Itchy eyes-Allergies, Infections, Antibiotics and Prednisone
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| Welcome! I'm sorry your pup is having problems with her eyes. If the meds don't help soon, maybe your vet could refer you to an eye specialist. There is one in Wheeling, IL. |
| I have a call in to the vet this morning - just waiting to hear back. I'm REALLY glad I got the pet insurance........we've spent around $400 on two trips to the vet |
| I did a search and there is a specialist in Pewaukee, WI as well |
| Food allergies are noterious for similar symptoms. The rule is that you have to be exposed to something at least once - then you can have a reaction to anytime after that. (Explains why I waited until my 40s to developa penicillin allergy).
Slowly switch over to a food that your 4-foot will likely not react to - lamb, veal or chicken. Try to eliminate wheat, corn, eggs, soy, and such. It will take several weeks for it to work. My vet has us bathe our 4-foot weekly, with an oatmeal shampoo, to remove the allergens. We also put those stupid boots on everytime he goes outside. Good luck! |
| I was wondering about the food allergy, but she has been on Eukanuba large breed since the very beginning and we have never given her any table scraps. Do you still think it could be the food though? |
| You never know about allergies, they can be cumulative. The offending stuff builds up in the system until it reaches a point where it really kicks the allergies in.
It could also be environmental allergies. They can develop at any time. Don't forget, anything that's new can cause an allergic reaction; carpet cleaners, blankets, toys, treats or fertilizers. Good luck in your search, allergies can be so frustrating! |
| Blood testing for allergies can be done quite accurately. It's about $250.00 (here) which may seem like a lot but as you have already seen it doesn't take too many trips to the Vet to add up to that amount. The allergy testing will pinpoint much more clearly what (if) the allergy is. You can then make a choice whether to sensitize her with shots or simply avoid the allergen. |
| Our first sheepie, Quincy, constantly rubbed his face on our comforter every morning, snorting to beat the band. Then throughout the day, he would periodically rub the carpets as well. After the blood tests, it turns out that he was highly allergic to dust mites. YIKES! They are everywhere, and worse inside than outside. We started allergy shots, and I had to vacuum frequently with a HEPA vacuum cleaner, as well as wash all dog bedding weekly in the hottest water possible. He also got frequent baths with Oatmeal shampoo or Chlorihexiderm shampoo. Quincy took Benadryl also, but we never used the steroids. We were able to control it to the point where he rarely got skin infections anymore, but that was about it. He still itched occasionally.
Good luck with this, as I know how frustrating pinpointing this kind of stuff can be. |
| Allergies are so frustrating. We too have a sheepie that has allergies to dust mites and also molds according RAST testing. We've been giving her shots since September and she has improved greatly- she no longer needs any oral meds. She now gets her two shots (her serums couldn't be mixed) once a month. We run a true-hepa filter in the bedroom at night where she sleeps and use a Dyson vacuum cleaner... also washing cloth stuff in hot water and frequent dusting as Oscar's Mom says. Hoping we can one day stop the shots completely too!
Note that the blood test called a "RAST Test" is most accurate for environmental allergies. My vets said it's not very reliable for food allergies and I've also read this- http://www.vetinfo.com/dallergy.html#RAST%20testing We just realized yesterday that Panda may have allergies too.  We're thinking hers may be a food allergy. She started scooting  so we took her to the vet thinking it was a gland problem. There was hardly anything in them so she was placed on an antibiotic in case there was an infection.
The scooting continues along with big time chewing on her feet... she's had a couple of ear infections too. She was miserable last night and my husband got up with her a few times. Sooo... we're thinking food allergies. We stopped at the vet today and talked to the techs about putting her on Tavist (plain- nothing after it) as we did Darby and she's been chew-free all afternoon. We'll do another tonight at bedtime so she/we can hopefully sleep better. Our challenge with Panda is she has to be on Science Diet c/d for struvite crystals and we can't just switch to another food without possibly messing up the balance. Going to have to talk to the vet about a different way to manage them I guess. |
| You might try holistic, natural remedies. I have found over the years that the meds are not only expensive, but they are just suppresants and do not allow a dog to heal itself. And the side effects of these prescribed things are worse than the problem itself. Predisone can ruin a liver and kidneys. Antibiotics can unbalance other parts of the body. Make sure you give your dog lots of yogurt when giving antibiotics.
