Allergies in dogs?

Question

We got our pup Nov 2005 at 8 wks. After about 8 weeks she started with a sore ear, went to the vet. Tests & treatment was given problem sorted. About 6 weeks later it was back. Back to the vet, same tests & treatment, again sorted. About 6 weeks later, same again. The vet gave her same tests & treatment but said it seems more likely to be an allergy & if it happens again they will do further tests. By now it was the beg of May. Summer came & she didn't have any more problems & I forgot about it. Then in October she began with her ear problem again, but also chewing her feet & scratching & making her skin soar. Back to the vets. She was treated but they also gave her a course of tablets for allergies. Sorted! About 8 weeks later same again, now she is on allergy tablets permanently. Vet says could be just about anything. The only thing I can think of is we have a rabbit & g.pig that we bring inside in the winter & goes out in the summer. Could she be allergic to the hay, straw etc. etc?

She is a rescue dog, no special breed.

Answer 1

My yellow lab had similar problems! Chronic ear infections, constantly licking and chewing her feet - to the point they were red and almost bleeding. My first vet gave her allergy meds to treat the symptoms. (100-150 mg hydrox 2x per day along with benadryl and an antibiotic off and on) We also treated her ear infections constantly. While she did have some relief - she was so doped up she had no energy to play and the drugs only mildly helped. I got tired of this after 2 years.

I went to a different vet for a 2nd opinion. This vet said she presented as a classic food allergy dog and put her on a Food trial. We restricted her diet to Royal Canin Venison and Potato only for 8 weeks. No treats other than pieces of her dog food. The idea is to give her food that she's never had before and eliminate other foods to see if she gets better. If she does, you can guess that she has a food allergy. Mine got better. You can then do trial and error to add foods to find out what they are allegic to.

I keep her on this diet and she's off all drugs. No more ear infections. No more chewing her feet. She's healthy, happy and drug free! Talk to your vet about a food trial. It's expensive, but no more so than the drugs. While this isn't the answer for an inhalent or other allergy, it's a good place to start.

My girl has problems in the summer with grass so she is back on the meds then but at least in the winter she isn't drugged out of her mind! Find a vet that treats the causes - not just the symptoms.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Have you considered a dietry allergy? TO test this you need to get a competly hypoallergenic diet - the vet can prescribe one by purina (its little white pellets) which has all the proteins (the bit they are allergic to) pre-digested so there is absolutly no chance of a reaction - try this for several weeks and if you notice a difference then there is a food allergy going on. After about six weeks on this, and this alone, you can slowly introduce other foods, one at a time, and see if there is a reaction or not. Do not be surprised about what your dog may be allergic to - my collie is allergic to meat and animal products!

You can use the same pricinciples to test for environmental allergens - try to remove the thing that you think is the cause for several weeks, if you notice a difference then it is a fairly safe assumption that that thing is an allergen. With regards to the rabbit and guinea pig, try useing only shavings - make sure they are the big shaving flakes rather than sawdust, they make a lot less mess, and are less dusty so are less likly to cause a reaction - you could also use shredded paper instead of straw for bulky bedding, it's a good insulator.

It is important to only test for one allergen at a time as otherwise you won't know which one it is causeing the reaction - start with what you think is the most likly cause and work towards the least likly. During this test period, she will need to be taken off the allergy tablets as otherwise you won't get true results - this will be difficult, but you could try useing a 'lampshade' collar to stop her chewing, and scratching her face, when on her own, also if she is doing a lot of damage you could wrap her feet up so she can't use her claws to damage her skin.

Persevere with finding the cause of this problem - the reward is worth it. I had 6 months of tests, tests and more tests with my collie til the point where our vet didn't know what to try next, and so we got a 2nd opinion, who immediatly suggested a food allergy, and now instead of a lethargic black and white dog, I have a proper, completly crazy and far too energetic collie, which is as she should be.

Good Luck discovering the cause for this.

