Product Review: Immune IQ Dog Allergy Test

Ever since I got her Molly has been bad about itching/scratching excessively, especially around her paws.  I switched her over to grain free food right after I got her, and try to do wheat/soy/corn free treats whenever possible. She gets the occasional rule-breaking treat from friends and clerks at the liquor store, etc, which I don't sweat too much since they never seem to affect her poorly.

The food change didn't seem to make much difference, and I am suspecting allergies to plants (probably grass) since it seems to be concentrated around the paws.  Frequent bathing and use of anti-itch spray helps, but only to a point.

So, after I heard about mail-in doggie allergy testing I figured it was worth a try. I have friends that have gone to actual dog allergists and dermatologists, and if we can't contain it any other way I might have to do that eventually.  But I thought the mail-in testing would at least help me realize what I was dealing with (food vs. environment, etc).

I went with the ImmuneIQ tests, they weren't the most highly reviewed that I found, but the price was reasonable ($45 after a Groupon deal) compared to some other options, and the reviews were generally decent.  Honestly, the main criticism seemed to be that people didn't quite know what to do with the data, since it was either non-definitive (saying a dog was sensitive, but not outright allergic to an irritant) or included such a long list that they were overwhelmed.

In addition to the allergy test, they also offer some add-ons to test for molds & fungus, other toxins, and some common bacteria/viruses.  I figured if I was going to do it, I might as well go all-in so purchased those in addition to the base test.  I also opted for the express processing.

The kit itself came to me via priority mail.  The company was located in Boulder so it came to me very quickly, although it took awhile before they shipped it after I placed the order (a week or so).  The return shipping was to a lab in Las Vegas and via standard mail, so I assume it took longer but with no tracking there was no way to know (or even know if it made it safely).

Compared to the DNA breed testing I did around the same time, the test itself was much easier to administer with no hair-catching wire brush/swab but just a cotton swab, and a baggie to collect some  of her hair in.  I'm not sure how the sample collections methods between the two types of tests compare accuracy-wise.  I will say that for all it's hair-tugging faults, the swab provided with the DNA test did seem to be more medical/scientific in appearance (compared to what was obviously just a QTip in this test).

I sent it off and then waited, my rush processing meant that I was supposed to get results within three days of it arriving at the lab.  I sent it on a Friday, and figured with shipping and processing times I could expect results at the end of the following week, or possibly early the week after that if shipping was slower than I expected.  On Wednesday of the week after I sent it, I received an email with my results.

I had about the same reaction that most of the reviews did, which was that the food stuff was marginally helpful but I wasn't really sure what to do with the 'marginal' middle column.  Should I feed her that stuff or not?  How hard should I try to completely avoid vs. minimize the right hand column?  In my opinion, the company didn't do a great job communicating what the results meant.  They had a disclaimer statement in there meant to help you interpret but really it wasn't super helpful.

I also did the add-on tests and those I was much less happy with.  The bacteria and fungus tests listed a bunch of things, but a lot of them were just spores that are in the air everywhere or general bacteria that most dogs carry without incident and it wasn't clear if I should be at all worried that they showed up.  There was one skin-related fungus that might be worth asking the vet about given her itching.  I'll probably run the other results by the vet as well, although I imagine she'll be skeptical of the accuracy.

The toxin test was probably the most confusing of all, I really didn't know what to do with it.  Have I unwittingly poisoned my dog with all the things in the right hand column?  Or, is there some evidence of them and I should be careful to make sure I'm minimizing future exposure? Or, is this just indicating a susceptibility to those things, regardless of how much exposure has occurred?  The information that came with the results was unclear...so I may have to research a bit. The radon was a bit concerning, since I do have radon in my house but have a mitigation system and have had it tested in the past with safe levels.  Hopefully she's not somehow more sensitive to it or something.

The food result that was probably the most concerning was peas, since that seems to be in most dog foods. And I've been feeding her treats with peanut butter and oatmeal thinking those were safe alternatives to other wheat ingredients. I guess I will also have to stop the salmon oil supplement treats I've been giving her and try coconut oil instead.  The other fish allergies don't bug me since I don't like fish myself and can't stand the smell so she doesn't get a ton of fish-related treats anyway.

She was allergic to grass, as I suspected, but other than that the environmental information wasn't very helpful.  Also, according to this she appears to be allergic to herself (pet dander).  But at least she's not allergic to me (human dander)!

