had dandruff since we got her (at eight months old). She is on natures variety salmon, she used to be on nutro, I apologize that I said the wrong food. The pics I've seen of staph online look way more severe than her skin does, I'm assuming the pics were just of more severe staph? The bumps seem like pimples cause I can pop them and white stuff comes out of them. Are the staph spots the same way?


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stryker2

Natures Variety is a great food. Also if you put her on Antibiotics give some Plain Yogurt to replace the good bacteria in the intestines. You can add some Blueberries to it.

LindaH

Yes, the staph stops are the same way.

Are you feeding any treats? Anything other than just the food? You probably need to stop all extras for 6 weeks and see if she clears up. Maybe try a single source protein food with only say duck, venison, etc.

You could check on the dogfood advisor site in my signature for the best allergy foods.

When and if she clears up you can start adding back in things SLOWLY, then wait for any reactions before adding others. Avoid anything containing corn, wheat, soy, or glutens.

I would immediately try putting her on sardines packed in water
S

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My4BadDogs

Same here. When I posted my photos the post all pretty much said staph, but when I looked at the photos the ones online were incredibly gross and severe. So I didn't think it was staph either. Hence all the other testing I had done first.
Vets normally only like to do about 15 days of antibiotics because of the issues they can create (ie superbugs) however my vet knew that the staph had been there long enough it was going to need a full 6 weeks to get rid of it completely. The problem with only 2 weeks is you get rid of the surface problems but the problems are still there underneath and come back. I will see if I can find the photo I took so you can see a closer comparison?


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Lboo

Yeah we are giving treats that aren't quality. She's got some from the bins at petco, beggin strips, and some beneful treats. I guess I knew better but she got some for Xmas and I let her have them. If it is a food matter, I still need to have her checked out for staph right?


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My4BadDogs

This is when it first started


This was how it looked on her ears when it started.

They ended up getting white heads.


Like this

After 2 weeks on antibiotics her body ones are gone. The skin and coat are healthy and shiny again. And the ones on her ears are getting smaller and starting to scab over.

Hope that helps.


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LindaH

I've tried twice add to my post. Lost first one and don't know why the last failed. Don't have it in me to try again. Shame, cause there was a lot of good important information

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LindaH

Yes, stop feeding anything but her food for now.

Go ahead and have the vet look at her and see if he thinks it is staph and needs antibiotics. If he gives her antibiotics give her a tablespoon of Greek yogurt to replace the probiotics the antibiotics kill. Oh, make sure you get at least a month to six week supply of the antibiotics.

Does she have yeast...itchy ears and foot licking?

You know if you want to pm me your email addy I can load you up with lots of excellent and informative allergy articles that I have collected in my nearly five years of living with my allergy boy.

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Lboo

She doesn't have red spots or pus pockets anywhere near that big.


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Lboo

Her ears aren't itchy.. Just her back and neck


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LindaH

Reckon this outbreak is just because of the bad treats? If that is all it is stopping the treats should clear her up.

If she had a bad allergy thing going on, she would also have yeast problems

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Kbroome

I've had the same thing with my boy (now 20 months) for the last year. Started during the winter when he was about 6 months old. We've done skin scrapings, 2 separate rounds of 6 week antibiotics, treated for both sarc and demo mange, food trials, ruled out environmental allergies, 3 different medicated shampoos, full blood panel, fish oils, vit E, blah blah blah etc. Nothing has helped. Fur is still thin all over, pustules, itchy, flakey... one vet considered follicular dysplasia. He also has hygromas on his elbows. Next step is a skin biopsy and neuter. Hopefully you'll have better luck than I am!

My4BadDogs

Gemma's didn't start out that big either. they started like little tiny pimples, and got worse until the vet finally started her on antibiotics (1.5 months after her first thyroid panel and fungal scrape). Her ear ones were the only ones that looked nasty, the ones on her body were just bumps.

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LindaH

Look up "Suds Over Drugs" on your search engine. The article will give the names of some excellent shampoos. Always use a one cup vinegar to one gallon of water for a final rinse, but you have to drip or blowdry as it must be left on the skin to work. The vinegar makes the skin inhospitable to yeast and bacteria.

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Nala5

I'm a newbie her so I can only speak from my own experience, but Nala was getting bumps and flaky skin (the vet suspectd an alergy) and after some trial and error it seemed she was sensitive to poultry and wheat treats. We eliminated any poultry - she gets grain free fish or red meat formula dog food (Acana brand to be exact) and her treats are limited ingredient grain free treats like venison and potato etc.. and we have never seen the bumps again.

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tommydoberman

this is my favorite shampoo...

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Lboo

Thank you all for the suggestions!


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