# Skin issue - French Mastiff



## bpresl (Apr 28, 2007)

My 10 month old French Mastiff has a small area on her foot that is red and irritated. The hair has fallen out. Any ideas?

We'll probably go to the vet next week. Just wanted to see if anyone knew of what it could be.

-Thanks


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

Has she been licking/chewing the foot excessivly? 

What are you feeding?

Have you tried giving Benadryle (1 mg per lb) ?

Do you hava tick problem where you live?


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## bpresl (Apr 28, 2007)

She's not licking or chewing the foot excessively, and I've sprayed the foot with Bitter apple to ensure she doesn't chew.

Feeding Bil-Jac. I haven't tried Benadryl, but will.

As for the ticks, I found a tick on her a few weeks ago and just put her on k9 advantix.


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

OK, first, Bil Jack is really bad food. Because it contains wheat and corn it could be causing a food allergy, which would cause the sore paws. Look in the diet section for suggestions on good foods. 

I would have a tick titer done wen you go to the vet, if that is where you found the tick, there is a possibility that there's an infection and tick disease is very nasty and can lead to serious health and temperment problems something you don't need with a dog the size of a DDB. 

The other possibility would be environmental allergies. I know my Bulldog breaks out every time we cut the grass.


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## Misskiwi67 (Mar 30, 2007)

cshellenberger said:


> OK, first, Bil Jack is really bad food. Because it contains wheat and corn it could be causing a food allergy, which would cause the sore paws. Look in the diet section for suggestions on good foods.


Thats funny... its a recommended food on other boards, and a personal favorite of a very well respected working border collie owner/trainer. Its amazing how opinions differ from board to board.

Corn and wheat do not cause allergies, the immune system does. Removing grains from the diet is not the appropriate way to diagnose food allergies.

This is probably a bacterial infection. If this is the only toe, I can guarrantee the dog does NOT have food allergies. He probably got a cut or a sliver and the toe got infected. I would put some neosporin on it, it certainly won't hurt anything.

Just for comparison, here are photos of a dog with food allergies and a secondary bacterial/yeast infection. Ignore the shiny nails, I had just finished applying his medicine prior to the photo.




























After a second look, it could also be ringworm... so if the neosporin doesn't cure it by the time you get to the vet, definately have it looked at.


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## Renoman (Mar 20, 2007)

The picture provided by the OP looks just like one of my guy's feet when his problems started. It could be pyroderma. Ask your vet to test for it. Mastiffs and GSD are very prone to this skin problem.


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

Misskiwi67 said:


> Thats funny... its a recommended food on other boards, and a personal favorite of a very well respected working border collie owner/trainer. Its amazing how opinions differ from board to board.
> 
> Corn and wheat do not cause allergies, the immune system does. Removing grains from the diet is not the appropriate way to diagnose food allergies.


This is where I get that Bil Jac is poor quality. Also from my own experiene having a dog WITH food allergies. Corn does indeed cause food allergies as does wheat, so to state that they don't is careless. 
http://www.allpetsmacomb.com/allergies.html
http://www.medi-vet.com/canineallergy.aspx

*How to grade your dog's food: *

Start with a grade of 100: 

1) For every listing of "by-product", subtract 10 points 

2) For every non-specific animal source ("meat" or "poultry", meat, meal or fat) reference, subtract 10 points 

3) If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points 

4) For every grain "mill run" or non-specific grain source,subtract 5 points 

5) If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five ingredients (i.e. "ground brown rice", "brewerâ?Ts rice", "rice flour" are all the same grain), subtract 5 points 

6) If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points 

7) If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points 

8 ) If it contains ground corn or whole grain corn, subtract 3points 

9) If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 morepoints 

10) If the food contains any animal fat other than fish oil,subtract 2 points 

11) If lamb is the only animal protein source (unless your dog is allergic to other protein sources), subtract 2 points 

12) If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract 2 points 

13) If it contains wheat (unless you know that your dog isnâ?Tt allergic to wheat), subtract 2 points 

14) If it contains beef (unless you know that your dog isnâ?Tt allergic to beef), subtract 1 point 

15) If it contains salt, subtract 1 point 

Extra Credit: 

1) If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points 

2) If the food is endorsed by any major breed group or 
nutritionist, add 5 points 

3) If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points 

4) If the food contains probiotics, add 3 points 

5) If the food contains fruit, add 3 points 

6) If the food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points 

7) If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points 

8 ) If the food contains barley, add 2 points 

9) If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points 

10) If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point 

11) If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point 

12) For every different specific animal protein source (other than 
the first one; count "chicken" and "chicken meal" as only one protein source, but "chicken" and "" as 2 different sources), add 1 point 

