Quote: Connie Sutherland

"Anti-pollen procedures are new to me."

I'll post links and quotes on this late this afternoon, in case you don't find them right away. We have several extremely detailed threads about it.

I still have some left on a rush edit job ..... I'll do this tomorrow morning.

 Quote: Connie Sutherland

 Quote: Connie Sutherland

"Anti-pollen procedures are new to me."

I'll post links and quotes on this late this afternoon, in case you don't find them right away. We have several extremely detailed threads about it.

I still have some left on a rush edit job ..... I'll do this tomorrow morning.

OK, here is a good start for the topic of removing pollens and spores and other airborne allergens from the dog's fur, bedding, etc.

I'm linking you to exact posts rather than whole threads. The whole threads are good, too, but these are mainly posts with verbs in the suggestions .... what to do and how, on a daily basis.

More later.

http://leerburg.com/webboard/thread.php?topic_id=32046&page=8#363986

http://leerburg.com/webboard/thread.php?topic_id=32046&page=8#363919

http://leerburg.com/webboard/thread.php?topic_id=32046&page=3#363957

http://leerburg.com/webboard/thread.php?topic_id=32046&page=4#363238

http://leerburg.com/webboard/thread.php?topic_id=27023&page=1#289379

bump

These links are great Connie! Thanks.

On the plus side, the cone is really helping his ear fur grow back. I am also hoping that if any of his scratching is habitual, the cone will help break that habit.

So I am just back from a 10 day trip and something interesting happened while I was gone. I left on a Friday and Fenris, the itchy one this thread is about, had his last prednisone dose (for a bad hot spot) on the following Monday. My husband didnt' give him any Zyrtec the week I was gone and he also didn't take him on the trail where we walk 3-6x a week. He checked Fenris every day for raw spots but found none and said he wasn't itchy at all while I was gone. Yesterday (sunday) he took the dogs on the trail. Husband said that within 40 minutes of getting home the dog was very itchy and he chewed a new spot on his tail. Now, during the week he was outside in the yard and in the neighborhood w/ the dogwalker, but not on the trail. This makes me think there is something on our route that he is reacting to. I haven't started the anti-pollen procedures yet.

I think I will keep him in the neighborhood for walks for a couple of weeks and test this theory. If it holds, maybe the anti-pollen procedures can make it possible for us use the trail again.

This theory also lines up with his last kennel visit at the end of April. He got outside time there and he was much improved when I picked him up, but started itching again within a couple of days of being home. I was thinking he got fleas in the kennel (and he may have as this is all without concrete evidence).

Whatever it is, it's possible it's there all year since he's had issues since Oct/Nov 2012. However, there very well could be multiple things irritating his skin. One was definitely his old flea med.

Anyhow, that's where I'm at. Reading the allergy book Connie posted and the links.

Good start to the detective work!

You are seeing why we harp on two big things: a journal, and removal of pollen and other allergens.

That is, every trip onto grass, meadow, woods, etc., is followed by a walk through a pan of fresh water and gentle blotting dry between the toes. Then a big unscented baby wipe (or more if needed .... you don't want to just spread particulate allergens around) to clean off each leg and the undercarriage (belly, pits, etc.) and the face, and then a damp-wipe of the furred areas.

And (I know this sounds like a broken record) BATHS! Even rinsing is way better than nothing with an allergic dog.

This washes the allergens down the drain, and also washes layers of yeast off too. That is, if yeast has begun even a small overgrowth, a bath disrupts it.

If there is a yeast issue, of course, you want Malaseb Shampoo or the like rather than just rinsing. However, rinsing is always better than nothing when a dog is carrying allergens inside to the carpet, his bed, etc., on his body. (Nothing to do with contact allergies ..... the idea is to get those allergens out of his immediate area so he is not breathing them 24/7.)



The journal will yield many more clues, I can just about guarantee. For example, this was how I found out that sunup and sundown during his bad seasons are my allergic dog's worst times. We have a breeze from the ocean at those times, and I imagine pollen, etc., is blowing around. The windows are now closed during his bad seasons at sunup and again at sundown.

Well I have an update on this so many months later. I finally got my dog allergy tested. He had a reaction of 2 (on scale of 1-4) to every tree tested, a 3 for one grass, a 3 for 3 different molds, a 4 for one mite and a 3 for fleas, mosquitos, house flies and 2 other mites. And he got a 2 on 4 weeds: ragweed, lamb's quarter, english plantain, and nettle. Derm vet said this fits his clinical picture which is year round allergies. I am going to start sublingual allergy drops and hope it helps him. I am keeping him on a raw diet. If I weren't a renter, I'd rip out my carpet, but sadly, this isn't an option right now. Hopefully in the future I will be able to get a house and control my flooring.

What type is the one mite that rated a 4? Also, the grass .... IME, this is something you may be able to able to get rid of in the yard.

Also, I took the list and went through it against my state's websites for outdoor plant/tree/flower allergens and found out when each one is flowering/pollinating/etc.

This was not a one-day job, needless to say.

But I did find out between that research and a journal of the dog's worst times of year and of day what times in what months to keep the windows shut and keep him off grass, out of the woods, etc.

And I'm sure you're on a very aggressive flea program.



I've done this twice. One dog was also on the immunotherapy compounded for her, and one (I have him now) is not. (The earlier dog's allergies were worse.)

Of course, removing or reducing known allergens from his living area is by far the most effective thing .... it's just not easy (or even possible) to do with some of them.

I aimed at the high-reaction items and worked on those first.

I use every tool, including fish oil (and added E) and keeping pollen and other allergens off the dog's coat and paws. Also, I agree with you about the good fresh diet. Good luck! I empathize.

I empathize too! Kasey tested allergic to 43 of the 75 things they tested! He's a year round allergy dog too and it's a pain!! I tried the sublingual drops for Kasey this year - prior we had been doing the shots for 5 years. I went back to the shots cause they seemed to work a little better, but mostly because I got tired to giving those drops twice a day and making sure he didn't drink anything afterwards for 15 minutes! I got spoiled by only having to give a shot every 2 weeks!

I hope they work and he gets some relief. It's hard to control when they are allergic to SO many things, but a combo of the drops, diet, antihistimines, and baths can help a lot. Keep us posted.

" ... a combo of the drops, diet, antihistimines, and baths can help a lot. "


It's hard to emphasize enough what baths can do .... as long as it's pH balanced for dogs, any shampoo will help. Baths soothe the skin, remove some of the Malassezia that may be trying to overwhelm the skin's population, and best of all, wash allergens down the drain instead of on the fur, as well as transferred to the bed, the carpet, etc., to breathe in 24/7.

I forgot to say "probiotics." Also always in my starter kit, with the fish oil and E and the good fresh diet and the antihistamines (to trial for a couple of weeks each).