Stinky Dog

[Jabba The Hutt]

don't buy too much into this but an american friend who breeds startling english springers told me to use TOMATO KETCHUP to wash the dogs which stank. She used it on the dogs when they came in contact with skunk odour. I laughed over it and honestly, i think ketchup goes well only with hot dogs.

[Rom]

Just one more little thing to mention, check his paws as well for the fungal infection, keep all the fur around the paws and inbetween the toes well trimmed. Also trim away the fur directly under the tail and from the back of his hocks, this can harbour fleas, dirt and moisture.

Always ensure that the paws are dry before bedtime and the same with his ears.

Where abouts is he sleeping? Have you checked that his bed is nice and dry and in a warm place (for the winter). Sometimes heavy dew can dampen everything exposed to it.

I was thinking fungal too. Should have sample of that smelly stuff from his ears tested...I had a dog with a fungal ear infection and it was very ripe!

[princessbella]

I have an anti fungal wash which the vet sold me yesterday. I guess the vet was thinking the same thing :D

I've heard borscht (sp?) gets rid of skunk smells too

[dogbesotted]

for fungal problems you can make up a rinse of 1/2 organic apple cider vinegar and 1/2 tepid water : use to soak feet (if you need a douche for yeasty ears use 1/3 apple cider vinegar and 2/3 tepid water). You can use this rinse after shampooing and leave on and let dry. you can also give the applecider vinegar internally at the rate of 1 teaspoon per 5kg either in drinking water or added to food.

[zayda_asher]

Hi What exactly were the allergy tests that were done, who performed them (local vet, dermatologist?) and at what age did he have this done?

All of these will have a bearing on false results in these tests....

Dan

[princessbella]

Hi Dan,

he was tested at my local vet at around 6 - 12 months of age (I can't remember really it was a while ago, he's 3 and a half now) he also had a skin biopsy.

Cheers

[zayda_asher]

Hi, ok, just so you know I have two dogs with severe allergies and have a lot of experience in this area!!

Ok, I can say now that if he was tested at your local vets he would've almost definitely been given the old blood test which is very inaccurate and most Dermatologists in Australia wont use it! This test is inaccurate as it can only test for whatever they were reacting to at the time the blood was drawn. If there are no allergens in the system at the time the blood was drawn you will get a false negative! I can also say that he was tested at too young an age by the sounds of it and this also effects test results as they have not fully developed their allergy profile at such a young age, which again can produce false negative results!

There is a new blood test, but it has to be sent away to the States for assesment. The standard test here is intradermal skin testing, where they prick the skin with allergens and look for a response. This is for atopic (air born allergies). He would be good to get this done now. For food allergies an elimination diet is required. For contact allergies patch testing with the suspect agent is performed.

A skin biopsy is not an appropriate test for allergy.

Most local vets have quite a poor understanding of allergies, which is why we have Dermatologists!

I would bet and am almost 99.9% certain from you discriptions that you are infact dealing with undiagnosed allergies. At any rate it is a bad skin condition and you NEED a referral to a dermatologist that can assess it correctly with expert knowledge.

Have you never been offered a referral to a Dermatologist? If you haven't then that is disgusting as you have been limited in your ability to asses your dog's condition appropriately and it will have cost you far more money in the long run than seeing the dermatologist and getting it sorted out right in the first place!

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Dan

Edited May 15, 2006 by zayda_asher

[princessbella]

Dan I have taken my dog to see 4 different vets and NONE of them EVER suggested a dermatologist I didn't even realise you could do that!!! I knew you could see a skin speacialist for humans, but not pets :D I'm so gratefull for you information, but also furious at my vets for not informing me and just taking my money and not really helping poor Frodo.

His life pretty much "stinks" because of his problem and those bloody money hungry vets let him live this life just to fill their pockets :D

Edited May 15, 2006 by princessbella

[zayda_asher]

Unfortunately this happens... and the truth is some of those vets may not have known what they were looking at themselves.... terrible that they didn't refer you on :D :D

Yes, there is as many specialists for our dogs as there are for us! both my dogs see a dermatologist for there issues and it makes a HUGE difference! Fortunately I also have a good vet who picked up on things and referred us quickly!

Go and ask for a referral to a dermatologist, if they don't want to give you one then find a vet that will!! A specialist like a dermatologist is expensive, but you've already spent a lot of money and in the long run it will be less than if you keep on trying to sort it out for all of you without seeing one...

Hopefully you can get some questions answered by a dermatologist and life will be a bit easier, happier and less stinky for all of you!

good luck and let us know how you get on!

Dan

[LouiseBrooks]

TigerJack,

I just got the same problem with Gidget she smelt like a cross between Baby's Vomit and dirty sneakers. ;)

I wash powdered tried everything - then I contacted Robert McDowall had to answer questions and he sent me a bottle of herbal drops.