VERDICT:  I'm honesty not sure what to think about this.  It's kind of information overload.  I intend to follow the food results within reason, although I'm not sure yet if I'll switch her food, which does have some peas and salmon oil in it.  The other results seem less helpful.  I think if I did it again, I would definitely skip the toxin add-on and possibly the other add-ons as well.

Product Review: Widsom Panel 2.5 Doggie DNA Test

I have pretty much always known that if I got a mixed breed dog I would be doing the dog DNA/breed testing.  I just love these kinds of tests, both for entertainment and informational purposes, and have done the 23andme testing myself, as well as some other targeted genetic testing for known family conditions.  I'm a strong believer in the more knowledge the better!  Although I do understand how some people could feel that perhaps it's not better to know in the cases where nothing could be done about a condition, for me it's better to know than not.  But, happily breed testing is fairly non-controversial, other than some questions about how accurate it really is.  In my case, the test was mostly  to satisfy curiosity so I was prepared to accept vague results if that's what I got back.  However, there are potential medical and behavioral benefits to knowing what breed your dog is, so there are also applications beyond just pure entertainment.

Breed testing works by identifying purebred ancestors, so if your dog is a true mutt (e.g., the last several generations were mixed breed), then the results may be disappointing.  I understand how that could be frustrating but also understand it's a limitation of the technology.  The test I choose goes back three generations, so provided your dog has a purebred ancestor somewhere in that tree it should be identified.

There are a couple companies that offer at-home tests, and some blood test options offered by veterinarians office's.  I was somewhat interested in the Royal Canin blood testing since it tests for common medical conditions as well, but my vet didn't offer it (despite being listed on the website as a provider) and told me they really recommend just doing the cheaper at-home tests rather than blood testing  So, I decided to give the Widsom Panel Testing a try, which seems to me the most popular option.

There are a couple of different options; the 2.5 option was what I ended up choosing.  There is a more comprehensive 3.0 test that's only available via the Widsom Panel website, but after looking at a comparison chart, it seemed the only real advantage was the addition of some very rare breeds and a check for wolf DNA.  Since wolf DNA seemed highly unlikely in my small pup, it made more sense to save the $15 and go for the 2.5 test.  The 2.5 test tested for the MDR genetic mutation in addition to more breeds over the slightly cheaper 2.0 test, and even though the mutation is mostly associated with herding breeds it was a nice plus. The 2.5 test was available via amazon with prime shipping, so I had it in my hands and returned for testing at the lab in a matter of days.

Actually administering the test was easy in theory, with a small swab that you roll around your dog's cheek and then let dry for a few minutes.  In practice, it was actually kind of difficult since Molly has a lot of hair around her mouth and the rolling motion of the swab kept catching it, pulling out a few hairs in the process and making both of us rather upset.  In the end, I had a few hairs attached to the swab but left them on there for fear of contaminating things with my DNA if I tried to remove them.

I sent in the test using the provided packaging and prepaid mailing label and got a email back from them in a few days saying they had received it.  They advertise 2-3 weeks after receiving the test before you get an email back with your results, so I settled in for a wait.

While you are waiting, they have a nice web interface that allows you to track the status of your test, including when they are processing it, analyzing the data, preparing the report, etc.  It was a nice touch for impatient people like me.  They received by sample on 10/26, and on 11/3 the results changed to 'data being analyzed'!

Today (11/4), the results were ready for download.  Molly is.......(drumroll)...........

Mostly (1/2) Miniature Poodle, Mixed with Cocker Spaniel, Terrier of indeterminate origin, and possibly Chihuahua.

I wasn't shocked or disbelieving of these results, although they did surprise me a bit.  The Poodle wasn't super surprising, although I was a little surprised that was her biggest contributor.  The Cocker Spaniel I had considered because of her more fear-driven/submissive traits.  We had a Cocker mix growing up, and she was a great dog, but she was prone to the same types of things Molly is (fear of strangers, submissive peeing, etc).  Despite the downsides, I do like Cocker Spaniels a lot so was happy to see that mix in there.  Chihuahua was also listed, although it had an asterisk saying the confidence level wasn't as high.  It seemed like a LOT of the smaller dogs I saw on the Wisdom Panel website had Chihuahua mixed in, so I am taking that one with a grain of salt.  When I at first saw her family tree, I was shocked that it didn't include a Terrier of some type, since that was the one thing I was sure she was.

