Benadryl for my dog?

Question

My dog has been scratching his ears excessively to the point that they bleed on the inside. He then licks his paws. He also has started shaking his head vigirously. I hear that you can give dogs Benadryl in this situation if the itching is from allergies. Is this true? How much can I give him (he is 75-80lbs) and how often? Please link any good websites.

Answer 1

Your dog may very well have an ear infection or ear mites. I would take your dog to the vet, get a diagnosis, proper medication to treat the problem. Benadryl will not clear it up, that is simply a reliever. You can give a dog Benadryl to relieve itching. Here is a site with the correct dosage http://animalsunlimited.net/meds.htm Just use it to give your dog a little relief untill you get an appointment to have the dog seen by a vet !!!!

Answer 2

You should take your dog to a vet because benadryl is to relieve the symptom not the problem, so it wil still be there. I was actually told to give my daughter benadryl for an allergic reaction (today) going to think that over. Good luck hope your dog feels better!

Answer 3

You should not give your pet any medication with a recommendation from the vet for dosage/frequency/etc. My vet has recommended benadryl for my dog before because of an ear infection. Take your pup to the vet & find out whats going on in those ears for a course of action to follow.

Answer 4

I would first contact your vet. Your dog could very well have an ear infection. Constant shaking of the head and scratching the ear are all signs of infection. I would see the vet to rule that out first before giving the dog Benadryl.

Answer 5

Benedryl will help ease the effects of inhalant or contact allergies. However, head shaking indicates a possible foreign object in the ear canal in ADDITION to the allergies. Also, when a dog is suffering from allergies to their food, antihistamines will have a minimal effect.

I recommend a consultation with your vet, and an exam of the ears to make sure there are no foxtails, ear mites, or other bothersome things in the ear canals. Then please talk to your vet about discovering the source of the allergy. If a week on antihistamines does not work for the itching and redness, you MUST approach the food allergy issue, because Benedryl will not affect the atopic allergic reaction.

But please, before you give your dog a drug to treat a condition of uncertain origin, ALWAYS consult with your veterinarian.

Answer 6

I give my border collie two tablets a day, one in the morning, one in the evening. She weighs about 40 pounds though.

Make sure that this is actually skin allergies rather than an ear infection. Benadryl won't do anything for his ears.

Check with your vet before starting him on any type of medication, though.

Answer 7

beyond just the benadryl, it's a good idea to use a topical cream for the itchy spots and redness. i NEVER use human products to address this for my dogs, but i do use raw aloe from a plant i have right outside my house. my dogs respond very well to it. they don't try to lick it off and even sit very still when i rub it on their sore spots. just like you can use it for your own sunburns, i've applied a thin coat on red spots in the ears when they've been itching them too roughly, plus on a healing belly after a spay, and i imagine you can use it for hives and other breakouts on the body as well. it's all natural and very soothing to the dogs. it heals the skin's surface rather quickly and minimizes their scratching of irritated areas. my vet OKed the approach too. if you don't have a plant somewhere on your block, raw aloe is sold in many specialty markets -- but always use raw. don't bother with the bottled lotions that contain aloe. that won't cut it and might make the irritation worse.

Answer 8

Like others have pointed out, there might be other reasons than allergies that'll make him scratch his ears.

Either way, I'd advice to rather call your vet for advice.
I'd never give my animals any drug without having an OK from the vet, an actual professional instead of a bunch of people on the net, better safe than sorry.

Answer 9

I give my dog benedryl. He is 40 lbs and I am suuposed to give him 1 pill every 4-6 hours. Above 45 lbs you are supposed to give him 2 pills every 4-6 hours... Dogs metabolize medicine faster than humans- that is what the vet told me. Try that first and see if he stops scratching, then I would give it a day or so then bring him to the vet. Benedryl doesn't make my dog sleepy, but some other dogs it does- it just depends on your dog.

Answer 10

When our dog had bee stings (noticable swelling, unlike what you described), he winkingly told us to go ahead and give our 40 lb. mutt 25 mg from time-to-time if he drove us insane, too.

We've only done it once or twice, but it might give your guy a little relief UNTIL you get to clean the ears a/o meet with the vet.

Also, don't panic on the blood in the ear - a lot of canine ear wax is the same color red and may make things look worse than they really are.