Old English bulldog with allergies

Lillian

New member
Aug 27, 2014
4
0
Dallas,Texas
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Lilly
I have spent a fortune at the vet's with Lilly's allergies. She eats Royal Canin SO because she had stones before and the Dr. said she needs this food to prevent reoccurring stones. She also has allergies, swollen paws and hot spots. I was told she needs bathes every 2 days with Phyto Vet CK shampoo. Lilly is 5yrs old, does anyone have any suggestions or deal with the same health problems? Any help would be greatly appreciated. This cost is effecting me being able to afford her.

lilly also has been on 90 day dosage of antibiotics, which I don't feel this is good for her.
 

RiiSi

Well-known member
Community Veteran
Sep 30, 2011
5,014
535
Sysmä
Country
Finland
Bulldog(s) Names
Taisto, Kylli, Salli, Angel-Usko and Angel-Voitto
So sorry this is happening with Lilly and welcome to EBN. First of all, RC is crap, sorry, but it is. What type of stones did she have? That is very important to figure out how she could be helped. What is she allergic to?
 

shamrock13

New member
Sep 4, 2013
99
7
Absecon, New Jersey
Country
United States
Bulldog(s) Names
Hooch
Hi Lillian,



welcome to the site. I too have an Old English Bulldog with a lot of allergy problems. He has not had a problem with stones, but I can sure identify with the swollen paws and the need for frequent baths. Luckily for me and Hooch, we found this wonderful site and all of these smart and caring people. Hooch is presently on prednisone again, which certainly seemed to help with his mucousy eyes and red face. I am presently weaning him now on the prednisone but did notice that it made a hugh difference in his goopy eyes. I am also giving him cyclosporin eye drops twice a day and occasionally have to use triple antibiotic eye ointment.

Presently, I bath him about twice a week in regular baby shampoo. I have a small wading pool that I fill up with warm water and add a small amount of baby shampoo to make him a bubble bath. I keep a one quart container that I use to keep pouring the bubble bath solution over him and then I rinse him with a five gallon bucket of warm water with added apple cider vinegar to rinse him well. For his swollen paws ( he used to have a real bad problem with interdigital cysts) I have a spray bottle filled with an epson salt
solution and I spray his feet with it whenever they begin to show any signs of redness or swelling. I learned about the epsom salts and apple cider vinegar rinses from the wonderful folks on this site.

I agree with you, sometimes their allergy problems can become very costly so I like to use as many over the counter products that I can to help defray some of the costs and keep him comfortable. I have also learned that sometimes I just have to put him on prednisone for awhile to help keep the side effects of his allergies in check. Fortunately, prednisone is not that expensive and I have a vet who works with me and helps me to keep costs down. I also use natural tears in conjunction with the cyclosporin drops. Presently, he is still on the prednisone 5 mg every other day and his allergies and eye goop has really been under control for the past three and one half weeks. In fact, this is the best his eyes and face has looked in quite some time. I also give him Wellactin once a day in his food which helps with his coat and his skin. I feed him a grain dog food and clean his folds and his paws with malacetic wet wipes also. I call him my "million dollar bulldog" ;) . This is the routine that seems to work for us and I hope you can find the right combos for your baby. I hope this post helps you and your baby. Please let us know how things turn out for you. Shamrock 13 and Hooch
 

Roseann

New member
Jan 24, 2014
487
27
Kansas
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Henry, Clyde-EB/basset hound and Macon
I don't think RC is a horrible food but there is many others that most certainly could benefit you. We started out on RC with our Henry and he had some fairly mild allergies with it. I thought I could do better so we switched to orijen. The chicken bothered him so we went to the fish. He wasn't perfect so we moved on to the beef. He is great now. He does have some seasonal allergies but nothing that Benadryl can't handle. One important thing I realized with the RC is the recommended feeding amount is more than the Orijen. While Orijen cost more per bag, it costs the same per month as I feed less and it's a better quality food. It ends up costing the same amount. I know vet bills get high and thinking of getting $80-$100 food nearly gave me a panic attack, it's stopped almost every sign of allergies in Henry. I've been unable to work since jan and I've continued to get Henry this food. I also feed it to our lab because as they would play, Henry would get traces of chicken and break out. I'm pretty sure everyone in this house is jealous that the dogs eat better than them. Haha
Which foods have you tried so far?
 
