Thread: Staffordshire Bull Terrier

Originally Posted by dullbird

m thats a shame was interested as I dont know of any parasite that is specific to staffys.

what your describing sounds like it could be demadex or even ringworm

but if anyone knows of the name I would be interested to hear it! just for my own learning and interest

I will ask next time atthe vet.

Originally we thought it was ringworm but the vet said it definately wasn't.

Thanks for all the responses everyone. Yes, Staffies are great dogs. I wasn't real sure about getting one since every dog i've had until i bought Reg was a German Shepherd or Belgian Shepherd. They were all great dogs but Reg takes the cake. With out a doubt he's got the best nature of any. He can be a little timid at times but none the less, he's a cracker. When I took him to the vet for the 1st time she gave me a warning about the Staffies nature " they're cat killers and can be very anti-social towards other dogs and people" Ohhh how wrong people could she be this bloke sleeps with our 3 cats, has never had a fight and has only ever had a go at one person and that was when a silly old lady tried to have a look in my young blokes pram whilst we were out shopping. We all got a shock at that. Jesus, that was funny.
As far as Regs allergies go the vet says it's an enzyme or protein in beef that causes the reaction which is a welt and pustulous sore in variuos parts of his body. But, being rugby season i take him to training and games where inevitably people unwittingly feed him banger sangers and this brings out his allergy. Thus far we've tried different treatments but have now settled on cocktail of daily amoxycillin and a reducing dose of prednisolone. The former for the infection in the sores and the latter for the inflammation and irritatation. You're right DB about the appetite he will eat anything when he's on preds. Same with me when i've been on it.
For now we'll have to see what time may bring us but i can't help but feel sorry for this keg on legs called Reg. Whoever said " a dog is a mans best friend " was very correct in deed.

Cheers
Rob

Originally Posted by kowari

Our Wirehaired pointer gets a reaction/rash from (we think) couch gass, had it now for about 3 years. she is on tablets permanently almost, they are pretty exy but the quarterzone ones (little blue ones) have side efects, one of which is blindness.

If we keep her off the treatment she gets a red itchy rash on her stomach and chest.

I have not heard beef mentoined before, will think about that one.

Do you have a plant called "Wandering Jew" it is a groundcover, it effects dogs badly with red, itchy feet and belly, only cure is to get rid of this weed.
Beautiful dog, the Wirehaired Pointer, our Inga recently passed away after 11 years, I have had many dogs over the years but our Wirehaired Pointer, Inga, was by far the most inteligent, loving dog we have ever owned, trouble is they dont live long enough, Regards Frank.

Originally Posted by Boxhead63

Thanks for all the responses everyone. Yes, Staffies are great dogs. I wasn't real sure about getting one since every dog i've had until i bought Reg was a German Shepherd or Belgian Shepherd. They were all great dogs but Reg takes the cake. With out a doubt he's got the best nature of any. He can be a little timid at times but none the less, he's a cracker. When I took him to the vet for the 1st time she gave me a warning about the Staffies nature " they're cat killers and can be very anti-social towards other dogs and people" Ohhh how wrong people could she be this bloke sleeps with our 3 cats, has never had a fight and has only ever had a go at one person and that was when a silly old lady tried to have a look in my young blokes pram whilst we were out shopping. We all got a shock at that. Jesus, that was funny.
As far as Regs allergies go the vet says it's an enzyme or protein in beef that causes the reaction which is a welt and pustulous sore in variuos parts of his body. But, being rugby season i take him to training and games where inevitably people unwittingly feed him banger sangers and this brings out his allergy. Thus far we've tried different treatments but have now settled on cocktail of daily amoxycillin and a reducing dose of prednisolone. The former for the infection in the sores and the latter for the inflammation and irritatation. You're right DB about the appetite he will eat anything when he's on preds. Same with me when i've been on it.
For now we'll have to see what time may bring us but i can't help but feel sorry for this keg on legs called Reg. Whoever said " a dog is a mans best friend " was very correct in deed.

Cheers
Rob

If it continues on feed him ZD Rob it will help...its not cheap but it should help

Staffys are the best dogs bar none. I am on my 3rd in 25 years. Parents abducted my first.
They have skin problems that can be caused by a variety of reasons. You have to take time and localise it. The skin irritaions can be caused by anyjthing from protein issues with dog food, plants, grasses, heat etc. The hard part is going to be how to determine it. Our current girl is gluten intolerant.
My previous girl Coco had reaction to couch grass and some canned pet food. Also some irritation during really hot weather. Also clean bedding regularly.
I apply anything from Eurax, Stingoes, Rapaid, Barrier Cream etc to help through to specialist dog creams. Actually found things like Stingoes and Rapaid have worked really well. Hydroquarterzone cream is great also but expensive and does not always work better than generics.
Its going to be a bit of trial and error.
I have never heard of a parasite specific to Staffies that would cause irritation, but I am not a vet and it is possible.
If they have ring worm I have found Tinaderm works well on animals and humans.
My current girl Cassie only gets freshly cooked meat, rice and some pasta plus fresh fruit and some vegies. Loves mashed vegies.

