Staffies With Skin Conditions

[sam.i.am]

Hi there,

I have a pure bred English staffy about a year old and she's started presenting this bumpy red rash on her belly. I took her to the vet who did a preliminary allergy test and put her on a course of antibiotics, which cleared up the rash. When the antibiotics ran out, the rash came back in about a week. He hasn't been able to determine what she might be allergic to without further (very expensive) tests and I'm not comfortable with keeping her on the antibiotics for ever. Any recommendations as to what it might be/what I might do?

Thanks

[Sandra777]

Grass, tile cleaner, laundry detergent (via her bedding), fertilizer/weedkiller used on the lawn...

Have a think about anything that may have changed in her environment.

Because she's young it's hard to say because sometimes an allergen only occurs at a specific time of year so it goes away by itself quite quickly but then comes back the same time next year.

Antibiotics won't do a thing for an allergy AFAIK - it will help any subsequent secondary infection though.

Have you tried her on a small dose of antihistamine?

Does the rash actually bother her (itchy, uncomfortable)?

[Dame Aussie]

I think for something like this you will need to go ahead with the further testing . It's just too hard to say with allergies, could be one of a hundred different things.

Have you spoken to the breeder?

Good luck with it.

[skully]

Mind gets a rash on her belly when we mow the grass!

[persephone]

The breeder of your Stafford may be able to help ..have you contacted them?

I have found some links to other threads here dealing with similar problems ..

click on them to get some info which may help.

LINK

LINK

LINK

LINK

LINK

[korbin13]

Mine got a rash when she was a puppy. I took her to vet thinking that it could be ringworm, it wasn't but it eventually went by itself. It never bothered her though.

[BigDaz]

Has there been a change in diet, my two are allergic to beef.

[Erny]

To ease the skin rash and help work against a secondary skin infection occurring, apply Calendula Tea as a wash to the affected area. I found it bought me time to work with my dog's issues and avoided the necessity of using antibiotics or for that matter, antihistamines.

[WreckitWhippet]

To start with I'd eliminate as many grains as possible from the diet, along with preservatives, artifical colours etc.

If you aren't feeding something like a grain free Canidae, TOTW, Eagle pack etc then I'd be starting with that.

Allergy testing can be expensive but if you see a specialist first up, rather then stuffing around with your average vet, then it can be a lot cheaper in the long run.

[Salukifan]

A rash on the belly only suggests a contact allergy.

Does she lie on the grass a lot?

Putting a T-Shirt on her to prevent her skin coming into contact with the grass might be worth a go to see if it makes a difference.

I have to ask - is she blue?

[aussielover]

Is she actually itchy? It sounds most likely to be atopic dermatitis or food allergy given her age and breed.

Demodex mites (especially if she's not actually itchy) is also a possibility but I assume your vet would have done skin scrapings to rule this out.

Ask your vet about doing a food trial to rule out food allergy.

The most accurate type of food trial is a home prepared diet where the dog only receives one novel protein and one carbohydrate for a period of at least 8 weeks. A novel protein should be a protein your dog hasn't had at all before such as kangaroo, fish, venison, rabbit etc. Usually the carb recommended is potato, pumpkin or sweet potato.

After 8 weeks, the normal food is reintroduced and if the dog is food allergic then symtpoms should recur and there will be a flare up of the skin

Commercial hypoallergenic foods such as hills z/d, royal canin hypoallergenic are also acceptable is fed as the sole diet, but may not diagnose up to 30% of dogs with food allergy.

During this time I would also have your dog on excellent parasite control such as advocate 2 weekly to rule out and treat fleas or sarcoptes mites (if present) which can also make a dog itchy and cause rashes.

If your dog is atopic there are a range of options you may pursue without seeing a specialist, although a specialist is generally recommended if you wish to pursue desensitization to allergens.

Its hard to say what the primary cause for the problem is over the net, and especially because we don't know if she is itchy as well. Often when the dogs are itchy, it predisposes them to secondary infections, so treating the itch can eliminate the need for antibiotics.

There are antibacterial wipes such as Malacetic wipes or Hibiclens (chlorhexidine scrub) that you can use daily to help prevent infection, although this won't address the underlying cause.

[WreckitWhippet]

It is highly unlikely to be demodex below the water line.

[Greytmate]

Start by looking in your garden.

If you have a weed like this one, get rid of it.

Many dogs are allergic to this very common garden weed, Wandering Jew. It grows in shady spots, so this is the time of year that dogs are more likely to be in contact with it.

Good luck, I hope your allergy is simple to solve.

[Staff'n'Mutt]

painful isn't it. our girl has developed an allergy and we're in the process of nutting out what it's too. Good luck finding out what your girl is reacting too. Hope you get it sorted quickly :)

[persephone]

..if AB's sorted it , then it seems to be a bacterial invasion of some sort , perhaps invading an area inflamed by allergy ..perhaps not ..

I hope it settles soon .

[Guest Labradork]

To start with I'd eliminate as many grains as possible from the diet, along with preservatives, artifical colours etc.

If you aren't feeding something like a grain free Canidae, TOTW, Eagle pack etc then I'd be starting with that.

Allergy testing can be expensive but if you see a specialist first up, rather then stuffing around with your average vet, then it can be a lot cheaper in the long run.

This is a good idea... You need to find out whether it's a food allergy, a contact allergy or an airborne allergy, such as Atopic Dermatitis. This is a genetic condition that can only be managed with vaccine injections and medications, but not cured.

I have a friend who was stuffed around for two years before her male Labrador got a diagnosis of Atopic Dermatitis from a Veterinary Dermatologist. The vets told her it was "nothing to worry about" and it was "just a rash".

I'm sorry, I don't mean to scare you, but my friend's Lab started off with just a rash on his tummy when he was 7 months old. Also, the antibiotics could have suppressed your Staffy's immune system, which would reduce the symptoms temporarily.

ETA

I'm not saying any of this to make you feel bad. I just wouldn't want you to waste your time and money like my friend did for two years :)

Edited November 18, 2012 by Labradork

[NOCTRL]

Popping in to share our story with you -

We got our staffy pup and at around 16 weeks he developed a rash on his tummy. I gave him antihistamines initially and it seemed to make the rash go away mostly (but not completely). As soon as i missed a day the rash was back. It was bumpy red raised "pustules". We took him to the vet who diagnosed a minor infection from him scratching the rash. He was given a course of antibiotics which made the rash go away for a little while. It came back and he was given antibiotics again, with the same result.

We began an elimination diet to determine what was causing the rash, contact, food, bedding, we spent a fortune trying to work it out. I wish we had of just got the test done.....

Several weeks after this we noticed what we thought was the same rash appearing on other parts of his body, starting on his head, neck and chest. We bathed in antibacterial and fungacidal shampoo but made little difference. Off to the vet again and eventually diagnosed with demodex mange (great!). We all believe that his immune system was weakened by the antibiotics initially given for the "rash". We do not know if the "rash" was the beginning of the mange, or if it just developed because of the compromised immune system.

He went on a course of oral daily Ivermectin as advised by the vets. This cleared it up, though it did take several months for it to be gone completely. He has a lovely healthy coat and skin now at 14 months old.

Maybe yours isn't the same, but your story was freakily similar to the beginning of mine. Be very very carefull and get your pup tested for demodex mange (much cheaper than allergy testing and you should rule it out first) Please speak to your vet about it :)