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AllergiesJanuary 29th, 2011
Dog allergies of all kinds are just as common in dogs as they are in humans. Dog skin allergies are one of the most common forms of allergies that you may experience. These allergies are characterized by having your pet chew, lick and paw at her itchy skin, her eyes and nose may have some sort of discharge (usually a clear discharge) and there may be digestive upsets involved. Skin lesions are another sign that your dog is probably suffering allergies of skin.
What Causes Dog Skin Allergies?
All allergies are a result of our immune system being hypersensitive to some sort of substance (which is referred to as an antigen or allergen). Dog skin allergies can show up at any point of your dog’s life, though they tend to come about during the first five years of your dog’s life.
The most common of the dog skin allergies involves dog fleas. The saliva of dog fleas will often cause the area of skin where the bite occurred to become incredibly itchy and irritating.
There are also atopic dog skin allergies, which is the result of your pet inhaling some sort of substance that does not agree with their immune system. These allergens are similar to the inhaled allergens that bother humans, such as dust, mold, dander, and pollen. This type of allergy usually is noticeable when your pet is quite young (under 6 months in age) The best way to try and stop atopic allergies is to keep your home and the area that the dog lives in very clean and well ventilated.
How are Dog Skin Allergies Diagnosed?
Where the skin lesions are present on the body will often help the veterinarian decide if your dog has an allergy or not. Your veterinarian may also put your dog on some sort of a flea medication, and different foods may be tried so as to rule out whether or not your dog is having a dog food allergy rather than an allergy of skin. Blood tests and allergy testing may also be involved in more complex cases.
How do you Treat dog Skin Allergies?
Unfortunately, allergies are very rarely “cured”; it’s more a matter of trying to control them and to keep them in check. Antihistamines as well as corticosteroids are popular ways to treat allergies, though some pet owners are also choosing “immunotherapy”. This type of therapy is a bit controversial as it is not guaranteed to work, though if it does, it will take up to 12 months to work properly.
Allergen, Allergens, Allergy Testing, Antigen, Blood Tests, Clear Discharge, Dander, Different Foods, Digestive Upsets, Dog Allergies, Dog Fleas, Dog Food, First Five Years, Food Allergy, Hypersensitive, Inhaled Allergens, Itchy Skin, Skin Allergies, Skin Lesions, Veterinarian
AllergiesFebruary 8th, 2009
In today’s world allergy caused by food is the most common disease. You have to keep in mind that these allergies could hamper your comfort in your daily routine. This means that you will be unable to carry out your daily routine properly. You have to take into consideration that your dog could experience this allergy.
When your dog is capable of carrying the allergy you should monitor your pet as allergies could affect your dog in many ways which could be life threatening. You must be aware of the symptoms and the sign of your pet’s (dog) allergies as it is very hard to detect. One should take at most care as you should realize that the dog cannot express its feelings. It is necessary for you to keep in track with the symptoms it shows so that you’re able to detect the allergy properly. This will help you to manage the pet properly.
Nowadays dogs eat different types of processed foods and allergy caused by food is the third common causes of allergies. Like in human allergy, the immune system of dogs overreacts to certain type of food which will trigger the immune system so that histamines get released to fight of the invader. The invader generally doesn’t harm the dogs but the immune system over do’s it and mistakes it as harmful.
You can see that the dogs have itching in different parts of its body if it suffers from the food allergy attack. Itching takes place in the foot, face, belly, limb and they will experience recurrent infections in ear which could irritate and make them restless. They will probably not be active as usual, and they would refuse to take any food and could vomit.
Staring at you in the face is the main cause for food allergy. Nowadays the dog foods that are available in several pet shops contain ingredients (junk) which could cause allergic reactions for your dog. The proteins that are found in chicken, beef, wheat, dairy, chicken eggs are the main causes of allergies in dogs. You can also notice that the ingredients that are mentioned above are the main ingredients to be found in dog foods. Switching your dogs diet is very important as it determines what types of food causes the allergy to the dog.
Dogs should be taken to the vet quite often in order to carry out a number of physical examinations which will determine the type of ingredient in dog foods which causes the allergy. Once this allergen is found, the vet will recommend that the dog should change its diet from regular food that has the allergens to hypoallergenic food. Even though the hypoallergenic food is costlier that the popular and regular dog food, you could be sure that you’re pet will always be in proper shape and will live a happy, peaceful life. But while giving the hypoallergenic food you should maintain proper diet so that any kind of mistakes doesn’t take place. This food also ensures no side effects, be it external or internal, on the body takes place.
Homemade diets can be chosen but you should keep In mind that minerals and vitamins should be balanced carefully so that adequate nourishment is provided for your dog needs. The proper diet plan will be provided by the veterinarian.
With the correct and systematic treatment, the dog will surely be able to live in a peaceful manner with minimized risk of attacks.
Allergic Reactions, Allergies In Dogs, Allergy Attack, Causes Of Allergies, Chicken Eggs, Common Disease, Daily Routine, Dog Allergies, Dog Allergy, Dog Foods, Food Allergy, Foot Face, Immune System, Pet Allergies, Pet Shops, Processed Foods, Proteins, Recurrent Infections, Type Of Food, Wheat