Seeking Allergy Advice

[JaimeW]

Rowdy has been very itchy and had two staph infections since mid summer. He licks at his paws, has scratched two small bald spots on his ears, and under his chin is especially itchy. Both times right before the staph infection surfaced, he seemed extremely itchy all over. It has taken several antibiotics and now finally Temaril P to cure the infection and get him to stop itching. Benadryl did not help the itching at all. He tested positive pretty equally for several environmental and food allergies. My vet is recommending to first try to desensitize him to the environmental allergens because the cost of hypoallergenic food can be so costly.

I live in Kansas, and it hasn't gotten super cold (and stayed cold) yet so I guess it could still be seasonal allergens that are bothering him. We have had a hard freeze, but it has also warmed back up to 60 and 70 degrees since then. My gut is telling me that it is the food that is causing the allergic reaction, but I also have never suffered from allergies myself so do not know a lot about it.

He said that the desensitization process could take six months to a year to actually work. If I try to desensitize and do not change the food, I may not know which one is causing the allergic reaction. If I change the food and he continues to itch while it's cold outside, could it still be environmental allergies?


I don't mind going either route or both, I just don't want to give him anything that could have negative long term side effects or potentially shorten his life.

Has anyone tried the desensitization on their pets? Does anyone know of any cons or side effects of trying it? Any advice about which path to take? I really do not want to continue to give him steroids because my vet said it can damage his liver and kidneys with long term use. I also don't want him to be miserable and itchy.

 

[2newfs4now]

Max has a long list of environmental and food allergies... We opted for monthly shots and food change. When weighing the cost of food against the medications for staph and other infections, plus his comfort... Needless to say, after 3+years on shots, my guy is itch free, staph/other infection free. Only you and your vet can know what is best for your pup. This is just our experience.

 

[BaileyBear]

Do yourself favor and get him tested for allergies. I went through the same thing with Bailey. We did the blood test, which sometimes gives false positives, but was much better than guessing. He tested positive for just about everything I was feeding him and many environmental things also.
He is now raw fed because he is allergic to chicken and almost all dog food has chicken of some sort in it.
We have been doing the shots since March and they seem to be working for us. Just this Monday he had his yearly check up and the vet was very impressed with how much he has improved.
One more thing I did was invest in a K9III dryer. I use it on him every day to blow off whatever he dust and pollen he picks up outside. I don't bath him every day, I use it on him dry.
Hope some of this helps. I sympathize with your struggle to make your boy comfortable.

 

[Tug]

Tug has allergies also, and so do I :lol:
I take Nasonex, but I didn't want to try that with the boy (picture it, go on... I know you wanna!)
Tug licks at his paws, gnaws on the joints till there are sores, and scratches his ears till they bleed.
I believe it's better to know, and through elimination, we've found he's allergic to Chicken, Beef, Corn & Wheat. So, I switched his food up until we found one that works; Orijen 6 Fish, and Orijen Regional Red. He doesn't lick at his paws anymore and his ears are only itchy once in a while, but regular cleaning circumvents that...
Buying the 'Hypoallergenic' or costlier food usually works out even to the other food because it's more nutrient dense and you're feeding less.
Tug eats 4 cups of food & 1 cup of treats per day. Treats are hypoallergenic, too, I guess. So it works out even $ wise.
But, you have to figure out what works for you and your baby. GOOD LUCK!

 

[ardeagold]

Tug eats 4 cups of food & 1 cup of treats per day. Treats are hypoallergenic, too, I guess. So it works out even $ wise.

A cup of treats a day? Wow! My gang wants to live at your house. The adults each get 1 -2.5 treats a day (bigger ones get larger pieces). That's it! hahaha!

 

[Erika]

A cup of treats a day? Wow! My gang wants to live at your house. The adults each get 1 -2.5 treats a day (bigger ones get larger pieces). That's it! hahaha!

lol

 

[JaimeW]

When weighing the cost of food against the medications for staph and other infections, plus his comfort...

I totally agree. Orginally my vet wanted me to wait it out and let the weather turn cold and see if he still itched or an infection came back because the test cost $200 to find out what he is allergic to. That's why I opted to go ahead with the test because I was almost out of food and didn't want to buy a whole bunch of something he's allergic to. Also, like you said, those ABs get pricey when he has to take 100+ pills to get rid of the infection--not to mention making him go through it again.

I am glad to hear that the shots are helping your guy. So you only have to give them to him 1 time per month--that's not bad. How long did it take until the injections were monthly? Your vet didn't warn about any potential side effects? (Mine didn't either--I just wanted to make sure he didn't miss something or possibly something he didn't know about)

 

[2newfs4now]

It takes about 5 to 6 weeks of gradually increasing dosages to get to once a month. Max's serum comes with instructions. Our vet said to watch for any abnormal behavior/symptoms and extra itching.

 

[BaileyBear]

Define side effects.There isn't any nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, that sort of thing. However, some dogs are more sensitive than others. Some dogs can have a severe allergic reaction. At first Bailey got a little bit itchier. Vet told us to give less and wait longer in between shots. Took him longer to become desensitized, but seems like we're getting there.

 

[BoundlessNewfs]

We opted for a kibble that was a single carbohydrate/single source protein. Natural Balance LID (Limited Ingredient Diet). We feed the Sweet Potato and Fish to two of our girls, and the Sweet Potato and Chicken to the other one. Lucy will still react occasionally to environmental things. I suspect mold is a biggie for her, because during drought, she's good, but let it rain and she starts having issues. We've kind of done the process of elimination with her...keeping track of what she has and what she's been around when she has an outbreak or reaction. We know that her biggest triggers are wheat, beef, corn. We just try to avoid grains completely with her.

