Frenchie Allergies and Sad Pup and Mom

[mrsjholland]

okay, this is my my first post, as i JUST found this forum. But... my frenchie poo has some serious allergy issues so let me just give a quick-as-possible back story so you all know what i have tried and what i have done.

Patton, my fur baby, is about a year and half old. When i first got him, i transitioned properly from whatever food he was on from the breeder, to Royal Canin for indoor puppies and then after he turned one i transitioned him to Royal Canin for French Bulldogs Adult. Everything was fine during all of this, no problems at all. Then, out of nowhere, he started breaking out in what i like to call, hives. little bumps under the fur that sort of make his fur stand up and he was very itchy. I took him to the vet several times for this issue. We have tried EVERYTHING (steroid shots, benedryl, shampoo, etc.). Nothing has really helped long term. I started thinking and talking to other dog owners and heard that maybe it was the food because it contains chicken. So after talking with my vet and her explaining that even though he has been on the food in the past and been fine, he could have developed a chicken allergy and maybe changing the food may solve the problem. So i put him on NO chicken food and also grain free but it had sweet potato and pumpkin which was really really really bad for his tummy. So, i went to get new food to transition him off of that and am now using Natural Balance L.I.D. with no chicken and not as much fiber. However.... in the transition, my husband, who wasn't aware of all Patton's issues, gave him some treats with chicken and now he is broken out in hives and itchy like crazy. He has a vet appt tomorrow but i just feel terrible for him.

So i guess my question is, is chicken a known allergy issue for other frenchie pups? What works and what doesn't? and do you all even think thats what it is or could it be allergies from pollen, etc. like people have? or something else that i'm missing completely? We don't use many fragrance items or chemical items in the house, most cleaners are organic and the only "air fresheners" we use are scentsy and essential oils....

 

[Jakeyjake]

It's hard to say whether it is environmental allergies or food allergies. However, if he is getting hives after eating chicken, I would definitley eliminate chicken from his diet and see if that helps. Also there are many higher quality kibbles than Royal Canin and Natural Balance. Not sure which NB you are feeding but many have sweet potato or regular potato as the first ingredient. I would look for a food that lists a meat or fish as the first ingredient. I would also avoid potato, which can be inflammatory and don't forget to transition slowly to any new food to avoid tummy upset. You can check out Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor to read dog food reviews. If a different food doesn't help, then you may want to talk to your vet about Apoquel since he is over one year old. It has been a miracle drug for both of mine. Good luck to you and Patton.

 

[mrsjholland]

thank you! she mentioned the apoquel when i made the appt for tomorrow. he is so itchy he is starting to lose his little hairs on his shoulders. poor baby if you don't mind me asking, what are some better brands of foods? i can research all day but i'm not sure where to start. I thought that this one i got him was pretty good but i'm new to having a dog with possibly food allergies. this is the ingredient list to his food currently:

Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Ground White Rice, Rice Bran, Canola Oil, Lamb, Tomato Pomace, Natural Flavor, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Manganese Proteinate, Manganous Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid.

 

[Cbrugs]

Welcome to the forum! Jax has environmental allergies and some food issues as well. If Patton breaks out in hives after eating chicken, then I would stay away from chicken all together. As stated RC is not a good food. A lot of people on here feed Fromm, Orijen or Acana. And what works for one, may not work for another so it's kind of a trial and error basis in finding something that works for Patton. I recommend finding a high quality kibble that is chicken, grain and potato free. Sometimes peas can cause issues as well. You might also want to do a single source protein.

Jax is on Apoquel for his environmental allergies (he is allergic to grass, trees, shrubs, weeds, everything green) and he can't go without it. But I would try switching foods first and seeing if that does the trick. It can take a couple of weeks before you notice a difference with a new food. But if you want to invest in it, you can have an allergy test done to see if Patton has any environmental allergies.

 

[Honeys Owners]

A lot of members have had success switching to raw food, or buying a base mix such as Honest Kitchen Preference or Urban Wolf, as well as others, and putting their own protein on top.