However, in reading further, they've indicated that the 'Mixed Breed' ancestor is almost certainly a Terrier of some kind.  That part was kind of disappointing since I was really curious WHAT kind of Terrier she is, but still overall a fun experience and useful information.

VERDICT:  I would definitely recommend this if you're curious and interested in learning more about your dog, and for entertainment purposes.  I wouldn't recommend it if you won't be happy with a possibly indeterminate answer.

Behavior & Training : House Visitors (& Halloween)

(Molly in her Halloween 'costume')

  

One of the reactivity issues Molly is having most problems overcoming is visitors to 'her' house.  When the doorbell rings, she immediately starts barking, which escalates to howling when the visitor enters the house or the door opens and she can see them.  If she is fed lots of treats and consoled, and the visitor sits down or otherwise makes themselves non-threatening, she usually manages to calm down a bit.  However, as soon as they move, it starts all over again.  Lately, she has either gotten worse, or braver, and has started charging and 'muzzle punching' (bopping the visitor with her nose, mouth closed).

Understandably, visitors aren't crazy about this behavior.  It's also kind of self-escalating since many visitors will remove themselves pretty quickly anyway (delivery people, service repairmen, etc).  And if they weren't already motivated to move on, the loud barking definitely encourages them.  So, the 'threat' disappears and she makes the conclusion that the barking was successful.  We also don't get visitors often enough to have a lot of chances to practice good behavior.  Which all combines to make this a difficult problem to solve.

We had a private trainer come over last weekend to help out with this problem and she gave the following suggestions that I am currently working on implementing:

• Constrain (either gate or leash) her in an area where she can see the visitor, but can't reach them.  I have a split level house, so the stairs in the middle of my house work well for this.  She has a view of the front door but is out of the main pathway through the house.  She has already learned 'go to your step'
• Save 'special' treats only for visitors, and feed during the time of the immediate threat (when the visitor first arrives).  The trainer brought along some dried chicken treats that Molly LOVES so we bought a bag which we will use only for special scary occasions.
• Let her know that someone is coming via a phrase, so there are no surprises, and she understands it's a good thing.  I'm training 'incoming' as a joke to her extreme reaction to visitors, but other possibilities are 'people' or 'look, a friend'.
• Whatever consoles her is okay, it's a scary situation and there is no need for her to be tough.  This was something I asked about, since I've heard a lot of advice that says not to pick up small dogs, to let them stand on their own, etc.  According to the trainer, when she is in that heightened emotional state, just calming her down and consoling her is the priority.

Unfortunately, all this means that Halloween is cancelled in our household this year.  I'm bummed since I have only lived in a house that gets trick-or-treaters for a few years and I really enjoy handing out candy.  But given that Halloween is going to be the equivalent of a war zone for my reactive pup, it's the right thing to do.  We'll be cuddling on the couch downstairs (not in view of the front window) watching a scary movie instead.

Product Review : Everlasting Treat Bento Ball

I'm always up for trying a new product that might allow Molly to get in some chewing time (great for her teeth!) and keep her entertained.  I came across another review for the everlasting bento ball by Starmark on dogster and had to meet a minimum free shipping quota on an order so I thought I would give it a try.

After a bit of chewing (didn't get a pre-chew photo in our excitement to try it out unfortunately)

It arrived today and we gave it a test run.  I think things are arriving in packages for Molly so often that it just might help her get over her fear of strangers at the house.  Scary deliverymen == new toys! (or sometimes, disappointingly, just some toothpaste for mom)

There are a number of different toys that work with the everlasting treats, which are a kind of hard chew that comes in different flavors, the chew came with poultry and I ordered some bacon refills as well.  The treat is captive within the rubber ball and it is supposed to give hours of entertainment according to the packaging.  Reviews were mixed, some people said it did give hours of entertainment, some said more like 20 minutes, and some people said it was hours the first time but the dog figured it out pretty quick.  Still, I figured it was worth a try, we use bully sticks as our special occasion 'keep the dog busy' treat but another alternative would be great as well.

Within about a half hour she had chewed off the dental ridges at the top of the toy but there was still plenty of treat captive inside the bento ball.  She really seemed to like the taste of it and took it to her 'special toy' spot downstairs in the family room.  As you can see, it's the same place as she is currently storing her other favorite toys.

The treats are wheat, corn and soy free (which is great) but had some preservative sounding ingredients that weren't so great.  Also, the first ingredient is rice and all flavoring is artificial.  However, it's an occasional treat and it's nice that they have avoided the common allergens.  Not something I would feed every day but every so often I'm sure it would be fine for most dogs.  Also, the treat is made in the USA (not sure about the toy itself but the food item is really the concern for me).

