Yeasty situation

[Amy6978]

Ok, so we are on our N'zymes and it is starting to come out... I am so nervous. I know that it gets worse before it gets better. But his hair is coming out on his legs. Around his eyes. On his paws. He is licking his legs raw.

We were just on vacation and we had the dogs go to seperate dog sitters. The dog sitter that had my baby boo was so worried about him he took him to a vet and a groomer (didn't tell me until I got home :uhoh2 The vet said they were just hot spots and the groomer gave him an antiseptic with lidocain in it to spray on the hot spots.

Now I am giving him N'zymes and spraying him with Ox-E-Drops 2% solution, baking soda solution, and listerine. The dog sitter didn't like spraying him with these because Zuko looked sad when he sprayed him.

So now Zuko has raw legs and something I am not so sure I wanted sprayed on him?????

I am so glad that my sitter was concerned for him, but a bit upset that he took him without my knowledge and got other stuff to put on him, when I gave him 3 SPRAYS to spray on him.

I am nervous enough about my boys skin- I just don't want to through anything else in the mix that shouldn't be in there.

This is such a frustrating process. I am even questioning my change to raw food at this point. I am just so worried and frustrated.

Back when we had him on Orijen kibble his skin cleared up and he was doing so well. Then we changed to Natures Logic and things went into the crapper again. Then we went raw. He just still hasn't gotten well since. We have tried so many things to get this under control. I just want to rid him of this yeast and stop him from this insane itching!!!

I just want to know that we are on the right track. I just want to know that we are going in the right direction with the raw food, the N'zymes...

It is so hard.

We spend so much time and money on these dogs and we just want to do what is right. And when things just don't get better it is so frustrating. Sometimes vets are no help. I just want someone to tell me what is wrong with him and help me make him better without making me broke. Instead I have to figure it out on my own. I go to the vet when I HAVE to. I am learning so much, but it is at an emotional cost...

I just love my dogs so much...

So where am I going here....

I just want to know- The N'zymes are working if he is getting worse right? I need to stick with it and I am doing the right thing feeding him raw right? I should continue to use my sprays and not the sprays from the groomer. Should I get him and elizabethan collar? SHould I put tube socks on him?

OK, so that is it for now.... sorry for the long message- I am just really frustrated today.

 

[Angela]

Sorry, I know nothing about N'Zymes but am wondering. If the Orijen wasn't causing a problem with his skin, then why did you change to Nature's Logic and then to raw?
Maybe I missed something in earlier posts about the problem.

 

[Newfs Forever]

If it is food allergies, then I think you need to experiment. I have been feeding raw for 9 years, but, initially I was feeding Dex lamb. Well, he came down with 5 hot spots at the same time. I was frantic. So, I thought it has to be either grains or lamb. Pick one. The lamb went and his hot spots cleared up. He hasn't even had a sniff of lamb since. He also is off grains with the exception of his treats.

For the past 3 summers I have had problems with Dex and yeast. I use the Malaseb towelettes to clean the areas every day. It does tend to keep it at bay.

HTH,

 

[Amy6978]

Sorry, I know nothing about N'Zymes but am wondering. If the Orijen wasn't causing a problem with his skin, then why did you change to Nature's Logic and then to raw?
Maybe I missed something in earlier posts about the problem.

We changed from Orijen to Natures Logic because I was told by someone that it was just as good, but had no chemical nutrients and was the best next to raw.... I could kick myself. We wanted to go raw and would have gone raw with a mix of Orijen. But Nature's Logic was also much cheaper than Orijen so we trusted this person who was a raw feeder for many years and knew a lot about raw food and kibble. She was a great resource for feeding raw.

I wish I was paying more attention to when we originally changed him to Orijen so I knew how much the environmental allergies played into this. I am positive he has environmental allergies.

We did do an elemination diet, but I am not happy with any of my THREE vets so I am really frustrated... there is nothing more I can say.

But I have sprayed him with the sprays and I have wigwam socks on him to help with the scratching. Poor guy....

 

[Newfs Forever]

Amy,

This is just my VHO! Correct me if I am wrong, but you feel as though we are dealing with food allergies????

