Expert: Breeder - 6/6/2006

Question
I have a 8-1/2 month old male Bichon.  We bought him from a pet store when he was 3 mths old.  We found out later that night he needed medical attention but fast!  Both ear canals were swollen shut!  Three days after bring home this cute puppy, he was sedated to clean and pluck his ears.  He is now very proned to ear infections.  He has also had a varity of other health concerns, eye infection, itchy skin and the latest 2 things which I would like your opinion on.  

The first sympton of this problem was when his penis became red & sore looking.  Thinking it was more of a skin problem, we treated it with panalog cream.  The redness would go away, but he would continue to bite at it making it red all over again.  Finally after getting a urine sample to the vet, he was diagosed with Oxalate Crystals in his urine.  The vet has prescribed Royal Canin Urinary SO food for him and has said he most likely will be on it for the rest of his life.  Do you know of a more homestyle diet we can feed him?

The second thing I would like to know more about is when he was approx 7 months old, we took him to the groomers for a "summer" cut.  Being that he has itchy skin, we thought the shorter fur would help reduce the amount of scratching.  Approx 1 week after this,he suddenly developed black/blue patches to 3/4's of his body. At first I thought they were bruises.  The vet said that he's not showing signs of pain and his appetite has not changed, he said I shouldn't be too concerned.  I got the feeling he was a little puzzled to about the sudden color change too.  My Bichon's skin now looks like a black & white jersy cow when wet.  Have you ever heard of this?  Could this be a condition caused by his kidneys or the crystals in his urine?

I appreciate your feedback.  I have read many of your responses to other people and found you to be  informative in more ways than one.  Thanking you in advance - Andrea

Answer
The black spots are called pigmentation and there is nothing work with it.

I am not sure how to help you with that.  I would believe that a natural diet (BARF) could help any dog.  HOwever with the crystal problem I am not an expert on this.

Bill