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I have a 4 yr old american bulldog named justice. She has had allergies since she was a puppy. She has been treated for almost everything you can imagine to rule out mange, mites, etc. The vet said she has "allergies" (wasnt very helpful in that area) and that the tests would be 1500$. I've already put 2k into the dog with vet bills and I cannot afford the test right now. Everything I have looked into about food allergies seems to fit justice. She has red/bald spots, she itches her paws, her belly, her butt, and her tail, she gets reoccuring ear infections. I've put her on a lamb & rice diet, which was unsuccessful, i've put her on an "all natural" dogfood diet, and now i'm trying her on this new dogfood called Natural Balance Duck & potato allergy formula. Which was 30$. I wash her 2-3 times a week with medicated veternarian prescribed shampoo. I've stopped giving her all table scraps. She is on an antibiotic (her scabs get infected from the itching, an ear infection antibiotic, and something called Dermcaps which is this huge yellow clearish pill that i hate shoving down her throat. She was on a steroid that helped control the allergy breakouts for a long time but then they stopped working and she was losing control of her bowels.

Has anyone had this type of problem with their bully? I hear its common. I seen a guy yesterday with an american bulldog who had similar red bald patches like justice, and i tried to talk to him but he was a jerk and ignored me.

Hi! I don't have a Bully but do have a Shiba Inu that has allergies so maybe I can help some. First we really need to find out the cause of the allergies... are they in fact food related or related to environment. Both can be rather difficult to find the root cause... especially food allergies if one is guessing and always switching foods. Food allergies are pretty self explanatory. Airborn or enivironmental allergens can result in anything from the bedding the dog sleeps on, the rugs he walks on or even the grass in your yard.

I would seriously recommend having the allergy test done. I don't know what test your vet is recommending for $1500 but that seems like a lot of money. I had my female Shiba allergy tested by my vet through Spectrum Labs in California. It is called the SPOT test and the results are a very detailed customized allergy profile. I can't remember the exact cost but 5 years ago it was less than $200...I think $180. You can check out their site here Spectrum Labs It is a blood test where a small sample of your dog's blood is sent to the laboratory where they measure the amount of allergy specific antibodies in your dog's blood.

There are two types of testing done today. The most current technique is the blood test or in vitro and is far less invasive as opposed to older skin test or in vivo. Far more allergens can be detected through the blood test rather than putting the dog through the aggravation of the skin scratch and waiting for a weal to appear.

I had my Shiba Inu's blood tested for close to 200 allergens from known causes in my surroundings including food and environment. There were also many more to chose from. After sending the blood sample out... about 2 weeks later I received a very detailed fully color coded graphic of the allergens that would or could affect my dog. Reds were positive, yellows were borderline and an N was for no reaction. Out of the close to 200 tested allergens she was positive or borderline for 6 food related and 19 environmental allergens. This test helped me immensely to find a food with no ingredients she was allergic to and help eliminate or lessen the others and now the effects have been greatly reduced. I would ask yout vet about this test or ask around if anyone in your area offers it. Also if you are fortunate enough as I am to have a teching college close by it well worth it to seek an appointment with the Dermatology Dept.

I can also help with the DermCaps as I give them to my Shibas. They are a fish oil capsule rich in Omega 3&6's. It does wonders in helping with skin and coat conditions. The easiest way to give it to your Bully is to punture one end and squeeze the oil right onto her food. No more forcing it down her throat and if desired you can put the empty capsule in with the food so she gets the full benefit of the oils that might remain.

I hope some of this will help you to get your dog some relief. In the meantime you ask your vet to prescribe an anti-histimine and even possibly a very low dose of prednisone.
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Bob

If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.

I had a dog with skin allergies who led me to learn some things that help. Here are some actions for you to consider.

Yes, a hypoallergenic dog food, or at least one with a different meat from what your dog is used to. Mine did great changing to BilJac frozen, but that is not available everywhere.

Everytime you bathe, apply Alpha Keri bath oil, about 1/2 cup in 2 cups of water in a spray bottle, and rub it into the skin. Those baths dry out the skin and that just makes the skin more vulnerable to allergies.

Apply undiluted apple cidar vinegar on a paper towel to broken skin areas. This stuff is amazing. Do it once a day.

Have the dog's thyroid blood values checked. That is a major cause of skin allergies. It needs to be sent to one of the OFA approved labs and the values of Total T4, Free T4 and TSH all need to be checked. It won't cost any $1500! If your dog needs thyroid medication, it will sure help the allergies.

Vitamins. Give a multi-vitamin (such as Pet Tabs), a non-acidic vitamin C (sodium ascorbate is one) and possibly also vitamin E daily. Check out the book How to Have Healthier Dog by Belfield and Zucker. I believe you can get it at www.belfield.com. It gives the details and dosages of the vitamins.

Give your dog oh, perhaps 1 tablespoonful of extra virgin olive oil per day in the dog food. This stuff is great.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47

Hello, I have a bully and she has the exact same problem. I was told that it was also food allergies, but I found out that it is a yest infection that is irritated by many foods or ingredient's that are in most dog foods. I found a product called Nzymes that helps to cure the problem inside and out (with treats, topical treatment, and a supplement that you add to the food- My dog LOVES the supplement) It is an all natural treatment that costs me $234.80 (two day shipping included) and it was totally worth it. The website is Nzymes.com and it has TONS of info on dogs with the same condition and how they got better, including what foods and ingredient's to avoid, and what will help the process to go quicker. I also got my girl dog food called Avoderm- a natural dog food for dog's with allergies, it is made with avocados, which is the natural skin treatment for rashes or hot spots. Avocados also help to rebuild the natural skin oils to keep the skin and coat healthy. I also got Avoderm oatmeal bath. The Avoderm products are available at PetCo. The nice thing about these two products is that it's not a permanent process. It lasts (depending on how bad the infection is) about 3 months. And once the infection is completely clear, you can feed your dog whatever you want, whenever you want and you wont have breakouts.

I hope your bully gets better soon!
Nzymes Product Page