If so, then eliminate everything (unless meds are needed, ie soloxine, etc.) and keep him on a bland diet of boiled white rice and boiled beef/chx/fish. I understand you have done the elimination diet, but when I went through it, it took about 3 weeks for just one ingredient to be evaluated.

So you feel as though one of the above proteins are problematic? Then don't use it. Use whatever you think may have the best results.

So the above maybe very boring, but, you want to eliminate as much as possible as you can and go from there.

HTH,

 

[Amy6978]

Amy,

This is just my VHO! Correct me if I am wrong, but you feel as though we are dealing with food allergies????

If so, then eliminate everything (unless meds are needed, ie soloxine, etc.) and keep him on a bland diet of boiled white rice and boiled beef/chx/fish. I understand you have done the elimination diet, but when I went through it, it took about 3 weeks for just one ingredient to be evaluated.

So you feel as though one of the above proteins are problematic? Then don't use it. Use whatever you think may have the best results.

So the above maybe very boring, but, you want to eliminate as much as possible as you can and go from there.

HTH,

You are correct... we did 8 weeks of JUST CHICKEN... then we added beef.... now we have turkey. no change occured until I added the N'zymes.

Now, with the N'zymes they specifically say the dog will get WORSE before they get better. They need to "detox" to get rid of the toxins and get rid of the yeast in their system. So I am knowledgeable of this fact.

I guess I am the kind of person that just needs someone to hold my hand and tell me it is OK. Even though I know it is OK.

I know that the raw diet is the best diet for the dogs. They are getting all natural food. I know that there is no better food- I know everything that is in it. Many times I buy the meat from the butcher. They are grain fed organic chicken and cows- I swear my dogs are fed better than me!

Otherwise it is Bravo meat and Honest kitchen freeze dried raw.

They get nothing with grain, corn, sugar, gluten etc. No raw hide, nothing from china. (just the left over dogswells) I shop at a holistic pet store and they get beef trachea instead of raw hide. They get beef knuckles instead of any other kind of bone- nothing smoked or cooked with any kind of preservative or sugar.

I actually have my cat on tuna and sardines!!!! No more hairballs!!!! And her puking has decreased DRAMATICALLY!!!! So no more kibble in my house for anyone!

Now, if I could just eat this good!:roflmao:

 

[mulenag]

Just a thought...now I want to add that I do use Nzymes and have been very pleased with the results...
BUT...
You have changed a lot in a short time so it's hard to pinpoint the culprit. IF you are dealing with a food allergy/intolerance the Nzymes MIGHT be a trigger. It is a soy product and some dogs do not tolerate soy.

Just a thought.
Good luck and I hope you can get things sorted out. I know how heartbreaking it is to see your pupper with that kind of discomfort.

 

[jordansmom]

When Jordan was 2 (he's 4 now) I started on a yeast cleanse with N'Zymes. It seemed for alittle while that his condition worsened whereby I succumbed to my husband's pressure to take him to the vet, therefore taking Jordan off the product. At the time my husband was not into holistic remedies. Jordan was also suffering from hypothyroidism, the primary problem. Earlier this year I decided to go bust with a yeast cleanse. Changed his diet to a holistic fish kibble, added probiotics (geneflora), digestive enzymes (Prozymes), and flaxseed oil. He broke out all over, smelled horribly yeasty...what a mess! Used undiluted white vinegar spray a couple of times that helped clear up any surface yeast issues. I did take him to the vet for a skin scraping, because Jordan would either have yeast or bacterial infections. The last time I needed to take him in during this cleanse process it turned out to be bacterial, so he went on a round of antibiotics. Once that infectious process cleared up, and the new diet finally worked its way through his system, we've been good to go ever since June. So I would say the yeast cleanse (and everything else inbetween) took a good 5-6 months.

I tried the Oxy-drops 2% solution a few years ago. Honestly....didn't see anything come of it.

 

[charlieinnj]

Wow....poor Zuko AND you! I am a long time customer of Nzymes but never had to deal with a yeast situation. If you have any questions about the product, I'd suggest you calling the number on their website and asking to speak with Stan. He is the owner of the company and several years ago, my Mom spoke to him and he was very helpful.

