[zpolino]

We have a 1 yr old male boxer.  About 2 weeks ago we noticed him itching and scratching like crazy.  He also developed a few sores under his chin.  The sores were very itchy as well.  He would scratch at them until they would continuously bleed.  Also, the smell was pretty bad.  Our first thought was a yeast infection.  He had one in his ears before and it was similiar.  We took him to the vet.  She immediately said it's allergies and we need to find out from what.  We received medicine for the sores and a shampoo to use 2-3 times a week.  We also were told to change his food from Blue Buffalo to IVD hypoallergenic.  We noticed a huge difference after a few days of medicine a baths...the problem is he will not eat the new dog food.  We gradually mixed it in, we changed flavors and even added some wet IVD. The dog refused to eat this stuff.  After 2 days of not eating he started eating it and has thrown it up for the last 2 days......we're almost ready to just put him back on Blue Buffalo so he will eat.

Does anyone have any advice at all??  Could this just have been a yeast infection since the smell went away after the meds??  The cost is rising everyday and we're not sure what to do for the poor guy.  Today we came home to throw up in the cage and he was pooping some blood.

 

[Diesel-and-Kira]

My parents lab has severe allergies. (she's even allergic to grass)  and they're feeding natural balance duck and potato, or something like that. Which is working great for her. You may just have to keep trying until you can find a food that works.

 

[GabysDaddy]

I agree with DieselsMom, try and find a food he likes with ingredients he is not allergic to....did you have an allergy test done to find out exactly what he is allergic to?...I hear it can be expensive, but it might be worth it in the long run....I hope the poor little guy feels better soon!

 

[sharonL]

It can certainly be food or enviro allergies....Dogs do present allergy on the chin.  Usually a chlorhexiderm shampoo works well, but so will washing the area with a antibac soap such as dial.  The other culprit of this can be plastic feeding/water dish, if you use them you might want to switch to steel....The other thing that works great on the chin is Oxy Pads (the pimple pads).....

If it is the food then it will be finding a food that works well for your dog...controlling the itch, not vomiting and not having loose stools.  There are so many of them out there that it is some trial and error.  I dont know many dogs that have ever liked IVD hypoallergenic, it is just to bland......

I have good luck and so have a few others with Purina One Selects Sensitive Skin and Stomach and the Brown Rice formula....

The thing is at this point there is no way your vet or anyone else can look at your dog and know for sure it is a food allergy, it could just be something blooming right now ....food allergies usually dont wait a year to present themselves so have you been feeding Blue for a while or is it a new food? Allergy can also be from laundry soap on the bedding, a new shampoo, things you spray around the house.....

As mentioned above there is special allergy testing, the down side it is expensive and they usually come back allergic to more then you can control, so your option is monthly allergy injections.....that is pretty blahhh too.....

 

[zpolino]

Thanks

He's been on Blue Buffalo for about 7-8 months with no problems until 3-4 weeks ago.  We did stop using certain things like Fabreeze, spays, etc..
He won't even go near the IVD food.  We tried 2 flavors....duck and veneson.  We're now worried because he's losing weight fast.  We have a special shampoo from the vet that we use 2-3 times a week.  It helps but clearly we still have a problem.  The thing is that Blue Buffalo doesn't contain the normal ingredients that usually cause allergies....frustrating.  He's lethargic and clearly uncomfortable.  Maybe we'll try the Purina One.

 

[Templeton]

I'm sorry to hear your boxer is not doing well.  I too have a 1 year old who gave me quite the scare recently.  My vet couldn't figure out what was wrong and we attempted to put him on another food which also gave him loose stools and caused weight loss and vomiting.  He had no interest in any dry food I gave him.  Recently I switched him to the raw food and so far he is doing great.  He now has an apetite, normal stools for the first time in months, energy to play and he's finally gaining back the weight.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it was just food allergies.