Can anyone give me advice regarding my dog's skin disorder?

My husband and I purchased our dog (half Shih-Tzu and half Maltese) from a pet store about 1 1/2 years ago. We later learned, after his first bath and grooming session, that the poor thing had symmetrical bald patches on both sides of his body (4 spots to be exact). We've made multiple visits to the vet (saw two different ones). We've had a skin-scraping done to test for mites (which came out negative). We've also tried oral antibiotics, creams/ointments, and medicated shampoo (in case it was caused by a bacterial/fungal infection). Unfortunately, nothing worked. Over time, my dog's skin disorder seems to have spread; no longer having only 4 patches, but he now has 6 that we know of and can see with the naked eye. In the past, the vets didn't seem to know what it could be; one of them, constantly referring to it as something that might have been developed due to some sort of trauma to the skin (examples he gave me include: a dog bite or excessive licking). However, after all of the treatments we've tried and failed with, the vet has given up, stopped making quick assumptions/conclusions, and finally admitted that he has absolutely no idea what it could be. I know that certain skin disorders can be caused by allergies (i.e. from the food they consume or even from their environment). Please remember that the skin disorder began well before we purchased him (I can only assume that it first developed at the pet store); and being that he has been in a safe and clean environment for the past 1 1/2 years, I can rule out the possibility that the condition arose from allergens within the environment. In addition, although he is an indoor dog, I still provide him with flea/tick preventative solutions as well as heartworm preventatives. As mentioned, I knew that it could have been caused by his diet; therefore, we went from the pet store's recommendations to a more natural and holistic approach - mostly all natural boiled chicken breasts, steamed sweet potatos, and occasional treats that provide him with the necessary crude oils, crude fats, etc. In addition to that, we are also feeding him daily vitamins that contain the omega fatty acids 3, 6, and 9 for additional supplemental purposes as well as for his skin (I had heard that omega fatty acids are good and beneficial for the skin).I took precautions for an entire year, keeping in mind the possibility that the skin condition could be contagious (i.e. by clothing my dogs to avoid direct contact with each other and by doing so, eliminating the chance of the skin disorder spreading to my other dog); however, I later learned that it is an internal skin disorder that is not contagious to other animals or people.The visible characteristics of the patches slightly vary, depending on which one you are looking at. Some have a very smooth texture (completely hairless) with a clean (no spots or marks) light pink color. Others have similar qualities to them, only that these have tiny brown specs/freckles (resembling brown pen marks). And yet, others have a slight scaly look to them - not over the entire patches but only portions of them. I typically bathe him with a dog shampoo that contains primarily oatmeal (to prevent dryness and irritation); however, as a gift, someone gave me a name-brand dog shampoo that is supposedly made for sensitive skin and contains oatmeal and aloe vera. After using this on him, three of his patches seem to be somewhat inflamed and irritated, displaying red bumps that were not present prior to the bath. Of course, I will not be using this product on him ever again! In the efforts to ease the irritation, redness and itching, I have been applying hydro-cortisone cream (1%) on him daily for about 4 days - which has seemed to irritate it even more. I am now using an anti-biotic cream on him, hoping that it will get rid of the red bumps. After using this cream, two of the patches seem to look better but one is still very much irritated. Does anyone have any recommendations/advice on how to ease his irritated/inflamed patches of skin? We are currently looking into seeking the help of an animal dermatologist; however, it is very costly AND there aren't that many to be found. In the meantime, I am asking for help from those who are in similar situations as us. If our story or any of these symptoms sound familiar to you, please share your story with us and let us know if you might know what this skin disorder is or if you believe you have the solution to this problem (perhaps a cure/another treatment option). At this point, we feel very bad for him and would try anything to finally (once and for all) be rid of this problem altogether. Although he must always feel agitated by his condition, he is a very sweet dog. Please, if anyone can point us in the right direction, we're willing to try. Thank you.

