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Dogz Online Forums _ Health / Nutrition / Grooming _ Yucca

Posted by: holly 25th Feb 2005 - 03:28 PM

I have been doing some net searchign on correcting allergies in dogs adn came across this herb, Yucca, as well as using Salmon Oil to help to build up the bodies immune system and improve on itchy skin and dull, brittle coat.

Has anyone used Yucca before?

Posted by: caffiend42 25th Feb 2005 - 04:01 PM

Haven't used it, but I think it's related to Aloe Vera? Sort of a cactusy succulent plant that grows in arid areas.

Posted by: caffiend42 25th Feb 2005 - 04:03 PM

stoopid double post

Posted by: holly 25th Feb 2005 - 04:26 PM

Okies, thanks and if it is related to Aloe Vera, would it be the same? Can Aloe Vera be used for allergies? As the Yucca was hard to source and is $25 for 100 tablets that will last me about 2 months, whereas I have a Aloe Vera farm just down the road and a Aloe manufacturing plant in town, so would be easier to get a hold of and cheaper too.

Thanx
Holly

Posted by: KitKat 26th Feb 2005 - 07:23 PM

I wonder if Steve would be of help?

I've just had a sticky beak around and it doesn't seem that similar to Aloe and it's the Yucca root that is useful in it's properties more so then the rest of the plant.

It might be interesting to look into the properties of Aloe as from what i've seen and know it's fairly all round good stuff.

Posted by: cowanbree 26th Feb 2005 - 08:42 PM

I have used Yucca in the past for dogs with arthritis, used to work wonders for my old boy but that was a long time ago. I am sure it is an anti-inflam?

Posted by: PAX 26th Feb 2005 - 09:22 PM

I have one growing in my front garden and i hate it, your welcome to come dig it out...........its a big sucker............lol

Posted by: jenti1 26th Feb 2005 - 10:55 PM

Yucca (blue) is the plant that Tequila is made from! :drunk:

True!! But seriously. There are MANY types of "Yucca" - its like Eucalyptus - there are 500+ species but which one/s does the oil come from? Aloe Vera IS closley related so perhaps it is a form of Yucca - don't know more than that, sorry.

Will browse later if I can

Posted by: holly 27th Feb 2005 - 07:16 AM

I read about the Yucca on a obscure GSD site, at 2am and I can not find the link now, but they did discuss that the Yucca plant has helped with allergies, perhaps it is the anti inflammatory powers of the root, I am willing to try anything at this stage, as 6months down the track, of swapping diets, meds etc have made little impact, apart from what coat my dog does have, is soft, but hearing them chewing and scratching all night is very upsetting.

If this does not work, than I will have to start to break down what is in my garden, no easy task, when I live in the bush, with 10 million grass varieties, lol.

I am also using deep sea salmon oil and probotics, my dog does not seem to be as itchy last night, as a week ago.

Maybe I am the one that needs the Yucca, the blue that is, lol, especially if I come over to Packsapunch to dig one out, lol.

Posted by: Rappie 27th Feb 2005 - 08:18 AM

Holly, have you considered intradermal skin testing for the allergies? It's a fairly expensive procedure but if there are positive reactions to any of the 80 grass and other household allergens, desensitisation injections can help immensely (in about 70-80% of cases). It can often be easier than trying to eliminate the cause since atopy is caused by airborne allergens. Forgive me if you've already thought about it / done it.

Posted by: PAX 27th Feb 2005 - 08:36 AM

Dear Holly, I switched my dog to BARF because of bad skin one year ago, it took about three months to clear his skin. I think you already feed Barf,(?) but i also fed him "missing link" for about the first four/five months.
I was ripping my hair out worrying when his skin was bad, its the worst thing.

Posted by: PAX 27th Feb 2005 - 08:38 AM

Or you could get the yucca and make Tecquila, drink lots and you wont see or hear him scratching.

Posted by: holly 27th Feb 2005 - 08:56 AM

HI Rappie
where I live all vet tests incur a 100% administer fee, to have a Haemophilia A test cost $200, yet in Sydney it was less than $80. I would have to travel to Brisbane to get the tests done, which would also mean leaving my kids behind. I know the way I am doing it is back to front and in the long run will cost more, but unfortunately, living where I do, it is the best approach. My vet has always recommended looking at diet and flea control first, which I am diong, am loathed to put the dog onto Macrolone etc, which is the other suggestion they have.

A few years ago, I had a mature pup come back with severe food and flea allergies, bought about by owner neglect, just putting the dog onto BARF did the trick with him, with this dog, it is more than just food allergies, as the BARF diet made him worse not better, perhaps it is what is being fed to chickens now? The rep for the breeders area of Advance, was saying in the USA the chicken meat is yellow coloured due to artificial colours etc and it is not recommend to feed dogs with allergies, chicken mince as it has made them worse, not better.