 

[WeeDex]

My Frenchie has both food and environmental allergies. It's hard to get to the bottom of it I'm afraid. I agree with everything above. Raw is the most basic protein you can feed, as it has zero additional ingredients. So for example, it would only contain lamb meat, lamb bone and lamb offal. Nothing else. If they react to it, it's the lamb. Dexters allergy to proteins is extremely obvious and fast. Red eyes, pouring tears that smell; chronic itch; yeast infections.... Any carbohydrate is a disaster for him.

Try and find an extremely limited ingredient food that's readily available to you, and stick with it for at least 8 weeks. They may initially get worse, but it takes this amount of time to get that reaction out of their system and allow the new food to take effect.

Check out the Nutriscan test too. You can google it. It may help give you some pointers as to what to avoid.

Good luck with it. Dealing with allergies has become more than a pastime for me unfortunately! I'm still not on top of it after nearly 2 years, and really get how stressful it is. Especially when you see them itching until they bleed etc.

 

[coolcat]

there is the website Dogfoodadvisor.com which has dog foods listed by stars, 5 stars being the best.
I know vets recommend royal canin but it isn't rated very well.
We had a real problem with diarrehea and finally have our Frenchie on simple by wellness and it has just 2 ingredients.
Have chosen lamb and oatmeal since I read frenchies can be allergic to chicken and potato....
She has doe very well on it.
Also just started her on apoquel for her feet licking....
These dogs so have some issues that need to be worked with....

 

[Honeys Owners]

Not sure if the oatmeal is the best ingredient for Patton since it's a grain. You'd be better off starting with Wellness Simple Grain Free Salmon and Potato or Grain free Turkey and Potato. Apoquel is much safer than prednisone but still can slightly increase risk of infections and cancer when used long term.

 

[Jakeyjake]

thank you! she mentioned the apoquel when i made the appt for tomorrow. he is so itchy he is starting to lose his little hairs on his shoulders. poor baby if you don't mind me asking, what are some better brands of foods? i can research all day but i'm not sure where to start. I thought that this one i got him was pretty good but i'm new to having a dog with possibly food allergies. this is the ingredient list to his food currently:

Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Ground White Rice, Rice Bran, Canola Oil, Lamb, Tomato Pomace, Natural Flavor, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Manganese Proteinate, Manganous Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid.

Have you considered trying a fish based kibble? Orijen six fish may be worth a try. I would also look for a grain free food, which Orijen is. Acana is another good brand, but a bit higher in carbohydrates (sugar) which can cause inflammation and yeast overgrowth. My dogs did not tolerate raw very well and I wanted to get them off of kibble, so we are now feeding Sojos pre-mix which is a freeze dried base mix of veggies and some fruits and you add your own protein (raw or cooked) The Sojos complete meals are super high in carbs and I would not recommend them. Jake licks his feet on lamb so he gets wild cod or salmon. I make up multiple containers at a time for convenience. The Honest Kitchen is also another good brand that has freeze dried meals or a base mix. Some companies sell a small sample packet if you want to make sure he likes it first before investing.
I also found that when Stella was super itchy and would scratch her rib cage raw, a shirt helped. Mine also get bathed once per week with Douxo Chlorhexidine shampoo that leaves them nice and soft.

 

[Alice Kable]

Our English Bulldog has many food allergies and does really well on Nature's Variety Instinct Limited Ingredient Turkey.

 

[2bullymama]

thank you! she mentioned the apoquel when i made the appt for tomorrow. he is so itchy he is starting to lose his little hairs on his shoulders. poor baby if you don't mind me asking, what are some better brands of foods? i can research all day but i'm not sure where to start. I thought that this one i got him was pretty good but i'm new to having a dog with possibly food allergies. this is the ingredient list to his food currently:

Lamb Meal, Brown Rice, Ground White Rice, Rice Bran, Canola Oil, Lamb, Tomato Pomace, Natural Flavor, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Natural Mixed Tocopherols, Taurine, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Manganese Proteinate, Manganous Oxide, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Riboflavin (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Folic Acid.

As others have sated --- get you baby on a high quality food here are some suggestions, no particulatr order, but great foods to choose from:

The Honest Kitchen
Acana
Orijen
Natures Varity Instinct
Earthborn
Fromm