health

[veronica]

hi everyone im new i have a 7 month miniature poodle hes been having ear problems im wondering if its his diet which is mainly chicken i was thinking if i change him to a raw food diet which vets have made contains kangaroo meat and fresh tripe cereal grains flax seed vegetables barley grass garlic parsley calcium lecithin yeast kelp and vitamin c for pups also he is having trouble with hes right anual glan which is full all the time he weighs 10 kilos i also give him 2 raw chicken necks every day thanks

[KOPcaroline]

Hey Veronica,

When you say your poodle is having "ear problems", what do you mean? Are they red and itchy? Or gunky with blackish buildup? Does he shake his head all the time?

I doubt his ear troubles are diet related, I can't recall any vitamin deficiency that causes ear problems. It could be mites, or a bacterial infection. Your best bet is to take him to your vet and get his ears checked. Parasites or infection are usually easily treated with ear drops, but you need to get your vet to tell you for sure what the problem is.

Anal gland impaction is common for small dogs, I'd suggest having your vet teach you how to express the gland at home, so your dog isnt uncomfortable. If he starts scooting his bum across your floor, thats a signal that he's not happy and probably needs his gland expressed. I do warn you, its a smelly job! If its just one side thats always a problem, you should probably mention this to your vet when youre there for the ears as well, it could be a cyst or something under the gland that he can check out for you.

All that said, I doubt either problem is diet related. If your dog is energetic, with a shiny, healthy coat and nice pink gums, and not overweight or underweight etc, I'm sure his diet is fine. I would advise you to add rice or barley or some sort of grain to his chicken if you dont switch to the vets diet. Raw or cooked meat alone is an insufficient and imbalanced diet to give a dog, they are omnivores and need a bit of vegetable matter as well as meat. Just straight chicken all the time will eventually lead to mineral deficiencies, so try adding a bit of grain or veggies The raw chicken necks as a treat are fine, but just be sure to watch for him gulping down the bones whole, this could lead to him getting his bowels obstructed!

Hope this helps you, be sure to get him into the vet for his ears!

[veronica]

thanks for your reply, the vet has taken a sample of inside his ear it came back as yeast infection no smell lots of wax and he does shake his head often he has had a few differant drops clears up for awhile then comes back sometimes his ears are red not bad thanks i will see if the vet can find out if he has a cyst there