allergies

[tranp]

how do you know if your puppy has allergies ? can you list me a few symptoms

[AnaClaire]

Symptoms of inhalant allergies include: SCRATCHING, BITING, CHEWING AT FEET AND CONSTANT LICKING. The itching may be most severe on feet, flanks, groin and armpits. Dogs may rub their face on the carpet. Ear flaps may become red and hot. Chronic ear infections may follow. Skin becomes thickened, greasy and has a strong odor. Hot spots may develop due to irritation from constant chewing or scratching, which is then followed by infection. Allergies have also been implicated as a possible cause of Acral Lick Granulomas, a frustrating, treatment resistant condition whereby the dog creates a sore on his skin from constant licking.

Treating the dogs symptoms may include; cool baths with or without colloidal oatmeal, Epsom salts, or medicated shampoos. This can be done frequently but provides only temporary relief. Caution should be used with sprays and ointments because many contain potentially harmful substances.

Allergy shots are very safe and many people have great success with them, however, they are very slow to work. It may be six to twelve months before improvement is seen.

Antihistamines can be used with relative safety in dogs. About one third of owners report success with them. Examples of antihistamines commonly used for dogs include: Tavist, Benadryl, Chlortrimeton, Atarax and Seldane.

I hope this was of some help!

[tranp]

i think my baby has allergies then those are most of the symptoms i am seeing . how do i know from what ? thanks for the help !

[AnaClaire]

Hmmm the allergies might be coming from the food your baby is eating. See if your food has corn in it, I have heard Yorkies can be allergic to corn products. It could be that, or possibly the shampoo/conditioner you are using. Your Yorkie's skin might be very sensitive and need a more gentle shampoo I would first check the food, possibly purchase a new bag without corn products, and also a different shampoo/conditioner, maybe scent-free or made for sensitive skin. Hopefully this helps you! I hope the allergies go away!

[tranp]

he is currently eating orijen & merricks puppy plate . merrick's has corn doesn't it ? he does pick at his orijen and leave the merricks in the bowl but will eat it if he has to . the breeder fed him orijen as a puppy but i decided to change him to merricks since i heard how high of a protein it contained . do you have any recommendations of other foods i should try ?

[AnaClaire]

I have never used Orijen & Merricks, but I think it might have corn in it. The best thing to do is check your nutrition facts and if it does, definitely get a different brand. I personally use Nature's Recipe because it doesn't contain corn, by-products, or artificial preservatives. But your dog might personally dislike Nature's Recipe. It just depends on what he/she likes! But definitely buy ONLY the food without corn, by-products, or artificial preservatives. I think if your current dog food has corn, this is most likely the reason for your dog's allergies. I would immediately check the ingredients for any corn products, and if it does, get a new kind of dog food (maybe a small bag to make sure your baby enjoys the taste!) I bought my Nature's Recipe food from PetSmart, but I had to read all the ingredients on various types of food to make sure I got the right one. Most of their food had corn products, so I kinda had to search! But I found it

[imperfectlyblue]

my dog, peanut, is 10 months old and was just diagnosed with allergies yesterday. last week i thought she had another ear infection as she has been itching her face and ear a lot lately. we took her to the vet and no ear infection. then, yesterday when i was grooming her i noticed her back paws were bleeding between her paw pads and they were red and irritated. i noticed her paws bleeding 2 weeks before but thought it was irritation due to the pesticides in our yard.

we took her to the banfield vet at petsmart because we had a "free" examination and thought "what could it hurt?" the vet said her paws were infected and that she has rug-burn on her face from rubbing on the carpet so much. she suggested that her paw may have been initially irritated from allergies or possibly flea allergy, but either way it is infected. since she has been itching more than normal, and scratching her back by laying on her back and wigglying everywhere... the vet thought it sounded more like allergies... possibly to the grass. the vet commented that her coat looks great and that canidae is a great food to be on so it shouldn't be a food allergy.

we are on quite a few treatments for the allergies. first, she is on an antibiotic (baytril) to stop the infection. then, she put her on a food supplement (fish oil and omega-3) which will help her skin become more protected. she is also on benadryl twice per day to stop the itching. lastly, the vet gave us some medicated shampoo to help her with her itchy skin. also, she recommended we wipe her down when she comes inside from playing. plus, we are to put her e-collar on when we are not supervising her so she can't chew her paws.

whew!

allergies are a pain! but i hope this helps. let me know if you have any other info/suggestions as it seems like we might be going through the same things!

[stedmansmommy]

There are many different things to look for - rubbing their face in the carpet, biting/chewing at paws, constant scratching, hair loss, dry/flaky skin, etc. My Tatum has allergies but it was my vet who CONFIRMED it. She was scratching non stop around her nose/mouth area and had quite a bit of hair loss there...so I took her in and he did a skin scraping and found out that she actually had an infection due to the constant scratching and he also told me that she had really bad allergies. She is now on an allergy medication and is doing much better

[tranp]

if i wanted to quickly switch the food to the solution of the problem .. would i be able to do it right away ? or do i continue with the food i think my baby has allergies from and mix it slowly with the new one

[AVERYxo]

Originally Posted by tranp

if i wanted to quickly switch the food to the solution of the problem .. would i be able to do it right away ? or do i continue with the food i think my baby has allergies from and mix it slowly with the new one

i would mix the two foods together.. while taking away more and more of the old food! after a few days.. you should be fine! (if your baby has a sensitive stomach.. stretch it out for a little longer-a week or so!?) good luck!

(by the way.. i would try changing food first-if this doesn't help.. then take him to the vet and have him take a look.. but i would assume the change in food will probably help!?-not in all cases but alot of them!)

[tranp]

thanks for the quick responses

[ReggiesMom]

Any ideas on dosage of Benadryl for a 10 pound yorkie? Also, do you give tablets or capsules, adult or children's Benadryl?

[zoeybear]

This is what 1-800-petmeds says about Benadryl.

Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine used to treat allergies, insect stings, motion sickness, travel anxiety and other conditions. It is available as 25mg minitabs and 50mg capsules (both OTC). The usual dose in dogs and cats is 0.5-2mg/pound by mouth every 8 to 12 hours. This medication should not be used in pregnant or nursing animals.

[luvnmymax]

My Max had really bad food allergies. He could only eat Natural Balance. If we fed him anything else, he scratched constantly. Natural Balance is really great, maybe try him on that and see if it helps??

[Wylie's Mom]

Isn't this puppy only 12 weeks old? I would think about FLEAS or MANGE or other issues WAY before food allergies.

As I explained in my other post, food allergies don't really surface at this age. So, I think you're seeing something else here, completely.