Ok I have a beagle he is MY first beagle his name is Ziggy well since he was about 4 1/2 mths he has had allergies. Well he is now 5 yrs old and the allergies are MUCH worse..He has been on everything.& we have done everything that the vet would think would work. He was on prednozone (sp) up till about a month ago but it didn't seem to be working anymore.
He is still eatting fine. But all he does is sleep. I need to know what u would do for him. is it time to put him down? Or just let it go and see if he gets better.. I feel so bad for him and he seems soooo misrible.. My husband has talked to me about helping him, as he doesn't think he is liveing life very well. He most definitly isn't the Ziggy from even 6 months ago, he has gone down hill over the last 6 mths.
Thanks In Advance
Robyn
Need Some Advice.
Moderators: Pike Ridge Beagles, Aaron Bartlett
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beaglesarethebest
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Need Some Advice.
Beagles Are Like Potato Chips You Can't Just Have One.
advice
Have they ever narrowed down WHAT he is allergic too? What type of allergies is it? Skin, Breathing? What is his condition?
Patch Addict
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beaglesarethebest
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Way back we did the whole food thing to narrow down what it might be. But came up unseccessiful. The vet thinks its air borne allergies.
His condition is grim..He has a skin infection but we can't get it under control due to the itching exessive itching. And we were going to start giving him baths but due to being cold we are afraid he would get ill with his imumuine system down. His face is swelled up due to the infection.
What do u all think of Raw diets?
His condition is grim..He has a skin infection but we can't get it under control due to the itching exessive itching. And we were going to start giving him baths but due to being cold we are afraid he would get ill with his imumuine system down. His face is swelled up due to the infection.
What do u all think of Raw diets?
Beagles Are Like Potato Chips You Can't Just Have One.
I'm not a fan of raw diets but, in this case I think it can't hurt to try. Also, I urge you to contact Marina Zacharias http://www.naturalrearing.com she will personally answer emails and has worked wonders on many dogs with allergies, repro problems etc. I think its worth a try. Some of the things she prescribes you can get cheaper elsewhere but, some you need to get directly from her. Give her and email or phone call. She is wonderful to work with!
Another thing I'd like to mention is the use of prednisone with puppies. I feel that vets are OVER prescribing it for just about every itchy problem they find. Most of these dogs will likely outgrow whatever allergy they have once they have developed suffcient immune systems. The ones that I see having the most trouble are the ones put on Pred early on as puppies. The immune system is basically ruined and can never become strong and fight off whatever is causeing the allergy. Its not YOUR fault but, the fault of the vets who rush to use such a dangerous drug on our puppies. JMHO!
best of luck,
Leah
Another thing I'd like to mention is the use of prednisone with puppies. I feel that vets are OVER prescribing it for just about every itchy problem they find. Most of these dogs will likely outgrow whatever allergy they have once they have developed suffcient immune systems. The ones that I see having the most trouble are the ones put on Pred early on as puppies. The immune system is basically ruined and can never become strong and fight off whatever is causeing the allergy. Its not YOUR fault but, the fault of the vets who rush to use such a dangerous drug on our puppies. JMHO!
best of luck,
Leah
Life's a trip
but it doesn't come with a map
but it doesn't come with a map
I don't mean to be cruel here but, If you have done everything you and the Vet know to do, why make him or her suffer any longer.
You said his head is swollen and if that is the case then chances are everything in his whole head including his throat is in pain.
Because a dog can not tell us when or how much pain they are in, you must make that decision for them. Personally, I don't like to see anything suffer and I'm sure you don't either. Just something to think about. JMHO, which alot of times means nothing. Best of luck to you and your best friend................................
hounddog
Jim Umbarger
You said his head is swollen and if that is the case then chances are everything in his whole head including his throat is in pain.
