Adopted 2yr male chow with skin irritations..
Moderator: chowadmin
Adopted 2yr male chow with skin irritations..
Dear all,
I'm Shirley and with my boyfriend Johnny, we have adopted a 2yr old male black chow.. He is from Taiwan but was imported to Singapore.
We are the 3rd owner as of yesterday, 27-jan.
Today is only the 2nd day with us. However we sent him for grooming today and was told that he has spots and skin irriations on him.. Groomer suggested to shave him down. It was a hard decision but we hope to give him a new life with us.. Therefore went ahead with the shaving now. However, he became very sad and grouchy since he was back from the grooming. We have decided to bring him to visit a vet tomorrow to review his condition.
But seeing him feeling itchy the whole day.. Breaks our heart.. How can we help him to relieve the itch?
Appreciate If anyone can advise.
Thanks so much in advance!!
I'm Shirley and with my boyfriend Johnny, we have adopted a 2yr old male black chow.. He is from Taiwan but was imported to Singapore.
We are the 3rd owner as of yesterday, 27-jan.
Today is only the 2nd day with us. However we sent him for grooming today and was told that he has spots and skin irriations on him.. Groomer suggested to shave him down. It was a hard decision but we hope to give him a new life with us.. Therefore went ahead with the shaving now. However, he became very sad and grouchy since he was back from the grooming. We have decided to bring him to visit a vet tomorrow to review his condition.
But seeing him feeling itchy the whole day.. Breaks our heart.. How can we help him to relieve the itch?
Appreciate If anyone can advise.
Thanks so much in advance!!
Re: Adopted 2yr male chow with skin irritations..
so hard when they are miserable! I hope the vet was able to diagnose and it's something easily treatable.
REPLY: Adopted 2yr male chow with skin irritations..
Hi,
With all my purebred german king rottweillers and Chows, I have always chosen to go natural as opposed to expensive prescriptions.
Hubby and I have been very fortunate to have adopted 2 purebred chows over the past 7 years.
Our current Chow -Charlie, has shown skin irritations and hot spots in early Spring and late summer time.
1]Very very important to find yourself a groomer that is experienced with Chows and understands their fur growth and skin irritations.
Ensure that bathing products don't have additional chemicals, as natural as possible and ensuring that oatmeal and tea tree oil are top/main ingredients.
When bathing at home, very important to take extra time to rinse as Chows have super thick coats and need extra rinse time to ensure all suds get out. If not, will cause skin irritations.
**Sorry administrators, I'm not intending to promote a specific a product here**
I met a lovely young lady who created a natural product line (Melissa's Aloe Pet) at a dog show a few years ago. Purchased her Aloe elixir which is pure and can be mixed directly with dog food. If you can't find it, you can also go to your local grocery/health food/asian store and purchase pure aloe stalks, cut out the inside of the aloe and add it to your dog's feedings. It has natural healing properties that you can read about. I would say safe to initally add 3-4 tablespoons per feeding and see how you dog reacts.
2] In the meantime, you can go to the local Dollar Tree and purchase a few tubes of their the generic polysporin, as well as their hydrocortisoce creams, along with a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a spray bottle. Mix up 1-1 ratio of hydrogen peroxide and water into the spray bottle. Use this to clean the hot spot/irritated areas. Lightly dab dry with tissue then apply a thin coat of the hydrocortisone cream. Allow to dry a bit then add a generous coating of the polysporin on top. You can do the creams several times throughout the day until it clears up. I would only recommend the hydrogen peroxide mixture spray when initially applying the creams. Just ensure to stop your pooch from licking the creams off...if on the paws, just put baby/kiddie sock on them.
These remedies have worked wonders for my dogs. It helps and make them more comfortable.
3] You also want to make sure you feed you chow good quality food that has fish oils or lighter meats such as turkey or chicken.
I have been using the Costco & Sam's club name brands for years -the salmon & rice or turkey/chicken & rice formulas.
***Sorry again admins, not intending to promote product names***
During our Canadian winters here, I switch my Charlie to the lamb & rice formula.
I also give him a fish/salmon oil capsule every other day or 3rd day (depends on your dog's bowels. If his poop seems soft after administering, simply spread the days out of when you give him a capsule. 1 capsule is sufficient.) I just buy the fish/salmon oil capsules from the pharmacy...have even found the Dollar Tree brands to be good.
Although most dog foods and the ones I use already contain it, I also administer over the counter glocusomine chondritine pills every day to help with his bones/joints as he ages. A good preventative step.
You can spend $$$ on vet testings for skin irritations but that's your call. Most reasonable vets will be honest with you on what they think it is.
4]Keep in mind you just got your little guy so I would definitely start on the spray and creams immediately which will give him/her some relief from the itching . The hydrogen peroxide will cleanse the area.
The food should be done immediately and monitored over a period of at least a month to see how his digestive systems takes. The diet will show results in his coat/skin. Keep in mind that your little guy most likely had an unstable diet prior to arriving on your doorstep which could have attributed to his skin irritations.
Keeping him on a well balanced consistent diet is key to healthy skin/fur for Chows.
Some Chows, like other breed dogs, develop food/seasonal allergies so first see how he reacts to a consistent diet.
If it persists, its your call if you want to spend the $$$ on pet allergy testings.
