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How To Know If My Dog Has Allergies

You Notice Recurring Hot Spots

How Do I Know If My Dog Has An Allergy? | Pets | People

Formally known as pyotraumatic dermatitis, hot spots are common in dogs, especially in breeds like Goldens, Labs, and Saint Bernards.

Like ear infections, hot spots can arise on their own, or they can be secondary to underlying allergies. If you feel like youre always treating a new hot spot on your dog, talk to your veterinarian about allergies.

How Can You Tell If My Dog Has Allergies

That’s a challenging question. Dog allergies are complex. Complicated symptoms and complex histories come into play. Diagnosis is made through conversation with our clients, the history of their environment, what they’re eating, what kind of healthcare they’ve had prior to coming to see us, and what flea and tick prevention they’re on. There are going to be a lot of questions that we’re going to ask, and we’re going to have a lot of time investigating your actual pet during that diagnosis process.

What Are The Symptoms Of Allergies In Dogs

In the dog, the most common symptom associated with allergies is itching of the skin, either localized or generalized . In some cases, the symptoms involve the respiratory system, with coughing, sneezing, and/or wheezing. Sometimes, there may be runny discharge from the eyes or nose. In other cases, the allergic symptoms affect the digestive system resulting in vomiting and diarrhea.

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Video Answer: Food Allergies In Dogs: Holistic Answers

Tablets with an enteric coating and capsules are usually meant to be absorbed further down in the GI tract. Even if you can crush a pill without affecting its potency, you may not be able to get your pet to eat it.

However, if your pet has a food allergy, that may present itself through itchy skin as well.

Signs of dietary sensitivity also include chronic ear problems, vomiting, flatulence, or diarrhea, and coughing, wheezing and sneezing.

Can Honey Make A Dog Sick

Dog Allergies Symptoms Sneezing

Because of the high sugar and calorie content, too much honey can cause an upset stomach in dogs. Dogs with weight issues or diabetes should also avoid eating honey. In addition, the sugar in honey is bad for your dogs teeth, so make sure not to give them any more than the recommended dose per day.

The greater health risk is that raw honey may contain botulism spores. Adult dogs digestive systems can pass the spores through their bodies without harm, but puppies or dogs with compromised immune systems can get very sick if they ingest the spores. These dogs should only have pasteurized honey, but then they lose some of the health benefits.

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Does Your Dog Really Need Lamb Bison And Other Hypoallergenic Dog Food Proteins

In order to identify what is the best dog food for dogs with food allergies you must first understand what are food allergies and what causes them.

Many different terms are used to describe abnormal reactions to food. The terms allergy and hypersensitivity describe an immunologic reaction to food allergens and requires previous exposure to the allergen to bring about symptoms. In contrast, a food intolerance does not involve the immune system and can occur with the first exposure to a certain food. Both reactions produce similar symptoms and may be difficult to tell apart without veterinary guidance.

In fact, according to Dr. Adam Patterson, clinical assistant professor and Chief of Dermatology at the Texas A& M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences Small Animal Clinic, Food allergies in dogs present themselves quite differently than food allergies in humans. For instance, a person who is allergic to shellfish may experience throat swelling and possibly a critical or fatal reaction, but in dogs, the allergy is expressed through the skin and seen most often as itch.

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Signs Your Dog Has Food Allergies

Having a dog with allergy issues can be incredibly frustrating for you and your dog. Signs of food allergies in dogs include:

  • Recurring ear infections
  • And non-stop scratching at his ears, paws, face, and back that drive you crazy

Your vet may have prescribed a seasonal dose of Benadryl or Claritin, but the itching persists. Maybe feed more Omegas to moisturize his skin. You wait it out. Nothing helps, and you are at your wits end seasonal allergies really shouldnt last this long, should they?

Not only are allergies frustrating, but if you are exposing your dog to unaddressed allergens, just treating the symptoms might not be enough.

Allergies are immune system responses where your dogs body goes a little haywire in response to a trigger. And no matter what you do to treat them, if youre exposing your dog to allergens, the problems and discomfort continue.

Below are some common but little-known signs that your dog may be suffering from food allergies.

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Summary Of The Difference Between Food Allergies And Environmental Allergies In Dogs

Food and environmental allergies can wreak havoc on your dogs skin and overall happiness. While symptoms of both often overlap, there is a big difference between food and environmental allergies for dogs, so its important to speak to your veterinarian for advice. Theyll be able to help you decide whether its best to try an elimination diet or to conduct testing for environmental allergies. It can take time to figure out what is triggering your dogs allergies, and how best to treat them: what works for one dog may not work for another, so patience is key. But by being a knowledgeable advocate for your dog and with a lot of help from your vet you can figure out how to prevent your pups allergies from being a pain in the paw.