Try neem leaf capsules. It's about $5 a bottle. I give my 25 lb dog 950 mg capsule 2x a day.My dog was tested and has allergies to grass, dust, pollen, dander, pine trees, and a couple weeds. I can't avoid those things and she had severe skin reactions and pain. I tried so many things like you (shampoos I found no difference between medicated, antibiotic, holistic, natural, special skin ones, etc shampoo didn't matter so just use one that is coconut oil based, no dyes or fragrances, something very gentle)Anyway I had my dog controlled with a plant steroid from the vet called beta-thyme. But then I took her off that and put her on the neem and she's 100% better.The dermatologists will just put your dog on steroids like prednisone and different antibiotics possibly antifungals - these have side effects, need to be used for a lifetime, and suppress the immune system instead of heal it. Holistic vets try to heal the immune system with diet and herbs mainly, but not all dogs respond to that.I feed my dog a raw food diet and give the neem pills. I also add omega 3 oil.I would give the neem a try. Something so cheap and simple, and might be well worth it.My dog too had varying manifestations - some were smooth, some dark patches, some bright red, some wet and some dry. I think it's just like a secondary infection and those will look different.I can just say that the neem worked by 2 days, although I read it might take 2 weeks or more to build up in the body.Don't use the cortisone or antibiotic cream anymore. Don't use anything if you try the neem, just wipe the dog off after being outside with aloe wipes or plain water.Oh also I would not give the omegas 6 and 9, only give omega 3 - for the correct balance. His food is already high in omegas 6 and 9 and too much can cause inflammation.(If you need more nutritional/supplement help, the yahoo group k9nutrition is great though they were not the ones who recommended neem capsules to me)Please feel free to email me if you want to ask anything or discuss more.add @chix- I know it was a lot to read but she does say "In the efforts to ease the irritation, redness and itching" so I don't think it's just the hair loss alone. Good point about the thyroid, easy to fix too.add 2 - A dermatologist at this point is a total waste of money. Because if this was lupus, cushings, or addison a vet should have picked up other symptoms - and there would be other symptoms- than the skin. If this is a MRSA or fungal infection, there would also be other tell-tale signs for a vet and they'd have picked it up in the skin scrape anyway. A biopsy is 7 out of 10 times wrong at diagnosing auto immune disorders according to my mainstream vet. A biopsy can tell if this is a histamine reaction.... but that's of no help. This is an immune system problem, and you will treat it that way. Allergies or auto immune disease, doesn't matter. It can be treated either by suppressing the immune system or symptoms, by balancing or healing the immune system, or by blocking the immune system's reactions. I paid a vet dermatologist over $500 to make a GUESS that my dog had a flea saliva allergy AFTER i told her that I stopped giving front line (which was AFTER her skin was like this). Her allergy test later revealed she has 0 flea allergies.What the Asker needs to do at this point is the slow process of trial and error. Take off everything the dog is on now. Start with one thing at a time, like elimination diet or (i suggest) a raw food diet. There is something called k9 lycra body suit that is excellent for allowing the skin to heal and stay protected. It is pricey at about $70 but this is one of the few things that I think actually helps.ADD - Good grief is right! Who is arguing??? I didn't know just disagreeing meant argument but w/e.I help people based on my personal experience and knowledge, that's all we can do. And my experience is this Asker would be wasting hundreds of dollars going to a dermatologist. I did NOT say not to go to any vet, I suggested a holistic vet earlier. And any type of vet can only do so much. The CURE is if the immune system can be healed, or IF not as you said palliative care. And there's thousands and thousands of ways to try to go about doing it.Nutritionally - you even advised the Asker to do it on her own with an elimination diet. Supplementing is not much different. These are not drugs with serious side effects, they are food based herbals. There are even vitamin therapies like vitamin A that have been used to treat canine skin disorders.

Alopecia (baldness) can be secondary to an infection or systemic problem, but it is also a hereditary genetic disorder that often begins around 1 year and is characteristic of symmetrical baldness . It is progressive although dogs vary on the degree and severity.It is accompanied by scaling, pimples and patches of dry skin that become irritated. http://www.vetinfo.com/canine-alopecia-treatment.htmlThere is no cure or treatment for alopecia and most dogs live a very long and normal life. Adding supplements won't change what God gave your dog if baldness is the problem. Feeding a quality diet will help with overall coat texture and won't hurt - but feeding kibble or processed foods and augmenting with a bunch of expensive additives is (IMO) a waste of money.OFten a vet will look for thyroid or glandular problems but if you have done a blood panel and Thyroid and ruled that out - then I would consider alopecia. Thyroid is typically symmetrical patches - no itchiness.Mange (mites or Demodex) would result in intense itchiness and the dog would be very very uncomfortable.Allergies would include inflammation of the histamine cells - which would result in pink skin and intense scratching.DO NOT apply creams to the dog's skin without a vet's advice as you could be making the situation much worse. And bluntly speaking - skin problems are genetic or internal in nature - what you put on the dog's skin will not change anything .