Dog with allergies

[Bowie2016]

Join our free community today.

Connect with other like-minded dog lovers!

Login or Register

Hi everyone, new to the forum and im wondering if anyone has any advice on controlling allergies please? I feel like im nearly exhausting all avenues. We have been the vets numerous times and get the medication but i dont want to keep just treating the reaction id like to eliminate them or atleast reduce the reaction by having an idea of the cause. He started getting allergies from about 6 months old. We have changed his food to hypoallergenic dry food(tried 2 brands) which didnt work so have now changed him to wet food. Ive changed my soap powder and softener to hypoallergenic, ive got rid of toys that could harbour bacteria which may be causing under his chin to look spotty and red. Ive given natural plain yoghurt, coated his paws in coconut oil after bathing, gave him 4% piriton, stopped giving him treats or rawhide, ive even thrown out a duck feather quilt to buy a hypoallergenic one and so far still cant seem to find the cause? He bites and licks his paws and bum and scratches, his skin goes darker pink in places of irritation on his under belly so it must be really annoying for him. When we first noticed it he had raised lumps just on the muscles of the side of his legs which the vet told us was hives. Gradually they seemed to come out on his sides aswell then and 1 time the hive reactions made him look like he had been in a boxing fight, his eyes and nose were all lumpy, we rushed to the vet and he had an injection. Now, there have been no hives for a while he just gets itchy, licks his paws which look really irritated and licks his bum. The vet has emptied his glands and said there wasnt much in them so "maybe he is licking to empty the glands himself, some dogs do that" but i think its related to whatever is causing this itching. Im now thinking that maybe he could have a yeast infection steming from his allergies but we were literally in the vet with him last week getting his annual vaccine and everytime weve been to the vets a possible yeast infection has never been mentioned? Ive only read up on this myself whilst trying to find advice. Any advice at all is very welcome. We are also booking him into the vets for an allergy blood test but the vet keeps advising it may not tell us much?

 

[JoanneF]

I see your vet's point about the blood test to be honest. Allergies can be hard to pinpoint, then even if you do find what the allergen is, it can be potentially impossible to eliminate exposure so sometimes management is the best you can do. It is really tough to see the dog like this though.

If you think a yeast infection is possible, are you seeing other signs like hair loss, scaling, smell?

Has your vet done skin scrapes to check for parasites like demodex? Some vets have a special lamp that shows the mites.

If you are unsure if your vet is clued up (I am perhaps reading between the lines) you could try a different vet or ask for a referral to a specialist.

Sorry to not have anything more helpful.

 

[Josie]

I think that getting a proper allergy test from the vets is the best place to start! I know a lovely Bichon Frise that was suffering terribly like Bowie and she had him checked and he's allergic to loads of stuff! She has to be very careful what he eats now. So defiantly worth trying.

While you wait for that to happen I guess it's just the process of elimination?
Most common food allergies in dogs This is quite a good link on how to start the process.

 

[excuseme]

Hello,
Your remedy could be as simple as changing your chaps diet.
Unfortunately our vets are not nutritionists and they have very little training when at college about our dogs digestive systems and appropriate food.
There are so many of our dogs these days who are suffering from allergies (I wonder why? )
It is very possible that it could be caused by our modern and convenient dry/kibbled foods, these are loaded with cheap filling grains that our dogs can not properly digest. (Hypo allergenic too)
Have you considered an all raw diet. There is a lovely little book that is easy to read and understand, it is all about raw feeding. "Honey's Natural Feeding Handbook for Dogs". The book is full of good information and can help anyone understand why raw is such a good choice. It can be purchased from Amazon for 1p ( a used book but as new).

Washing bedding and shampooing your dog, use water only with no shampoos or soaps.

Changing to a raw diet could well help your problem, but if not it will have done no harm.

 

[Bowie2016]

Thank you everyone for your replies. Sorry if i came across like im not confident in bowies vet, she really is lovely and also trying her best to advise us, i was just trying to give the whole picture of what we have done so far trying to sort this out and the information and advice we have had from his vet so far. We have changed his food from the dried food. We originally just kept him on the same food he was on when we got him which was the iams then we tried the dry hypoallergenic then after reading up and seeing that dogs allergies are usually triggered by the main ingredients in dried food we weaned him onto wet food.

Yes, i think his paws smell like cheesy puffs. It went better as i had been bathing him and i sprayed a mix of a little white vinegar/hydrogen peroxide mixed with water onto a flannel and wiped in between his toes but i stopped as i didnt want to do too much "natural" kind of home remedies incase i made things worse? After i sprayed i dried and rubbed coconut oil on. I just dont know what to do for the best i hate the thought of him on tablets and really wanted to try and control the cause rather than just treat the symptoms.

Thanks again for all replies. It is very much appreciated! Ill have a look at the link in the message now.