The treat gets gummy as the dog chews and a few gummy pieces got adhered to the rug. not a huge mess but slightly messier than the bully sticks.  One of the amazon reviews I saw said they had mold grow inside of the treat cavity and after seeing the gumminess I could definitely believe that, so we will have to be careful to clean it out well after the treat is gone.

In all, it took her around 2 hours to finish the treat, so we did get the advertised 'hours' of entertainment. However, I noticed when cleaning it out after she was done with it that there appeared to be some tooth puncture marks in the toy itself, which were collecting treat debris, and presumably creating a weak spot for next time.  So, we will have to see how it holds up long term.

VERDICT:  Good alternative for an entertaining chew, although time will tell how 'everlasting' it is on the second go-round.

Behavior & Training: Socialization Opportunity Ideas

I mentioned that I've been trying to do lots of socialization with Molly.  Exposing dogs to different people and situations is incredibly important, and unfortunately (for those that adopt adult dogs) it's most effective when dogs are young and malleable.  However, it's never to late to improve things.  So even though I don't know if Molly got much socialization when she was young, I'm trying my best to make up for lost time now.

I'm fortunate enough to live in a dog-friendly area, and there are lots of opportunities available in varying ranges of difficulty/stimulus.  Here are some ideas for places to take your dog to get them out and about and used to the wide world.

Beginner Socialization:

• Uncrowded Parks - bring a blanket and a book and settle in, this is a great way to let your dog see a range of people and other dogs, while still keeping enough distance between you and others to not overwhelm them
• Walks around the Neighborhood - for a dog just getting it's bearings a low key walk near home can be a chance to explore the world a bit, but in a safe non-overwhelming way

Molly enjoying some time in the nearby open space, there are frequently others playing in this area.

Intermediate Socialization:

• Pet Stores - for some reason even when she was overwhelmed by people on the street Molly was always pretty okay in pet stores.  This is a fun outing for both of you, allows you to run some errands, and most likely exposes your dog to other friendly dogs
• Other Stores - lots of other stores actually allow dogs.  Home improvement stores are the ones that usually spring to mind for people.  But our local liquor super-store is one of Molly's favorite destinations, and they even give her a dog treat every time she comes.  I've also taken her in Homegoods (the TJMaxx home decor branch) after seeing other people bring dogs in.  Just keep an eye out for signs or ask if in doubt.  Stores are good because they provide lots of stimuli but usually have enough space that you can keep your distance when needed.
• Uncrowded outdoor festivals, events, etc - My local town and nearby towns have lots of craft festivals, and movies and concerts in the park.  They usually aren't so crowded that you can't make a little space for you and your pup.
• Breweries - A lot of the local breweries around here allow dogs, even inside!  This is a great winter socialization idea when some of the other outdoor options aren't available.
• Some Restaurants - Some restaurants are fairly non-intimidating and some are more advanced socialization destinations.  When looking for a more low-key dining experience I look for a table tucked in the corner or with a large open area under the table so Molly can get out of the flow of traffic if needed.  My local downtown puts out these great enclosed patio 'pods' along the street in lieu of parking during the warmer months.  Molly loves these because she is well off the sidewalk and has a wall of sorts on at least one side of her.  This is the last weekend before they are put away for the winter so we took advantage!

Molly checks out the Cab selection at the liquor store

Advanced Socialization:

• Farmer's Markets - I put this is in the 'advanced' category because at least around here, they tend to be crowded.  The Boulder, CO farmers market actually banned dogs as it was getting too crazy and dogs were being hurt and/or becoming very anxious.  But my local Louisville farmers market is still small enough that Molly can wander around.
• Large outdoor festivals - Some festivals are more crowded and will test doggie bravery a bit more.  My local downtown does a 'street faire' during the summer that draws a huge ground (thousands).  It's a great time, and dogs are allowed, but it's definitely a high stimulus environment.
• Some Other Restaurants - I would put restaurants with fairly exposed sidewalk seating in the advanced column, at least for Molly.  She tends to get pretty nervous with foot traffic so nearby.
• Dog Park - Dog parks are great, but they pose a whole new round of socialization dynamics.  For that reason, they can be a great place for your dog to learn some valuable dog interaction manners!

Molly and I put our socialization skills to work this weekend with lunch out on a patio downtown and some errands at local stores!