Does Honey Help Dogs With Allergies

How To Determine What Type Of Allergy Your Dog Has And How To Treat It

If your dog is allergic to pollen, then honey might be able to help relieve their symptoms. Scientists are undecided, but there is some evidence to suggest that honey helps treat seasonal allergies, as long as the honey contains the pollen your dog is allergic to.

The idea is that the honey works as a kind of vaccine and gets your dogs immune system used to small amounts of the allergen.

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How Will A Vet Diagnose Allergies In My Dog

There’s some testing out there that’s available, but many times it’s a diagnosis of exclusion. We’re making sure that there’s no evidence of fleas on your pet or looking for the cause of the ear infection. Or did we change food recently? Are we moving into a new season? Did we move from winter to spring? Because sometimes, that can trigger allergies in pets, too. It’s kind of like being a big detective and trying to put together all of the puzzle pieces, and that’s generally what we tend to do here. And then, if more diagnostics are needed, we can recommend those, and there are several different things that we can do on that front.

What Are Inhalant Allergies And How Are They Treated

The main symptom of inhalant allergies in dogs also called seasonal allergies is severe itching. Dogs can be sensitive to pollen, mould, mildew and dust mites even cigarette smoke in the same way humans can. If the allergy is seasonal, your dog may scratch for just a couple of weeks at a time. Your vet may recommend treatment with anti-inflammatory medication or a medicated shampoo. In some cases, they may suggest a preventative vaccination.

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Choosing The Best Dog Food For Allergies

Some dogs suffer from food allergies. The only way to determine food allergies is to do an elimination diet in which we change your dog’s diet to a limited list of ingredients that contain no known allergens. These can be home cooked or commercial diets specifically made for food allergic dogs.

We can help determine whether or not your dog has a food allergy by prescribing three possible diets:

  • Limited ingredient diet: We limit the ingredients of your dog’s diet to pin down the specific allergen causing your dog’s reactions
  • We introduce ingredients your dog has not been exposed to and is therefore less likely to be causing the reactions
  • Prescription diet: We prescribe a kibble-based or ingredient specific diet that is designed to contain hypoallergenic ingredients

Genetic Predisposition To Dog Food Allergies

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Wondering whether your dog might be predisposed to food allergies or intolerances? Certainly theres some evidence that if a parent has an allergy, their offspring is more likely to inherit it. So in that way, genes do play a role. But what doesnt seem to be a factor is a dogs breed. In fact, science has never confirmed that any one breed is more at risk for food allergies than another. It can happen in any breed and in any dog, says Shmalberg.He also notes that some breeders and owners may have the view that deviating from the ancestral diet of certain breeds might predispose to allergies. For example, Huskies are accustomed to fish diets in their natural habitatso could feeding them poultry lead to an allergic reaction?

In short, no. There is no evidence to support that theory. Most dogs seem pretty adaptable to a range of foods, says Shmalberg. The age or sex of the dog also appears to have no relevance to food allergies or intolerances. Some vets do report that food allergies have been found in dogs less than 1 year old. So even young puppies can be affected .

Here are the top 10 breeds most frequently Googled along with the term food allergies or dog food allergies:

Keep in mind, food allergies can happen in any breed, and, of course, some breeds may be searched more frequently just because theyre more popular in general.

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What Are The Different Types Of Allergy

There are several ways of classifying allergies. Some examples of classifications include:

  • Allergen – flea allergy, food allergy
  • Route the allergen takes into the body – inhalant allergy, skin contact allergy, or food allergy
  • Time it takes for the immune reaction – immediate-type hypersensitivity, also called anaphylaxis or shock, and delayed-type hypersensitivity
  • Clinical signs – allergic dermatitis or allergic bronchitis
  • Inherited forms – atopy or seasonal allergies

How Do Allergies Impact The Health And Wellbeing Of My Dog

The biggest thing that owners notice is the itching, and they’re up all night with their dog because they are just itchy, itchy, itchy. Some of the allergies present as ear infections, so they’re shaking their head a bunch. You could even have allergies present in the form of hives, so they’ve got welts or red raised areas. Sometimes they’re chewing their fur out, which causes a secondary skin infection, so they’ve got some hair loss. Maybe they’ve got some lesions that are oozing or red bumps. There’s a ton of different ways that allergies present. And the most significant thing is trying to figure out what’s causing them and then managing them to keep the pet comfortable because that keeps your sanity in check.

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Talk With A Vet About Your Dogs Allergies

As with any health and wellbeing issue for your dog, its important to work with your vet to figure out the root cause of the problem and the best solution as well. A trusted vet who knows you and your dog can be an asset when dealing with any health problems, including those as simple as allergies.

If you have any further questions, concerns, or need to find a treatment option for your dog, bring up his allergies at his next regularly scheduled vet visit. And of course, if he suffers any serious allergy attacks before then, take him to the vet right away. Book an appointment at Riverstone Animal Hospital by calling or using the online form!

