Dealing with allergies
The vet said I have two options: 1. Try OTC antihistamines, then prescribed if OTC doesn't help and go through the long process of ruling anything and everything out. 2. Get an allergy test for $350 and find out what she's allergic to right away and cut that out of her life (if possible). I would rather do the second but its so close to xmas. I'm really hoping next month I get a bonus check but with all the budget cuts, I'm not sure we will this yr. Is there anyone else that has gone through this and have some advice? I feel so bad for my little Lily. I just don't want her to be miserable anymore.  I feel like a horrible mommy, not being able to do anything at the moment for her. |
|
|
| You thinking food allergies? You can start cooking for her, starting with a single protein, veggie and grain......that last one is iffy as that's often the culprit. Keep her on this diet for at least 2 weeks, if you see improvement, then add one item to the menu. Of course there is Raw Feed diet. Your vet will pooh-pooh this but many sheepdogs are on this and doing well. Yahoogroups has a chat group on Raw Feed, a great place to learn. |
| Well the allergy test is the one that they send off and it tells you everything that she is allergic to and to what degree. She very well could be allergic to her food. It could be external too, because here there is spring, summer, fall and winter pollen. It started in sept. My vet said she definitely has allergies and kind of did lean more toward food allergies (the impression I got) and actually suggested venison and something else for her diet if she is allergic to dog food. I can't remember what I would have to call him. I know how horrible it is for a person to go through the trial and error stuff and still be allergic to pretty much everything (my sister). |
| My first OES, Quincy, had atopic dermatitis caused by allergies. We did the RAST testing, got a positive result for dust (mites), and started a series of desensitizing allergy shots, which I administered at home. I did the shots for two years, and saw no change whatsoever in his skin issues, or his "itchy-twitchies". (In addition to the allergy shots, we had our air ducts in our house cleaned, put in an air purifier, bought new HEPA vacuum cleaners, and put all beds and pillows in dust reduction covers.) I know that others have had success with the testing and shots, but it didn't seem to help us at all. Oscar also has allergies, but his are part of a much larger autoimmune issue. Oscar takes Benadryl three times a day, and I bathe him once a week in Chlorhexidine shampoo, in luke-cool water, which is mild enough to use frequently without drying the skin. (When Oscar starts to get itchy, it's time for a bath. It gets the pollen out of his fur, and calms the skin.) In addition, I vacuum frequently, and wash his dog beds once a week, whether he sleeps in them or not.  My vets have never suggested allergy testing Oscar, as it really won't much a difference based upon his larger problem. Also, as far as food testing goes, my vets don't think the RAST tests for food give very accurate results. They do an elimination diet, as Susan suggested. When I did this with Oscar, I had to feed the same food (protein source) for at least six weeks before we could rule it in or out. It can take a long time for an inflammatory response to calm down once it has been ignited. Due to Oscar's IBD, he eats a venison and rice canned food, with the venison/rice kibble for a treat. He gets no table food, or any other treat of any kind. I feed him Nature's Recipe, as it's what his tummy tolerates best, but I do think there are better quality foods out there. Oscar just can't digest them well. Allergies can be extremely frustrating, so I hope you get this sorted out quickly. Laurie and Oscar |
| Having dealt with & lived with a dog with allergies for over 11 years, I can give you some very good, cut to the chase, advice. Don't waste your time eliminating & reintroducing things. Take your dog to a dermatology/allergy veterinary specialist. Make sure your dog is off any & all steroids for 2 weeks before the test. They will do what they call a skin punch test which will identify exactly what your dog is allergic to so you can get started on getting your dog desensitized. Food allergies are commmon in dogs & generally what vets look at 1st. I wasted a lot of time & money following the "hit & miss" method to start with. The appt. with the specialist was a bit pricey but within 1 visit she had the problem nailed down, a treatment set up & we were on a schedule to getting her desensitized to what she was allergic to. 11 months later she had grown enough coat back to be competive in the show ring again & went on to finish her championship & later we finished obedience titles with her too. The desensitizing is a life long thing. It takes several months to work up to the amount needed to keep them on an even keel. Each dog is different. Patience is the key as you will have to look for small improvemnts, nothing is overnight. Once they are desensitized & you have them on a maintence dose they will be enjoying life again like other dogs. |
