I have been a religious reader here since 2004, raised my pup with the Leerburg method and he is wonderful... this is my first posting on the forum. I have read all the many allergy post here.

Allergies seem epidemic in the dog world...and I never realized this until my Jones started scratching one day 4 months ago. Now it has gotten quite bad, and he has no more fur on the inside of his back legs, his tail base and anal area. His tummy is almost bare, and there are red welts here and there.

Here is the story up to now...
Jones is 4 1/2 year old Border Collie and Long-Haired German Shepherd mix born and raised in Germany. We just moved to So. California last summer. In this time he had to get a rabies shot to be allowed into the USA, Then he got 2 or 3 cortisone shots for a misdiagnosed suspected torn acl here in the US. In Germany, there were no fleas and his first flea bites here seemed to have triggered this allergy. I am wondering if
perhaps because his immune system was diminished because of the above shots.

Frontline, Advantix, Biospot all no longer work. My last Frontline application helped less than 1 week. The Advantix dose that I gave Jones 2 weeks after that only helped 4 days. I have tried Diatomatious earth by powdering him with it...and my carpets in the house...but doesnt kill the fleas on him. I tried spraying and rinsing him with a combination of apple cider vinigar, lavender oil, diatomatious earth, and a small amount of tee tree oil( not a lot of TTO, because it can be toxic to dogs)for a few weeks. Nothing helped. Tried feeding him small amounts (dog toxic!) of garlic in his food for 3 weeks (he gets a combination of raw feeding and home-cooked) to no avail.

I am so upset because I feel I am poisoning my beloved companion!

I went to a Derma Vet here and was given Comfortis and told to alternate it with Frontline. Also told I should give him antibiotics for 3 weeks!

I also have not found any otc anti histamins that work on a dog.

Here are my musings:

I do not quite understand the reasoning behind the 3 week antibiotics. He does not have any infected or opened wounds. My thinking is that his immune system is compromised as it is, so why make it worse with antibiotics and completely ruin his intestinal flora.

I know a few have had good experience with Comfortis (oral anti-flea med)in this forum, but in doing research, I have come across a few presumed death cases after taking it and I am terrified of giving it to him once a month.

Anyone heard of Flea Treats? Apparently they are Vit. B tablets for dogs to keep fleas away.

I have been researching for hours, days, weeks and months now what to do about my best friends allergies. I am really sorry that I seem to be ranting and making this posting so long but I just can't get this under control.

Thanks everyone.

Chris, sorry to hear about your dog.

I, too, have a flea allergic dog.

I went thru all the other fleas meds last year, all of the ones you listed and some others.

About 2 months ago, the vet (not a derm vet) put her on 3 weeks antibiotics (Clavamox), a shot of steroids and Comfortis.

She has had no ill effects from the Comfortis and this is the ONLY one that has kept the fleas off her.

The vet did a skin scraping and said she had a skin infection.

She is now 90% better.

I also bathe her weekly in kenztazole (sp?) shampoo and Adams flea shampoo. I also use baby wipes to wipe her down when she comes in from outside (she is house pet).

For the worst of the itching, I put cortizone cream or benadryl cream on her skin. I tried benadry orally, but not with much help.

I had to weigh the benefits of the Comfortis vs the flea allergy and found the Comfortis to be worth the risks as her itching was 'paniky'. To the point that she had broken fur from scratching in the middle of the night.

I don't have any other remedies but hope this story helps.

(A word of caution on Frontline. I used it for years with another dog and it worked but it no longer works. I don't know if it the my area or that fleas are becoming immune to it generally. My ex's dog has had a seizure-type episode with Frontline this year and she had been on it for several years, too.)

Good luck.

We have an allergy dog - he is almost 3 yrs old now. Fleas bother him a lot, in addition to being allergic to 43 environmental allergens (we had skin testing done at the derma vet). We too, at the encouragement of our derma vet, have resorted to Frontline alternating with Comfortis. I was not crazy about the idea either, but the damage to his skin from him biting just a few flea bites was not good either. If your dog is loosing hair and has welts/rashes, there will be infection soon to follow every time! You get into this cycle of having to give steroids/antibiotics and often anti-fungal meds on a regular basis and that is not good for them either.

We had to weigh the risks and benefits - I did much research also and discussed all my concerns with my regular vet who does conventional AND natural medicine, and we both agreed that at least in the summer/fall months here in So. CA, we must protect him as much as possible from fleas.

The derma vet (which one did you go to by the way?) said that in their really big practice, they do not see fleas being immune to Frontline. They see the Frontline starting to wear off and get weaker as the month progresses - that is why double coverage where you alternate every 2 weeks with Frontline/Comfortis is necessary during heavy flea season. While the Frontline gets weaker, the Comfortis is still going strong, and visa versa.