How Are Flea And Insect Bites On My Dog Treated

How To Find Out If Your Dog Has Food Allergies | Hair Testing

Flea bites often go undetected by pet parents because pet parents don’t always see those fleas. We know there are some common areas that they’ll become affected, so if a dog has a flea bite allergy, they’ll often get itchy over their rump, the back of their lower spines, tails, their thighs, and they’ll get itchy ears. We look for those areas of itch. Oftentimes we’ll spread the hair and really look at the skin, and we may see a flea running by. With a dark-haired pet, it’s a little harder. We might use flea combs to find those fleas. We’ll ask what type of flea and tick prevention your pet is on, and that will tell us if you’re using a good product if you’re applying it correctly, and how often are you applying it? If you’re not applying anything or giving anything orally, then flea allergy is going to be on our list for what’s causing your pet to be itchy.

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What Is Hyposensitization Or Desensitization Therapy For Dog Allergies

Hyposensitization and desensitization are the fancy, big words that we use for trying to retrain the immune system to not over-respond to those allergens. We typically use those for seasonal allergy sufferers. The environmental allergies. Those therapies are given either as injections or as oral treatment. We’re giving the actual allergens that the pet is allergic to. For example, if your pet’s allergic to grass or tree pollen, we’re going to be able to diagnose that through testing, and then we can make an injection or a serum for your pet to take. That’s going to then help desensitize them from having an overreaction to that particular allergen.

If you still have other questions and you’d like to reach out to us, you can call us directly at , you can email us, or you can reach out on social media. But please do reach out, and we’ll get back to you as fast as we can.

Joint And Stomach Discomfort

Honey is anti-inflammatory, which means it may help dogs with inflammatory issues like arthritis. In addition, the consistency and antimicrobial properties of honey can help soothe and heal stomach ulcers in dogs. Raw honey also contains digestive enzymes which can help with other gastrointestinal conditions, such as diarrhea.

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What Is Flea Allergy And How Is It Treated

Flea saliva contains multiple allergens that can trigger an allergic reaction in dogs. Most dogs are only mildly irritated by flea bites, but a dog who is allergic can have such a severe response that they scratch or chew at the bitten area until theyve removed large chunks of hair.

Flea allergy dermatitis is the most common allergic condition in dogs, and causes severe itching thats triggered by flea saliva on the dogs skin.

Once fleas have taken hold of your dog, and your home, theyre tricky blighters to eliminate, so the best treatment is prevention. Its vital to get into a regular routine of protecting your dog and your home against fleas. Your vet can recommend the best method.

What Are Some Common Dog Allergies

Just like people, #dogs can have allergic reactions to things in their ...

One of the significant allergies is going to be food allergies. And most commonly, that’s the protein source of the food, chicken, beef, or pork. The next is being allergic to ectoparasites or parasites that can live on the pet, so fleas or ticks, or even being allergic to mosquito bites and things like that. And then the last one falls under what we call atopy, or an environmental allergen. Maybe it’s the grass outside or pollen from the tree or flowers in the yard, or perhaps it’s even stuff like dust in the carpet, mold behind the walls, or other things that can trigger allergies in dogs.

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The Difference Between Food Allergies And Environmental Allergies In Dogs

Written bySmall Door’s medical experts

If your pup suffers from itching, hair loss, skin infections, or ear infections, she may have allergies. But does she have a food allergy, seasonal allergies, or both? The symptoms may be similar, but they require different treatments, so read on to learn more about how to identify and deal with canine allergies.

In This Article

Diets For Dog Food Allergies

Here are a couple of different approaches to treating food allergies in dogs.

This approach involves feeding proteins that your dog has likely never been exposed to in an effort to avoid an allergic reaction. Rabbit, venison, and other novel ingredients are used in place of more common protein sources. Allergy-friendly foods must be completely free of your dogs triggers.

Hydrolyzed Proteins

Rather than changing which proteins are used, hydrolyzed protein prescription diets break proteins down so that the immune system no longer recognizes them as a threat.

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Your Dogs Feet Smell Like Corn Chips And They Wont Stop Licking Them

While most humans think that the corn chip smell is normal for a dogs feet, its actually a sign of bacteria. If your dog is also licking their feet, its not because theyre cleaningtheir feet are itchy.

If your dogs hair is a light color, you may notice fur staining of the feet, a symptom in which the fur takes on a dark red, coppery color due to the dogs saliva.

The classic corn chip odor of the feet, which many people believe to be completely normal in dogs, is caused by skin infections, either from bacteria or fungi . So how is this symptom related to allergies?

The inflammation associated with skin allergies breaks down the normal skin barrier over time. As a result, opportunistic microbes like yeast and bacteria can go from resting peacefully on the surface to diving deeper, where they set up infections and cause problems.

Addressing these secondary infections will be one of the first steps that your veterinarian will want to take in treating your allergic dog.

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