How long should it take for Benadryl to stop itching?
 

I gave Ellie a dose and it didn't phase her. How long after you give it should it help? How long does it take after switching food should the itching go away if that is the cause?

I would think benadryl should help within 15-20 min. Switching food might take a week to see a difference. Hope your baby feels better soon.

Stop the Benadryl
 

I had my Dixie Cup on Benadryl for weeks and weeks. It wasn't really helping at all and I came to find out that it is very bad for their kidneys and liver long term. It ONLY MASKS THE SYMPTOMS once it does begin to 'work' and it doesn't begin to work sometimes for a week or two--this from my vet.

My suggestion is to get to the cause of the itching and discomfort and to not compound the problem by masking these miserable symtoms with benadryl which, once you stop, can mean those horrid symptoms will come back with a vengeance

Itching and scratching are allergic reactions to something. Obviously, no one want to go throught the complicated and frustrating process of allergy testing (not to mention the expense) for their dog.

My little Dixie Cup was scratching and chewing her feel incessantly. I went the Benadryl route and made it worse when I stopped. And I had to stop that dreadful medication because, after speaking with a nutritionist (health model not medical model) I was assured that I was breaking down her already fragile immune system and hurting her liver and kidneys. That stuff/benadryl makes those organs work like trojans.

I put Dixie on a VERY HIGH QUALITY PROBIOTIC--not over the counter which has synthetics and are probably not plant based--and it took a while but her scratching and chewing are 90% improved now. She is less agitated and calmer because he body isn't screaming with allergies and this is because I built up her immune system to the point where the friendly bacteria could finally fight off the allergens that were causing the scratching.

If you would like more info on my personal experience please email me directly at:dazzlindaawg@aol.com.

I will be happy to share more about Dixie and to also share Buddy's miraculous new health due to adding VERY HIGH QUALITY supplements to his diet--which I am now changing to an organic one. There are miracles to be had out there if we are just open minded and can think in terms of HEALTH and not Medicine.
YorkieSue and Crew

Take her to the vet and have her checked for mites. My poor puppy suffered until we had her scraped because we were trying everything to find out what she was allergic to and it wasnt even that at all!

Are you feeding her a new food? That may be the source of the allergie. If you are I'd look at the ingredients on the old food and compare them to the new food. Maybe you can see what new ingredients are in it. Hope the itching stops soon. I feel so bad when they're sick.

She was eating Royal Canin Hepatic LS 14. We thought she was allergic to it so we switched to homecooked again. I gave her Benadryl in the meantime waiting for the old food to leave her system. It isn't working. The vet is getting another phone call tomorrow.

Hmmm, mites. I will talk to the vet about that. Thank You:)

Some thoughts
 

Have you considered strengthening her immune system and getting your dog healthy from the inside out? I have been thru the entire medical runaround and finally, when my dogs were not really improving (but always getting quick fixes from meds from the vet) I started researching the HEALTH MODEL and now both of my dogs are really on the road to steady health. I am using the Health Model (vs Medical Model) to strengthen both of their systems with probiotics, enzymes and Blue Green algae. Neither dog is itching any longer and I never thought I would see this day, these weeks, these months. My male dog, Buddy, has chronic and acute IBD and I shunned, FINALLY, all the antibiotics and antacid suggestions when I saw that they really, in the long run were making things worse. Think about getting your pups GUT strong and once this happens, you will be writing to these boards with a huge grin because there will no scratching and tearing into himself--such a frustrating thing to watch you little loved one do.

I posted a new thread today on exactly what I am doing to bring both dogs to wellness but if you cannot find it, please feel free to write me at:

dazzlindaawg@aol.com

I will certainly share the information and suggestions that were shared with me and will even suggest the top of the line products I use..organic, real food supplements. Nite, YorkieSue

Thanks for the advice YorkieSue. Actually, allergies are the least of Ellie's problems. She really doesn't have allergies (except to corn and or soy) as far as I know. She is getting homecooked meals now and does very well with that. The itchies are pretty well gone (hopefully) If I am reading one of your posts correctly, you feed raw. I could never do that. I am not saying that it is wrong (or right for that matter), it is just something I would never do personally. I also read that you feed once a day. Ellie has to be fed 3-4 times a day until her bile acid results come down to a normal range. There is also a long list of foods she shouldn't eat (including turkey). I do think probiotics are a good idea. Do you think yogurt is sufficient?

I forget what you're homecooking, but I know you posted about before - anything allergenic/irritating there? Yogurt is good, but I do think a probiotic capsule contains more cultures and it has more species - I use one capsule in the a.m. for my guys and split it between them.

Nope, no allergens in the homecooking. We switched back to it because all the dog food diets for liver problems that Ellie can have have corn or soy. I might start giving her yogurt again. I had been for awhile. I prefer that she gets her nutrients and vitamins from real food as much as possible (that's why I like yogurt better than capsules). She already has to take Denosyl everyday along with 400 IU of vitamin E. Then her food has calcium carbonate, fish oil, and vitamin B in it. I'm getting a little bit tired of all the supplements but I don't have a choice for those ones...

To Ellie May
 

I cannot send you a private message cause you have it set up that way by choice, I gather. Anyway, I believe you have the wrong person. I feed three times a day, small meals, am JUST getting into raw--though this is misleading. I buy organic, raw, frozen and then steam the medallions. I really cannot bring myself to feed totally raw, just cannot. However, I use organic probiotics and plant based enzymes with their foods and both dogs are doing really well now. One had severe IBD and the other was scratching herself stupid. No, I don't think that just Yogurt is always enough. The organic supplements I use are concentrated and very, very gut assiminable...

Ok, would provide more info but wanted to write you privately to do so. Can't do that, so good luck with everything. YorkieSue

My pup has allergies and Benadryl did nothing for her. When I went back to the vet he said that benadryl doesnt work on all allergic reactions and its possible wed need a diff. allerdgy med.I didnt try any others I went to home cooking but I was surprised to find out it doesnt help her. She has improved but till winter she will have some issues.

I have tried everything with Cali for her constant scratching and I have gone the same route as YorkieSue for Cali. SHe has been on the probiotics for 1 week and I just started the enzymes. I am so hoping to get her itch free an dher immune system boosted. I will keep you posted