Expert: Have4Paws - 4/20/2011

Question
My beagle is two years old and has flea allergies which he has frontline for. I just had him neutered 4 weeks ago. when I took him in he was having an allergic reaction to fleas but I could find none he had a flea bath, frontline and i flea bombed my house just in case. He gets so bad he licks himself and lays and shakes and doesn't want to get up. when the vet saw him he said he had staff crusts on his penis and gave me meds for that. I thought he was doing better his stitches are out and he is healed up but now he is back to laying around and acting stiff and walking slowly. I changed his food from Purina one to diamond lamb meal and rice because the feed store said it was better for him. I mixed the food together. I know this is not from fleas so I am thinking maybe its from his food. I noticed when I switched food he started going poop a lot every time he went outside and bore he only went maybe twice a day. Is there a better food to feed him or a good recipe for making my own food for him. I hate to see him this way.

Answer
Hi thanks for writing, poor baby is not doing too well.... the flea allergy can be so hard to keep in control and cause them so much misery. The other thing I am wondering is if he has a food allergy.... does he have red and itchy ears? These are classic signs of food allergies, can also show up on other parts of the body,belly, foot pads, pee pees etc. The food I like the best for beagles is Dick Van Patton's Natural Balance because they make three flavors of their Limited Ingredient Diet. Ther eis salmon, duck and venison, the only onemy beagle boy does well on is the duck but that is just him. These foods have no grains in them whatsoever, they use potatoe or sweet potatoe for the carbs and they are high in protein and low in fat. They are excellant and very similar to the $100 a bag vet allergy foods but less expensive, they arent cheap but much less than the vet food.

It is very possible that ll the pooping came from the food changes but is can also come from antibiotics if the vet put him on any. When you change your dogs food you need to do it veryslowl, especially with an allergic dog which beagles are notorious for being. You start by mixing in as little as 1/4 of his food and after 4-5 days can increase little by little until it is completely switched but if it is not done slowly it will give him diarrhea and a stomach ache. My beagle boy happens to be allergic to lamb as well as was another one of my beagles before so it is not always the answer. The ones I todl you about are what we call "novel" proteins so that means they are something that your dog would never have run into before so he couldnt develop an allergy to it. Beef chicken and grains are the biggest allergens in dogs.

My other thought is that if your vet isnt suggesting using antihistamines or a shot of steroids to help settle it down maybe you need another vet or to go to a canine dematologst.

I hope this is helpful!