Bulldog skin help!

I have a 3 quarters old english bulldog mixed with a quarter alapha blue bulldog pup that's going on about 5 months now. We got him about two and a half months ago. We have taken him to the vet for check up twice now so he's up to date on all his shots,worm,rabbies,parvo boost.

We took him to the vet this last time about a week ago because we new he needed his rabbies shots but also cause he seemed a little blah for a couple days but that was just his teething thing he's better now, but also cause he's had these little bumps almost bee sting looking welts, they're under the fur and mainly on his side(ribcage area)a couple on his thighs,front shoulder areas,1 or 2 on back of his neck.

Sometimes they're more noticeable than other times but their always there, don't seem to bug him much at all. I even shaved the hair around them to get a better look and their a little pink almost like a fresh pimple. he does seem to scratch at his belly with his hind leg enough to leave scratch marks and his belly,inner thighs & chest have little rash looking marks. He does bite at his tail,feet,tail area and licks his lower belly by his genitals enough to turn his pink belly that brownish color, he also does paw himself on his face and ears as if he kinda punching himself in the face.

Now on our last vet visit we told & showed the vet his bumps and everything so he told us just allergies and gave us some allergy meds and instructed us to give every 12 hrs but his bumps haven't gotten any better, if anything maybe worse. please please help with any info this issue is causing conflict with me and girlfriend sounds ridiculous but true she's a complete worry wart. any help is wanted thanx.
P.S I know bulldogs have a lot of allergies, also any tips on his extremely brutal gas!


Hi
From what you're describing it certainly does sound as though your pup is suffering from allergies, and fairly severely. All the things you mention - excessive licking, scratching, rubbing at his ears, skin irritation and so on, are classic signs.

I'm assuming your vet gave him some antihistamines to help relieve the allergy problem, they should work but take a little time to build up his system enough to be effective. However, just treating the symptoms may not be enough, you really need to find out what it is that is triggering the allergies in the first place.

Your vet can do some allergy testing for you by taking some blood samples and testing for sensitivities. You can also do som 'detective work' yourself.

As the symptoms seem to involve his whole body, contact allergies (such as an allergy to carpet, grass etc.) is unlikely. My first suggestion would be to look at his diet. I would recommend changing it to a food specifically designed for dogs with allergies/sensitivities. These generally contain ingredients your dog has never eaten, and therefore has no reaction to. You can find out more about this sort of allergy, and see a selection of recommended foods on my Dog Food Allergies page. It's important to bear in mind that it takes several week for the residual elements of his original food to leave his system. So, you need to wait about 6 weeks before you can decide whether or not this is successful. Although you should see some improvement more quickly than that.

Also, be certain that your pup doesn't have any fleas and is being treated with a reliable flea preventative such as Frontline. Many, many dogs are allergic to flea saliva and this can cause a lot of problems.

As your pup is very itchy and uncomfortable he will be scratching and licking a LOT! You need to watch out for signs of infection, as this kind of behavior can open up the pimples and rashes and let bacteria in under the skin. If an area is hot, swollen, red or is oozing pus, chances are it's infected. Your vet would need to prescribe antibiotics for anything like that.

Meantime, you can make your pup more comfortable by using some topical product to relieve his itching. There are many on the market, and the ones that contain hydrocortisone are usually very effective. You can find out more about the best ones on my Canine Skin Allergies.

As for the 'gas'. This is another common bulldog problem I'm afraid. However, if your dog is having allergies or problems with his diet, it could easily also show up as flatulence, due to his sensitivity to certain ingredients. Changing his food as recommended above may help this too.

The ingredients most likely to cause intolerances or allergies include: beef, dairy products, eggs, wheat, yeast, corn and preservatives.

You can buy natural dietary supplements that can help combat excessive gas, you may want to check out this one -


LoveMyPet Tummy Ease for Dogs and Cats


Hope this helps, best of luck with your puppy.