Ruby Update

[koolietas]

We've had a small success!

Trialled a turkey neck for her dinner last night and - so far at least - no significant reaction! :D

All being well, she'll have turkey neck again tomorrow night...I plan to alternate between fish and turkey for the rest of the week. Next food is either pork rib OR a vegetable. Perhaps broccoli...or silver beet. She must be so sick of sweet potato.

That's great lillysmum! Hope it continues to go well for Ruby

Me too. It's been a very long road so far and it's not over by a long way yet. But any progress is good progress. :p

My OH is thrilled too (he's away for a few months but I give him updates every week). She's his dog really.

How's your pup doing...about 4 weeks into the trial?

He's going along really well I had him at the vet last night (just for a weigh in & visit) but the vet looked him over and was really pleased with how well he's come along. His ear is almost completely clean, his dermatitis gone & he's not licking at his feet like he was either. So...we've been given the okay to add a different protein, which I've decided is going to be turkey. He will have his first turkey meal tonight. The plan is to give him turkey every 3rd meal or so and see how he goes for the next two weeks (unless there is an immediate reaction).

Have you continued to give Ruby turkey?

[Snoopy21]

I have just taken Willow to the vet for the first time with horrible itchiness, hives and red skin. It has been a problem for a while now. Sigh....I don't know where to start now. I am off to educate myself about elimination diets too. I suffer from eczema myself and know that what I eat can make a huge difference, but also how horrible I feel when my skin is sore and itchy. Poor Ruby.

I just wanted to say that Biozet is terrible for me, so maybe reconsider using it to wash Ruby's stuff. Any cleaner with enzymes sets me off terribly. Even if I rinse twice and dry in the sun I still react. I use Planet Ark's Aware washing powder for sensitive skin if that helps.

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

I have just taken Willow to the vet for the first time with horrible itchiness, hives and red skin. It has been a problem for a while now. Sigh....I don't know where to start now. I am off to educate myself about elimination diets too. I suffer from eczema myself and know that what I eat can make a huge difference, but also how horrible I feel when my skin is sore and itchy. Poor Ruby.

I just wanted to say that Biozet is terrible for me, so maybe reconsider using it to wash Ruby's stuff. Any cleaner with enzymes sets me off terribly. Even if I rinse twice and dry in the sun I still react. I use Planet Ark's Aware washing powder for sensitive skin if that helps.

I also suffer with eczema and I know certain foods set mine off, plus having really dry skin, using the "wrong" body wash and washing powder etc. I hate it.

I've changed washing powder which seems to be working out okay so far.

Ruby's getting turkey every second day this week. There has been no reaction to it (yay!). Because I also wanted to re-test lard, she had it with her breakfast yesterday and she came out in itchy spots within two hours - by about mid-afternoon her skin was pinkish-red. So lard is now off the menu. So we're getting there.

Rat - food allergies seem to be on the increase in dogs as well as humans and it can be cumulative in effect as far as I understand it. I would think it best to start again with the elimination diet? Remove all treats and processed foods. Then remove all but one low-allergen protein source and one plant/vegetable source. Do this for the six weeks, then commence re-introduction of one food per week. It's the only thing that worked for us.

[Lab_Rat]

Hi ! I just discovered this website - here- and found it quite useful. I read up about Omega 3 & 6 oils and learnt lots more than I already knew.

Hopefully it might be of soem use to others with "allergic" dogs...

Hows Ruby doing anyway?? And Willow?? And others poor itchy dogs

Rat

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

Ruby has flared up again. She's had turkey neck on Saturday, Monday (no reaction) and last night...and today her symptoms are back.

I'll return to fish and sweet potato for a week to see if it settles again. I think I can conclude that turkey has caused the response. But I need to be sure as I know that sometimes, dogs do develop a sensitivity to a food previously fed without a reaction/response. :p

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

Well, I went back to fish/SP and her skin settled again. So I gave a turkey part (a drumstick as I had no necks left) on the weekend and no reaction...

I'm giving her another drumstick tonight.

If all goes well, it's green vegetable time on Saturday. And she'll keep getting turkey along with fish and SP.

