The Zim Family Cocker Spaniel Forum

We got Bob in May of 2010 at 5 weeks old. Yes, I know, BAD but we were told he was 11 weeks and the runt of his liter. Since getting him, we have spent thousands of dollars on a variety of problems that have stemmed from colitis to food allergies to ear infections to seizures. Let me tell you that Bob is pure-bred but is the product of his parents also being brother and sister. We didn't know until AFTER we had him. As you can tell, the people we got him from were less than honest but we love him so much, we just kept doing what we had to do to keep him healthy and happy.

Like most cockers, Bob has to have his eyes cleaned daily. Yesterday, I noticed that his eyes were more runny than normal and had to clean them several times. Last night I noticed that the hair around his right eye is starting to fall out and near the corner of his eye but more on his snout there is an area that appears to be scabby/crusty. I am going to call the vet to get him in as soon as possible, but any ideas on what this could possibly be?

I don't know what may be causing the hair loss, but going to the vet is the right course of action. I just wanted to welcome you to the forum, please post pics of Bob, we would love to see him. I am so sorry to hear about all your issues, sounds like you could be a perfect spokesman for why not to buy a puppy from a BYB or puppy mill. But Bob is very very lucky to have found such wonderful parents who love him and take great care of him.

I've tried to add a few pictures but the files are too big so when I have more time later, I will fix them and add them.

When we got Bob, I will admit, I did not take the time I should have to find a good breeder and healthy dog. My daughter wanted a black boy dog. I wanted a cocker when the time was right. We had just had our 3rd miscarriage in a very short time and was especially emotional and figured if I couldn't give my daughter a sibling, she'd get the dog she wanted. That day I found an ad for a black boy cocker and figured it was fate. In a way, I still do because had we not gotten Bob, I hate to think of what his life would have been like. The people we got him from handed him to us with a tick on his head and he had 4 different parasites (we found out from the vet 2 days later). He was a sick guy and only 5 weeks old, although we were told he was much older. I wasn't 100% sure I wanted a dog at that point, but I knew my daughter did and I wanted to make her happy. He quickly became my sidekick and stayed with me every day through my high risk pregnancy that I was on bedrest for. Our son is now 10 months old and Bob is fiercely protective of him and it is so sweet. He freaks out when my daughter wakes in the morning and constantly wants to be with her. He is such a good man, but I feel so bad for him because it always seems like there is something going on with him health wise. He is getting slightly over weight which is 100% my fault. My husband deployed to Afghanistan 5 months ago and with two kids, one being a baby, it has been nearly impossible to get Bob's two mile long walks in a day. Poor guy is lucky to get in 1/2 mile. He does get lots of outside time to frolic in the backyard but I know that is not the same as a few nice long walks. I think I have found a neighborhood kid to take him for walks after school though. Anyway, that is a bit of our history with Bob.

Welcome to the forum, Amanda. I'm sorry that you were deceived by these people. What is wrong with people.
I agree, a vet trip is probablly in order. If the skin is flaky and scabby they may need to do a scraping to see if it is a parasite.

It sounds like your pup may have contracted mange. I would get him to a vet ASAP.

Hello and welcome Amanda! So sorry to hear of your boys problems, but it sounds like he is in great hands!

Just wanted to tell you that we too have a black male cocker, Mosley (Mo), who is just over 2 years now and we recently noticed runnier than usual eye discharge and it was a little smelly along with the crusty stuck in the fur issue and a small bare spot under his right eye. We took Mo to the vet and we were told he has bilateral dermatitis and that it more or less means his eyes were irritated and it could have been caused by anything. We got some ointment to put in his eyes twice a day for 10 days and I can tell you they look much better. The vet said it's important to wash the eyes daily and to keep the hair around his eyes and tear ducts short and clean. Mosley hates having his eyes washed with a warm wash cloth, but tolerates it because he knows he gets a treat when I am done.

I wish you luck with Bob and I can't wait to see a photo either. If you want an easy way to resize to post, go to the board index and under Important Notices is a topic on how to make our pictures smaller. Super easy and super fast!

Thank you for your responses. I think there may be a lot more going on with Bob than I originally suspected. I was petting him under his neck tonight and when I pulled my hand away it smelled. I tipped his head up and there is a 2X4 area that is completely raw. I have to get close to smell the odor but it is definitely there. Funny thing is, he hasn't been scratching. I am a stay at home mom and am with him 99% of the days and I would notice if he was scratching. I'm a freak about fleas so I would have noticed the first scratch and checked him. My poor guy. I feel horrible for not noticing this before tonight and hope it hasn't been like this long. It's in the fold of his neck. I did call the vet today and have an appointment for him Monday morning at 9:30.