I have even tried this dog on turkey necks, with no real improvement. But have found that the Advance Large Breed Growth, has given the dog a more luxurious feel and have been adding extra Omega Oils to this. Hopefully the Yucca adn the extra bits will make more of a difference, if not, than I will be looking at enviromental factors

Posted by: holly 27th Feb 2005 - 08:57 AM

Packsapunch, I think your second idea, is the way to go

Posted by: Rappie 27th Feb 2005 - 09:48 AM

Fair enough Holly - I agree with you re: the Macrolone and food trials and flea control are the best starting point. The thing with food allergy is that it can be to anything, and usually its an allergy to things that the dog is exposed to frequently (thats why chicken, beef and lamb are the most common). So regardless of whether it is raw or whatever he may well be allergic to whatever protein source you are feeding in BARF. Could you try something hasn't eaten before like fish or kangaroo? A thorough food trial is the way to go before you start looking into skin testing anyway - that means a strict one (that always makes owners go pale!).

Anyways, was just curious - that and I've just finished a month of dermatology and I felt like blurting something out

Edit: Just re-read your post and you're not feeding BARF but the protein source thing still stands. Is it possible for you do try Hills Z/d ultra or Eukanuba F/P. I know theyre expensive but they would give you a pretty clear indication of whether there was an underlying food allergy.

Posted by: PAX 27th Feb 2005 - 10:22 AM

I know every dog is different and so are allergies but my dog was on EukanubaF/P at his skins worst.
I mostly feed organic chicken now, some lamb and fresh fish but lucky for me i can get it.
In desperation and fear that he wasn't going to have any hair left i gave him (or the vet did) a cortisone shot to help settle things down and switched to Barf. It has been 12months and a lot of humid weather and he hasnt looked back.
By the time you master this dogs skin you will be the skin guru.

Posted by: Steve 27th Feb 2005 - 10:29 AM

Aloe Vera and Yucca are not related .
The yucca plants are known for the results they get from arthritis type problems and aiding joint health however bcause they also speed up the elimination of wastes and they have lots of saponin ,its also possible to imagine that they would help in allergies . There's lots of different varieties of Yucca and some are better than others and different parts of the plant are used as well.
If I was chosing between the two for any kind of theraputic reason Id go aloe vera anyday over the yucca.

Posted by: Steve 27th Feb 2005 - 10:30 AM

The humid weather comment jogged my memory and yucca have been used for yeats infections but then again so has the aloe.

Posted by: goldchow 27th Feb 2005 - 02:39 PM

Holly I have spent a fortune on skin scrappings, medication, washes and tried so many different diets for a girl I have here who developed an allergy to something in the environment here 2 years ago. She was almost furless and her scratching and chewing drove me mad, plus she was feeling pretty lousy too.

She was being fed a BARF diet.

Finished up doing a lengthy and strict process of elimination, diet and environmental wise, and chicken of any sort, and kikiyu grass, (compliments of a chance remark by Dr Harry) and which is everywhere here except the front yard. Juliet now resides permanently in the front yard and verandah, and diet is Eagle Pack Holistic Lamb with tinned whole fish (cat food) with vegies and yoghurt and she is looking beautiful. Just quietly she has the occasional turkey steak also.
Good luck, I know how frustrating it can be.

Posted by: RnB 27th Feb 2005 - 04:44 PM

Have also heard/seen Eagle Pack helping Goldchow.
Also Nutrience Derma-Lamb bics
Both these products contain Yucca shigiera (sp)?
Both dogs were on BARF previously
Not advertising just found it worked for 2 Newfs, Sharpei and Goldens, Dally
Altho 2 Goldens came good with phennigan? As lymph glands always up and terrible hot spots.

Posted by: holly 28th Feb 2005 - 05:59 AM

Rappie
in the past, I have found roo meat too rich for the GSD's that I have fed it too and also it is very lean, not much fat in it, which may lead to other problems, being busy bush dogs, but I did think about roo meat and may give it a try, so thank you. My supplier can also get fish, so may try that, again, it does lack fat. Eukanuba FP, I have seen some dogs go well on it and some not, it is very expensive and very bland, also it is Eukanuba and they do do clinical trials on animals in the lab, where as Advance doesn't.

Packsapunch, thanks for the ideas and the skin guru, lol, I am sure there are many of us here that could wear the crown. Maybe the manufactures need to go back to basics, feeding antibiotics, growth hormones etc, is certainly playing havoc with animals, imagine what it is doing to us! I am glad you have conquered your dogs allergies. The fruits of your hard work. I know I felt fantastic when I got on top of Lugars allergies, going from a dog that the owner was going to PTS, because it was too much trouble, to this (certainly makes it all worth while)

Posted by: holly 28th Feb 2005 - 06:03 AM

Hi Steve
to save you some trouble, is there a thread that you have made in regards to Aloe Vera? If not can you tell me a bit more? I will also do a search on it. I know I tried Apple Cidar Vinegar for awhile and it made no difference, I think also at least one got some loose bowel movements, forget what it was, but didn't agree with one.

