# My Bella update-pink nose



## luv2bmomof4 (Feb 29, 2012)

Its been a long time since i have been on here and boy oh boy as lots happened. Since my last update. Last I posted I waited a bit too long to have her spayed and she went into heat. Well since then about 6-8 weeks after I noticed she looked like she had dirt speckles on her belly after her bath, I tried scrubbing and no luck,I thought omg some kind of mite in the mean time I also noticed her nipples looked swollen, so I took her to the vet and he said allergies probably due to seasonal change, I did notice her sneezing so he gave her some allergy pills and we went home. About 2 weeks pass and she appears miserable, whiney, clingy and just not normal then I notice chunks of her hair falling out and an ugly soar under her neck, back to the vet we go. Well I was told allergies again and she had a staph infection he gave her a cortizone shot and antibiotics, so they ran some blood work to check her liver and thyroid and some other things. All were ok, in the mean time she is still acting really weird, and now clinging to her toys and crying with them in her mouth. So I start to do some googling and it appears she may be having a false pregnancy on top of her allergies. By this time I am noticing her mothering her toys and her nipples are even leaking and still large. I could not afford to take her back to the vet at this point my research said this could last a few weeks but she would come out of it. Well its been a few weeks her staph infection has healed her allergies have calmed down ( I switched her to a grain free food) and she is back to her normal self. So I have finally got to take her in today to be spayed and she is doing great. She will be 1 year old on the 22nd of this month and weighs in at at whopping 13 lbs. This has been a rewarding time and I am forever grateful that I came across the lady in the parking lot who was trying to get rid of her pups. I guess I should no longer be posting in the puppy section...lol, here is a picture I snapped today. I Love Bella so much and I don't know what I would do without her.


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## Pipersmom (Jul 27, 2009)

Bella is beautiful, thanks for the updated picture.

I haven't heard about dogs having a false pregnancy? How weird and interesting! 

I'm sorry she had a little bit of a rough patch but glad she is doing great


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## Beau's mom (Oct 6, 2011)

Bella is a beauty -- and looks so sweet!! Glad she weathered her personal storm without any lasting problems.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Sorry Bella had a tough time with her allergies and illness, but in the long run, it may have been a good thing. Many people feel it is better to let their girls have one heat before spaying. It's just a lot harder on the owner!!!


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## Momo means Peach (Jun 7, 2011)

It sounds like was kind of scary for a while. I'm glad Bella and you got through it okay. She is beautiful!


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## Carefulove (Mar 20, 2009)

I was just looking at your original post yesterday (when you found Bella).
She has come a long way and turned into a beautiful dog!
Glad she'll be spayed and the allergies are all better! 

Keep us posted!


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## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

Bella is beautiful and looks like a v sweet girl. Glad she found you.


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## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

aw...she is such a sweet looking little girl! It is hard to imagine life without our Havs isn't it? Glad she is doing well now.


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## Pixiesmom (Jul 31, 2008)

Aww poor baby! I hope both of you can rest easy for a while. I missed seeing that pink nose!!


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## Becky Chittenden (Feb 4, 2009)

So glad Bella is doing well.


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## ClaireVoyant (Jan 26, 2012)

Awwww . So glad to see she's doing well now. While researching chocolate Havs before deciding to adopt one, I read that dogs lacking pigment, like Bella . . .often do have occasional skin allergies. Do you have her on some sort of topical ointment?


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## luv2bmomof4 (Feb 29, 2012)

Yes the vet did give her an ointment and he advised me of the same thing. However he seemed to believe they could be seasonal or food. I cant afford to have her allergy tested so I started with food. I have changed her to a grain free, soy free, wheat free food. So far she is doing really well. Thank you all for your comments and concerns.


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## lise (Sep 1, 2006)

Bella is sure a beautiful little girl. I adore her pink nose. I had a girlfriend who had a toy poodle that had a false pregnancy too. It was so sad seeing her nesting and carrying toys around like they were her pups. She never did it again, just the once.


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

I can tell by your post you are in love! So happy to hear all is going well...some times that black tar looking stuff is a flea allergy, two of my pups have flea allergys, my Lhasa...it is common in that breed, and my gold/white Hav along with flea control she gets 1/3 of a bendryl for itching...the dematologist told me she is seeing it increasingly in Havanese. It is an easy allergy to deal with but I am told under diagnosed. So happy you and Bella found each other.


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## luv2bmomof4 (Feb 29, 2012)

@thelaughing magpie. That make sense but I wouldnt call it tar it was /are black dots that look like they are in her skin not raised, more like a tattoo but it could be, because when I gave her a bath to help sooth her itching I found a dead flea. I treat her with advantage multi and have since I got her maybe its no longer working. I havent found anymore fleas since. When I got her she was flea invested and I never noticed the skin discoloratin could it be something newly developed? Anyway its somerhing for me to think about should she get like that again. You said it was an easy fix did u mean with flea meds or something else. Thanks for your help.


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

Flea Bite Dermatitis or Flea Bite Hypersensitvity is caused not by the bite but the flea saliva. Dogs can have broken hair, hair loss, skin damage from itching and biting, hot spots, oozing sores, and pimply bumps. The skin can show flea dirt or in bad cases the skin become thick and dark. These things can vary over time, all dogs will have pain and lots of itching. Symptons are generally episodic as are seasonal allergys.

Dogs that get this usually had an investation of fleas at one time in their life, often you will not even find one flea on your dog, a dog with flea bite dermatities only needs one bite to cause them to itch for days. Always you need to keep to a schedule with your flea control, even so, your dog can get bit, the flea will die but will have got a bite in first. Sometimes to control the dogs sensitivity a antihistamine needs to be given. In the old days Vets use to give steroids...Vets up on the latest advances in dematology will not offer seroids for this condition unless it is short term to get an "event" under control. Also dog that have flea bite dermatitis can have a bad smell and will need frequent bathing their coats look dingy and the bath water looks really dirty even though the dog looks clean. You can look it up on the web to get a better understanding.

