Please Help

[pitbulladvocate]

I have a pit bull that is sick. He may be allergic to his food. I feed him Purina an have since he was a puppy. His hair is falling out, his ears bleed because all he does is shake his head and scratch them. He is constantly licking his paws. He looks miserable. I have a 7yr old son and a 11 month old son. Under normal circumstances, I would never worry about my dog with the kids. But now he doesnt feel well and the youngest like to pull his ears. The dog is very tolerant. Anyway...my question is...

What brand of food should i try? Is there anything out there that is better?

I tried making food with mashed potatos, green beans, and tuna. but I work full time and dont always have time to make this work on a regular basis. Please Help! Thanks! My dogs name is Lincoln. You can also e-mail me at ladyramuh@gmail.com

[Patch O' Pits]

It could be the food as that really is not a very healthy food or it could be environmental

Try switching the food first and using a suppliment for Omega fatty acids to help as well

here are some great foods:

The RAW diet

Timberwolf

Nature’s Variety

Merrick

Canidae

stay away from foods that use corn, wheat, or soy, and by products, BHA, dyes, added flavoring and other fillers

Check out the Whole Dog Journals Top Best and Worst Dog foods

Also get a drying ear cleaner and get the dogs ears checked for infection. Allergies often cause infections in the ears and skin

[nic188]

My dog Chief also occasionally gets thrush in his ears which makes him shake his head and get very itchy around his ears. He loves water and his ears get wet inside and he can't dry them.
When this happens we use some cotton wool and an ointment the vet gave us and dry them and the ointment stops the thrush. I don't know if this is the same as what your dog is experiencing.

[seraphicia]

As was suggested, that food is not very high quality at all and very well could be the source, although if it's just popping up, it probably is environmental too, as said. I'd not hesitate in taking him to the vet, to relieve the pain and irritation asap. My Tobey(on my avatar) got a terrible rash and nasty grimy inflamed ears late last fall(his first fall). The vet said he could shak his head hard enough to pop vessels and do some real damage. We switched food and used cleaner and antibiotic for his ears and he got a steriod shot for his nasty belly rash, which cleared up quickly. He hasn't had any really big problem since, but we check routinely. We had switched him over to Nutro Natural Choice which wasn't the best, but still okay compared to many others and a decent price, which seemed better for him too. We've since moved to Nature's Select which is even better and at a better cost in bulk. Anyway....

How old is your pup? Is this his first spring/summer?

Good luck I hope your pooch gets some relief!

[Courtney&Henry]

Food allergies can begin when a dog is older too. My boyfriend's lab used to eat anything without trouble and now any treats give her a very sick stomach and she is highly allergic to carrots. A year ago she used to eat carrots by the handful but not anymore.

I too would switch the food. Purina is not the best food and most dogs are allergic to wheat which is one of Purina's main ingredients. I have heard that dogs with allergies have great success on a RAW diet but if you don't have the time then I have also heard very good things about Canadae as it is made for dogs that are food sensitive...now if I could only get my boyfriend to switch his dog to Canadae from Science Diet....

[catcher T]

first of all Purina sucks,,secondly,,what does the vet say,,have u ruled out mange? or any other serious skin ailment?

[maura]

I TOOK THE ADVICE OF PATCH O PITTS AND MY BULLIE ISNT SCRATCHING ANYMORE IT HS LOW WASTE AND EXCELLENT NUTRITION. IT IS THE TIMBERWOLD BRAND AND YOU CAN GO TO THEIR WEBSITE AND SEARCH FOR A LOCAL DEALER OR THEY HAVE FREE SHIPPING. http://www.timberwolforganics.com/
I KNOW IT REALLY HELPED MY LITTLE WELL NOT SO LITTLE GUY !:D

[pitbulladvocate]

I got something for his ears and they seem to be clearing up. I have him on Nutricoat (vitamin) and Authority Harvest Baked dog food. I have noticed a huge improvement. He also gets Benadryl and oatmeal baths for the itching. I think it was the food. I am going to get him checked for air allergies too. His hair is growing back and he is healing. I am so happy. Thank you all!!