13) If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point 

14) If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are pesticide-free, add 1 point 

94-100+ = A 
86-93 = B 
78-85 = C 
70-77 = D 

69 = F 

Here are some foods that have already been scored. If you don't 
see your dog's food here, ask and someone will score it for you. 
Dog Food scores: 

Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+ 

*Bil Jac Select/ Score 68 F*

Canidae / Score 112 A+ 

Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+ 

Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F 

Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B 

Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A 

**** Van Patten's Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+ 

**** Van Patten's Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+ 

Foundations / Score 106 A+ 

Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 D 

Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D 

Innova Dog / Score 114 A+ 

Innova Evo / Score 114 A+ 

Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+ 

Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B 

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B 

Pet Gold Adult with Lamb & Rice / Score 23 F 

ProPlan Natural Turkey & Barley / Score 103 A+ 

Purina Benful / Score 17 F 

Purina Dog / Score 62 F 

Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F 

Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A+ 

Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+ 

Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A 

Science Diet Advanced Protein Senior 7+ / Score 63 F 
Science Diet for Large Breed Puppies / Score 69 F 

Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+ 

Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 97 A


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## Misskiwi67 (Mar 30, 2007)

cshellenberger said:


> Also from my own experiene having a dog WITH food allergies. Corn does indeed cause food allergies as does wheat, so to state that they don't is careless.


How was your dog diagnosed with food allergies? A proper diet trial, or trial and error? Corn and wheat are not the top food allergens, but they are the top grains ridiculed on forums where education is by word of mouth. Corn is actually listed LAST in most top ten lists, and in one study I read it caused 3 cases out of nearly 400. Yep... thats a major allergen right there. Wheat is a more common allergen, but that doesn't mean every allergic dog is allergic to wheat. 



> J Am Vet Med Assoc. 1996 Aug 1;209(3):608-11.
> Responses of dogs with food allergies to single-ingredient dietary provocation.
> 
> * Jeffers JG,
> ...





> Lecture 8 and 9 - Allergic Skin Disorders
> 
> Dr. Wendy L. YaphéView VINner Profile
> 
> ...





cshellenberger said:


> Start with a grade of 100:
> 
> 7) If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points
> 
> 5) If the food contains fruit, add 3 points



Oooh, another grading system where a sprinkle of blueberry powder makes up for artificial coloring. Now thats an excellent way to grade a dog food...


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## FrenchMastiff01 (Jul 19, 2009)

Hey how are you I have a 5 1/2 month old French Mastiff with Skin irritations, little red bumps on the underside, I haven't seen any fleas and I have been feeding him Puppy Chow since he was 6weeks old,. In the last 2-2 1/2 months he's been itching excessively and has visible skin irritation,. I was wondering if you had any ideas on what that might be caused by and if you could grade the Puppy Chow because it wasnt on the list of graded dog food,.??


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## cshellenberger (Dec 2, 2006)

Puppy Chow gets an "F" on the food grade scale (with one of the lowest scores). It's also WAY too high in protien for a Giant Breed pup such as a DDB.

I would look at a food such as Solid Gold Wolf Cub or a high quality all stages food such as Natural Balance. You want Protein no higher than 24%, Fat around 12 % and fairly low in calcium.


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## FrenchMastiff01 (Jul 19, 2009)

Thankyou for grading that for me,. I had thought the same thing when I saw it that the protein was around 28%,. I recently just bought some Diamond Puppy Large Breed Lamb and Rice and just reading it has 27%,. I should have read this earlier I would have looked for the food you suggested. But I do thankyou for the information,..


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## DalmatianDave (Jul 8, 2009)

Carla,

Thanks for posting that food grading formula, very interesting!

Best,


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## LilMissSunshine (Nov 1, 2008)

As for the toe, Im stumped. I would normally think bug bite of some sort.. but if it doesn't itch or anything, then that probably not it. Try the benadryl and keep a close eye on it. 

As for food, my personal belief is WHATEVER WORKS FOR YOUR DOG
Kenya did HORRIBLY on all the "high rated" foods.. Evo, Innova, Solid Gold, etc.. 
so I got her on Pro plan and as of now, its the ONLY dry food she can eat without getting sick. and she looks amazing, great coat, teeth, weight, etc.. 
Shes on Raw usually, but we do use proplan for when I go on vacation, my family has to feed her or w/e and she does just fine on it. 

When my dog was having the runs, itching all night long, and basically miserable. I could care less about the food grading system lol


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