This is something I noticed with Uno, despite eating a raw diet and having clean teeth, he has a strange odor sometimes which for the lack of better word smells like anal glands, kinda fishy and metal-like. I wasn't exactly sure what it could be until I came across this artcile from Raw Instinct Magazine.
(scroll down to page 10)
http://d27vj430nutdmd.cloudfront.net/21105/105982/105982.3.pdf
Since he's nearing 7 this upcoming December, I'm thinking of taking him to the vet to run some blood work to make sure that all his organs are functioning normally and the breath is not a result of something more serious.
On a seperate note, Indy is itching again due to fleas which is driving me a little bit crazy. I started him on an oral flea managment called Program in conjuction with a garlic supplement from Springtime Inc. After couple months I noticed that he stopped scratching so I mostly attributed it to the flea meds rather then the garlic. The last month or so I've been pretty busy with school and working 2 jobs , so often times I would forget to give him the garlic tabs every day. Unfortunately I found 2 fleas on him the other day and he's been itching non-stop since. I found it suprising because I expected the flea meds to keep them at bay, but apparently they do not kill the adult fleas, just prevent new ones from hatching.
So I'm putting him back on garlic which he hates with passion, but so far it seems to be the only natural remedy that works as long as I stay on top of it. Right now I'm crushing it and mixing it with ground raw and salmon oil to try to mask the taste. He still hates it, but I hope I can cut back to 2 tabs a day once it gets colder.
Have you found any natural flea products that work?
I've tried diatomaceous earth, various herbal sprays, water additives (garlic/acv based), and so far nothing seems to work except the garlic.
Oddly enough Uno has no fleas at all, I never see him scratch and if I do find an odd flea during the summer, that's usually it.
I think part of the reason is that he has a stronger immune system because he primarily eats raw where as Indy eats kibble and some raw. Another reason is that he has a very short slick coat, so I think it's harder for fleas to grab on and stay on. So I haven't used any flea products on him in at least couple years because it's never been an issue. I'll occasionally find a tick on his ear or neck after a hike, but since I started wiping him down with essential oil based horse spray before hand, he stopped being a bug magnet.
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