You were pretty much right DonC, I showed the vets office the picture I had taken and they believed it could very well been a bug bite that had caused the baggy skin. Sorry I haven't downloaded the pic I have really been under the weather. Maybe I will upload the picture sometime in the future.
Dry skin
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I feed Merricks and Evo but neither are available at Petco or Petsmart. Natural Balance is available at Petco. Blue Buffalo is available at Petsmart. There are lots of food choices and many have discussed on the Forums before. The important thing is to become a label reader and be aware of what is in the food you feed.
When we got Dallas I did an EXTENSIVE research on dog food because I wanted the best food without paying crazy money for it. I decided to go with Blue Buffalo because it has good ingrediants, no by-products/wheat/corn/etc. & is sold at Petsmart for a reasonable price. It's still a bit more pricey than say Beneful, Purina, etc. but I think it is 100% worth the extra money.
Also Heather, I found a website that analyzed all the various dog foods by breaking down the products, telling you why each product is good/bad, etc. Let me know if you want the link!
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yeah.. definately send it
i plan on going to petsmart sometime this week. -
Here's some website to check…
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com
http://www.alternativepetservices.com [click on the food analysis link in left column] -
I would hazard a guess that it's a combination of things (the dry skin that is):
- Heaters. God knows Basenjis' love them (mine would need to be comitte dif he didn't have access to the heat vents).
- Number of bathes. Cut back… use a some brush or even a sof rag for that matter to curry his coat and bring the natural oils forward.
- Diet. Find a food that you are comfortable paying for and that your dog(s) are comfortable eating. Everyone here has their own preferences which may or may not work for you and your dog(s). I will say that a little bacon grease every once in a great while also does a happy number for your dogs' coat.
- Next vet appointment, mention it to them, just to rule out any parasites or other skin issues.
Good luck! Aren't these critters just full of fun and surprises?!?
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i really like www.onlynaturalpet.com
go under dogs, then vitamins and supplements, and then essential fatty acids.. they have products for dry skin and coats, and lots of reviews from people.. -
Our new dog had dandruff really bad. We are feeding him wilderness blue buffalo and supplementing him with flax seed oil. We tried fish oil but made him really gassy, he gets large patches of dandruff with small spots of hard skin Where the fur will come out. We tried oatmeal baths and that helped a little as did the oil, but he still gets it. He's a black and white, which I read that black dogs seem to be more prone to dander issues as well as basenjis due to them not having any oil glands.
Can you use human dandruff shampoo on a dog?
His blue buffalo is wilderness duck and potato, I am not sure what to do next?
He looks very healthy is getting no rashes or diarrhea.
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Okay first, of course they have oil glands. They seem to produce a lot less oil, but they have them.
I would have only 2 suggestions… the first is to have his thyroid tested as thyroid issues can cause problems including dry skin.
The second would be to switch to the blue buffalo FISH instead. Duck is very close to chicken in allergy producing. Often you get yucky ears and itchy feet with food allergies, but it can show up with dry sking.
Finally, check your environment. He could have allergies to whatever you clean your carpets or floor or treat the yard with.
The vet probably needs to do a small scraping to make sure there isn't something else going on.
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Thanks. I wonder about fish for dogs as mercury levels being so high they recommend you don't eat fish more than once a week for humans.
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We use olive oil when Kai's skin gets a little too dry, just rub it in and hope he doesn't lick it all off lol
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Kaiser had some dry skin and skin allergy so was put on fish oil and gets sardines and salmon, his coat shines and his dry skin is gone and his probable contact allergy seems to have disappeared, possibly because he now has a protective coating on his skin from the oils as I haven't changed any other thing in his environment apart from adding the fish. He was already on raw. Fingers crossed it stays away.
Jolanda and Kaiser
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You feed him sardines and salmon regularly?
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Yes Barklessdog was suggested by our Holistic Vet, up to 3 cans of sardines in spring water a week, once a week some salmon - was what I already was giving (which I am stopping now as just the sardines are enough with the fish oil he gets) was told sardines are better, cat also has a share of what the dog gets. Fish oil he gets one capsule squeezed on his food 3 times a week.
Jolanda and Kaiser
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We tried fish oil gel caps but made him really gassy. Next vet trip we will have him checked and try sardines in the meantime.
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well, rocky has VERY dry skin to the point where his whole back is dandruff-y lol anyone else have that problem/a solution? maybe its just the cold weather?
I noticed Uzie's skin was very flaky and switched the main protein kibble from chicken to bison. A little olive oil every once in a while and now he is dandruff free. I actually bought a hair product that was recommended for me (olive oil) and he liked having it massaged in his coat!