************Ringworm is another possibility - it is a fungus and it is contagious but if you have had the dog for a year, I doubt it is the problem (as you likely would have got it by now)Yes, the fungus among us is another gross topic - i'm assuming your vet ruled that out.****************Heart - , redness and scaling is common with alopecia along with pustules and bumps - its common in Dobermans (Blue Doberman Syndrome) and now has a genetic marker. It also appears in fawns and reds.I have no idea what other breeds are affected.Allergies can be food or environmental. If the food is suspected, an elimination diet is the best method to test food sensitivities. It is a PITA - and you must be vigilant. You would start with a fast for 1 day - then rice the next 4 days, then add one protein (chicken or beef) and IF the dog reacts - you eliminate beef and go back to rice for a couple days - then add chicken. Etc etcHowever, dogs with weakened immune systems will have environmental allergies and this is not an easy fix.**********************Last add: Heres a genetic database - I clicked on your breeds (Shih Tzu and Maltese) - and for BOTH breeds, up pops this:sebaceous adenitisSebaceous adenitis is primarily a cosmetic disorder - that is it affects the appearance of the dog rather than his/her general health. The condition tends to be most severe in the Akita, resulting in chronic secondary bacterial infections, weight loss, and fever.http://www.upei.ca/~cidd/intro.htmI think you could go nuts worrying and think if you really want to know, the dermatologist is the only one who can answer your question. And yes its expensive and I would rule out Thyroid and blood panel first before I invested. If your dog is not having secondary infections and otherwise eating and doing well, ask yourself if its worth itGood luck***********Environmental allergies cannot be ruled out - if you have broadloom in your home; use cleaners, etc - its almost impossible to say. And don't blame yourself - dogs typically get WORSE with age when its immune suppression related. Finding out what the root cause is will affect what salves or shampoos or creams the vet recommends which will palliate - not cure - a chronic problem.**************I find this place a great resource for salves and topical creams and I've purchased several but even as a homeopath - I have relied on my vet to DIAGNOSE. I think an hour with a dermatologist and a skin biopsy is worth it - http://www.gaiagarden.com/b***********Heart - good grief. since you insist on arguing. YES, VETS MAKE MISTAKES. BUT DIET AND SUPPLEMENTS WILL NOT CURE A GENETIC DISEASE and telling people NOT TO GO TO A VET WHEN YOU ARE NOT A VET is IRRESPONSIBLE . TO SUM UP MY POST: GET A DIAGNOSIS FIRST FROM A QUALIFIED VET - THEN AND ONLY THEN DECIDE TREATMENT WHICH COULD BE HOLISTIC OR ORTHODOX OR BOTH. IF THE PROBLEM IS ONLY COSMETIC - THEN DECIDE IF ITS WORTH THE EXPENSE TO KNOW. A good diet is a building block to wellness and a given. Diet CAN REDUCE INFLAMMATION AND IS PALLIATIVE. Wasting money on home remedies when you have no idea what the problem is, is effective as dunking the dog in water to see if he is a witch. EXPERIMENTING ON SICK DOGS WITHOUT VET GUIDANCE IS RISKY. NOT ALL VETS ARE INCOMPETENT. And yes, nothing in life is guaranteed.

Well done, your on the right track with diet but this is neither 'holistic' or natural. You need to take this dog right back to basics.. I strongly recommend you use the power of the internet and research a COMPLETELY raw diet asap. There's masses of info out there nowadays so getting it right shouldn't be a problem. In the UK I am very lucky to have access to an amazing homoeopath who will dispense for my dogs if needed (interestly they also recommend a completely raw diet). I swear by them and they've never failed me yet. Find one in your neck of the woods if you can. Get him off all the creams, preparations and shampoos etc. There's much more info I could give but these are the basics. Fast completely (just water) for at least 24 hrs before introducing a raw diet. This will help his body shed some of the toxins and give his system a chance to rest and recover. Don't ever consider any cooked food and certainly not one that consists of boiled chicken and sweet potato (which has no nutritional value whatsoever). NO store bought treats, ever. Even if the packaging says 'all natural' stay away from anything ready made. Period. A book I always recommend is The Herbal Handbook for the Cat and Dog by Juliette de Bairacli Levy (for me the definitive handbook for any dog owner and an absolute bible). Practically everything you could ever want to know about raw feeding - the whys and how to (correctly) are in this book and I would be lost without it.I'm a complete 100% raw feeder having had amazing results with a Terrier with terrible skin problems. Example diet: raw sardines or mackerel, raw mince mixed with blended veg (exc carbs) or fruit , raw chicken (wings, legs, backs etc),. You can add the egg shells into the mince blend. Also feed Manuka honey, the benefits of which are priceless. Include couple of times a week some offal - heart, liver, kidney, etc. I think you get the basic idea. To the mince mix I add and oil which consists of organic flax oil, hemp oil, evening primrose oil and pumpkin oil. I also throw in treebarks powder (wonderful for the digestive system) and a specially formulated herbal conditioning supplement.