mikeeholder

digestive biscuits!! sometimes popcorn. if hes wet = old sheep

i havent ruled out hay fever, It would explain why it only affects his face, especially his eyes. Hes always got his head in stinging nettles!!

Am faced with this most mornings now:

my vet had a similar method of eleminating what it was not with expensive skin scrapes and biopsies, however they did get to a point where they told me that it could go on indeffinatly and we called it quits since it was not bothering him too much (after the infection had cleared up and after £250 worth of antibiotics!!). it seemed to respond to the supliments however I am now convinced it is anxiety related now. I've actually stopped his zinc sups now and it looks a lot better. Just dont want to leave him on his own as I found him with his face covered in blood the other morning from scratching, but i never catch him during the day. I have tried the raw liver but he'd rather wear it as after shave!! Just rubs his face on it!!

Well I thought all was giong well with this skin problem but the last week or so the scratching has started again. Hes been on the CSJ Hike on! food and nutrazinc suppliments and nothing else except boiled chicken for treats, this seemed to be fine and nothing has changed untill this Happened: Im starting to think it may not be allergy or ZRD related at all as he only scratches when excited, left alone, when I see him in the morning or before a walk. It would seem when his heart rate is elivated he becomes itchy then when he chills out he is fine. He will go a whole day without scratching, then trash his face overnight. It also appears symetrically e.g. if he scratches his top left eye the next spot will be the top right eye etc. Could it be anxiety related, he exibits no other signs of an anxiety he is a very confident dog. Someone did suggest it could be airborn allergy due to the fact that it only affects his face and ears. But surly this would mean he would be scratching all the time. Anyway the food he is on has made his coat a little dull and wire like and hes not that keen on it anymore, so if its not food related then i might change it to something better. At a bit of a loss now, i'll have to "cone of shame" him at night for the time being but dont really know where to start. Back to square one!!

I've Had bandit now over 3 months now, he came with no papers but we were assured he was a pure Siberian husky. Made no difference to us as he is our family dog we are not showing or working him (competitively that is). However from the day I met him I was not sure if he had a bit of malamute in him, he is a big lad and he does have a big head but his main physical appearance is Siberian. Having now met lots of other husky owners and racers etc they have all commented on him possibly having a bit of mal in him, although I have come to understand that all sibes have a bit of mal and other dogs in them at some point in there lineage. Was just wondering what everyone else thinks based on appearance?

Just a little update, started on the csj hike on food and giving nutrazinc and have cut out everything in bandits diet which he could be allergic to. Its just started to clear up, no more new scabs or red areas and the old ones have dried up, gone black and the hair has grown back. His large area on his head did get infected so he is on 150mg baytril antibiotics which are setting me back about £60 for 2 weeks of tablets. Hes on his 4th week of them and its nearly all gone, hope he wont need another 2 weeks worth!! Hes also just stopped blowing his coat, might be a coincidence but it could have made it worse. Anyway fingers crossed it doesn't come back. Thanks to everyone for any advice given, it is greatly appreciated. just a few pics from one of the snow days to say thanks!!

Spoke to a chap today who races husky's on the island (been looking for them for a while and just bumped into a young lad who races with them). He has 11 husky's and has a few with zinc responsive dermatitis which comes and goes periodically, he gives them raw liver to combat it with no suppliment. All his dogs are on a BARF diet as well. Anyway, he had a look at bandit and didn't seem to think his was ZRD, or look like anything he had seen . In his dogs it is just a red area of skin around the mouth and eyes, no lesions or the black scabby areas that bandit and the other dogs on here have. He isn't a vet obviously but he has recommended a vet which he uses, so will look into that.

new one overnight!! its getting much worse.

he is just about to start on a new food rich in two types of zinc and vitamin A called "hike on". it was recommened by an other forum member (Liz Jones) in this topic salmon oil is good or any type of oily fish have heard some people feed sardines. Have also heard not to give them zinc sups with there meal as it just gets absobed by the calcium in the food, I suppliment about midday between meals. Just a case of trial and error unfortunatly, its very frustrating I know.

he managed to avoid the head shaving, not 100% convinced by the vet who we inherited from the previous owner. Unfortunatly our vet who we have used for the past 20 odd years and was just around the corner past away a few years back so on the look out for an experienced siberian husky vet. Harder than you whould think since we live on a 20mile across island, but there are husky breeders and racers on the island so just need to do a bit of research. Glad indi is getting a little bit better, she look very sorry for herself in those most recent photos, she is an incredibly pretty girl and SO fluffy. Dont envy you during coat blowing season. Cant wait to get the new food underway, I hope it works. Just trail and error at the moment. good luck and keep me updated on whats workig and whats not etc.

this is the patch from his nose that popped up two days ago.

"I started her on Zinc Gluconate Sunday Feb 3rd, 30mgs a day - I think she can stand to take a higher dose as she's 70lbs - but I'm worried about giving her too much" - Sorry didn't see this before i mentioned supplements! 50mg is recommended dosage for Bandit who is 28.8 kgs which is abouts 64lbs.

better picture of his eye, he now has the same on the top of both eyes and both sides of his nose.

The vets tried to do ringworm tests etc for bandit but i turned them down for similar reasons. I am little confused myself, I have done alot of reading on ZRD and am 99% sure that this is bandits problem. However the vet has not ruled it out but seems to think that ZRD is a conditon that is not caused by a lack of Zinc but a form of dermitis that is helped by zinc but triggered by something else I.e. food allergy. This is the first I have heard of this myself and am unsure how legit this statement is but it make sense being Zinc Resposnsive Dermatitis. Bandit is on antibiotics at the moment as he has pyoderma on his head as a result of scratching and breaking the skin. He is also on a food trial to try and determin if he has any allergies which could cause the scabbing. If your vet has ruled this out because they have never heard of it i would suggest finding another vet. The first vet I went to refused to recognise ZRD and diagnosed him with a Entropion (turned in eyelid) and wanted to operate!! This is a very rare conditon in most dog breeds however it is very common in all northern breed: mals, sibes etc. Try and find a vet who has experience with northern breed, preferably one who owns one, or show your vet all the info you have. The next step for me is to send him to a dog dermatologist, which will be very pricy!! From your pictures I would say they are almost identical to the wounds on bandits face and ears, however I still have no formal diagnosis. Are you supplimenting with zinc tablets or powder?