 

[Bowie2016]

This is his paw and his poor little chin. His chin isnt as angry looking as it has been previously.

 

[JoanneF]

That does look nasty. Is there staffie in there? I'm not sure but think staffies are perhaps more prone to demodex mites?

 

[Bowie2016]

Thanks for replying Joanne. I know, i feel sorry for him, he really is a trooper and just gets on with it aswell, still loving and playful and im sure it must be irritating him. the vet has seen it worse than this and said if it doesnt get better he may need antibiotics so i dont think she thinks its mites plus i think theyre transferred from the mother? And he didnt start getting this until a few months ago after allergies had started.

 

[JoanneF]

All dogs have demodex mites, they just usually don't bother the dog unless they are very young, old, or have a reaction. But your vet may well have ruled them out already.

 

[arealhuman]

All dogs have demodex mites, they just usually don't bother the dog unless they are very young, old, or have a reaction. But your vet may well have ruled them out already.

I now don't feel so great that Jimmy slept on our bed last night

Back to the OP - welcome here, you'll get good support. It does seem like a blood test is in order. Casting the net a bit wider - and perhaps randomly - have you had carpets fitted recently? I've heard of people having strange allergenic symptoms and it being traced to the chemicals in new carpets. Just a thought.

 

[Bowie2016]

Hi everyone, just thought i would update you. So the vet thinks he has a little infection (yeast/bacterial) as a result from his allergies. Hes now got medicated wipes, medicated shampoo and apoquel tablets and we are going back next saturday so they can see how hes getting on. They think he may have to stay on appoquel tablets but advised theyre safe for a dog to take longterm.

 

[Josie]

Thankyou for updating us @Bowie2016. I hope this helps him!

 

[Josie]

Hey @Bowie2016 any more news? have you had an allergy blood test?

 

[Bowie2016]

H Josie, our vet said they need to refer to the university for the blood test as they dont do it at the vets (im not sure if this is the same for all vets, we are in whitecross vets). She said the referal costs approx £300 then the actual test will cost approx £300. The vet was hapoy with the results from the apoquel tablets and said we are in no rush at the moment to do the patch test. She asvised it could cost all that money then make the injections to boost his immunity against his allergies and it may not work and he will need the apoquel tablets anyway?
Bowie was doing brilliantly until he went back on the park to play with his friends.
We kept him off the park to keep under his chin clean while it all healed but ye was looking great and loves playing with his mates on the park so he went the past 2 days and allergies have flared! He has been on the park without the other dogs so im thinking he may be allergic to a dog he plays with or the ball they all play with?

 

[Josie]

Thanks for letting me know @Bowie2016 - Hmmm yes that does sound very interesting! you may have to do a process of elimination with those things? That could be an awkward conversation if he is allergic to another dog!

 

[Jack-Russell-Lover]

Hi, @Bowie2016
My dog also has allergies and the vets don't seem that bothered so at the moment I am managing things with hypoallergenic dog food (Harrington's, I had tried Burns previously but it didn't help. you might need to try a few different brands and flavours before you find one that is best for him), regular baths (trialling different shampoos at the moment, but using Dorwest oatmeal and lavender at he minute), adding salmon oil (pets purest from Amazon) to her food, giving hypoallergenic treats and rinsing her off after walks (belly, legs, and feet). These things combined seem to have helped.
When she gets her bad flare ups, aloe vera gel is my go to product, I apply generously to itchy areas (usually feet and armpits) and put a cone on for a couple of hours or so to let it dry, otherwise she licks it off.
She is a white dog so before all these little things I'm doing now, she had orange/brown feet from where she'd been constantly licking and chewing but now they are nice and white again!

If he had a flare up after he was at the park maybe it is a pollen allergy? You could try wiping off his entire body after every walk with damp kitchen roll to get rid of any allergens that may be on his coat, particularly paws or other areas that were definitely in contact with grass (e.g. belly if he'd been lying down).

Your post was a couple of months ago so you may be managing fine at the moment but if not then I hope there is something there that you find useful. How is he now?

 

[DebsBlueshep]

My dog now has an allergy to trees, plants pollen, as we have had similar things happen. He was constantly biting his feet and tail and thighs. Had blood tests done and found out he is allergic to 14 different allergens. He is not having immune therapy injections which to be honest is a long process !!! Its exhausting and poor dog still itching alot, Blue is having to wear the head collar , elbow protectors as he has made his elbows sore from scratching them when i couldn't be there, and socks at night to keep him from hurting himself anymore. Which have helped he also unfortunately is on Apoquel which hopefully in a few months he wont need it anymore. Its been so stressful and upsetting. But am hoping there is an end to it.
Does the Aloe vera gel really work? and help relieve the itching? where can you get it from ?
Many thanks

Deborah

 

[DebsBlueshep]

sorry I meant he is NOW having immune therapy lol