OP
Lillian

Lillian

New member
Aug 27, 2014
4
0
Dallas,Texas
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Lilly
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #5
The vet took xrays & he said they were kidney stones. That's why she's on Royal Canin SO ( prescription dog food )She originally started out on Wellness dog food. Lilly had eye problems too. The antibiotics helped that and so far no more eye problems. The red paws and swelling keep coming back. I'm afraid to switch dog food since she had stones. Lilly didn't show signs of being sick until one day she was leaking this awful fishy smell and then it seems we go to the vet every 2 mths. How much epsom salt and vinegar do you use? I need to learn how I can keep her allergies at bay.
 

shamrock13

New member
Sep 4, 2013
99
7
Absecon, New Jersey
Country
United States
Bulldog(s) Names
Hooch
I use 1 cup of apple cider vinegar per gallon of water. For the epsom salt I mix 1/2 cup to one quart of water. The spray bottle I use is a 1 quart bottle. Just make sure that you dry lilly's paws well after you let the epsom salt soak on her feet for awhile. If Lilly will stand in a shallow tub for you, you can have her stand and soak her paws in a quart of epsom salt solution which would be even better. Hooch won't stand in a shallow tub long enough for me to do it this way, but I find spraying his feet whenever I notice they are getting a little red/swollen stops it in it's tracks. I hope this helps you and Lilly. Shamrock13 and Hooch
 
OP
Lillian

Lillian

New member
Aug 27, 2014
4
0
Dallas,Texas
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Lilly
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #7
Thank you for your reply. I will definitely try that> do you know if it stings their paws?
 
OP
Lillian

Lillian

New member
Aug 27, 2014
4
0
Dallas,Texas
Country
USA
Bulldog(s) Names
Lilly
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #8
After reading other peoples situations with UTI and Kidney stones, I wondering if that vet knew what he was talking about. He said the X-ray showed small stones. The antibiotics and keeping her on Royal Canin SO ( prescription dog food ) would help prevent the stones from coming back. Does anyone know about kidney or UTIs? She has not had this health issue again. I did change vets bc the 1st one wanted to send Lilly to a Derm for her allergies . I found another local vet that said he has a lot of experience with Bulldogs and yes they are known for allergies and high vet bills :(
Is there anyone else on here that uses RC SO dog food? Is this the only food Lilly will be able to eat? I would like better food for her if it would help w/ her allergies but I don't want her to get the stones again. Need your opinions.
 

RiiSi

Well-known member
Community Veteran
Sep 30, 2011
5,014
535
Sysmä
Country
Finland
Bulldog(s) Names
Taisto, Kylli, Salli, Angel-Usko and Angel-Voitto
There is many different kinds of stones that can be in the bladder or in the kidneys. Others are the result of a genetic disorder and others can be caused by UTI. With all of them there's other options than prescription food. But it is vital to know what type of stones she had. If they were never analysed I would call it a malpractise. RC SO's two main ingredients are Brewers' rice and corn and I don't recommend eather. Just those two can be the source of her allegies.

My older boy has Hyperuricosuria and is genetically prone to develope urate stones, in the bladder or in the kidneys. If I would of listened to my vet he would be eating RC with only 10% of protein and waisting away. Now he eats raw food and is thriving. Ofcourse raw feeding or home cooked is more work than kibble, but it is not easy to see your dog suffer eather. If your girl had struvite stones resulted by the UTI she most definedly don't need prescription food. More meat, vitamin C or cranberry would do the trick, if the stones were something else, more modification is needed, but you have choices.
 

shamrock13

New member
Sep 4, 2013
99
7
Absecon, New Jersey
Country
United States
Bulldog(s) Names
Hooch
I would try and soak Lily's paws Amanda at the first sign of redness or swelling. It doesn't seem to bother Hooch when I spray his paws at this stage, however; I don't think I would spray his paws if he had an open sore from an interdigital cyst. Or in your case, if red swollen paws are a constant problem, I think I would just spray or soak Lily's paws several times a week to try and prevent it from happening. These dogs are high maintenance to say the least, but they are so worth it for the love and humor they provide in our lives.
I believe I also read on this site awhile ago about the benefits of using diluted Listerine mouth wash to prevent fungal growth on their paws. It had to be the yellow-colored listerine also, but I don't recall the instructions for diluting it. Perhaps someone on the site remembers the post or knows how to dilute it properly. Shamrock13 and Hooch
 

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