Please be very careful about relying on so much of those medications. Good nutrition is vital for a dog with any problem. It begins in his nutrition. Relying on bagged food is not enough. To me, it's like eating wheaties every day of your life. Something is going to be malnuourished. Lots of variety, balance, lots of cooked smooshed green veggies is always great. Supplements like flax oil are good too. I even mix yogurt in my dogs food. They love it. Variety of most of what is good for us is good for better health for all dogs. Also, I use MSM with my dogs, available at feed stores, and all health food stores. Feed store MSM is less expensive and its usually in the horse section. Also try online. Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) is a naturally occurring sulfur compound and nutritional component of many foods. It is found in the normal diets of humans and almost all other animals. MSM is made up of 34% sulfur, the fourth most abundant mineral in the human body. MSM supports healthy, active lifestyles and benefits multiple structures and functions within the body, including connective tissues and the respiratory system. The more you read about MSM, the more excited you will get. My 74 year old mother uses it for her arthritis - pain went away - for 4 years now. Also, try homeopathic remedies. While natural remedies may take longer, and sometimes when you start to put an animal on some good nutrition, he may detox and seem to be getting worse, it is always the best way to go. A wonderful book to read and understand natural methods is The Nature of Healing by Dr. Martin Goldstein. And if you can, I love the ionic breeze air cleaner. I have 3 sheepies and have had dogs in the past with allergies,prior to my current knowledge of organic, holistic methods. I can tell you that I paid a lot of vet bills not realizing I was cutting my dogs' lives shorter by using so much medications on them which in many cases ended up hurting my dogs in other places; liver damage, nerve damage - all side effects of prescribed medications, same ones you are using on your pup. Additionally, we so over vaccinate our animals and create vaccinosis which then can make our animals attact their own immune systems in many ways. Some auto-immune system problems are inherited from the vaccine madness. One of my dogs got cancer in the locations where it was vaccinated and also had neurological problems stemming from the area where he got his pred shots. Coincidence? No way. Please read the topics about vaccines - and vaccine legislation - huge profit those vaccines - 48 cents can be $12 to you and me - but at a great emotional and financial cost to animal life. Animals are still considered disposable property that can be made a profit from before they croak - kinda like people too and that goofy medical system of ours. Allergies are best remedied by stepping up a dogs immune system through good nutrition. |
| Thank you to everyone who responded - Ava's new vet gave her some different antihistamines and some salve to put into her eyes - they are all cleared up now!!!!! |
| My dog had the same exact problem. My vet suggested that when we get him neurtered, he'll clear open his tear ducts because they might be closed. When he did the procedure he actually found that my dog only had 1 tear duct (you're supposed to have 4). When fluid can't drain through your nose (like when you cry, your nose runs) it comes out your eyes...hence all the gunk you are seeing. Now, hopefully, your dog's ducts are just closed and can be opened. Evidently, my dog not having them is really rare. THey gave me eye drops which help but do not erase the problem. but it's the only option. feel free to contact me at joelorah@yahoo.com if you have any more questions. |
| hello there..pass this secret on to everyone you encounter who has a dog that is itchy or has eye problems etc.. MSM seems to cure everything..(it's a sulfur containing compound you can get at any drug store for arthitis)...when we started giving our Keeshond 4 grams a day..(4000mg) = ( 2000mg 2x a day) she was cured..but this was after 5 years of trying all sorts of things we spent 5 years trying to cure our Keeshond of terribile itching...she would bite her tail and rear legs raw and they woudl get infected... vets would tell us it's likely a food allergy....and give her antibiotics and prednisone...and lots of anti itch baths.....the prednisone really zonked her out..and if you gave it to her too long..she would get quite ill..since it mimics a stress hormone cortisol... the vets then tested for sarcoptic mange..and the resuls came back negative (I later found out that the tests often dont work and dont pick it up..) so we got serious ..we tried an ivermectin spray...and that was so toxic it almost killed her.. we finally figured she had undiagnosed sarcoptic mange as evidenced by her itch patternes including the pinnae pedal reflex...whcih means if you scratch the edge of their ear the foot moves... anyway we found this great stuff said to cure sarcoptic mlange on the internet..it was made with white sulfur..we rubbed it on her hot spots..and she was basically cured...but..she woud start to itch every once in awhile and r3equired constant application of the white ream sulfinex I think it was called.... I gopt the idea if sulfur on the outside would work...why not sulfur on the inside... and this the 4 grams of MSM a day...works like a charm.. and also 1 gram a day to the new puppy with a weepy eye and swolen inner eyelid cured his eye problems....he is about 10 pounds... I read up opn MSM and one side effect is that it seems to help the body expel allergens more quickly according to one theory.. I dont know it works...try this befoe any visit to the vet...I wish I could get my $1000's back for all their false advice.. |
| The original poster on this is from 2006...BUT, I would NEVER put anything in my dog's eyes withut a vet prescribing it. And then I would want him to show me how to administer. As humans, never put anything, cream, medication, etc, inside the eye unles the medication is specifically prescribed for that purpose. |
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