Because a dog can not tell us when or how much pain they are in, you must make that decision for them. Personally, I don't like to see anything suffer and I'm sure you don't either. Just something to think about. JMHO, which alot of times means nothing. Best of luck to you and your best friend................................
hounddog
Jim Umbarger
---------Jump Mountain Kennels-----------
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540-292-3000
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green river
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hounddog wrote:I don't mean to be cruel here but, If you have done everything you and the Vet know to do, why make him or her suffer any longer.
You said his head is swollen and if that is the case then chances are everything in his whole head including his throat is in pain.
Because a dog can not tell us when or how much pain they are in, you must make that decision for them. Personally, I don't like to see anything suffer and I'm sure you don't either. Just something to think about. JMHO, which alot of times means nothing. Best of luck to you and your best friend................................
hounddog
Jim Umbarger
I have to agree with hounddog. I don't know your situation with your dog, whether he is hunting dog, pet, member of the family, so on and so on. I wouldn't let the dog suffer. I had a chocolate lab that was my best friend for 13 years, but when the quality of life was gone, so was she. Hardest thing I ever had to do but I don't regret it. Good luck in figuring out what to do.
I personally feed raw as the majority of my hound's diet, because they derive more nutrition from food in it's raw form than when cooked. Amino acids are intact (80% of taurine is destroyed w/ cooking), as are vitamins & trace minerals/enzymes only found in raw meat. Raw is not a cure all, however.
Despite that, I have to admit that I think euthanizing a dog for allergies is a bit drastic and raw may be a viable option. What food is this dog currently on, and has his diet ever been changed after the initial diagnosis of allergies? Has his thyroid ever been checked?
What I would do if I were in your position would be to STOP ALL PREDNISONE or any other steroid treatment. The body naturally wants to heal itself, however, the prednisone is actually preventing it from doing so. What the steroids have been doing are supressing the SYMPTOMS of the "allergies" yet the underlying cause of them is running rampant
You will also want to indefintiely stop all vaccinations & wormings as these are not helping the immune system either. Do you use flea & tick meds? These can cause hair loss in succeptable animals and should be stopped for the time being. I haven't used flea products in years ... chopped up raw garlic and the occasional brewers yeast tab work wonders.
The next step you will need to take is to encourage the body to heal itself. I've used Eccinachea in conjunction with Vitamin C w/ rose hips for years with immune supressed hounds. They work better than any drug, but there will still need to be some sort of diet change in order for there to be any success. This could defintiely be a fatty acid deficiency, so I would try getting him on fish oil immediately, 1000 mg 2x daily for the first few weeks, then lowered to a mintenance dose of 1000 mg daily.
I've been feeding raw since 2001, so if you need any diet info, just send me a PM.
Despite that, I have to admit that I think euthanizing a dog for allergies is a bit drastic and raw may be a viable option. What food is this dog currently on, and has his diet ever been changed after the initial diagnosis of allergies? Has his thyroid ever been checked?
What I would do if I were in your position would be to STOP ALL PREDNISONE or any other steroid treatment. The body naturally wants to heal itself, however, the prednisone is actually preventing it from doing so. What the steroids have been doing are supressing the SYMPTOMS of the "allergies" yet the underlying cause of them is running rampant
You will also want to indefintiely stop all vaccinations & wormings as these are not helping the immune system either. Do you use flea & tick meds? These can cause hair loss in succeptable animals and should be stopped for the time being. I haven't used flea products in years ... chopped up raw garlic and the occasional brewers yeast tab work wonders. The next step you will need to take is to encourage the body to heal itself. I've used Eccinachea in conjunction with Vitamin C w/ rose hips for years with immune supressed hounds. They work better than any drug, but there will still need to be some sort of diet change in order for there to be any success. This could defintiely be a fatty acid deficiency, so I would try getting him on fish oil immediately, 1000 mg 2x daily for the first few weeks, then lowered to a mintenance dose of 1000 mg daily.
I've been feeding raw since 2001, so if you need any diet info, just send me a PM.
You may want to check this group out as well ... excellent raw diet info & I think they may be able to help you greatly if you do decide to go w/ raw ...
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfeeding/
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfeeding/