Question by parichute_68: My dog is defecating (poop) a lot lately, almost daily, at the same time each day:early morning. Diarrhea?
He has a bad allergy to something causing him to be red in the genital area and have bad fleas and itching. He also has lost hair. He eats kibbles and bits dog food, and I don’t know if that was on the list for diarrhea causing pet foods.

Best answer:

Answer by ND DVM
Fleas are intensely irritating as they bite, and your dog doesn’t need to have an allergy to be red and itchy if he has fleas. The flea bites also can cause allergic reactions after a dog becomes sensitized to them. Finally, fleas transmit tapeworms when they are swallowed as the dog bites at them–definitely potential for digestive upset there! Histamine release (allergic response) COULD cause diarrhea, but not usually. Kibbles and Bits does have quite a bit of artificial coloring in it compared to some other complete balanced dog foods. If your dog has been eating it for awhile with no problems, that may not be the issue (although if you have just purchased a new bag of food, sometimes it is the cause.) If you’ve changed diets, your dog could be having a little problem adjusting; it’s best to mix foods together over a week or so rather than just switching all at once. Diarrhea will appear as soft and/or frequent bowel movements. I couldn’t tell if that is your concern, or just increased amount in the mornings. Be sure to call your veterinarian for help if needed, and get those fleas under control. Good luck.

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Sorry about the vague question. I switched my mastiffs food from Canidae to Wellness puppy food the other day and I usually take her out 30 minutes after feeding. It seems that an hour afterwords, I notice that both of her eyes become extremely red, droopy and swell to the point where she can hardly see from them. This has been worrying me and tend not to take my animals to the vet unless absolutely serious and am wondering if this is serious. After some thought, I realized that it always seems to occur about an hour after feeding only and I think all it may be is an allergic reaction to the food. This only started the day I switched foods and only last for about 5-10 minutes then she is 100% back to normal. Also, Wellness in my opinion is a premium dog food, but does have quite a bit of different ingredients than most dogs foods ie: fruits and vegetables.

So back to my main question. Should I be worried at all and just refrain from keeping her on the food and see the outcome? Is this typical /standard reactions in dogs that have food allergies? Also, what would be the protocol from the vet to find out what allergies my dog may be allergic to?

Thanks and any links or professional advice would be greatly appreciated!

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He has a bad allergy to something causing him to be red in the genital area and have bad fleas and itching. He also has lost hair. He eats kibbles and bits dog food, and I don’t know if that was on the list for diarrhea causing pet foods.

I have checked him out for fleas and mites and found nothing. I give him a bath weekly with a tearless dog shampoo…is this okay?