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The doghouse

Malaseb dog shampoo

34 replies

ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 17:04

Jasper was prescribed this as his skin smelled 'yeasty' (the vet) or 'like a cross between rancid butter and vomit' (me). He has to have two baths a week for a fortnight, and then one bath a week until he stops stinking like a pole cat. He is also on antibiotics for an anal gland infection. Anyway, his first bath was on thursday night and I've just bathed him again because the smell was creeping back. Is that normal? Or should the shampoo have killed the stench straight off? He is scratching around his ears/neck and chewing his back a bit, but the vet could see no irritation o his skin. He just stank absolutely vile.

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kid · 06/11/2011 18:27

My dog was prescribed Malaseb a couple of weeks ago because he had a bacterial skin infection.

I was told to bath him twice a week for 2 weeks. They gave him 2 antibiotic injections and a steroid injection too. The smell cleared up really quickly but I think that was due to the injections. The shampoo made him so soft though, he looks lovely!

Is your dog due to go back to the vets for a check-up? Mine had to go back after 2 weeks to make sure his skin had healed.

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 18:34

No, not unless he has further problems. She just said to ring in a fortnight to let her know how he is. Thing is, apart from the itching, there is no other symptoms for the skin problem. He isn't red, or scabby, or anything. He just smells rancid. It's a 'butter left in the sun mixed with BO' kind of stench. It mainly seems to eminate from his neck/shoulder area, and that is true of where it started to come back today. It really isn't a normal 'doggy' smell at all. The evt even said it wasn't a common complaint, but as she thought it might be yeasty in origin to use the shampoo. He is on antibiotics for a fortnight for the anal gland infection, so I assume they would tackle it too?

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kid · 06/11/2011 20:06

The vet chose to give my dog an injection as it is much fast acting he said. It is also much more expensive but as we have insurance, we agreed it wasn't a problem.

What dog do you have?
My dog (springer spaniel) suffers from a very common condition for his breed. He gets infections in the fold in his lips. The smell is rotten but its mainly on his breath. We know he has it because the skin goes very red and of course the smell is indescribeable!

If your dog isn't smelling just after washing, I assume the shampoo is doing the trick. Maybe you could bath him every 3 days to keep the smell at bay?

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 20:14

He's a cocker/springer cross (more cocker than springer in appearance). I will stick to the bathing schedule, but tbh I'm concerned that it could dry out his skin. It's quite harsh stuff, apparently. Hmmm. Wish the little stink bomb could talk.

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kid · 06/11/2011 20:23

have you looked at the skin around his mouth?
If the smell is coming from there, the shampoo is unlikely to clear it up (unless you are scrubbing his mouth with it!)

I had to clean my springers mouth with salt water and cotton wool. The cotton wool came away with brown stains on it
I'd be concerned that your dog has the same. If there are no scabs on his body, its unlikely that the smell is coming from the skin on his body. I reckon he has the same condition that my dog has had twice. The vet mentioned he might need to perform plastic surgery to remove some excess skin but the thought of sedating him terrifies me Sad

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kid · 06/11/2011 20:24

just had a look at your profile pics, he is gorgeous!

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 20:27

Hmm. I'll have a good sniff of his chops when he's sleeping. If I attempt it when he's awake he'll probably chew my face Grin

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kid · 06/11/2011 20:34

another way you can check and its so easy is to let him lick you and then smell your hand. Its not pleasant but at least you'll know if the smell is coming from his mouth! Grin

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 20:37

Well, his breath smells doggy, but not vile. It's certainly not the satan stench he's been emitting. Huh.

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smartyparts · 06/11/2011 20:43

Our old Westie had a chronic, stinky skin complaint and was on a repeat prescription for Malaseb. We would use it twice a week, but yes, the pong would start creeping back after a couple of days. It helped to leave the shampoo on her for a few minutes.

