Lip Fold Infection and wet food?

[Mutley]

I wonder if anyone can advise - my Archie has been prone to low level infection in his lip folds, both sides to varying degrees. He is 5 months. The vet prescribed anti-biotics and dry food (Hills). This combination helped to stop the infection, and Archie carried on fine after the anti-biotics with the dry food obviously helping him in this respect.

I have recently made the switch to raw feeding, and Archie is a different puppy on Natures Menu puppy nuggets! (calmer etc). However, this type of food is WET and guess what, his lip folds look infected again. I don't want to stop raw feeding but it doesn't seem right to give him food which is clearly affecting his mouth in this way.

Can you get raw dry food? I know you can give bones etc. but I'm not ready for that just yet. With the Natures Menu I feel more confident about quantities, ingredients etc. (yes I know ingredients of bones are straightforward but what I'm saying is that with the Natures Menu there's other stuff in it for a balanced diet at the puppy stage).

I have hibiscrub to wash his mouth with but he absolutely hates me doing that.
any ideas or advice would be really appreciated!

[zenon_bass]

Regret I can't give any advice, but would be very happy to receive it, as Millie is suffering the same condition on both sides now. Vet has given me Surolan ointment to apply to the affected areas.

I'm beginning to think that this is what's causing her to lick excessively down her front, as this behaviour diminishes when she appears comfortable.

[Brimbeck(Dyllan)]

Could you try  different raw, we had problems but they have gone since using a different brand of raw food, one with no grains in.

[phoenix]

One of mine has had a lip fold problem recently. Hibiscrub, fuciderm and wiping the face after drinking and eating. We have reverted to completely dry food and am using Eden,  which claims to be the cooked version of raw, cereal free. I use the  very small size of kibble so that it isn't crunched up at all to leave gritty bits.
There have been plenty posts about Eden, it can take weeks and weeks for them to adjust to it, but both of mine got through the squitty stage and are fine with it. It doesn't swell much when soaked because there's no cereal. The lip folds are better and she can have a chew for cleaning the teeth.
It really helps to give them a wipe the mouth regularly .

[elaine.e]

How long since you switched to raw? I ask because William had recurring lip fold (and ear) infections when he was kibble fed but they simply stopped within a very short time of changing his diet to raw and have never come back in the 4+ years since.

I'm not saying it will work the same magic for Archie, but it's probably worth persevering for a bit longer or you could also consider Natural Instinct or Nutriment raw. Both do a puppy raw complete that, unlike a lot of the Nature's Menu range, doesn't have rice in it, so is totally grain free. Grains are a frequent cause or factor in skin problems and infections. Natural Instinct and Nutriment can be bought online but there may also be a stockist near you, which you can check on their websites.

Do you keep the hair short in the lipfold area? That usually helps to avoid food and dirt getting trapped in the crevices.

[Mutley]

How long since you switched to raw? I ask because William had recurring lip fold (and ear) infections when he was kibble fed but they simply stopped within a very short time of changing his diet to raw and have never come back in the 4+ years since.

I'm not saying it will work the same magic for Archie, but it's probably worth persevering for a bit longer or you could also consider Natural Instinct or Nutriment raw. Both do a puppy raw complete that, unlike a lot of the Nature's Menu range, doesn't have rice in it, so is totally grain free. Grains are a frequent cause or factor in skin problems and infections. Natural Instinct and Nutriment can be bought online but there may also be a stockist near you, which you can check on their websites.

Do you keep the hair short in the lipfold area? That usually helps to avoid food and dirt getting trapped in the crevices.

Elaine I only switched to raw a week ago. I have a week's supply of Nature's Menu in the freezer. He likes it and is noticeably calmer. However I'm now wondering whether it was the right choice because of the rice in it. I have ordered a starter pack of Nutriment to see what that's like, but regarding the surplus Nature's Menu I guess I could bulk it out with chicken mince as suggested above, to reduce the % of rice per serving.

I will look into Eden but will put that one on hold for now.

I didn't know about keeping the hair short in the lipfold area. I'm a novice puppy owner and I'm not sure I'd feel confident wielding a pair of scissors around his mouth. It's bad enough trying to wash with Hibiscrub! Is there a special way of tackling this please?

[abkb]

My Finley has whiffy lip folds from time to time, and has had an infection previously. However he has wet food, Nature Diet. His lip folds are certainly less of a issue than they were whilst he was on kibble, but we do now just wipe them occasionally, and use fuciderm if they are particularly smelly (rarely).

[Mutley]

My Finley has whiffy lip folds from time to time, and has had an infection previously. However he has wet food, Nature Diet. His lip folds are certainly less of a issue than they were whilst he was on kibble, but we do now just wipe them occasionally, and use fuciderm if they are particularly smelly (rarely).