I think the antibiotic is probably justified at this point since you describe hair loss and red welts. Dog's skin is much thicker than ours, so the infection goes deeper, that is why 3 weeks of antibiotic is normal course for these dogs. I would do it and just Jones yogurt everyday to help replace good bacteria. Did the vet do a skin scrape? You need to know if there is just bacteria, or if yeast is also present - yeast causes intense itching and will not get better with an antibiotic. If they didn't do one - which would be weird with a derma vet! - i would call and ask for one. You need to rule out yeast, mites, mange, etc. in order to know what is causing hair loss, itching, welts.

Questions:
1. Do you feed Salmon oil/Vit E? - that is good for anti-inflammatory

2. Are there fleas in your house? If so, you have to get those taken care of too - the Frontline is not a repellant, so if you have fleas in the house they will be on your dog until they are killed by the Frontline.

3. Have you tried any other antihistimines besides Benedryl - that one doesn't work on many dogs. We use OTC Chlor-Trimeton generic (Chlorpheniramine Maleate) and it works better. There is also an RX called Hydroxyzine, which works in quite a few dogs.

Let us know the answers to these questions so we have more info to go on!

The frontline has become almost totally useless for us at this point. We have switched back to advantage and I am combining that with flea shampoo once a week and lots of cleaning in the house to keep the fleas out.

Capstar can also be a godsend if you end up with fleas on your dog. It will kill all of the fleas almost immediately but it only lasts for 24 hours.

Ditto to the yogurt and fish oil/vit e.

Also, make sure you have at least an hour or so between the yogurt feeding and the antibiotic so that the good bacteria from the yogurst won't be also killed.

I was kinda hit 'n miss on the yogurt before mine got really itchy but now I feed yogurst at least 5 times x week and fish oil/vit e every day.

Hi Nora,
Thank you so much! I feel like I know a lot of you already because I have read so many of your wonderful postings over the years and learned so much through you all! I am so glad you have this under control by 90%!

You all are right in that not one remedy will work, but that it is constant combination of remedies finely tuned to interlock with the others. A balancing act so to speak.

You mentioned Adams Shampoo...Last night, I came across this site which you may know of:
http://www.greenpaws.org/products.php
and it lists all flea products according to danger levels. Unfortunately, all Adams products are pretty up there in high risk for dogs! Makes one want to cry...

Thanks for sharing that about Frontline and the neurological symptoms that may come over time with use! Unfortunately, Comfortis is so new (I think it came on market in Aug.08) and there have been no long term studies done. Who knows what lurks. But, it is true, one does have to weigh the benefits if a dog is suffering from eternal itching.

Also thanks everyone for the yogurt tip. I do give him plain cow or goat yogurt with cultures 3 to 5 times a week....But then I just read one Natural Vet who thinks that absolutly no milk products (or grains, of course) should be feed with allergies....hoooo boy, so many opinions...and we all want to do the right thing!

Cultured (fermented, etc.) milk is very very different from fresh.

The probiotics thing is definitely not a settled issue.

I have seen a big beneficial result from probiotics in the form of dairy, but I do understand the lumping of dairy in one bunch. For example, I see people (including vets) contend that cottage cheese and yogurt are equal in benefit. Cottage cheese, though, is pretty much very salty milk, offering nothing to a dog that cannot be much better acquired elsewhere (protein from meat, calcium from bones, and forget the huge sodium content). Yogurt is related only in the broadest way, as a dairy product.

Hi Lori!
good hear some one in So. Ca.! I am here in San Clemente and the Derma Vet is in Tustin - by Irvine. It is a big vet. clinic up there with all kinds of specialists. Do you know of them?

Yes, we do have to weigh the benifits vs. the risks....and it can be heart breaking. My once beautiful Jones now looks like one of those baboons with the big naked backsides! Not to mention his discomfort. But dogs are so brave...never complaining and still always happy!

Answer to your questions:
Yes he does get Salmon Oil 2000 mg. and Vit E.400 IU every day. I also feed him makrel, sardines etc...twice a week.

Fleas in house - I do not see any, but I am sure they are lurking in the carpets. I reg. put diatomatious earth all over carpet and stomp it in....vacuum a lot. I will be moving to Irvine at the end of the month and will not take any carpets or pet beds with me. Will buy everything new. (I want to get the Leerburg waterbed for Jones so that fleas can not hide in the stuffing....and Jones, like most big dogs, loves any cool to cold spot to lay on!) We have hardwood floors in the new house, so I am hoping that it will be easier to manage.

Yes I am using Chlor-Trimeton generic anti histamin with gno great results. Dog dosages are so high...I have to stop thinking about the damage to his liver with all this stuff everyday.
(===Big Sigh===)

Hi Jennifer!

Thanks for your posting about Capstar. I did not know it only works for 24 hours!