Mange? Allergies?

[mer55]

The only way to rule out mange is a scraping. It costs about $25. It could be allergies, but by the time you do the switch of food and wait for the results, if it is mange, it will have gotten worse. I would opt for the test AND transition to grain free. That way you'll know for sure. Dermodex mange is not contagious to other pets or humans, but it can cause great discomfort to the host. Treatment for it was not a great deal of $$$. Bogey is on his 3 rd week of treatment and his patch was a small quarter sized pink, hairless spot on his neck when we found it. Good luck!!!

 

[Vanprarm]

Chunk is at the vet now but wanting to work out the food situation when I pick him up. Def going to do grain free but any preferences from these options: blue freedom grain free chicken dog food, blue buffalo wilderness salmon dog food, or natural balance limited ingredient sweet potato and chicken..... The natural balance food we would have to go to a store a little bit away for but if its necessary we can. Any preferences for a bulldog with allergies? FYI budget and petsmart/petco are really our only options for purchasing specialty foods :-) thanks

 

[Ashleym]

I would stay away from Chicken as a protein. Blue Buffalo grain free salmon would be a good choice to start with. Remember to do a slow transition from old food to good food. It can take up to a month for the old food to work out of his system. A lot of vets will push science diet or royal canine don't do it unless you want continued issues with allergies.

 

[sunnyrn36]

good luck with figuring out the right food..I have had my girl for 6.5 yrs and still doubt myself on food..shampoo etc.. it's always something. my vet says she is just doing me a lot of the time when i bring her in because i think her ear is bothering her or something. he looks and says nope she's fine. she for sure has a grass allery of course fleas etc but we dont allow those here at all. best wishes with chunk

 

[Marine91]

Good luck with your food searches. There are lots of options out there and even if you can't get it local you can always order online from places like petflow.

 

[christyjulene]

Chunk is at the vet now but wanting to work out the food situation when I pick him up. Def going to do grain free but any preferences from these options: blue freedom grain free chicken dog food, blue buffalo wilderness salmon dog food, or natural balance limited ingredient sweet potato and chicken..... The natural balance food we would have to go to a store a little bit away for but if its necessary we can. Any preferences for a bulldog with allergies? FYI budget and petsmart/petco are really our only options for purchasing specialty foods :-) thanks

http://www.englishbulldognews.com/content.php?203-Our-Top-5-Recommended-Dog-Food-Choices

 

[2BullyMama]

Chunk is at the vet now but wanting to work out the food situation when I pick him up. Def going to do grain free but any preferences from these options: blue freedom grain free chicken dog food, blue buffalo wilderness salmon dog food, or natural balance limited ingredient sweet potato and chicken..... The natural balance food we would have to go to a store a little bit away for but if its necessary we can. Any preferences for a bulldog with allergies? FYI budget and petsmart/petco are really our only options for purchasing specialty foods :-) thanks

How is Chunk and what was they outcome of the vet appointment? Try to avoid chicken as the protein, many bullies have issue with chicken.... [MENTION=2291]cowsmom[/MENTION] has great knowledge of kibble and can help with finding something for your baby

 

[cowsmom]

well my first choice would be petco and nvi limited ingredient lamb. if your petco doesnt have that then wellness core. if your dog is ok with chicken then bb freedom. simply nourish at petsmart makes a grain free but its chicken also. not much to choose from really. i was looking at the natural balance and it seems they have changed their formulas and the meat is no longer the first ingredient so i dont really like that. thats all i can think of tonight with my brain ready for bed.

 

[JAKEISGREAT]

You've gotten great advice..I just want to applaud you for trying so hard for your Bully!

 

[Vanprarm]

Thank you all so much! The support on this site is pretty incredible I must say! The vet confirmed most of your suspicions that she believed it to be allergies as well. MY happiness that we were getting closer to a solution was dampened when her recommendations were hills scientific diet, eukenuba, and royal canin :-/ thankful for all of you I was educated enough (at least I hope so) to know these were NOT what I was looking for. I even asked the vet tech about blue buffalo after the app and she said she knew the vet wouldn't recommend it due to many dogs having diarrhea from the brand. Very frustrating as this was contradicting everything I'd read. Anywho, I was down to blue buffalo freedom grain free and wellness core when a shop associate offered to help me and my bf. we ended up with natures recipe grain free salmon, sweet potato, pumpkin... If anyone knows this to be not such a great choice break it to me gently as my credit card already isn't happy with me after this vet trip.

