hair lose

Question
I have a 7yr old black lab her name is Dakota, this past fall her hair on her sides started coming out in clumps. We have been taking her to the vet, the vet has ran a number of test on her blood, thyroid,and in the process of a ring worm test and said she would do some other testing. We have changed her food to salmon and Sweet potato blend with no results, all of the test the vet has ran all so far have been negative. can you help us with this problem

Answer
Hi Dom,

Thank you for writing to me.  I'm so sorry that your dog is having this issue and it is great that your vet checked her thyroid, which is often the culprit.  Ask your vet if the thyroid was in the center of normal.  A high or low normal can still be an issue.

What was the relationship of the onset of this problem to her most recent vaccinations?  Your dog may be suffering from a condition called vaccinosis.  I suggest that she doesn't receive any further vaccinations, including her 3 year rabies (get an exemption letter from your vet) until this is solved.  It says right on the package not to administer to dogs that are ill.  

Here is a website that has some comprehensive information on skin conditions:http://www.lowchensaustralia.com/health/skin.htm/

I would also refrain from giving your dog any sort of preventative for fleas/ticks or anything else. Check for any new cleaning products, carpeting, anything that might be emitting chemcials into the environment or floor/lawn or outgassing.  Wash your dog with a mild oatmeal bath every week and there are natural products that can support skin health as well.

Fish in the diet is not necessarily non reactive for a dog.  I would try something like Nature's Logic Lamb to see if there is a difference in her skin problem.  This is the only food that my highly allergic dog can tolerate.

Be sure you give your dog filtered water because there can be chemicals such as chlorine that can effect her.  If you have well water and it's been tested for purity, that would be fine to give her.

Don't let her swim in any water at this point as there can be bacteria and other things that might be effecting her.

This is going to be a process of elimination as to how to get to the source of the problem.

The final thing I am going to mention is stress.  Have there been any changes in her life that might have caused her to feel anxious?  For some sentivie dogs, even moving the living room furniture around can cause anxiety.  Be sure to keep things in your home at a very peaceful level.  Play some Mozart for her (dogs really respond to Mozart) and keep her very calm.  Stress can cause all kinds of physical problems.

I wish you the very best for your dog's recovery.

I would suggest that if your vet can't solve this problem it would be time to bring your dog to a canine dermatogist for further investigation. If you live near a teaching college such as Cornell, U. of Colorado etc, this would be the perfect place to bring her to.

Best Regards,
Shelley Davis