white dogs

[tparisi79]

I first must say I love these forums :)

Who out there has a pretty much all white dog that is allergic to pretty much everything? I never had these problems and didn think they were true until we got our dog now who is pretty much all white.

He cant have plastic bowls, he breaks out around the mouth
he sneezes when he comes from outside pretty much everytime
certain dog foods he cant eat

I pretty much have to watch the ingredients in the dog foods or I buy chicken and rice or boil lean hamburger

[tparisi79]

WOW I never knew about this until now. He deff is allergic to plastic, pollen our downy detergent on our clothes etc.. I have never owned a white dog so this is all new to me and deff something not to play around with. We are getting him fixed soon and then a allergy test. We rescued him from a lil place in our area. Someone brought a female pit to this facility and didnt tell the people she was pregnant. He just got over having mange to which is scaring and its not heeled yet after a month. Also he has inflammed years that are all red and itch pretty bad.

[Ghilly]

Probably the biggest reason that it seems that white dogs are more afflicted with allergies than other color dogs is because white is oftentimes associated with genetic defects in breeds where white is not considered an accepted color.

Too many people today play on the ignorance of others when it comes to breeding and selling dogs.  Breeds have colors that are acceptable for a reason, and white is not usually considered an accepted color.  In fact, in lots of cases, misplaced white or too much white is even considered a reason for disqualification from the show ring.

White in breeds where white is not an acceptable color can mean horrible things in terms of disease and genetic defects.  Allergies are just the tip of the iceberg.  White collies, for example, can be born without eyes.  White collies with colored heads and a couple of colored patches on the body are a different story, they are genetically normal with regard to health problems, but pure white collies with no color anywhere on the body are the result of successive merle to merle breedings and the immune systems of the dogs suffer horribly for it.  

Australian Shepherds have what is referred to as a lethal white gene.  This gene causes a puppy to be born with a lot of white on its face.  A white ear is often deaf.  An eye that is surrounded by white fur is blind.  These puppies are often euthanized by their breeders because it is too difficult to place them in homes, so the gene is referred to as "lethal white" because it often leads to the putting-down of the puppy.

White boxers can be deaf and/or blind.  White is not an accepted color of the American Boxer Club.  White is a recessive color but does occur when two dogs that carry the gene are bred.  Therefore, it's important for Boxer breeders to do their homework to be sure they are not breeding recessive-white dogs to each other.

Catahoula Leopard dogs have inherited deafness in dogs that are mostly white.

White is a disqualifying color in the German Shepherd Dog and the color is associated with a laundry list of health problems from deafness to cancer.

People prey on the need for others to own something that is "rare" or somehow special, and so these non-acceptable colors, instead of being bred OUT of breeds, are being specifically bred FOR by unscrupulous individuals who don't mind taking loads of money from people for animals that should never be bred in the first place.  I think that's the worst part about the whole thing is that these genetic time bombs are commanding two and three times the price of healthy, normally colored dogs because they are being billed as "rare".  So it doesn't just cost someone $3000 for a dog that should have been $500, they can look forward to a lifetime of veterinary bills to take care of all the genetic problems that will crop up as time goes by.  

Ghilly