From: Rhonda
Date: 2/26/2008 7:51:41 AM
To: PawHealer
Maybe you can help me with Shaman's problems. Shaman is a 14 yr old Shih Tzu who had prednisone for one week and developed demodex (commonly called red mange, a follicular parasitic mite infestation. The original infection was horrific. Shaman can never take prednisone again. The original infestation cleared up mostly, however Shaman has had an infected toe for 1 1/2 years that is red and hot and sometimes oozy because he licks and licks. We go to the dermatologist constantly and she has prescribed a zillion different antibiotics (when she cultures bacteria its a sure sign he has become resistant to that type of antibiotic.) Anyway, the monthly cultures indicate maybe one or two mites...they are insanely itchy so he is at his paw all the time. This causes other problems with the toe.... in fact, not that either one of us likes this, Shaman now takes interceptor (poison) every other day because the mites never really completely clear up. So, this means to me that his immune system is compromised. Shaman also has a horrible bony growth getting larger and larger emanating from his right front paw dew claw. He's constantly licking this paw also. He licks both raw and bloody....And from all the licking (?) he seems to have crusty, scabby stuff around his mouth. This does not heal up. We've tried a zillion different medications. Nothing is really working. I'm not opting for surgery for the dew claw problem because of his age and the dangers of anesthesia. Any ideas? Need any more info?
Okay, so what we have here is some definite Damp Heat heat at the skin level along with Blood level Heat.
Damp Heat skin related problems are associated with dermatitis, eczema, skin rashes, itching, ear itching, and hot spots.
Clinical Signs include skin eruptions, erosions, redness, thick/yellow smelly secretions, itching, scab formations as well as possible hair loss.
Clearly we can see from Rhona's description that Shaman has Damp Heat. The PawHealer team instructed Rhonda to review Shaman's diet....and she did admit that this little scamp shares her food!
Oh no said the PawHealer team!
This is such a hard thing for pet owners, especially when the pet is in "The Golden Years"...we want them to be happy.
But...none the less the following is critical for recovery;
Food Therapy; Which is so very important. Dr. Steve Marsden, a well known holistic DVM states that when a pet is subjected to Damp Heat which is the root cause of the skin condition, in most instances, will be related to a diet that has been rich in grains. It's his suggestion that the pet be immediately taken off the grains because they that are toxic to the pet's digestion.
Lets move on the the Mange part of the skin problems. Mange is a autoimmune-mediated disease. In other words, Shaman has a weak immune system, and as a consequence, those little mites, which are part of the disease, dig into his skin, then causing that constant intense itch.
Chinese medicine would say that Shaman's Wei Qi is very weak, along with the fact that he has a condition of Blood Heat. The conditions that are associated with Blood Level Heat are lupus (DLE), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), pemphigus folicaceus, and other autoimmune-mediated diseases.
Symptoms that are associated with Blood Heat are depigmentation, crusting, erythema, ulceration of the skin and erosions.
We are going to make a special formula for Shaman that will Clear Blood level Heat, clear Damp Heat at the skin level, and transform internal middle Jiao Dampness.
We are also thinking about putting something into the formula to tonify the Wei Qi.
Dr. Pink Pinkerton and I will also be posting a menu for Rhonda and Shaman!
Good luck Shaman you handsome fellow.
and The PawHealer
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