Posted by: holly 28th Feb 2005 - 06:16 AM

HI Goldchow,
I did a search to see what kikiyu grass looks like, but can't find any, we probably have that variety too, as we have so many different types here. I do have my dog running the front yard, but can't bring myself to kennel for awhile until I get on top of it, for they are not use to being locked away and when they have been, they have sat there and howled and howled. But if all else fails, than I may have to do this for awhile.

I have not seen Eagle Pak stockists in my area, will try a search. Have you tried Vets Natural?

Posted by: Scales of Justice 1st Mar 2005 - 10:32 AM

Holly,

I swear by aloe vera. It is an invaluable topical for anything like bites, stings and allergies. I have found that the raw plant is the way to go. Cut a piece from raw aloe vera and dab it on.

What type of allergy are you dealing with - what are the symptoms?

I have done a bit of personal research on allergies and another thing which you might like to follow up on would be harvest mites, which apparently are a big problem with sheep and are known to bite dogs (apparently they don't live on dogs but they do bite them causing extreme allergy). I think these types of allergies are concentrated on the underside of the dogs (ie. legs, belly, tail and undersides of feet and pasterns). Apparently these mites are cyclical only hatching out at certain times of the moon phase and are a big problem to farmers. Most dog people have never heard of them and I suspect many unknown allergies could be a result of these harvest mites. (They are microscopic and very hard to find and the fact that they don't live on the dogs makes it difficult to actually find).

Edited: Removed reference to "Eukanuba FP' as I just realised you tried this.

Posted by: holly 1st Mar 2005 - 11:40 AM

Hi Scales of Justice

for the moment, I am treating as a food allergy, but I have my doubts, because everything that has worked in teh past is not working this time around.

My dog is also on Frontline and still I find little bite marks, like fleas do, on the inside of his thighs. I have been bathing in the coal tar, daily, still scratching, it is usuallyl half way down the inside of his tail, on the inside of his fore and hindlegs, flanks and underbelly, there is no hair around the groin area. the eyes are not mucky. I can not see any fleas when I go over the sites that are being scratched. What treatment do you use for the mite you talk about? I have Nusidol at home.

I am at a loss, I will drop the Yucca and try the Aloe Vera.

Posted by: Scales of Justice 1st Mar 2005 - 03:22 PM

Holly,

I have been in the same predicament as you. I tried everything over a period of months - the food allergy bit, Frontline, all sorts of different heartworm treatments which treat lice, fleas, etc.etc. and got nowhere. My dog continued to scratch and it was not from fleas or dog lice.

I got to the point where I was on my hands and knees combing through the grass with a magnifying glass to find out what was causing the trouble as my dog scratched at certain times and usually after rainy spells and usually after laying in the grass (ie not in the dry periods). I finally found a tiny red mite in the ground and did some research and found that it was a harvest mite (I even caught one and took it to the vet for identification and it proved not to be any dog lice or mites - it was a red mite/harvest mite, which do not actually live on dogs).

The only thing which I have found to this day which has stopped this is Fido's flea and tick wash.

Holly, you have the goats next door so you must be in a rural farming type area - check out the harvest mite thingo and try Fido's flea and tick wash. This was the only product which seemed to work. I had tried all sorts of things prior - bacterial/fungal flea rinses, food allergies, etc etc and the list goes on.

Good luck

Posted by: holly 1st Mar 2005 - 03:48 PM

Thank you very much Scales of Justice, firstly for the comical image of you out there scouring the grass for the little buggers, lol and also for your thoughtful post, my dog and I really appreciate it.

I have done some searches and I can see why Fidos may have worked, as it is Tea Tree Oil based from memory and this site:

http://www.catclinic.co.uk/health/harvest.htm

stated the T.T.O based products seemed to work the best. I think in my bucket of goodies I also have Fidos, so will give that a try for a week, will also take my dog into the vet and see about a skin scraping.

Will post back in the future with what happens.

Holly

Posted by: Scales of Justice 1st Mar 2005 - 09:10 PM

Holly,

Fidos is not tea tree oil based it is pyrethrum based.

Hope you have some luck.

Edited to add: I suspect many so called "grass allergies" are actually allergies to harvest mites in the grass

Posted by: holly 2nd Mar 2005 - 04:42 AM

Thanks for the correction, I was having a quiet day at work which had me being able to read and post

You could very well be right about the grass allergies being mite allergies instead. I can not sit on most grasses here or any other garden, as I break out in a red rash, the Qld biting midget (sandfly) sends me into a spin too, I only need one for the allergy to trigger, we have midgies in our area too, they are smaller than pin head.