Great news!

Now hopefully you can find a unique protein source or get to the bottom of his allergies.

Thats great news!! I'm so happy for you and your baby!

I have a neighbor who had to do that $1200 scratch test on her little terrier. Aside from environmental allergies, the dog can only eat venison...all other proteins had an allergic response. She said it was the best money she's ever spent!! Her dog is fine today!

ps- wholistic vets prescribe milk thistle mixed into food for helping the liver detox.

I feel for you!!! I know many of my clients have horrible skin cond. and it really make for a stressful time for both you and your baby!! I have a Boston Terrier who is very sensitive to everything, and I had to do the whole food trials.. I hope everything works out for you!!

Dee

I know I'm late to this, but have you tried a raw diet for your little bulldog? Alot of vets wont recommend it but it can really help with allergies. It consists of nothing but raw meaty bones and they can do very well on it.

Some dogs are reacting to cooked protien and the filler sources and don't react or at least react less to the raw protein.

Good luck. They become such a big part of our hearts.

There you go. Food (and booze) doesn't change the situation. I'm sorry for you and your poor pup but your darlin' goggie wouldn't approve of using food on yourself like that. He wants you at your best. *hugs*

As far as rabbit and other interesting sources of protein, you might want to check with a raw dog/cat food group and see where they acquire such things. They have their sources. You can cook them, if you see fit. Oh yes, there are also some places online you can order from. Shipping can get expensive though.

Milk Thistle is a great idea, as long as it isn't toxic to the puppikins.

Thanks for all the suggestions and support. She's been on milk thistle for three weeks, which may account for some of the improvement.

I haven't ever heard that cooked meat is more likely to cause allergies than raw. I tried the raw thing when she was a puppy but she couldn't handle the bacteria and kept getting diarrhea.

Her getting the runs might have been from too much fat or not enough edible bone in the diet. The bacteria usually isn't a problem.

Here is a link to a major raw feeding group
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/rawfeeding/

Ask the members there about their experiences with raw and allergies. You may be very surprised at the stories.

IMO, switching her to raw or anything new for that matter...while she is still so sick, may not be your best choice. Seeing that allergist for the scratch tests will help you create a good diet for your baby.

Also, IMO, those who feed raw are to me, very enthusiastic about it. This is just a message board and everyone has an opinion. Use your common sense and instincts when taking in a lot of advice!

I know the raw groups say that but veterinarians disagree and after my cat had a session of bloody BM's after eating some raw chicken I felt that that information was wrong too. He occasionally gets a little raw meat but I don't feed him all raw any longer.

hehe
Raw feeders are very similar to low-carbers, and in a very similar position.
- There are as many vets out there giving bad information about raw feeding as there are doctors about low-carb
- Raw feeders are going against the mainstream and tend to be quite forceful about their way of feeding
- There is a great deal of mis-information that is perpetuated by the dog food industry as there is by the human food industry
- Many vets will blame a raw diet for anything that goes wrong, much as many doctors will blame a low-carb diet for any health issues that arise. (knee-jerk reaction)

I don't raw feed my dog, primarily because he has an extremely strong hoarding instinct and MUST bury anything but the smallest scrap of raw. (You haven't lived until you've chased a 60lb dog down the hallway at full speed because he's bolted to bury a piece of raw beef heart under your pillow ) It just doesn't work in a condo. So he only gets beef scraps when I'm portioning/trimming steaks and a raw egg over his kibble most days.

So, I'm not over here saying "Raw is the one true path! It will cure all your issues!" Just suggesting that it might be worth asking some questions from experienced raw feeders, some of whom are knowledgeable about dog health but form your own opinion.