 

[Lisabear123]

Having a bully really is quite a investment! .I've learned that myself w Brie. I'm not a food expert but I've read that grains are a huge allergen to bullies so grain free is a def good choice. poultry n salmon can also be allergy causing, but if Chunk has no issues w salmon then the food could be ok. I'm sure ppl w a lot more insight and knowledge will pop back here and give their feedback. Chunk is so cute!

 

[christyjulene]

Thank you all so much! The support on this site is pretty incredible I must say! The vet confirmed most of your suspicions that she believed it to be allergies as well. MY happiness that we were getting closer to a solution was dampened when her recommendations were hills scientific diet, eukenuba, and royal canin :-/ thankful for all of you I was educated enough (at least I hope so) to know these were NOT what I was looking for. I even asked the vet tech about blue buffalo after the app and she said she knew the vet wouldn't recommend it due to many dogs having diarrhea from the brand. Very frustrating as this was contradicting everything I'd read. Anywho, I was down to blue buffalo freedom grain free and wellness core when a shop associate offered to help me and my bf. we ended up with natures recipe grain free salmon, sweet potato, pumpkin... If anyone knows this to be not such a great choice break it to me gently as my credit card already isn't happy with me after this vet trip.

Lets pass the food question by [MENTION=2291]cowsmom[/MENTION]

I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!!!! You said you were feeling "forced" because you didn't know enough. Well in a few very short days you did know enough when you went to the vet to know what was right and wrong! Did you get any other suggestions from the vet about the allergies?

 

[Vanprarm]

Thanks. And no. Ill try to make this short but I don't know how many others have fallen in the trap of petsmart banfield but we did for chunks shots (he had had none when he came to live with us) and so we signed up for the healthcare plan which will be up in nov. yesterday we didn't even SEE let alone speak to the vet. We did drop off as they had no apps and they called and said it looks like allergies, the doc will take to us about food recommendations and possible allergy meds when we got there. The vet never came out. All we got was a printout she wrote on about food suggestions and his print out for the visit, no med recs either. We are DONE with banfield and will be looking at the recommended list for bulldog vets on here and go there next time even if the plan isn't up. Long story short, unless you count her lovely food recommendations and her diagnosis we suggested when we dropped him off, we got nada.

 

[Texas Carol]

Thanks. And no. Ill try to make this short but I don't know how many others have fallen in the trap of petsmart banfield but we did for chunks shots (he had had none when he came to live with us) and so we signed up for the healthcare plan which will be up in nov. yesterday we didn't even SEE let alone speak to the vet. We did drop off as they had no apps and they called and said it looks like allergies, the doc will take to us about food recommendations and possible allergy meds when we got there. The vet never came out. All we got was a printout she wrote on about food suggestions and his print out for the visit, no med recs either. We are DONE with banfield and will be looking at the recommended list for bulldog vets on here and go there next time even if the plan isn't up. Long story short, unless you count her lovely food recommendations and her diagnosis we suggested when we dropped him off, we got nada.

3 things jump out at me...He got shots (usually too many at one time and given too soon between shots)
as many bullies develop allergies (and other problems) after getting their shots...his crap food causing a
weakened immune system to set him up for problems and...change of location and type of allergens in the
air.

I'm very sorry for your poor experience w/vet & major drain of $$$'s w/nothing to show for it, so sad!

Will suggest some things for immediate help, internally & externally...got to run just now but will be back
to tell you...GOD bless!

 

[ABEBD]

Hello,

So many good posts and while not part of the main topic of the thread, they are ALL PART of owing a bulldog. This forum will provide you will LOTS of information and overload. Everyone has an opinion. But when you get hundreds of bullie owners that share close and similar opinions it come very close to the truth.

The truth is that EACH and every Bulldog is different. There are many shared and commonalities between EBD, but your bullie will be unique.

No reason to jump to the top of the food chain list and get the 6 star just becuase everyone else is using, but certainly stay away from the bottom tiers. There are many 4 and 5 star brands that work great for bulldogs. You just have to find the one that works for your dogs. It does take time and patience.

Now, here is my opinions, suggestions and advice.
1. Stay away from Corporate dog food store Vet clinics. Find a vet that specializes in Bulldogs, not ALL dogs.
2. Avoid chicken and grain dog food completely
3. Continue to learn and research bulldog health and learn about natural and holistic choices. The vinegar alone as listed above is a 100% outstanding suggestion. But the pet food store and vet clinics won't ever tell you about that.
4. Keep a log book of all indications and what ever minor changes you make to track progress.
5. Disclaimer! Disgusting: check the poo everyday. Just by watching the texture and color of the poo you will know in advance if something is starting to change. Picking up the poo twice a day prevents problems from bugs and flies but you also will see any changes THAT day.

Finally,
Have a Bullie Good Day~