thanks, me too... my poor wee boy is getting so clingy with it, i think he is finding it very painful and uncomfortable.

thanks, i think he might have them too... this is the 2nd time he has had this already. i just hope it stops when he is older.

yeah, it has been wet. on new years day, it was really wet and weepy but it stopped that but was still quite wet and slimy... will the spot on still work if its a bacterial infection caused by mites? it also looks like wee blisters around his mouth, i told her about them but she didnt look at them...

a picture would be great if its not too much trouble, would be good to compare with jake.

I think Staffies are prone to it as they grow -sure ive heard this somewhere!!!!
We found the kronch salmon oil REALLY helped the skin. There is also the school of thought to try to teach the dogs immune system to deal with it.

So after the first advocate treatment, we boosted the immune system with vitamins which we kept up, added the salmon oil for the skin.then only used the advocate at first sign of a flare up, rather than every month, at first we could go about 6 weeks. i think i had 4 packs of it in total until she was ok again. (Started at 8months)

Thanks so much for this Hun I even asked the vet if there was anything I could do to help with his low immune system, and he told me no I'm just about to order some of the Kronch Salmon Oil........I'm also about to change vets! x

Great vet

When was his last advocate treatment & when is his next due?

Some Boosting Immune System Ideas

"Echinacea
Echinacea increases the levels of a chemical called properdin in the body which activates part of the immune system responsible for increasing the defence mechanisms against bacteria and viruses.

Goldenseal
It has proven very effective against parasites and in stimulating the immune system and for mouth ulcers. It reportedly increases the blood supply to various digestive parts.

Astragalus
This Chinese herb is often regarded as Asia's answer to America's echinacea. Studies have shown it to have certain potent anti-viral properties and helps boost white blood cell fighting properties. "
Also Vit C (but can cause upset tummys so be carefful with Dose!) & we also gave Brewers yeast & a Zinc & Copper supplement.

I do hope not obviously a vet with no knowledge of the MDR-1 gene

Ive just read your other post about Jake's behaviour today, so I looked up your recent posts regarding the skin condition you mentioned.

Ive seen this combination of skin sores, ears, mouth, eyes, and 'painfull' symptoms in a pup, very recently in fact. The weeping blisters, the being off food, painful body, demodex mange (as the immune system is way off kilter). Really out of character behaviour as well.

I think Im probably thinking along the same lines as Minihaha. Im going to stick my neck on the line as I think this pup needs treatment asap. I think its possible that he has something called Puppy Strangles. Does he have lumps under his neck as well where his glands are (this is NOT the same as horse strangles whatsoever.) Advocate alone wont sort this, altho it will sort the demodex mites. He needs a long course of high level steroids and other meds to bring down the infection.

The pup I was looking after (it was a Guide Dog Puppy) ended up being on a ventilator after 11 days, and he started treatment on steroids when he just had demodex mange, and spots in his ears. His face didnt swell like most dogs with strangles, but he was in a lot of pain all over his body, like flu. It caused some very strange behaviour. His face looked just like Jakes.

Demodex mites themselves dont normally cause wet weeping blisters, its normally just hair loss and its not normally itchy. They get secondary infections all over their skin as well.

Please take Jake to the vets TODAY, waiting till Monday could see things much worse. Most vets dont know much about strangles, however my vet had to do an awful lot of research into it, it is now known to appear in pups up to a year old, or if they have a small dose of it when they are tiny, then it can reappear under periods of extreme stress.

Im not a vet, its just that Ive had very very recent experience of this awful auto immune condition, and I wouldnt want anyone else to go through what we did. GSD's and similar are very prone to it.

Im sorry if Ive made anyone cross with posting what I think, its just that not many people have had direct experience with strangles, and all Jakes symptoms were exactly like my GD pups.

One of my friends bred a pup that developed puppy strangles..I would pop in and feed them, clean up after them whilst she was at work. The poor thing was in a terrible state and would yelp if any of his littermates accidently bumped into him. She held onto him until he was completely clear and wouldn't let him go to his new home until the vets were happy with him..he made a full recovery but it was very nasty at the time and I would disinfect myself before going in to them and again, with a change of clothes also before I returned to my dogs...just incase it turned out to be anything else.

I also suggested a visit to the vets on the other thread...I always think that if a dog is acting out of character a vets visit is a must, just to rule out any illness/pain etc.

Hi Janice I think you saw what I saw. I didn't like to put a name to what I thought might be the problem and Jake is a little old for 'JP'. Also there has been no mention of any swelling of the glands and the vet would surely have picked up on this .
Putting a name to things can be misleading , many here have suggested that Jake just has mange (and this can of course lead to bacterial infection.)
As Jake is an older puppy I was thinking more in terms of a bacteria related cellulitis.

I have tried to steer Lauren into getting the vet to check Jake out throughly (without scaring her ). I also indicated I thought this condition may need steroids and antibiotics .

However I was somewhat underwhelmed by the vets opinion (though I am not a vet and it is not my place to disagree), but if the vets treatment is having no effect I would be insisting on further tests.

Thank you for your input Janice it can be difficult as a lay person to forcefully express ones concern . If there is ever an element of doubt about a condition I would always insist on tests and a thorough investigation, better to be wrong than to be sorry .