| Allergy testing is beneficial as long as #1 Your dog is allergic to what they're testing for and #2 Your dog's allergic reaction is IgE and not another Ig response. Intradermal testing is best in my opinion but RAST can be beneficial too from what I've heard. On October 5th we repeated intradermal allergy testing for the second time for Bumble... this time with a board certified dermatologist at a major veterinary university. Of the 75 allergens tested, he was allergic to NONE. We also repeated RAST testing for the third time and it too came back negative for trees, grasses, pollens, dust mites, molds and foods. (Foods need to be tested with a food trial and elimination.) I was told that Bumble's reaction could be something other than an IgE response. There's IgA, IgM, etc. but they don't test for these because it affects such a small group so there's less money in it. Trying to eliminate things as Marilyn says is truly a shot in the dark. I would only go that route if all allergy testing has failed to provide a clue. I would go one step further and run the Nutriscan test through Hemopet to see if you can rule out or in one of the limited foods tested. I'm waiting to see if it might give us some answers... it is also for itchy dogs and it tests for IgA and IgM antibodies. Keep a log of what your doing and how your dog responds. You might be able to look back and see a pattern. You might also track the area pollens to see if symptoms flare during peak pollen counts. I narrowed it down to ragweed, chenopods and nettle and asked my vet to do the intradermal testing with those three. Darby had a delayed reaction to ragweed but was too sensitive to desensitize her so we discontinued the shots. My regular vet has described allergies as cumulative... the dog may do ok with A and B but you add C and the dog is now reacting. Bumble's been on ostrich and potato diet for a several months now. Bypass rutabagas all together if they're mentioned unless thyroid levels are monitored before, during and after. Rutabagas can cause iodine deficiency... ask Bumble. You need to do a food trial for a full 12 weeks, use a topical heartworm preventative and absolutely nothing else by mouth or you need to start over from day 1 again. That includes chews, nylabones, dog toothpaste, etc. Be careful of cross contamination too. You might be able to glean some beneficial info from Dr. Rosser's lecture notes on allergies... he's BB's dermatologist http://www.dcavm.org/08techapr.html Chicken could be the culprit for Bumble after looking over 2 years of my own notes. He might just be so reactive to it that we can't even cook it in the house. The MSU vet mentioned in our final visit when skin testing showed nothing that if Bumble had a food allergy, he could be responsive to just the cooking of that food. The allergens are released into the air and can cause an allergic reaction. On October 12th, we removed all chicken and eggs from our own diets and that of our other dogs. Not sure if this is his trigger but his skin is the best it's been in a very long time. Just look at that tummy!  My buddy was admitted to MSU late last night and was diagnosed with Chylothorax. Maybe it explains some of his other symptoms that have also waxed and waned. It's going to be a really long week. Let's stick with the allergy topic but maybe say a little prayer for my precious boy if you would... |
| We've had multiple dogs with allergies. Currently Hudson cannot tolerate chicken or beef. The vet suspects wheat as well. Each dog, with differing allergies, did great on Purina Pro plan turkey and barley. Apparently turkey is very different from chicken (who knew?) and barley is a very non allergic grain. Maybe try that. It seems to avoid the biggies in kibble...beef, chicken, and wheat. He also reminded us that even a single Milk Bone will undo all you've done so be dilligent. He actually said that issues around reactions to Milk Bones (and the like) make up a big portion of his practice. I'd also do some allergy testing at the same time. It can't hurt, and chasing things down the old fashioned way can take forever. Good luck. |
| She's on Diamond naturals Lamb and Rice dry dog food. Ingredients: Lamb, lamb meal, cracked pearled barley, ground rice, egg product, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), millet, dried plain beet pulp, potatoes, flaxseed, natural flavor, fish meal, potassium chloride, salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, L-Carnitine, yucca schidigera extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, niacin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin, vitamin D supplement, folic acid There is chicken fat in it, so maybe thats whats doing it? She was on the puppy version of this too with out an issue. She doesn't get treats or people food. She used too but not since aug. |
Didn't find exactly what you're looking for? Search again here:
Custom Search
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|