Itchy Hound / Soft Stool / Hair Loss On Belly

[Guest GalgoMom]

Hi all,

 

I am frustrated by these minor, but persistant symptoms in my hound. I'm not certain if they are related (maybe caused by a food allergy) or unrelated and caused by sensitive tummy/environmental allergy.

 

My hound is a 2 Year Old Galgo, came to USA from Spain in April '12. I adopted him in May '12. He came to me from the shelter on Iams Green Bag, which I continued him on. He had 3 bouts of bad diarrhea, back to back, in July, during the heatwave. My vet treated him with antibiotics and put him on DCO kibble. I thought around that time that his itchiness increased, and suspected he may have an allergy to grain. On DCO, his diarrhea stopped, but his stool was never firm and he passed a lot of it.

 

I wanted to see if I could switch his food and see if that helped. I chose Iams Sensitive Naturals, which contains no chicken, corn, wheat, soy or meat by-products.

I transitioned him slowly, and he seemed ok. Stool stayed about the same, and he seemed to pass less of it, but there was no reduction in his itchiness.

 

This morning, my hubby said his stool seemed to be starting to get softer. No idea what to do next. Another consult with the vet?

 

I do add Cottage Cheese to his kibble to get him to eat it (he won't eat dry kibble). I used to add fish oil capsules, but they were kind of a pain in the butt, so i recently started using olive oil, which the shelter uses..

 

Oh, and lastly, he seems to have lost all the hair on his belly over the course of the summer. I know some hounds get bald butts. Mine's butt is fine, but his belly is bald! I should note, it isn't any more itchy than any other spot (neck, butt, back, ears, etc.)

 

Any advice from fellow symptom sufferers?

[Guest RMarie]

I feel for you, GalgoMom. I posted about this on another thread relating to food allergies because my guy is having similar issues. Granted, I've only had him for just over a month, but we're still battling the soft stool and itchiness. The vet is starting him back on antibiotics and low-residue food, but that is just a temporary fix as far as I'm concerned. I'm interested to see what other, more experienced owners have to say. I'm certainly no expert, but the cottage cheese might be a contributing factor. He could have a dairy allergy. That's just something I read on other threads relating to food allergies. Our boy loves cheese, but the vet said no dairy until his poops are better. Poor guy.

 

Best of luck!

[Guest GalgoMom]

Thanks, RMarie! I appreciate just knowing I am not going through this alone!

[mom2four]

Hi fellow Galgo Mom! It sounds like there are seasonal allergies (grass maybe? I had a Lab allergic to grass, she was miserable during the summer) or food allergies going on. If you have just tried one type of different food, you may need to keep looking until you find something that works. I have switched food many times with some of my dogs. My sensitive guy is currently on Nutro's grain free venison and potato and it is working for him. Every hound would be different, of course.

 

Good luck! Galgos Marco and Lucas say Hola!

[Guest GalgoMom]

CRAP. Hubby just came home to 4 or 5 puddles of watery diarrhea. On the white rug. Guess the Iams Sensitive Naturals is not working out so well after all.

Call to the vets office has been made. Sigh.

Edited September 27, 2012 by GalgoMom

[greyhead]

I'd be telling the vet now. Maybe it was an infection that wasn't treated long enough, so it recurred. Even just stress can upset the balance of flora in the gut, causing something to overgrow that shouldn't. Just a possibility.

[Trihounds]

Sorry to hear of the troubles - there are lot's of food related threads on GT that may be of some help.

 

If nothing is found during this check up, you might consider trying to isolate the ingredient that is causing the problem by doing a couple things:

• trying a home cooked diet based on ingredients you select and montor / track changes
  
• do the above, but don't cook it - feed it raw.
  

I think most of us have been in your shoes (I know we have) and after months of trying different food items, we switched to single protein raw and the added other ingredients over time (every couple weeks). The change was:

1. remarkable
   
2. immediate
   
3. and we have never looked back.
   

 

The important thing is to find what works for your pup and stick to it (whatever it is). Gas, bloating, itchy skin, soft / runny poop, etc, are all really bad for a hound (or person) long term.

 

Good luck!

[RedHead]

I agree with trying a bland diet (e.g. boiled white rice with some chicken or some meat) for a few days to see if it settles things down. It looks like you have only tried the IAMS and vet food. You may just need to try out a variety of other foods (ie. different proteins, grain free, etc) to see if any work. I would also try a substitute for cottage cheese for a few days. Something like canned tuna, egg, shredded meat, or anything non-dairy. Dogs don't technically have the enzyme we do to digest dairy so it can sometimes be a big problem. Good luck!

 

BTW I am assuming he has been tested for worms??

[Guest GalgoMom]

Well, the vet's diagnosis for the stomach is Colitus. She put him back on Purina DCO Dual Fiber Control. For the itching, she also gave me a course of stronger steriods to try, once his belly settles down. She hasn't ruled out environmental allergies, and believes we may see a difference after the 1st frost (we are in New England, so that is not too far away). He didn't really start itching until early July - he was fine when we first got him - and she said there is an allergy season in New England that runs June - Oct. (She might have said ragweed).

 

Thanks, RedHead! He has been tested for worms - we did 2 or 3 fecal samples and they all came back clean. He is up to date on all shots and current on his heartguard and frontline.

 

He's just a sensitive little guy I guess! Sigh...

[Guest kess]

don't most greys have a problem with hair loss on their belly's, most seem to have bald belly's, must say though when I first got Bobby he had some bald patches on sides near tail that have almost grown back now so maybe his belly hair will grow back eventually on Belly.

[Trihounds]

don't most greys have a problem with hair loss on their belly's, most seem to have bald belly's, must say though when I first got Bobby he had some bald patches on sides near tail that have almost grown back now so maybe his belly hair will grow back eventually on Belly.

 

 

 

Agree to some extent....3 of mine have bald bellies and coincidentally, they have near bald butts, too! Our 4th is a hairy beast! They all came to us that way and there is virtually no re-growth.