Archie's have never been smelly and never had a discharge. They are just red. The vet said it was an infection but perhaps it's just skin irritation. Having said that, he does not appear at all irritated by it. As I said, the only problem is that there is redness on the lip folds. Perhaps it's not as bad as I thought?

[elaine.e]

How long since you switched to raw? I ask because William had recurring lip fold (and ear) infections when he was kibble fed but they simply stopped within a very short time of changing his diet to raw and have never come back in the 4+ years since.

I'm not saying it will work the same magic for Archie, but it's probably worth persevering for a bit longer or you could also consider Natural Instinct or Nutriment raw. Both do a puppy raw complete that, unlike a lot of the Nature's Menu range, doesn't have rice in it, so is totally grain free. Grains are a frequent cause or factor in skin problems and infections. Natural Instinct and Nutriment can be bought online but there may also be a stockist near you, which you can check on their websites.

Do you keep the hair short in the lipfold area? That usually helps to avoid food and dirt getting trapped in the crevices.

Elaine I only switched to raw a week ago. I have a week's supply of Nature's Menu in the freezer. He likes it and is noticeably calmer. However I'm now wondering whether it was the right choice because of the rice in it. I have ordered a starter pack of Nutriment to see what that's like, but regarding the surplus Nature's Menu I guess I could bulk it out with chicken mince as suggested above, to reduce the % of rice per serving.

I will look into Eden but will put that one on hold for now.

I didn't know about keeping the hair short in the lipfold area. I'm a novice puppy owner and I'm not sure I'd feel confident wielding a pair of scissors around his mouth. It's bad enough trying to wash with Hibiscrub! Is there a special way of tackling this please?

Archie's about 5 months old isn't he? If he's beginning to look a bit mammoth like it could be a good time to book him in with a reputable groomer for a tidy up if you're not planning to do major grooming yourself. I do all my dog grooming and use either clippers or thinning scissors to keep the hair in the lip fold area short. For a first time session at the groomer Archie shouldn't have much done, mainly tidying paws and sideburns and moustache if he's got them but a lot of it should be about getting him used to being professionally groomed without stressing him. You could ask the groomer to do the lipfold area.

If you go to a groomer ask what she normally does with Cockers. A few assume that every Cocker owner wants a totally shaved dog and just go ahead and do that. Fine if that's what you want, but it seems that every few weeks an upset owner posts on here about wanting their Cocker handstripped or just tidied and finding it's been shaved.

[butterflywings21]

How long since you switched to raw? I ask because William had recurring lip fold (and ear) infections when he was kibble fed but they simply stopped within a very short time of changing his diet to raw and have never come back in the 4+ years since.

I'm not saying it will work the same magic for Archie, but it's probably worth persevering for a bit longer or you could also consider Natural Instinct or Nutriment raw. Both do a puppy raw complete that, unlike a lot of the Nature's Menu range, doesn't have rice in it, so is totally grain free. Grains are a frequent cause or factor in skin problems and infections. Natural Instinct and Nutriment can be bought online but there may also be a stockist near you, which you can check on their websites.

Do you keep the hair short in the lipfold area? That usually helps to avoid food and dirt getting trapped in the crevices.

Elaine I only switched to raw a week ago. I have a week's supply of Nature's Menu in the freezer. He likes it and is noticeably calmer. However I'm now wondering whether it was the right choice because of the rice in it. I have ordered a starter pack of Nutriment to see what that's like, but regarding the surplus Nature's Menu I guess I could bulk it out with chicken mince as suggested above, to reduce the % of rice per serving.

I will look into Eden but will put that one on hold for now.

I didn't know about keeping the hair short in the lipfold area. I'm a novice puppy owner and I'm not sure I'd feel confident wielding a pair of scissors around his mouth. It's bad enough trying to wash with Hibiscrub! Is there a special way of tackling this please?

I think you will find that nature's menu nuggets have just brought out a grain free lots, but I could be wrong. No advice I'm afraid but I do hope it sorts itself out quickly.

[Mutley]

My Finley has whiffy lip folds from time to time, and has had an infection previously. However he has wet food, Nature Diet. His lip folds are certainly less of a issue than they were whilst he was on kibble, but we do now just wipe them occasionally, and use fuciderm if they are particularly smelly (rarely).

strange because my Archie was weaned on Nature Diet and that's what we were feeding him when we first noticed the redness on the lipfolds. The vet promptly switched us onto kibble, because she said wet food exacerbated the problem. I'm not sure how much I trust vets now 

[Mutley]

Elaine - thank you for the grooming advice. Happily there is a groomer I trust locally. It's at the place where we go for puppy classes and Archie's "creche"  now and then when I have to work. (I highly recommend it - they take the "inmates"  for a countryside walk and do some training, not just lock them in a cage). when he next goes to creche I will request they groom him and will make sure I specify a light trim only! I don't want him shaved...

[carol pearson]

You could also try rubbing a little manuka honey on his lip folds.