For several years, Emma had suffered (intermittently) with rumbling intestines – lack of appetite and a thin stomach (lasted about 1 day – and then it was over). In addition, recurring red ears and licking of paws.
Because I didn't suspect allergies at the time, I didn't keep a diary of what she had eaten – big mistake, because I think that would have helped us a lot.
I chose to have her undergo the “big test”, which is a blood sample that is sent to Jutland for further analysis. The answer was like a slap in the face:
· Warehouse mite
· House dust mite
In addition, she responded to:
· Chicken (which I used quite a bit as treats)
Lamb
· Ox
· Fish
· Turkey
· Rabbit
· ...and a number of others.
After consulting with the vet, we chose not to start hyposensitization, as the effect is often poor at her age (she was 8 years old when she was diagnosed). I chose to go all in on food and treats. Admittedly, she is a BIG CONSUMER of treats, so I had to think twice, because we could NOT do without treats.
What worked for Emma:
I started feeding her Hill's Z/D , and it wasn't long before her stomach was in tip top shape 😊
I removed ALL treats that were not hypoallergenic – or that were on the list. And REMEMBER that if you have an allergic dog, ONLY buy MONOPROTEIN treats. Look at the product, READ what is in it. I now know the brands that are good, and that I KNOW do not have “Animal by-products” in them (you have no idea if that covers chicken, which is popular because it is cheap)!
For a very long period (6 months) her only treats were these 2 as WET FOOD: Hills Z/D and Specific CDD - HY Food Allergen Management. I cut it into pieces and dried it in an air fryer (regular oven can also be used)
She straightened up wonderfully – but suddenly her fur/face started to look very strange, she got dark spots, lost fur in several places and her face looked like she had been stung by a bee. – so we had to go to the vet again, and here it was found that she had skin inflammation ☹ And she was put on treatment with various medications to reduce the itching and eliminate the infection. But our old regular vet had a suspicion when he saw her – and he took a blood test.
It showed that she had decreased metabolism, also called hypothyroidism. She has been put on LIFELONG treatment with:
- Forthyron tablet every day – typically for the treatment of hypothyroidism
- Cyclavance – in a syringe that is put in her mouth – it suppresses her immune system so that the allergy does not trigger skin inflammation again.
In addition, I give her "Petbalance Support Haut + Fell oil" from Maxizoo every day over her food - it's fantastic for her fur, and she looks freshly washed every day - fluffy and non-greasy fur.
I often "dry wash" her with a fur/skin care foam/mousse from Douxo.
Emma is doing great. Of course it requires a little extra, but I am VERY happy to do that for her 😊
What I do everyday now is that I always make sure to have allergy treats in stock (Hills or others). She doesn't like them (can't be used as a training treat!!) 😊 .....but at home they are fine.
What I buy now as treats – if I don't dry wet food myself (she gets tired of it – if it's the same every day) are treats based on INSECT protein – she doesn't react to that, and fortunately there are quite a few coming onto the market. I can also use goat in limited use – I typically use it as a cut-up treat sausage when we go to tests, because here she really needs something she loves 😊 <3
A little about the blogger.
Her name is Lotte, she is in her early 50s. She works as a project coordinator and spends most of her free time training with her dog Emma, who is a 10-year-old beagle. They have trained and competed in Schweiss tracks for several years. Agility without much success (you can't tempt them with treats) and now they train Nose Work 2-3 times a week if they can get to it. They compete at NW3 level, and they have a party together when they apply <3 – because the most important thing for this dog handler is that the DOG has fun, and that you learn the most from the mistakes you make. So instead of being angry/disappointed about a test that didn't go as planned, learn from it! - in most cases it's not the dog that makes the mistake <3
A good dog life despite allergies and hypothyroidism
For several years, Emma had suffered (intermittently) with rumbling intestines – lack of appetite and a thin stomach (lasted about 1 day – and then it was over). In addition, recurring red ears and licking of paws.
Because I didn't suspect allergies at the time, I didn't keep a diary of what she had eaten – big mistake, because I think that would have helped us a lot.
I chose to have her undergo the “big test”, which is a blood sample that is sent to Jutland for further analysis. The answer was like a slap in the face:
· Warehouse mite
· House dust mite
In addition, she responded to:
· Chicken (which I used quite a bit as treats)
Lamb
· Ox
· Fish
· Turkey
· Rabbit
· ...and a number of others.
After consulting with the vet, we chose not to start hyposensitization, as the effect is often poor at her age (she was 8 years old when she was diagnosed). I chose to go all in on food and treats. Admittedly, she is a BIG CONSUMER of treats, so I had to think twice, because we could NOT do without treats.
What worked for Emma:
I started feeding her Hill's Z/D , and it wasn't long before her stomach was in tip top shape 😊
I removed ALL treats that were not hypoallergenic – or that were on the list. And REMEMBER that if you have an allergic dog, ONLY buy MONOPROTEIN treats. Look at the product, READ what is in it. I now know the brands that are good, and that I KNOW do not have “Animal by-products” in them (you have no idea if that covers chicken, which is popular because it is cheap)!
For a very long period (6 months) her only treats were these 2 as WET FOOD: Hills Z/D and Specific CDD - HY Food Allergen Management. I cut it into pieces and dried it in an air fryer (regular oven can also be used)
She straightened up wonderfully – but suddenly her fur/face started to look very strange, she got dark spots, lost fur in several places and her face looked like she had been stung by a bee. – so we had to go to the vet again, and here it was found that she had skin inflammation ☹ And she was put on treatment with various medications to reduce the itching and eliminate the infection. But our old regular vet had a suspicion when he saw her – and he took a blood test.
It showed that she had decreased metabolism, also called hypothyroidism. She has been put on LIFELONG treatment with:
- Forthyron tablet every day – typically for the treatment of hypothyroidism
- Cyclavance – in a syringe that is put in her mouth – it suppresses her immune system so that the allergy does not trigger skin inflammation again.
In addition, I give her "Petbalance Support Haut + Fell oil" from Maxizoo every day over her food - it's fantastic for her fur, and she looks freshly washed every day - fluffy and non-greasy fur.
I often "dry wash" her with a fur/skin care foam/mousse from Douxo.
Emma is doing great. Of course it requires a little extra, but I am VERY happy to do that for her 😊
What I do everyday now is that I always make sure to have allergy treats in stock (Hills or others). She doesn't like them (can't be used as a training treat!!) 😊 .....but at home they are fine.
What I buy now as treats – if I don't dry wet food myself (she gets tired of it – if it's the same every day) are treats based on INSECT protein – she doesn't react to that, and fortunately there are quite a few coming onto the market. I can also use goat in limited use – I typically use it as a cut-up treat sausage when we go to tests, because here she really needs something she loves 😊 <3
A little about the blogger.
Her name is Lotte, she is in her early 50s. She works as a project coordinator and spends most of her free time training with her dog Emma, who is a 10-year-old beagle. They have trained and competed in Schweiss tracks for several years. Agility without much success (you can't tempt them with treats) and now they train Nose Work 2-3 times a week if they can get to it. They compete at NW3 level, and they have a party together when they apply <3 – because the most important thing for this dog handler is that the DOG has fun, and that you learn the most from the mistakes you make. So instead of being angry/disappointed about a test that didn't go as planned, learn from it! - in most cases it's not the dog that makes the mistake <3