Hope to see more pictures of Bella in the near future.


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## luv2bmomof4 (Feb 29, 2012)

Wow, very interesting information, thank you so much. Being that she was flea infested when I got her and I found the 1 dead flea when all this was going on I do believe you may have solved her allergy mystery. I will make sure to stay on track with her flea med because now that I think about it I think I was about 5 days late applying her flea medicine. Now I feel horrible knowing that I my have caused her misery, but at least now I now. Thanks again!


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## rokipiki (Oct 15, 2010)

Roki has flea allergy dermatitis. And no kidding - it take just one flea to make him miserable. He got one ten days ago. Since he is protected with spot-on Prac-tik the flea was operating just on his chin and was barely alive when I found it. Result - ten large scabs and a lot of itching. Wonderworking stuff for him is Virbac Pyoderm shampoo (active substance is chlorhexadine). i sprayed him with warm water, put the shampoo on and leave it on him for 15 minutes and finally rinsed him. With one washing scabc are completely gone and skin is healing perfectly. 
The black spots you said look like tatoo is hypepigmentation which is result of skin inflamation. Those will go away, but it takes time. 
When you got her she had fleas. Have you treated your house for fleas? Sometimes flea eggs can survive very long time in carpets, on furniture, curtains, in beds.... waiting fore perfect conditions to hatch. Those perfect conditions are humidity and heat (warm weather, but home heating too). If you havent done anything to eradicate possible flea infestation before, you can start now. Best thing is to hire professionals that do the whole house in not more than two hours. If you want to do it yourself first step is to start with vacum cleaner. Vacum all surfaces, carpets, furniture... and throw away the contents od vac clenaer as soon as you finish. For floor surfaces and furniture I also use steam cleaner. Wash all curtains, all textile stuf that can be washed (fleas drown in warm soapy water). I also used same kind of natural insecticide for one "monster carpet" and some other things. Geranium essential oil is the best flea repelent. I make spray - put couple od tbs. od alcohol in spray bottle, add 15-20 drops of geranium oil, shake it well and fill bottle with water. You can also add some drops od lavander oil, cedar oil... i use this spray all over my appartement, especially on places where Roki spends a lot of time. The smell is nice,fresh and relaxing and you will enjoy it as well. 
The best and the most effective spot on for fleas is Revolution because it kills adult flea as well as eggs anf larvae.


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## LuvMyJavier (Apr 21, 2013)

*My Javier has blue eyes and a pink nose*

My little boy is profoundly deaf. He was born in October of 2011. I got him from a breeder who noticed the odd coloration and had him tested. Since he could not be sold he was offered to me for free. He also has food allergies (scratching and sneezing) and has seizures that cause him to require medication. He has that distinct Havanese personality. My entire family loves him. I'm not a dog person (don't be hatin') and took him out of pity. Although I wouldn't get another dog (still not a dog person) I adore my little boy. Being deaf he doesn't handle being left alone well. So he's always with someone. He is very spoiled but I don't care. Oh...and he's a hoarder too. I've been told his father was also a hoarder. Interesting...


luv2bmomof4 said:


> Its been a long time since i have been on here and boy oh boy as lots happened. Since my last update. Last I posted I waited a bit too long to have her spayed and she went into heat. Well since then about 6-8 weeks after I noticed she looked like she had dirt speckles on her belly after her bath, I tried scrubbing and no luck,I thought omg some kind of mite in the mean time I also noticed her nipples looked swollen, so I took her to the vet and he said allergies probably due to seasonal change, I did notice her sneezing so he gave her some allergy pills and we went home. About 2 weeks pass and she appears miserable, whiney, clingy and just not normal then I notice chunks of her hair falling out and an ugly soar under her neck, back to the vet we go. Well I was told allergies again and she had a staph infection he gave her a cortizone shot and antibiotics, so they ran some blood work to check her liver and thyroid and some other things. All were ok, in the mean time she is still acting really weird, and now clinging to her toys and crying with them in her mouth. So I start to do some googling and it appears she may be having a false pregnancy on top of her allergies. By this time I am noticing her mothering her toys and her nipples are even leaking and still large. I could not afford to take her back to the vet at this point my research said this could last a few weeks but she would come out of it. Well its been a few weeks her staph infection has healed her allergies have calmed down ( I switched her to a grain free food) and she is back to her normal self. So I have finally got to take her in today to be spayed and she is doing great. She will be 1 year old on the 22nd of this month and weighs in at at whopping 13 lbs. This has been a rewarding time and I am forever grateful that I came across the lady in the parking lot who was trying to get rid of her pups. I guess I should no longer be posting in the puppy section...lol, here is a picture I snapped today. I Love Bella so much and I don't know what I would do without her.


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## RickR (Feb 15, 2007)

Bella is so beautiful. Glad she is feeling better.


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## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

Nice to hear from you again, I kept thinking you were going to say she was pregnant, glad it was a false one! She is very sweet!


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## LaLa (Feb 15, 2013)

Hi, my 5 month old havanese also has a pink nose. When I asked the breeder about it she just said it was part of his chocolate father. She had said his eyes would be brown but they have gone from blue to green. He has not had any fleas yet but does sneeze alot! His coat is white/cream. His skin on his belly has just started looking splotchy. Thank you for sharing. I hope he is not in for a lot of allergies as he gets older.


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## puppy-love (Nov 9, 2012)

So much goes on in the first year, especially things you didn't expect. Bella is a beauty and it sounds like the worst is behind you!


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