Originally Posted by cooper

I was told of wandering jew by a vet also

.As an added complication he said some dogs are allergic to too much pork.Not much left for them to eat is there?

Most dogs are irritated by it


when my boxer gets his skin irriattion which we initially blamed on weeds....he gets little pustulates to

we bath him pyhoex (which has an active ingrediant to help with the treatment of the infection) but we also use a spray called cortivance.

it doesn't work for all dogs but I feel is a lot safe (although still can have side effects) than using Pred. I only use the spray on him when he gets bad and its two pumps to an effected area which is 10cmx10cm you use it for 7 days...although I have found I can get away with using it for 3/4

good thing of cortivance if it helps over pred is they dont have to been weened off of it.

Originally Posted by Numpty's Missus

If it were a parasite, you'd think the obvious thing would be to give treatment to get rid of the parasite not just relieve the symptoms.

You would think, wouldn't you.

But I have been told that once they have this parasite in the system you cant get rid of it, just control it. Jjust by chance, our local vet also breeds Staffy's and is also a member of the Vic Staffy club which makes me inclined to believe him.

Originally Posted by Boxhead63

My mate Reg the Staffy is once again having an allergic reaction to something. This reaction is generally skin lesions which a couple of vets have now told is caused by an enzyme or protein in beef. Is there anyone else out there with a Staffy with the same problem? If so, how do you treat it?

Have you done a food trial, if not, you can not diagnose food allergy. Staffy's are prone to all sorts of skin irritations. Perhaps a referral to a specialist veterinary dermatologist, not that expensive in the long run. Treatment can be symptomatic - by using drugs to control the allergy. The most common of these is Cortisone, cheap but lots of side effects and some serious long term complications, such as liver disease, diabetes, and more skin problems! There is a new cortisone spray which isn't absorbed into the body, Lou mentioned it, very promising so far. You can also try antihistamines, but the effects of these is really variable, what will work for one dog won't for another. You can try zinc and essential fatty acid supplements. You can try soothing shampoos, creams, etc.

You can also run through the very tedious, time consuming and often frustrating diagnostic protocol, starting with a food trial and going on to intradermal allergy testing. Sometimes we get a result, sometimes not. Sometimes your dog just has to learn to live with the allergy. Some skin problems are induced by sunshine, they can be caused by parasites - flea allergy dermatitis is annoying and time consuming for a vet (MY dog DOES NOT have FLEAS - how dare you! is a common thing to hear), they can be caused by food, by contact with an allergen such as grass, wandering jew etc, or can be atopic dermatitis (where people get hayfever/asthma when they breathe in something they are allergic to, dogs usually get itchy!)

Get a proper diagnosis!

Originally Posted by walker

Hi Rob,
Yes, uor Staffy often gets skin problems. Usually it is all over the feet, belly but sometimes you get small shapes or circles on the fur on differnt parts of the body.

We spoke with our vet a couple of years ago and he told us it is caused by a parasite which is usually only found in Staffy's. It caused our Staffy to get really red itchy feet and she was always licking them. Also grass can cause a rash over her belly but not sure if this was related to the parasite.

Whe have tablets for when the rash gets too bad. They are calle prednisolone and I think they are just a quartizone. She takes the tablets for 3 days then is off them untill the next time which could be 2-4 weeks or 2-4 months.

Hope that helps

Sounds like demodectic mange. Staffys do get it, but we see it in a lot of other breeds too. The best thing about Staffys and this sort of mange, is they generally grow out of it, if they show signs at a young age or at puberty. If they show signs when older, it is a bugger to control. Cortisone generally makes this sort of skin problem worse!

Sometimes there is more than 1 allergy at the same time, which gets confusing. And sometimes an allergy can set off the appearance of the mites, but they might not have caused the problem. You can find the mites on normal dogs too!

Originally Posted by Numpty's Missus

If it were a parasite, you'd think the obvious thing would be to give treatment to get rid of the parasite not just relieve the symptoms. You need to talk to your vet again

If it is Demodectic Mange (and it probably is) it is very difficult to get rid of, generally the best we can hope for is to keep it under control. Back when I first graduated, it was quite common to euthanase severe cases. The mites are often secondary to something else, and not necessarily the cause of the problem, which always has to be considered. We have effected a cure in some dogs by desexing them - the hormone changes were causing the mites to grow out of control.

Bottom line with an itchy dog for any owner, you have a choice. You can proceed with treatment without out a diagnosis, just to make the dog more comfortable. Or you can try getting a diagnosis. But be warned, you won't always find out what is causing the itch, and sometimes, even when you do, you end up just using drugs to keep it comfortable anyway. When you DO find a cause, and CAN fix it, it is pretty rewarding - just doesn't happen often.

I always groan when I see written in the appointment book "itchy", because it is never simple and straightforward.