 

[JaimeW]

Define side effects.

I guess I was just wondering if there were any harmful effects or problems that could occur or risks associated. The website claims it's completely safe. When my vet presented this solution as we were going over test results, I was caught off guard so I wasn't prepared to ask questions. (now seems like an obvious one--is it safe?! Lol) A different vet in the practice told me previously that I should hope that he has food allergies as I can eliminate an ingredient he is eating, but can't take away an outdoor allergen. I assumed that meant there was no treatment other than steroids to make him less itchy for seasonal allergies. I thought I would see if you all had experiences with the injections--good or bad--to also prepare a list of things to discuss with my vet about the process. There seems to be some things that many members have different opinions about than my vet so I want to get all sides and thoughts before making a decision.

 

[NessaM]

Nanook gets the shots too. They DEFINITELY help. Honestly the only negative is that I hate giving them to him! Needles freak me out, and I'm totally neurotic about air bubbles in the syringe. Hah! But if I were you, I'd switch to a novel protein source food, like the Orijen 6 Fish, and go ahead and try the shots.

 

[JaimeW]

Nanook gets the shots too. They DEFINITELY help. Honestly the only negative is that I hate giving them to him! Needles freak me out, and I'm totally neurotic about air bubbles in the syringe. Hah! But if I were you, I'd switch to a novel protein source food, like the Orijen 6 Fish, and go ahead and try the shots.

Thanks, Nessa. After all the feedback I have received so far, I am leaning toward the shots and food change. Have I read before that a particular shampoo and conditioner has helped you too? I was looking for it in previous threads, but I can't seem to find it. Perhaps, I am remembering incorrectly. :shrug: Are Nanook's shots monthly as well?

 

[charlieinnj]

We opted for a kibble that was a single carbohydrate/single source protein. Natural Balance LID (Limited Ingredient Diet). We feed the Sweet Potato and Fish to two of our girls, and the Sweet Potato and Chicken to the other one. Lucy will still react occasionally to environmental things. I suspect mold is a biggie for her, because during drought, she's good, but let it rain and she starts having issues. We've kind of done the process of elimination with her...keeping track of what she has and what she's been around when she has an outbreak or reaction. We know that her biggest triggers are wheat, beef, corn. We just try to avoid grains completely with her.

I've gone through the same things with my adult male. He always seems to get super itchy in late summer/early Fall. We did the bloodwork allergy test but I was dissappointed that it would not detect food allergies....just environmental. He came back positive for 'cedar', 'juniper' & 2 types of molds. With a new puppy in the house, he had also been getting a lot of different treats that he normally hadn't been getting. I've always suspected that he might have an allergy to beef and around the time of his last flare-up, he had been getting a LOT of bully sticks. I cut them out and took him off of the Orijen 6-fish and started him on TOTW. So far....so good. I held off going with the serums for now with him.

 

[Sheila B.]

We solved Blizzard's allergies for the most part by switching to Wellness Fish and Sweet Potato. She stopped chewing her paws and scratching, scratching, scratching. She was 12 yrs when she left us and I think just the dietary change really made those last years so much more comfortable for her.

 

[victoria1140]

we had Beau allergy tested when he had stomach issues, another one to try as well is a teaspoon of local honey as this will help his body with any allergies. I use it for my hayfever and it has helped tremendously but it must be local honey

 

[BaileyBear]

The only real risk that I've read about is the dog having a severe reaction to the shot. The directions tell you to watch out for it for about an hour after the shot. The amount of the serum is very small at first and has to be given often. As you go along you give more, but the time is longer in between. It takes about 8 months to work up to being a monthly shot.

I think the reason that we have many differing opinions as to what works is that every one of our dogs is different. What works great for one does nothing for another. There is a lot of trial and error when dealing with allergies as I've learned the hard way. I tried different foods, different shampoos anything I thought might help.

Nessa,
I am totally freaked out by needles. That's why DH takes care of the shots at our house.

 

[R Taft]

We went the testing way and found out Annabelle has multiple allergies. The most common being wheat, she only needs a piece of cookie and away goes the hair around her eyes and her ears get hot.
We feed RAW and she has not had any problems since we cut out the wheat to zero, except for a wayward cookie from kids now and then. We use rice and oats for her grain.

 

[JaimeW]

she only needs a piece of cookie and away goes the hair around her eyes and her ears get hot.

I thought it looked like there was less hair around Rowdy's eyes, but husband said I was crazy! LOL! His ears also get hot a very red looking. How long will it take for his hair to come back around his eyes?

We got him new food last night, and I am going to make an appointment at the vet for the injections for my day off next week. Thank you everyone for all the advice!!

 

[NessaM]

Thanks, Nessa. After all the feedback I have received so far, I am leaning toward the shots and food change. Have I read before that a particular shampoo and conditioner has helped you too? I was looking for it in previous threads, but I can't seem to find it. Perhaps, I am remembering incorrectly. :shrug: Are Nanook's shots monthly as well?

Yup - we live by chlorhexaderm shampoos and residual conditioners, (which you don't rinse out).

Talk to your vet about the variety he thinks would be most helpful for your boy - we've used ketochlor most recently.

Allermyl might help.

Or if you need to bring in the big guns: Ketochlor

ResiKetoChlor is good for anti-fungal/anti-bacterial uses, and is left ON the skin, not rinsed off. It takes a while to try a dog when they're covered in lotion, so be prepared for that.

His shots are the same as everyone else's, I'd imagine, although they are specially formulated to contain the things he, in particular, is allergic to. You start off giving it multiple times a week, work up to once a week, and then gradually get up to a once a month dosage. Your doctor will instruct you in the frequency and amounts to give when you get the vials and sharps.