Hi everyone! I am new to the pets forum, but I frequent TTC and now Dec DDC. I have a situation with one of my dogs and am looking for advice/support/any help possible....
She is a 7 year old Great Pyranees mix who has had itchy/red/scabby skin with oily coat and bad smell since she was about 2-3 as well as frequent ear infections. She's seen 5 different vets and all of them have said it is allergies and one of them also diagnosed her hypothyroid and yeast on her skin.
So over the past 4-5 years we have tried allergy shots (prednisone), oral prednisone, antibiotic injections and oral meds, medicated shampoos, ear cleaners, ointments, skin sprays, benadryl, vitamins, thyroid medication, hypoallergenic foods (both prescripton and non), all raw meat diet, novel protein food trial, and have used monthly flea preventatives (one vet said it was a flea allergy). The ONLY thing that has improved her condition (not 100%, but SOME improvement) is the prednisone injections. So we've been giving them to her for the past few years - at first every 6-8 weeks, but in the past year it's been every 4 weeks.
Over the past 4 months or so, they've seem to lose their effectiveness. After her last shot she only had a slight improvement and that only lasted about 10 days. She scratches and chews at herself almost constantly when she is awake. She doesn't have much interest in playing and has lost some of her appetite and subsequently she is a bit underweight.
I am taking her to the vet again this afternoon. My husband and I have talked about putting her down. It would break our hearts, but we have been fighting this battle with her for years and she is just getting worse and she really seems miserable.
Allergies seem like a ridiculous reason to put a dog to sleep. It's not terminal, but I do think she is in pain... I just don't know what to do. I am hoping the vet will have some more suggestions, but I think we have tried everything. I have started to lose hope that she will ever be healthy. She is continually getting worse. How long should we let her live like this? Or is it wrong to put her down for something that isn't going to kill her anyway? I feel absolutely terrible. But living with constant itching must be torture for her
She is a 7 year old Great Pyranees mix who has had itchy/red/scabby skin with oily coat and bad smell since she was about 2-3 as well as frequent ear infections. She's seen 5 different vets and all of them have said it is allergies and one of them also diagnosed her hypothyroid and yeast on her skin.
So over the past 4-5 years we have tried allergy shots (prednisone), oral prednisone, antibiotic injections and oral meds, medicated shampoos, ear cleaners, ointments, skin sprays, benadryl, vitamins, thyroid medication, hypoallergenic foods (both prescripton and non), all raw meat diet, novel protein food trial, and have used monthly flea preventatives (one vet said it was a flea allergy). The ONLY thing that has improved her condition (not 100%, but SOME improvement) is the prednisone injections. So we've been giving them to her for the past few years - at first every 6-8 weeks, but in the past year it's been every 4 weeks.
Over the past 4 months or so, they've seem to lose their effectiveness. After her last shot she only had a slight improvement and that only lasted about 10 days. She scratches and chews at herself almost constantly when she is awake. She doesn't have much interest in playing and has lost some of her appetite and subsequently she is a bit underweight.
I am taking her to the vet again this afternoon. My husband and I have talked about putting her down. It would break our hearts, but we have been fighting this battle with her for years and she is just getting worse and she really seems miserable.
Allergies seem like a ridiculous reason to put a dog to sleep. It's not terminal, but I do think she is in pain... I just don't know what to do. I am hoping the vet will have some more suggestions, but I think we have tried everything. I have started to lose hope that she will ever be healthy. She is continually getting worse. How long should we let her live like this? Or is it wrong to put her down for something that isn't going to kill her anyway? I feel absolutely terrible. But living with constant itching must be torture for her