BUT - her lameness is back. Poor girl could hardly walk last night and wouldn't come downstairs. This morning she's hunched up again and very stiff/sore. So I carried her up and down the stairs. She seems to be in pain when toileting as well. I think we need to schedule her surgery for the cruciate ligament ($1000) - it's rotten timing with the move coming up as well.

[Lab_Rat]

Poor Ruby and poor you!! Good luck with the turkey!

Zola has started on her RC diet - after this I am gonna try my hardest to have them both on a raw diet with no dry or processed food!! I have to do some serious study in the meantime as Im still not 100% confident with what they need!! There are so many conflicting ideas around, vegetables - no vegetables, supplements or not etc.,etc......My vet is excellent though and a huge advocate for raw, non commercial feeding, so I know I can pester her for any of my worries.

Rat

[koolietas]

So sorry to hear about Ruby's lameness lilysmum

Fingers crossed that turkey will be okay in the long run for her.

My boy has reacted to either the turkey (which he's had several times over the past week) or he did manage to scoff some lamb chop that we found walking a couple of nights ago (I got most of it out of his mouth, but I know he managed to swallow some of it). So...back to rabbit for a week or so to see if his feet/muzzle clear. Only problem now is finding more rabbit! Because of the dreadful weather we've had in Tas this week, my normal supplier hasn't been able to go shooting...looks like we're back to $26 farmed rabbits

Lilysmum - do you think I should try the turkey again in a week or so, or try something different (thinking pork next)?

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

So sorry to hear about Ruby's lameness lilysmum :D

Fingers crossed that turkey will be okay in the long run for her.

My boy has reacted to either the turkey (which he's had several times over the past week) or he did manage to scoff some lamb chop that we found walking a couple of nights ago (I got most of it out of his mouth, but I know he managed to swallow some of it). So...back to rabbit for a week or so to see if his feet/muzzle clear. Only problem now is finding more rabbit! Because of the dreadful weather we've had in Tas this week, my normal supplier hasn't been able to go shooting...looks like we're back to $26 farmed rabbits

Lilysmum - do you think I should try the turkey again in a week or so, or try something different (thinking pork next)?

When I'm not sure if a particular food has caused a reaction or not, I go back to just 2 - fish and SP and give only that for a week or until the skin settles then add a day. Then I give the trialled food for dinner the following day and wait to see what happens. Sometimes there's no reaction straight away when you introduce a new food, or just a mild reaction that leaves me wondering if I'd imagined it. So the only way I can be sure is to start from A again...and it works. I found out that she does react to lard by doing this.

I've booked a consult for tomorrow afternoon. In speaking with one of my vet's colleagues, we don't necessarily have to schedule the surgery - yet - but she can go onto an anti-inflammatory program again to help with the discomfort. I think my vet needs to see her again just to check where she's at.

I also managed to find (relatively cheap...$7.29 per kg) human grade roo mince so I've bought a 1 kg pack. I had planned to intro a veg this week but we need more than 2 protein sources, particularly as they'll be boarded in a couple of months. Roo is also supposedly low-allergenic...let's hope so.

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

I also just started her on fish oil caps - wish us luck as we trial roo mince tonight. :D

[Dog_Horse_Girl]

Update with good and not so good news:

roo mince (human grade) is all go! No reaction and she loves it...even I love it at $7.95 per kg...ouch.

zucchini - she seems to react to this but I'm going to re-try this in a week or once her skin settles (I always re-challenge with the trialled food mid-week after initial introduction unless the reaction is TOO severe, just to be sure).

Next on the list will be broccoli...she needs more carbs!

ETA - fish oil caps are good! Yay!

Edited August 26, 2009 by lillysmum

[RallyValley]

Sorry to bump this after so long but I just wanted to find out how your dog is?

I have just started my boy on an elimination diet of kangaroo and sweet potatoe. He is to be on this for 8 weeks so we can see if he allergies are food related, we are only on the second day.

I had to write on his collar "Please do not feed me" because sometimes when he goes to the neighbours he gets snacks. It's going to be very hard I think. I am worried about him losing weight or condition on such a simple diet.

[luvsdogs]

I just found this thread today & am also wondering how Ruby is going 2-3 mths on?