Answer 3

Absoulutely allergic animals are alot like us we get allergic to alot of different things and that is the same way for our animals. It very well could be that your dog has a bacteria infection or maybe mites has she been checked for that?? I would contact the original owner of the pup and see if the mother had any similiar problems for that it could have been a heredity thing with the ears for that when I purchased my dog it wasnt til she was 10 wks I cleaned her ears and all this black stuff came out GROUSE!! I brought her to my vet he checked and then told me it originated from the mother the mother must have had an infection that the owners never took care of during the mothers pregnancy and now it is something that my little girl will have the rest of her life..BUT my little girl well shes not so little but I still call her little she had a litter of pups and none of them have that problem for that I take care of the problem she has and didn't want her little ones to have this problem have you ever had your vet give your baby a cortizone shot that will help your baby from itching so much and they also have flea pills for dogs that are allergic to fleas I would also buy BORAX you can get it at any WALMART in the laundry soap isle and yes it is what it sounds like laundry soap what you should do is get a box it the dry kind get 3/4 cup and sporatically throw upon your carpets brush in with your feet or a floor brush that will kill any fleas or eggs that you might have in your house do not vacuum after applying the BORAX leave on for 3 dys then you should vacuum but then reapply the BORAX and it wouldn't hurt to sprinkle some of that BORAX in your vacuum cleaning bag BEST OF LUCK

Answer 4

Allergies, probably the most persistent and annoying conditions in dogs. They are very tough to diagnose. If it's seasonal, it may be something you'll just have to perpetually treat when it happens. A common allergy in dogs is to food. There is a particular component in food that dogs are typically allergic to but at the moment I can't recall what it is. Your vet should know. You can try buying food without this ingredient and see how it works. Remember it will take some time to see results and always ween them on to a new food slowly. If this helps you'll have to watch ingredient labels closely and omit the extra side treats and human food if he gets any.

As far as the hay/straw possibility, I really couldn't say. I guess anything's possible.

Answer 5

Dogs are just like people,,, they can have allergies to things such at pollen, food and other animals. A cheaper way to go with the allergy pills is to use benadril,,, it is cheaper than a vet and has the same ingredients in it.... I have an 8 lbs dog that I give 1/8 of a tablet to when I see his allergies are starting to act up. Trust me you would be amazed at how many animals out there have allergies.

Answer 6

Hay and straw may be a factor, but also it rains more in autumn and winter...she could be allergic to something in the grass outside that sticks more to her skin in wet weather.
You don't say how big your pup is or what kind. We had a dachshund/poodle cross when I was a child who had v. short legs and had the same sort of allergy to wet grass.

Answer 7

My ***** was finally diagnosed as being allergic to sevral things
Go back to your vet & ask about Hills Prescrption diet ZD & an allergy test.This wont rule out wheat & similar allergins so its trial & error
At the moment my ***** can eat James Wellbelove duck & rice kibble.No wheat or crap ingrdients.
Dogs are most likley to react to chicken,beef,fish [ look at the ingredients in a tin of dog food YUK]
It can also be seasonal. My vets has a dermatologist that sorted her out.
Best of luck

Answer 8

Yes, she could be allergic to just one or all of those things. You could try limiting her contact with your other pets and their bedding. Make sure you wash your hands after handling them. Allergy testing could be done, if you want to find out exactly what she's allergic to, but that can be expensive. This is a common problem with dogs. There are several ways to treat it, depending on the severity of the problem.

Answer 9

She could absolutely be allergic to hay or straw. Like people, animals can have or develop allergies to anything at any time. I once had a horse who suddenly developed an allergy to alfalfa hay when she had been eating it for around ten years. Gave her TERRIBLE stomach ulcers! Had to take her off alfalfa and put her on grass hay for the rest of her life.

Well, at least there's something to be done for your pup's problem. Good luck to you both!

Answer 10

With regard to allergies, dog are just like people, they have them too. My dog has the same problem. He has an allergy to dust, sneezes, watery eyes and itchy skin. The vet gave him predisone and after that it continued. So now he is on Benadryl , apple cider vinagar and tree oil lotion. It helps keep him calm, does'nt schratch as often, sneezes less.