Dalmation

[lmmd]

A friend has a dalmation with itchy, hairloss patches. It is also overweight. She has heard that this breed should not eat beef or organ meats. Any ideas or suggestions?

[JMM]

How about a physical and a thyroid panel?

[Traci]

Agree, if the dog hasn't been examined by a vet, now is the time to do so.

The vet can do a skin scrape and/or culture to try to determine the cause of the skin affliction and can also recommend an appropriate diet based on the (assumed) condition, or age or lifestage, etc.

[lmmd]

She has been to the vet twice. He gave cortisone injections, and told her it was fleas. Not usual hot spots, just paled areas from scratching and hair loss is not extreme. I don`t see any evidence of fleas infestation at all. The dog is indoors. She is using a food recommended by the vet. I`m just offering to give her my raw foods, but wanted to know the answer to the beef and organ meats. The cortisone isn`t working.

[k9Karen]

I don't know about beef and organ meats for dalmations, but there may be an immune system problem involved, so I would definitely say that a diet that includes raw meat is probably not in the best interest of this dog.

[Traci]

If a skin scrape/culture wasn't done, that would be (and should have been) the next step. The vet could have been correct about the fleas (flea allergy dermatitis), was the dog treated for fleas? While there may be no direct evidence of fleas, doesn't mean they aren't in the environment (does the owner have other pets?)

What is the diet the vet recommended, is it a hypoallergenic diet or is it a weight management diet? The owner can try a process of elimination if food allergies are suspect, but if the weight is concerning, this too needs to be addressed appropriately. In this case, the owner's vet could initiate a hypoallergenic diet, and calculate feeding portions for the weight problem.

I doubt organ meats have anything to do allergies for this breed. While some dogs may be sensitive to beef or certain meat proteins, this can be resolved by feeding other varieties such as chicken, venison, duck, etc.

[E's]

My second (and last) Dal developed a skin condition like you describe when he was only a little over a year in age. I was told this was a skin ailment only Dals and a few other short hair breeds get. This was a long time ago (1979) and my memory of the details is hazy... but the breed specificity had something to do with the fact that the Dalmatian is an ancient breed which has contributed genetically to various later breeds of dog.

LSU School of Veterinary Medicine was conducting a study of such skin conditions at that time; Skywalker's vet got the most up-to-date info then available... Sadly, such knowledge and an expensive series of treatments were not successful in Sky's case, and since he had also developed extremely serious behavior problems which the vet felt were connected to the health situation, I was finally advised to let my beautiful dog go...

But there was so much we didn't know then about flea allergies etc... This vet retired years ago, but I still take my pets to the same practice; perhaps I can obtain more recent data re Dal skin problems in a few days.

Dot B
New Orleans

[Marty]

I wonder if the beef/organ thing might have something to do with the fact that dals often have to be watched for struvite crystals....and then would need a low protein diet. I wouldn't do this unless diagnosed by a Vet, though.

[Traci]

That is true Marty, dalmations are more susceptible to urinary tract infections, most often chronic. I still don't know where the connection to beef and organ meat would play into this however.