Itchy Doggy!

September 5, 2008 7:00 AM

What can I do for my dogs allergies?

Every year in August, without fail, my dog starts scratching like a mad dog. I get him a cortisone shot at the vet, but that doesn't seem to be helping as much as it has in the past.
Stan is a 3.5 year old Black Lab and he weighs ~70 lbs.
He is healthy. He eats well. His food is Eagle Pack brand, which is a good brand.
I recently started him on Grizzly Salmon Oil as the oil is touted to " help counteract negative effects of allergic dermatitis by producing specific eicosanoids, which are known to reduce and control skin inflammations. "
He also gets benadryl sometimes, but I have to say, I have never seen that really help.
In addition to that I am taking him swimming in the evenings as the cool water is supposed to also calm the skin.
So, at this point I would love suggestions on any additional things I can do to keep my doggy from scratching himself to the point of hurting himself.
If you have an itchy dog and you know some thing I can do to help my boy out, I would love to hear it.
Thanks so much, and have a great weekend.

posted by a3matrix to pets & animals (9 comments total)

I have a Westie and he has seasonal allergies. When the Benadryl stops working each spring, we get a 90-day prescription for a low dose of prednisone. This medication is extremely effective, probably the first line of attack on skin allergies in dogs, and is very affordable (like under $20 for a 90 day supply). My dog takes a pill every other day for the summer and fall allergy season, and it keeps his symptoms under control.

I was warned by our vets against letting my dog swim. My pup loves to go in the creek by our house. But I think it actually aggravates his allergies. Water drying on skin makes it itchy, and lots of things in water (like chlorine in a pool, or environmental runoff--pesticides, paint, whatever people dump in creeks) are bad for your skin. Maybe you can try rinsing him off in clean water after the swims and make sure you dry him really well?
posted by FergieBelle at 7:11 AM on September 5, 2008

Chlorhexidine shampoo and leave on lotion works really well for my itchy pup.
posted by bolognius maximus at 7:30 AM on September 5, 2008

Talk to your vet, there are many seasonal allergy meds and medicated shampoos, sprays and lotions which can help a lot. I would also consider switching foods, Eagle Pack is very heavy on grains, and grains can exacerbate allergies. I would either switch to a grain-free food, or at least to a single-protein/single-carb food. Swimming is likely not helping the allergies, especially if the dog is remaining damp for any length of time.
posted by biscotti at 7:37 AM on September 5, 2008

Prednisone, maybe, but depending on how bad the allergies are, sometimes even that didn't help. Our dog (white standard poodle) used to lick her front paw to relieve the allergies, which really only succeeded in dyeing that area red (the saliva turns dog hair red, who knew?). We put her on preds but it only helped a little. The preds made her a little dopey as well. We also used to put a sock over that paw so she couldn't bother it but that would bug her too and she was clever enough to figure out how to get it off. Mostly she just dealt with it until the ragweed or whatever it was died in the first frost. Talk to the vet and see what other options Stan has.
posted by pised at 7:51 AM on September 5, 2008

I forgot to mention that I already do the medicated shampoo. The food doesn't bother him the rest of the year, so I don't think that is an issue. He doesn't seem to have food allergies as he does eat other dog food when we visit relatives with no negative effects.
He is short haired and doesn't stay wet for long after swimming. I usually give him a towel pat down to start him on the way to being dry.
My vet says there isn't too much more to be done other than let the ragweed season run its course.
But, he also never threw out any other course of treatment other than the cortisone shot. I am thinking it may be time for a new vet as he botched a cat issue we had last spring and it has shaken my confidence in his diagnostic abilities.
As far as leave on lotions that bolognius maximus (awesome name btw), I am not aware of these. Anyone have a name for any? We aren't talking about stuff like calomine lotion are we?
TIA
a3
posted by a3matrix at 8:44 AM on September 5, 2008

Prednisone (steroid shots) is the standard treatment at my vet's for seasonal allergies (if they were year-round, you'd be looking at a course of allergy shots -- I'm about to start these for a cat. Sigh). Since your dog would only be on pred for a short period of time it shouldn't affect his internal organs.
posted by chowflap at 9:11 AM on September 5, 2008

A lot of dogs get relief with Atopica. It has serious side effects, though, and is generally only used when other therapies have failed. If I were you, I'd start asking around to find a vet who has a particular interest in treating allergies.
posted by HotToddy at 11:32 AM on September 5, 2008

Lyle isn't often very itchy, but when he is, this Soothing Spot Spray works well. They have a full line of soothing products that are herbal and dog-safe.
posted by judith at 12:20 PM on September 5, 2008

Are you using enough benadryl? The dog-dose of benadryl per-pound is twice the human dose....

Also, we got a glucocorticoid spray on prescription from our vet, and while it stings our 85-lb Lab/Setter at first, it seems to be quite effective at stopping the itching...

Our vet said not to use leave-on lotions---while the spray absorbs into the skin quite quickly, the lotion will stay on his fur and could be licked off, which could be bad, or at minimum ineffective.

Bucky was scratching really bad last summer, when he was eating Science Diet; since then, we've ended up with a Castor & Pollux variety, which has actual vegetable bits and chicken instead of beef (which upsets his stomach...). I can't recall the actual variety we got him at the moment, but this is one of the options. I think we got him the large-breed edition, but I'm not sure.
posted by FlyingMonkey at 7:09 PM on September 8, 2008