Question:

Hello my name is Albert, but my family and friends call me Al. I am new at this whole thing and I am not very good at this whole computer thing. I have my sister helping all the time on here.
I just have a question about my dog Angel. She is a white boxer and she is about 6 years old now.
She has been going through some changes over the past two years. I had her fixed so she couldn't have puppies. I did this because it was easier on me and my other family members I live with.
I am a handicap person who is messing a leg along with a lot of other things going on with my body. So it does get hard for me to always keep after her when it's is that time of the month.
We had her female organs taken out about a year ago. I really didn't notice her hair coming out as much as it is now. I mean, she has bold spots on her now. She never had this before. My sister thinks maybe she is depressed from her hormones or something. Is this possible? Can a female dog go through what a female woman would go through when they have their female organs taken out? Should I see about hormone replacement? I know this may sound funny to some of you, but I really would like to know..
The dog means a great deal to me. She is the last thing my mother gave me before she passed away. She is a good dog. She is very lazy, but that is my fault. I can not take her out for walks and run around with her. She pretty much sits and lies around all day and wants cookies. I know I am giving her way to much cookies, but I feel so bad not giving them to her. She gives me this sad look if I don't give it to her. The problem is the dog (Angel) has the whole house giving her cookies now. (Cookies are dog bones-cookies)
I did read some where that the hair lose could be from the surgery she had and something to do with the liver. Is that the case with my dog? Does anyone know about why dogs lose their hair?
My other big question and last one is: She has the worst breath possible. I never met a dog or cat that has breath like her. You would think from all those dog cookies we give her, she would have good breath. Sometimes, when she licks us, we just want to fall over and die. It's really that bad... What do you think that could be?
If someone could help me out on this that would be great.
Thank you for all your help in advance....

Answer:
Hi Al,
I would recommend that you switch her to a premium food right away, I'm not sure what you're feeding her now but with my dog , changing her diet a few years ago made her come right back to life.
I switched her to EaglePack Holistic, which is an excellent food and its made with human grade ingredients. If she's tending to be on the chubby side then Wellness Senior would also be a great choice. At the age of 6 a senior diet wouldn't hurt, and they're great at reducing weight. Overweight dogs live around 2 years less than thinner dogs, so it's important you don't let her gain too much weight!
If you do try one of these brands, the taste is so much better than grocery store brands that my dog doesn't beg for cookies anymore, and I just give her the kibble as a treat instead : )
Pepper

P.S. The breath is soooo much better after feeding eaglepack, it has enzymes, good bacteria and yucca in the food which all reduce odors in the mouth, urine and stools ; )

Answer:
If she's on the chubby side, and she's loosing hair get her Thyroid checked at the vet. Usually that is the cause of obosity and hair loss in dogs.
Otherwise, it may be allergies. Have you changed anything around the house lately? Is she worse in the spring then in the winter etc. etc. Weather can be a factor as well.
There are many things that cause hair loss. It could be scabies as well.
Has she been licking her hair a lot - especially on her paws, hind quarters and flanks.

When you take her to the vet, they'll probably want to do a skin scrape, and if nothing comes back on that they'll probably give you some ointment to put inbetween her shoulder blades. Scabies 9 out of 10 times doesn't show up on the skin scrape. This ointment will kill it (you'll have to repeat 3 times if you see a difference) Otherwise if that doesn't work, go back and ask for her thyroid to be checked.

Hope that helps you out some. A lot of the rescues I get in have hair loss problems when I get them, so I'm getting to be a pro about this stuff... lol. Good luck and keep us updated about your girl!

-Sara

Answer:
hi! mybassett is suffering from the some kind of itching. the vet has taken some skin scrapings but nothing shows up. she has hair loss and licks her paws,tail and hind legs and armpits too. because of her scratching she develops bald spots. the skin normally is red, have tried everything possible...nothing works. i am so worried for we are about to emigrate to canada and because of her condition she may not be allowed entry. i am currently bathing her with a ketoconazole shampoo for the dandruff. u mentioned an ointment...i am willing to try it. could i have the name? thanks a lot

Answer: