I am the Alpha and the Omega-3

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Hello fateful fans!! It is I, Thor (beast) and I’m back with another installment of “Thor’s Days”.

Today we will be talking about skin care for your hairy Charge. Or more precisely, I’ll be doing the writing while you’ll be doing the reading and taking notes. There will be a short quiz at the end!!!

Back when my Caretakers took responsibility of me in Sept of ’12, it was evident that I had a skin problem. I had a dime sized crusty rash on my back just behind the shoulder blades. As it turned out, it was a fungal infection. Though they brushed it off as a one-time event. As it turned out, it was not.

The treatment at that time was a shot and some anti-fungal cream. A few weeks later it was gone and the skin was on the mend.

Then in May of ’13, my caretakers moved to Shanghai, and me along with them (at an exorbitant price, I might add…I might also add that I’m very much worth it!). Shanghai is a much more humid city than my mid-western origins and soon I found myself with lots of little lumps and itching all over.

It was fungus again (there really is no ‘fun’ in fungus…I speak from experience). So off to the vet again for more shots and lots of pills this time: antibiotics, anti-fungal and fish oil. For the record, I don’t like shots, but they are over quick. I like pills even less (with one exception that I will address later). A month later it was back for another treatment.

My Caretakers took me to a different Vet, a city Vet this time. They shot me up with the standard antibiotics, anti-fungal and a fish-oil shot. They also sold us a bottle of Malaseb shampoo. My Caretakers where a bit hesitant to use this product as it had the word POISON in big bold letters on it. But the fungus soon returned and they were forced into it.

Using that along with Compound Miconazole Nitrate Cream for spot treatments keep things at bay through the summer. The fact that ’13 was the hottest and driest summer on record with temperatures reaching into the 100’s for many days also helped.

Alas, when the fall returned with cooler and wetter weather, so did my fungus.

Back to the Vets for more shots. This time they had us try some skin oil, and I was good until next Spring.

Sigh.

A very wet Spring of ’14 and it was back to the Vets again. This was getting old. I was beginning to dread scooter rides now as I was sure it would be another Vet visit.

More shots, but it was clear that the Malaseb was not working anymore. The vet suggested a newer product: Douxo Pyo shampoo and spray. Wow! That stuff was great! Not only did it feel wonderful being lathered up in the shower, but it stopped the itching and made my coat soft and shinny!

douxo

Happy feet! Happy feet!

For a while….

The cream and the shampoo and spray where keeping things under control, but I still had breakouts and still needed baths every 3-5 days. I was growing frustrated, as were my Caretakers.

So I reminded them of this new-ish resource where all of the world’s knowledge (and bullshit), can be accessed with a simple computer or smart-phone: the Inter-tubes(net).

So Food, or Love (can’t tell them apart), started digging, and digging and digging. Surely I was not the only canine masterpiece afflicted with this Malaise! And I was not. Various web sites, including Pet WebMD described my condition and treatments.

I as the Alpha, the answer was Omega-3.

Omega-3 EPA

Omega-3 EPA Fatty Acid Molecule

Omega-3 fatty acids. Or more precisely Omega-3 EPA fatty acids. Plus a low carb diet.

The ‘cure’ was a three-pronged life style change

  1. Omega-3 EPA Oils no less than 680 mg per day based on my weight
  2. Low Card diet and Fungus loves carbs
  3. No Oat based shampoo, and Fungi loves the carbs in oats.

To calculate the minimum amount of Omega-3 EPA’s required for your canine, use this formula:

(weight in lbs) * 20 = Omega-3 EPA mg (milligrams)

A maximum daily dosage is about double that. So I can have between 680 and 1360mg Omega-3 EPA per day. BUT, if the stool become soft, back off on the amount. That means your getting more than you body can use.

As luck would have it, my Caretakers had some Nature Made Fish Oil liquid softgels on hand. Two of these pills provide 360 mg Omega-3 EPA, and that along with the amount I was getting from my Dog Food, provided just enough to meet my minimum daily requirements.

So Please Note: When you are calculating how much Omega-3 EPA to give your Charge, take into account how much s/he is getting from their dog food. If the bag doesn’t list Omega-3 EPA, then take the Omega-3 amount and divide by two. If it doesn’t list Omega-3 at all, then I would recommend switching Dog Food altogether.

I’ve been on this diet for two months now, and even in this very wet fall, my fungal infections have cleared up dramatically. I now only require weekly Doxo Pyo baths and hardly any cream applications.

While I love the stinky, oily Fish Oil pills, my Caretakers figured there must be a better way to provide Omega-3 EPA to me. Surely there is a dog food out there that provides sufficient amounts of this essential ingredient for healthy, fungal-free skin.

So, again from above, I need a minimum of 680 mg of Omega-3 EPA, twice that of just Omega-3 (if EPA is not given). Since I eat about 130 Grams of food a day, that works out to 1.04% Omega-3, or .5% Omega-3 EPA. Plus, I need a grain-free diet to give those pesky fungi less to feast on!

Turns out there is a really helpful web site out there that reviews and rates all the known commercial dog foods based on ingredients: The Dog Food Advisor (link given at the end of this post). So my Caretakers took the list of the highest rated grain-free foods and compared them against our favorite dealer here in town to narrow it down to a usable list. Then they visited each remaining Dog Food Manufacture Web sites looking for Omega-3 and Omega-3 EPA content. Those that did not list any Omega-3 contents were discarded. Those that were left, that contained at least 1% Omega-3 (or .5% Omega-3 EPA), that our dealer carries, were four:

  • Acana Regionals Grain-Free
  • Holistic Blend Grain Free
  • Orijen Six Fish Dog Food
  • Orijen Adult Dog Food

Now, I’m a picky eater and I grow tired of eating the same thing for more that two months, so this list of four available varieties is perfect. Every couple of months, my Caretakers will switch me to another brand, rotating through the list, while still guaranteeing that I get the minimum 1% Omega-3 Fatty Acids in my diet – and without having to add Fish Oil pill supplements.

Hopefully, someday soon, I will require even less bathing – though my Caretakers say I get kinda ‘Ripe’ after two weeks. I dunno. I think I smell fine…

So I hope this long, drawn-out post was helpful. If your beast is having fungal problems, consult your Vet and talk to them about a high Omega-3, low carb diet to turn things around permanently, and Douxo Pyo for baths. Your Charge will love you for it.

P.S. I was just kidding about the Quiz at the end. Here are links to some helpful web sites: