My dog has a poor immune system and has suffered parvo and mange. How can I improve his immune system.?
Saturday, August 21st, 2010 at
8:38 pm
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An immune system that compromised may never come back to full health. That being said, diet is everything to an immune-compromised dog.
Some folks have suggested raw, which would be great if you research and do it right. Another person suggested Blue, which I actually have my immune-compromised dog on. While he still has issues every once in awhile, his health is much better than we expected it would be, and he will live a long life.
There are also several immune-booster vitamins on the market that you could try. I use Duralactin.
And yes, Demodex mange has EVERYTHING to do with the immune system. It is caused by a weakened immune system.
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=630
And generalized Demodex is often caused by bad breeding:
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1556
Real food. Not kibble, not canned, but a real, balanced cooked diet. He is not able to support a raw fed diet at this point. Lots of recipes out there.
First, you should have found a decent breeder! What is it people don’t understand about the difference in a GOOD and a BAD breeder? That info is all over YA and the internet!!! Anyway, you find a Homeopathic Vet for starters, to treat all the damage done by the regular vet’s treatment of these problems. Then you change him to a raw diet. Kibble is made out of crap, and is a very unnatural diet for dogs. Switch your dog to raw meat and bones, and a few fresh veggies, and he will practically grow a whole new immune system. Some resources for raw feeding: rawlearning.com, http://www.rawfeddogs.net, and there is a great Yahoo group for raw feeding as well.
Keep giving him vitamins and supplements, and make sure you’re feeding him a quality food, not the waste that comes from grocery stores. I can recommend one canine vitamin that my VERY picky Chis love and will eat with nothing added. Please email for the link.
Oh, and I feed mine Blue Buffalo (regularly mixed with variously, boiled eggs, livers, brown beans). No grains, not tested on animals, high quality, only good quality meats are used (not slaughterhouse wastes, etc.), and all ingredients are guaranteed to be from the US. They look and act much younger than they are.
On the mange, if your vet hasn’t already got you poisoning him with chemicals, try the one on the link below. It works. I used it on a couple of puppies my son rescued that were nearly dead from malnutrition and it got rid of it.
Mange really has nothing to do with the immune system… it’s simply a mite infection, one the dog probably had before you ever purchased it.
Diet is everything with your dog’s immune system. If you decide not to cook your pup’s food, or start him on a BARF (Bones and Raw Food) diet, consider changing to a ultra high quality premium dog food that does not contain grain and mixing it with a grain free wet food. Don’t feed a low quality food full of corn, wheat, fillers, by-products or by-product meal, artificial flavors/colors, or preservatives such as bha or bht.
Some examples of high quality the kibble include Taste of The Wild, EVO, Canidea Grain Free ALS Formula, and Wellness Core. These could be combined with premium quality wet food such as Canidea, EVO, Taste of the Wild, and Evanger’s. You can also add small amounts of cottage cheese, lightly cooked vegetables (carrots, green beans), brown rice, cooked egg, and cooked sweet potatoes. Do not feed garlic, onions, avocado, raisins or grapes since these can be harmful to your dog.
It would probably be a good idea to add probiotics and an Omega3 fatty acid supplement. When my Lab mix puppy had loose stools and itchy skin, my vet recommended putting him on Taste of the Wild and adding Animal Essentials Plant Enzymes & Probiotics to his diet. His coat shines like a pair of polished black shoes, he no longer itches, and there’s no more gunk in his eyes.
Good luck with your new best friend.
Sounds like your vet got it right……lol Adding omega 3,6,9 to his diet should help, and Missing Link Wellness Blend is a wonderful product and not very expensive. Its all vegetarian with probiotics to promote and support healthy digestive systems,healthy immune systems, healthy skin and coat, allergy relief and available here;
http://www.kvpet.com
at a cost of 13.95……..item number 42788
You can try doing a natural detoxification on your pup. That way all the toxins can be removed gently from his system. You can use BK Detox from Petwellbeing.com as it is a natural formula:
"BK Detox is a natural herbal formulation that will gently cleanse and detoxify your pet, while boosting their immune system. This formulation is designed to cleanse, purify, and stimulate immune response and help increase the production of white blood cells (lymphocytes) – the body’s first defense against hostile germs and viruses. Your animal will be able to fight off infections and rashes better. By ingesting other natural herbs that cleanse and remove toxins, your pet will also alleviate the underlying causes of the health problems it’s experiencing."