Am sorry this is going to be long and drawn out but to give you the background ....Unfortunately we have no previous history on Frankie as he was in a refuge in Spain when I found him on their website, a month or so after we brought him home the refuge did an update on him and the other dog that were dumped in the garden of a villa to let everyone know how they were doing in their new lives. They did publish the original owners name and from that I traced her and wrote her a message saying that he had a new home with two other Cockers etc but asked could we have some information on age, any health issues so we could pass on to our vet ... my message was ignored as were my other two that followed. Frankie was fine for the final year that we lived in Spain and continued to be from Nov 2011 until December 2012 when he developed some tiny lumps on the top of his head, soon after that his nose started to get very dry )although he had never had a wet nose like the other two dogs) it became very crusty either side of the nostrils and after this there were two red sores which looked very painful, by this time he had been to the vet and was given a steroid injection and put on a course of antibiotics, we were told to clean the area with warm salt water twice a day, dry it and apply Fuciderm. (he also had a crusty type lump on the back of his front leg, the vet thought it was some kind of allergy, but suggested we would try the injections, tablets and cream and see if it cleared)This seemed to work and the leg cleared up really well as did the top of his head, The nose was about 70% better but he seemed much better in himself. After a few weeks of being fine the whole thing started again, Frankie was licking his paws constantly, the small bumps were back on his head, which are like tiny scabs we would get if we were constantly scratching, only he wasn't doing this.. and his nose was worse, we went back to the vets paid and repeated the whole process again with the same conclusion until 2 weeks ago when this started again. I returned to the vets last week as I had to wait a week to see the regular vet and he said he's almost certain that its some kind of allergy but it could be one of many things, he suggested taking a blood test to check for one particular thing ( because I was so upset I didn't write it down but remember he said there was an operation that they could do, which sounded horrendous, but basically meant it was to do with nasal passages and they could drill 2 small holes in Frankie's head and put some tubes in through his nose... I don't know if this is the right way of explaining it but would have to find out more) anyway Frankie was given another steroid injection, the same course of tablets of which is has been taking since last Friday and has 3 more days to go and we are still washing with warm salt water, drying and using the cream. His head is getting slightly better, but still looks like a skin allergy that has been scratched. his leg not clearing as well as before and his nose is much better than it was but still crusty either side and as you lift the black part of his nose up each side, its like the skin is dry and split, as soon as i clean it, it comes up white in colour with red in it... hard to explain really unless you see it..
I dont know what food he was given at the refuge but know that it wouldnt have been good food and he would have been lucky to eat his food with all the other dogs wandering around, we gave him Royal Canin from day one with no problems healthwise at all, he was on this around 2 and half years until March when we changed him to Natures Best dry food. The skin and nose problems started at the end of last year so after talking to the vet we think its not the food. we changed from the royal canine because we were advised the natures best would be better for him... So we are now waiting for this blood test to come back and not really sure where we are going, last week was 160pds and when we go back there will be more investigations, blood tests and treatment so cost is rising and we feel we are not getting anywhere. This week he doesnt really want to be brushed and when I did brush him I feel that his fur seems thinned out but cant be sure its just not me over worrying and seeing things that are not there.. I just want to get to the bottom of it really, he is the most beautiful dog, has had a tough time being dumped by his owners and given to another family who left him, he was then reunited with his original owner when she heard that both her dogs were left in the heat outside with no food and just the pool water to drink but then had to face more trauma as she took both dogs to the refuge and left them because she didnt want to bring them back to the uk, he was separated from his best friend when he was rehomed a week after he went to the refuge, by the time I saw him which was just 3 weeks after he was extremely nervous, I was told he tried to follow the volunteers everywhere they went and was very depressed and had almost given up, he was scared of the other dogs.. He fitted in really well my our other two, no jealousy or problems, and was very settled, but he does have separation anxiety if i try to take one of the other dogs out and he is left, he has to have a soft toys with him all the time and is never without one. It just so strange that this started after all the time we had him and also we were back here a year before any problems, so he spent the winter here and all of last summer which makes me think it cant be something in the garden...