My brother was here over Christmas and my first thought is that Bob got into his dog's food when we weren't looking. I was cautious about feeding them at different times and in different rooms, but my brother was lazy and I would often find his dog's bowl with food in it at a place that Bob could get to it. Bob is highly allergic to corn and I know that food had corn in it because I checked the bag and lectured my brother on feeding his dog crappy food. Would it have taken so long for an allergy to food show up? They have been gone a week.

Here is Bob!

Hi Bob! You're a cutie pie. Amanda, maybe he has a yeast infection - especially if there's a smell to it. I don't know exactly how a corn allergy would manifest itself, but I do know that yeast is smelly (like Fritos, especially on their feet) and can collect in folds where dampness or moisture may accumulate. I hope you can get his health issues under control. Have you seen a dermatologist for his allergy - or was that diagnosed by your regular vet? From everything I've read here on the forum, the dermatologist is a better choice to pinpoint exactly what the allergy is so that you're treating it properly.

One of my foster dogs has constantly runny eyes and because there is constant moisture, he has a yeast infection on his skin under his eyes, which can result in hair loss. He gets a smell that is similar to sour milk that is a sure sign of a yeast infection. He had distichia, which meant that he had eye lashes growing in the direction of his eyes and because the eye lashes kept hitting his eye, the thought was that this was the cause of the constant watering. The rescue paid of his surgery, which consists of lasering off the eye lashes. Surprisingly, his eye continue to water as much as they did before the surgery, so we are trying to figure out what a secondary cause could be. A vet can tell if your dog has distichia by a pretty standard exam. It does sound as though your dog may have a pretty bad yeast infection, which is treated by shaving the hair under his eyes as short as possible. Cleaning the area frequently and antibotics. Is it possible that your dog has allergies? Have you tried Benadryl for a few days to see if the watering decreases? Benadryl only works on about 30% of dogs for allergies but it is a safe medication and when it works, it certainly saves an owner a great deal of money. Also, is your dog off of all grains in his food? It is very frustrating to have a dog with runny eyes and not know what to do but I would suggest you take him to your vet, and probably an eye specialist to see if it is something to do with his eyes and if not, look into allergies. I am sorry to hear how much you and Bob have had to go through but thank goodness he is with you!

Bob's issues sound exactly like Sadie's issues - eye tears, loss of hair, infection in neck folds. I took her to a dermatologist. She was tested for allergies. Her biggie is dust mites - could she find a harder one to control? I doubt it - the little stinker. The dermatologist said there really wasn't a good test for food allergies except for the elimination diet. He, however, didn't feel her allergies were related to food.

As a side note, I had posted a pic of her eye on the site and folks thought it looked like a form of mange. It wasn't, however.

She gets medicated baths every two weeks now (after the issues settled down), gets her paws wiped as needed, is taking antigen shots, and was given meds to clear the infections of her face and neck.

Just before her eye issue, I had switched her to Costco's salmon and sweet potato food. She loves it! Because I felt it was that food that caused her eyes to water, I switched back to Orijen red. She, however, wasn't happy. Therefore I fed her a combo of both. Now, I'm weaning her off of Costco again and am trying other foods. If anyone in SoCal wants a half bag of the Costco food, PM me - and DON'T tell Sadie.

I would say see an allergist or dermatologist if you can. They cost more than the std. vet, but in the long run, you'll spend less, as they are used to dealing with skin/allergy issues. I went the other route with Rusty - decided to be much more proactive with Sadie.

The hair loss around the eye was directly related to the excess moisture in her eyes, which was related to the food she was eating. I can't figure out what is in the Costco food that causes her the issues, though.

I wish you the best.

We just got back from the vet and it is yeast! There are issues in his ears, eyes, under his neck and by his bum. He said his ears aren't that bad but it's definitely starting up and the spot by his bum I wouldn't have noticed if it wasn't pointed out because it's so small and hasn't effected his hair yet. He said more than likely with a systemic infection, he got into something he was allergic to. I'm going to bet my brother's dog's food because I am so careful about what Bob has. So he is on prednisone, eye drops and an antibiotic because he said he his neck is so raw, he is worried about another infection setting in besides the yeast.

I asked the vet if he thinks we should take Bob to a dermatologist and he said that the other vet in his office actually specializes in canine dermatology and if I wanted Bob to see him at our next visit, he'd be more than happy to make sure it happens. I have to take him back a week after the prednisone is finished so I am going to call back to make sure we see the other vet also.

My poor man!

Umm prednisone is not going to cure a yeast infection. It's only going to stop the itching. Here is a link to some very helpful home remedies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl_X1I1GJ1Q

Thanks for that video, Julie. That was really informative.