I would also recommend you finding a skin specialist just to be sure you're not dealing with a raging skin infection that is making all this worse. I went through 6 month of Oliver being extremely itchy and chewing (nowhere near as bad as you're going through though...) and thankfully, there was a specialist at my Vet's practice and she was the only Vet (out of the 3 others he had seen there....) that immediately identified the issue. Oliver had to go on antibiotics for nearly a month. If it's a skin infection, they have to be on antibiotics for 7 days BEYOND the point when the infection is diagnosed as "gone". Otherwise, it'll come right back. (I see you're in NJ...I am, too. If you're not happy with your Vet, even though it would be a bit of a distance to travel, if you're interested in seeing the Vet I've mentioned to possibly get this under control, her name is Dr. Hoffman and she's at the Mount Laurel Animal Hospital. I ADORE her!)

And, I'd try Zuko on the Orijen 6-fish if you can get your hands on it. I've never had much luck giving my dogs any chicken or beef products. They always seemed to make them itchy and chew on themselves.

 

[ardeagold]

Amy...don't just feed your cat tuna and sardines. They need a lot of things (vitamins/nutrients) that aren't in just tuna and sardines. Taurine being one of them. Lack of taurine causes cats to go blind. That's why it's in cat food.

Also...tuna isn't a good thing for a constant diet for a couple of reasons. 1) The toxin content....like mercury, and 2) just feeding fish can cause kidney/UT problems.

Cats ARE carnivores...not omnivores. But you need to rotate her diet. You might want to check on a cat board for feeding raw to a cat. You may have to supplement...or at least make sure there's a rotation of all types of meats so that she gets proper nutrition.

I've always wondered why they don't make canned mouse for cats! :roflmao: :roflmao:

I'd also make sure that you see a Vet about the skin issues. It could be a combination of staph and yeast....and unfortunately you need the antibiotics to rid the dog of the staph, and antibiotics often intensifies yeast.

The combination problem, along with antibiotics, can be handled by bathing with an antimicrobial shampoo (like Melasab) and rinsing with vinegar/water....letting that rinse dry on the dog (without rinsing it out - but you DO towel dry - then blow dry with cool air).

While you're at the Vet, having a full thyroid panel is a great idea (FULL panel...sent out...not the inhouse test), as Jordan's Mom said. Skin problems are very often the result of hypothyroidism in dogs.

 

[BoundlessNewfs]

Our Lucy is SO allergic, to so many things. We found that once she reacts to something, her system is so hypersensitive that she will react to almost everything. Stop all of the sprays, etc. You may be killing off the "good" stuff, allowing the "bad" to flourish.

What we found works best for Lucy when she starts to itch or get hot spots, is to wash her in Chlorhexaderm shampoo, and rinse, rinse, rinse working our fingers through her coat, right down to the skin til there's no more slippery feel. Blow dry. After that, the only thing we apply to itchies or hot spots is the Chlorhexaderm Flush. It seems to relieve the itch, because she won't nibble those areas again for days (then we re-apply).

We found that she cannot have grains, beef, or lamb. When she started to refuse to eat, I went to the specialty dog food shop here, and told the owner what Lucy could not have. The owner gave me samples of 10 different brands/types of kibble to take home (which didn't contain things Lucy couldn't have). I opened the zip-loc bags and placed them on the floor, then let Lucy walk through to sniff the bags (at this point she had lost weight after not eating much for almost two weeks). She walked through sniffing...avoiding some completely...then stopped and looked very hopeful (and hungry) by one bag. I gave it to her and she wolfed it down. I've been feeding that kibble ever since, and the only times she had a problem was when we had company who gave her food scraps (they thought they were being nice...ugh!), and when she got into the cat food.

She went through a bad phase last year with ear infections (pseudomonas, yeast, proteus, etc)...which started after she ate cat food in the summer. It took us several visits to a Vet Dermatologist and some ear drops that the vet concocted out of meds that Lucy didn't react to (she can't use steroids and some antibiotics). About June this year, she finally had a clear ear culture....then my folks visited in July and gave Lucy table scraps...and we're battling gunky ears again.