I chose giving my dog fish/poultry & rice formula dog foods with fish oils added and its done wonders for my guy.
Whenever we eat fish, my little Charlie Chow Chow gets the fish skin (and sometime some fish meat) added to his feedings.
We have concluded his other skin irritations are a result of seasonal allergies in the Spring/Summer...as they occur the same time my Hubby has his seasonal allergies, then disappear til the next year. We keep him indoor more often, to also keep him from our hot hot humid Canadian summers (**Yes, we do have them
)
If his seasonal allergies really hit him hard, I give him a half dose of allergy pills every other day until they clear up. Again, these remedies that I have tried work for all my dogs, including my Chows.
Regular home brushing and visits to the groomer and also essential to keeping a healthy coat and warding off skin irritations.
I hope my experiences and tips help your situation. Wishing you all the best with your little Chow Chow.
MS D'Meanor
With all my purebred german king rottweillers and Chows, I have always chosen to go natural as opposed to expensive prescriptions.
Hubby and I have been very fortunate to have adopted 2 purebred chows over the past 7 years.
Our current Chow -Charlie, has shown skin irritations and hot spots in early Spring and late summer time.
1]Very very important to find yourself a groomer that is experienced with Chows and understands their fur growth and skin irritations.
Ensure that bathing products don't have additional chemicals, as natural as possible and ensuring that oatmeal and tea tree oil are top/main ingredients.
When bathing at home, very important to take extra time to rinse as Chows have super thick coats and need extra rinse time to ensure all suds get out. If not, will cause skin irritations.
**Sorry administrators, I'm not intending to promote a specific a product here**
I met a lovely young lady who created a natural product line (Melissa's Aloe Pet) at a dog show a few years ago. Purchased her Aloe elixir which is pure and can be mixed directly with dog food. If you can't find it, you can also go to your local grocery/health food/asian store and purchase pure aloe stalks, cut out the inside of the aloe and add it to your dog's feedings. It has natural healing properties that you can read about. I would say safe to initally add 3-4 tablespoons per feeding and see how you dog reacts.
2] In the meantime, you can go to the local Dollar Tree and purchase a few tubes of their the generic polysporin, as well as their hydrocortisoce creams, along with a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a spray bottle. Mix up 1-1 ratio of hydrogen peroxide and water into the spray bottle. Use this to clean the hot spot/irritated areas. Lightly dab dry with tissue then apply a thin coat of the hydrocortisone cream. Allow to dry a bit then add a generous coating of the polysporin on top. You can do the creams several times throughout the day until it clears up. I would only recommend the hydrogen peroxide mixture spray when initially applying the creams. Just ensure to stop your pooch from licking the creams off...if on the paws, just put baby/kiddie sock on them.
These remedies have worked wonders for my dogs. It helps and make them more comfortable.
3] You also want to make sure you feed you chow good quality food that has fish oils or lighter meats such as turkey or chicken.
I have been using the Costco & Sam's club name brands for years -the salmon & rice or turkey/chicken & rice formulas.
***Sorry again admins, not intending to promote product names***
During our Canadian winters here, I switch my Charlie to the lamb & rice formula.
I also give him a fish/salmon oil capsule every other day or 3rd day (depends on your dog's bowels. If his poop seems soft after administering, simply spread the days out of when you give him a capsule. 1 capsule is sufficient.) I just buy the fish/salmon oil capsules from the pharmacy...have even found the Dollar Tree brands to be good.
Although most dog foods and the ones I use already contain it, I also administer over the counter glocusomine chondritine pills every day to help with his bones/joints as he ages. A good preventative step.
You can spend $$$ on vet testings for skin irritations but that's your call. Most reasonable vets will be honest with you on what they think it is.
4]Keep in mind you just got your little guy so I would definitely start on the spray and creams immediately which will give him/her some relief from the itching . The hydrogen peroxide will cleanse the area.
The food should be done immediately and monitored over a period of at least a month to see how his digestive systems takes. The diet will show results in his coat/skin. Keep in mind that your little guy most likely had an unstable diet prior to arriving on your doorstep which could have attributed to his skin irritations.
Keeping him on a well balanced consistent diet is key to healthy skin/fur for Chows.
Some Chows, like other breed dogs, develop food/seasonal allergies so first see how he reacts to a consistent diet.
If it persists, its your call if you want to spend the $$$ on pet allergy testings.
I chose giving my dog fish/poultry & rice formula dog foods with fish oils added and its done wonders for my guy.
Whenever we eat fish, my little Charlie Chow Chow gets the fish skin (and sometime some fish meat) added to his feedings.
We have concluded his other skin irritations are a result of seasonal allergies in the Spring/Summer...as they occur the same time my Hubby has his seasonal allergies, then disappear til the next year. We keep him indoor more often, to also keep him from our hot hot humid Canadian summers (**Yes, we do have them
)If his seasonal allergies really hit him hard, I give him a half dose of allergy pills every other day until they clear up. Again, these remedies that I have tried work for all my dogs, including my Chows.
Regular home brushing and visits to the groomer and also essential to keeping a healthy coat and warding off skin irritations.
I hope my experiences and tips help your situation. Wishing you all the best with your little Chow Chow.
MS D'Meanor