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GrimmaTheNome · 06/11/2011 20:50

I'd forgotten our last dog had a skin problem which made a bit of a strange smell - Malaseb helped that. The instructions say to leave it on for 10 minutes - do make sure you do that. (not easy if you've got a dog that doesn't like being bathed!)

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 20:52

Smarty, did your westie suffer for being bathed twice a week? I'm worried it'll upset his skin further. That said, the stench is not something anyone wants to live with, either.

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 20:54

I have to confess that I didn't manage to keep it on him for ten minutes. Poor pup was shivering and it was hard to distract him. I'll be better prepared for the next bath.

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SeaShellsOnTheSeaShore · 06/11/2011 20:57

It can take quite a while to get skin infections under control so persevere for a good 10d plus, if it's no better go back to your vet. Make sure you do leave it on for 10 mins as its the contact time that is crucial....but I'm really sorry your dog stinks that badly! Anal glands (especially infected ones) absolutely stink, so is probably adding to his "unique aroma" Grin

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SeaShellsOnTheSeaShore · 06/11/2011 20:59

Sorry xpost! My dog shivered and shook and did the whole "what ever did I do to you" look whilst I treated him-I felt so bad Grin it worked though!

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smartyparts · 06/11/2011 21:07

Chickens, I think the Malaseb didn't irritate her skin further. It really helped, albeit in the short term, but she had a particularly hideous condition towards the end of her life, as well as anal furunculosis and all manner of crappy things.

It is hard to leave Malaseb on, but she liked it if we put the plug in so she could sit in some warm water, rather than trembling in the empty bath. I would squirt some into the water too so it was bathing her skin.

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kid · 06/11/2011 21:10

I kept it on my dog for the suggested 10 minutes. When he started to shiver, I rubbed it all in again to get more bubbles and to warm him up a bit.

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 21:33

Sea, the smell is repulsive. Yet he looks absolutely fine, glossy coat, good weight, bright eyes etc. He just smells like he's rotting from the inside out. Nasty.

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kid · 06/11/2011 21:48

i think you should go back to the vets. He shouldn't smell that bad!
My dog did smell really bad and the vet did the antibiotic injection (£70 a time!)
It was well worth the money though as the smell was so bad, we couldn't stand to be in the same room as our dog!

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 06/11/2011 21:51

He doesn't smell now he's been bathed, but it only kept it at bay for 48 hrs last time. I think I'll keep on with the shampoo, antibiotics and ear cleaning for a fortnight and then take him back. If it doesn't cure it, I will be getting a bit foot stampy with the vet.

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kid · 06/11/2011 21:55

Not sure what you use for ear cleaning but we use 'Thornit' powder. Its great as it dries the wax and draws it out. Even the vet said its a good thing to use (I got it off Ebay)

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misdee · 06/11/2011 21:59

thornit powdwer has been recommended to me by multipoodles on here for my furry eared dog who has ear issues.

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 07/11/2011 10:02

The vet gave me a sort of fluid that I have to squirt in his ear, swish around a bit and then wipe out with cotton wool (if I can catch him before he shakes his head and fires ear sludge up the wall). So what's the deal with thornits? Do you just dust it in to the ears regularly?

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chickchickchicken · 07/11/2011 13:03

cant advise on ear related things but anal glands is my specialty Grin

dog1 suffered with blocked anal glands a lot when she was younger. kept taking her to vet to have them squeezed . vet said he thought it likely she would need an op. we experimented with different foods until we got the right type of poo. vet advised we needed less frequent poos which were compact and solid so they squeezed the anal glands on the way out every time she had a poo. after trying different foods over about a year we finally got the right type of poos. she has been ok for about 10 years now

can still remember the smell

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ChickensHaveNoEyebrows · 07/11/2011 13:10

I've just completed his switch to Burns puppy food, and his poos are now solid , so hopefully that will help. The anal gland squeezing seems to be unpleasant for him, so I'm hoping we can minimise it. I'm also giving him the odd bran flake as a treat. Strange dog seems to love them!

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