Joined
·
13,448 Posts
Since we get so many questions on hot spots, missing hair and allergies I thought I would do a thread on how to properly figure out what is going on. Many owners get too impatient to find out what is causing the allergy and change too many things at once and never figure out what was causing the irritation. Tempest suddenly has an allergy issue and is 5.5 years old. We need to rule out what type of allergy it is to properly treat it. It could be a contact allergy, seasonal, or food related. I wanted to document what I did and the results to show how to figure out what is going on. I think if we can refer to a thread like this we can save some typing since this is a common issues for so many dogs. This is not a thread where I want input on what to try, if I get to that point I will post another thread, this could turn into a 8 page thread if we discuss that. 
Tempest is losing hair on her rear end and scratching her neck, belly and sides bloody. This started about a week ago and I know it is high allergy season so I am hoping it is just seasonal.
What to try
First we rule out a contact allergy
I gave her a bath with Dawn, cleaned her crate, washed her bedding with detergent I have for my baby that I gentle on the skin. I washed her blanket 3 times because she is a dirt ball and I wanted to remove all the dirt.
I started her on a heavy dose of benadryl for a week straight twice a day.
Benadryl dosage
1mg per pound of body weight is the normal dose but you can give up to 3 times that amount for acute reactions. Tempest weighs about 45-50lbs so normally I would give her 2 Benadryl pills, each pill is 25mgs so a total of 50 mgs. For this reaction I gave her 100mgs and will do that every day twice a day for a week then back off to 50mgs twice a day.
I have some cortisone cream I got for her and will try that as well. For severe reactions oral steroids can be used but you should get that from a vet. I have dosages but if not done correctly can be dangerous so I will not even post it. I know she is allergic to the straw I put in the dog houses in the winter so it could be seasonal or contact. One note about using the Dawn dish soap, use it only once to remove the dirt and oil, any baths given after the initial one should be a good oatmeal shampoo. Dawn will strip the good and bad oils from the coat so it will dry out some for a few day and may get flaky. Any more than once and you will really dry out the coat and make the dog itch worse.
If that does not work and I do not see improvement in a week or so I will move on to seasonal allergies.
For seasonal I will keep her on the Benadryl and if seems to get better with Benadryl I can assume it is seasonal allergies. This may be something you just have to spot treat as the seasons change. If your dog has really bad seasonal allergies or just sever allergies in general you might want to consult a specialist vet. They can do a skin scraping test to find out what they are allergic too and give them a weekly serum to take by injection. It really helps in the long run but is expensive.
If all this does not help then I have to consider food allergies. I will stop feeding a grain food and switch to grain free diet like duck or salmon. I like TOTW but that is JMO. You need to cut all grains and treats out of your dogs diet and feed only grain free kibble for at least 3 weeks to cleanse the system. Some irritants can build up over time and stay there for a few weeks. Once the dog has had no grains and treats see if the allergies improved. If so it was an allergy to food. Add things back one at a time but give it 2 weeks before you add something else back in. Make a list and keep track, if a flare up happens write down what it was. Clear up that reactions before starting another food to add back to the diet.
If the allergies still occur then seek a vet that deals with allergies.
I will post pictures when I can.
Tempest is losing hair on her rear end and scratching her neck, belly and sides bloody. This started about a week ago and I know it is high allergy season so I am hoping it is just seasonal.
What to try
First we rule out a contact allergy
- Give her a bath with Dawn dish soap to remove dirt and oil from any irritants
- Clean crate with Dawn and warm water
- Wash any blankets or bedding she uses with a hypoallergenic detergent or baby detergent
- If the reaction is really bad you can use cortisone cream to help with itching
- Start on a course of Benadryl
I gave her a bath with Dawn, cleaned her crate, washed her bedding with detergent I have for my baby that I gentle on the skin. I washed her blanket 3 times because she is a dirt ball and I wanted to remove all the dirt.
I started her on a heavy dose of benadryl for a week straight twice a day.
Benadryl dosage
1mg per pound of body weight is the normal dose but you can give up to 3 times that amount for acute reactions. Tempest weighs about 45-50lbs so normally I would give her 2 Benadryl pills, each pill is 25mgs so a total of 50 mgs. For this reaction I gave her 100mgs and will do that every day twice a day for a week then back off to 50mgs twice a day.
I have some cortisone cream I got for her and will try that as well. For severe reactions oral steroids can be used but you should get that from a vet. I have dosages but if not done correctly can be dangerous so I will not even post it. I know she is allergic to the straw I put in the dog houses in the winter so it could be seasonal or contact. One note about using the Dawn dish soap, use it only once to remove the dirt and oil, any baths given after the initial one should be a good oatmeal shampoo. Dawn will strip the good and bad oils from the coat so it will dry out some for a few day and may get flaky. Any more than once and you will really dry out the coat and make the dog itch worse.
If that does not work and I do not see improvement in a week or so I will move on to seasonal allergies.
For seasonal I will keep her on the Benadryl and if seems to get better with Benadryl I can assume it is seasonal allergies. This may be something you just have to spot treat as the seasons change. If your dog has really bad seasonal allergies or just sever allergies in general you might want to consult a specialist vet. They can do a skin scraping test to find out what they are allergic too and give them a weekly serum to take by injection. It really helps in the long run but is expensive.
If all this does not help then I have to consider food allergies. I will stop feeding a grain food and switch to grain free diet like duck or salmon. I like TOTW but that is JMO. You need to cut all grains and treats out of your dogs diet and feed only grain free kibble for at least 3 weeks to cleanse the system. Some irritants can build up over time and stay there for a few weeks. Once the dog has had no grains and treats see if the allergies improved. If so it was an allergy to food. Add things back one at a time but give it 2 weeks before you add something else back in. Make a list and keep track, if a flare up happens write down what it was. Clear up that reactions before starting another food to add back to the diet.
If the allergies still occur then seek a vet that deals with allergies.
I will post pictures when I can.