10 drops morning and night after 3 days no smell also her warts and lumps that are "signs" of old age are getting smaller by the day.

the only othe thing I was to do was give only raw meat and bones, some cooked vegies and rice.

NO KIBBLE, OR ANY MANAFACTURED OR COOKED FOOD.

He held Godzy with hots spots when the vet could not help now this The vet and I are both converts.

Edited May 16, 2006 by L.B.2

[Rusky]

re the ears I am including a link for ear cleaning but please see a spaniel breeder or owner close to your place to help you and show you what to do. We use this recipe for a dog of my sons who gets ear fungal and infected ear problems and since we started with the recipe no more vet trips and no more smelly ears.

cocker ear cleaner

with thanks to the Zim family and parti color american cockers

[princessbella]

Awsome link thanks Rusky!

[minicooper]

I had been battling allergies and fungal ear infections with one of my dogs for years, so I can understand the smell

I read in one of your threads that you have bought a bottle of Malaseb shampoo. I use this as a weekly ear wash and have not had any ear problems for a couple of years.

Dilute 1ml Malaseb Shampoo in 30ml of water, and using a syringe, put into the ear. Leave in for a few minutes and then let it drain out. WIpe out the ear with cotton balls. If there is any gunk in the ear you can do this daily, or even twice a day if it is bad, but as a maintenance weekly keeps the ears nice and clean.

Hope this helps

Pauline

[princessbella]

YAY Pauline, I'll give that a go...hope it works. I have the ear drops the vet gave me, which is antifungal with antibiotics. I don't want to wash that away, so I guess I will put the drops in after I use the Malaseb?

It won't burn his ears if I use both will it?

[minicooper]

If it were me, I would ring the vet who prescribed the ear drops and ask if there would be any reaction if used with the Malaseb ear wash.

Pauline

[zayda_asher]

Treating the symptoms should only be a stop gap until you can see a dermatologist and find out the cause (most likely allergies). Once these are identified you can deal with the problem with understanding, keeping them away from things that cause issues and other techniques.

Treating symptoms will not fix them and you will still have a stinky dog... you need to get to the dermatologist for proper assesment of the case.

Dan

[TiffanyAmber]

Do you tie up the ears when you use the ear drops? This helps to let in air to dry them out.

Hairbands work wonders.

[Georgie-boy]

YAY Pauline, I'll give that a go...hope it works. I have the ear drops the vet gave me, which is antifungal with antibiotics. I don't want to wash that away, so I guess I will put the drops in after I use the Malaseb?

It won't burn his ears if I use both will it?

It shouldn't if used correctly. I have also found that a malaseb dilution works the best for smelly ears, I have given up on any other kind of ear cleaner. I use a 1ml to 50mls water dilution and syringe it directly into the ears. Make sure you syringe the solution in heaps of times and then give the base of the ear a good massage. Rinse the ears out with water afterwards though. I syringe that in also and keep going until the water runs clean. Then give the inside of the ears a good wipe out with cotton wool.

You are able to use ear drops after this treatment - I have surolan which I use from time to time - but prob best to call your vets and double check that what they have given you will be ok.

Also, try to keep the hair on the inside of the ear, especially closest to the canal, clipped back as far as you can. This will allow the ear to "breathe" and make it easier to keep clean.

Good luck - I understand how frustrating this can be.

[springdog]

I have English Springer Spaniels who are prone to smelly ears, I clean their ears with Malaseb and water but only use 3ml per ear, another great product is MALACETIC OTIC this is an ear and skin cleaner it works great.

As far as allowing air into the ears you will need to clip/trim the hair inside the ears as short as possible and if you can purchase a snood, this is a tube of material with elastic at each end, slide this over the dogs head and just below the ear hole and this will allow air into the ear, snoods are also great fro keeping the ears out of the food bowl when eating, even the top of the leg of a panty hose will do the same job just cut to size required.

Since i have changed my older boy to Eagle Pack Holistic Fish his ears are great, coat and skin fantastic.

Hope this helps.

[Allerzeit]

If it's confirmed that Frodo has a fungal ear infection, and you are interested in trying a natural approach, then these links may be of use:

http://www.herbal-treatments.com/dog_funga..._infection.html

http://www.herbal-dogkeeping.com/dog_chron..._infection.html

My understanding is that the two products are different, the first are drops for the ear the second is an internal mixture which the dog takes orally.

You can also phone for a free consultation/discussion about the problem, what's been tried, etc and Robert will make recommendations. His contact details are on the sites above.

Fingers crossed that this issue is fixed soon, it sounds like you are all having the most frustrating time