If your dog or cat has ever suffered a killer allergy attack, you know there is little more frightening than wondering what’s wrong, what to do, how to react – especially if it happens after veterinary clinics are closed for the day. Just like humans, dogs and cats can suffer from various kinds of allergies. Food allergies cause loss of fur and skin irritations, as well as intestinal problems. Pollen allergies can also affect an animal’s skin and cause sneezing and nasal issues. The worst by far are the allergic reactions from bug bites or stings or negative reactions to vaccinations or even spot-on flea & tick preventatives that actually create anaphylaxis shock in your pet and lead to death. We have experienced all of the above with various dogs over the years, and it pays to know how to recognize, treat and even avoid such allergic reactions from happening with your pets.
Years ago, one of our Great Danes suffered from a number of allergies. Our veterinarian tested Ginny and found she was allergic to 2 kinds of grass, a couple of trees and some other foliage. They didn’t test dogs for food allergies in those days, so we never suspected food was the real problem. Poor Ginny endured twice weekly allergy injections for over a year before I decided they were not helping. During that time, she ate a Purina chicken dog food and when the allergy symptoms continued after I stopped the injections, I tried changing her diet. Lo and behold, it quickly became obvious that Ginny was allergic to chicken…or so it seemed. Switching her to a Lamb and Rice diet cleared up her massive skin irritation and tummy upsets. In the 1980’s, little was known about food allergies in dogs. Luck was on our side that we discovered the source of our pet’s misery.
In 2003, I brought home an adorable Weimaraner puppy. Gator appeared healthy for a few months but eventually, he experienced frequent ear infections. He became a regular at the vet’s office until one day, I read an article suggesting that food could cause ear infections and yeast infections in dogs and cats. Gator ate a quality commercial dry food at the time but I changed his diet to one without grains and a different meat and voila! No more ear infections. Experimentation sometimes helps.
You probably cannot avoid food sensitivities or allergies completely, because you must go through a trial and error phase to rule out ingredients that do or don’t cause issues with your pet. But there are a few ideas to help if you suspect your dog or cat has food allergies.
Tips to Avoid Canine Food Allergies
Always feed a grain-free product to your pet. That includes treats, as well as regular food. Avoid corn and wheat, especially, because they are frequent contributors to allergic reactions. If that doesn’t clear up the trouble, a food trial may be in order.
Food Trials May Eliminate Problem Foods
Spend several weeks feeding your dog or cat a food containing only one meat. If you have been feeding a chicken diet, switch to lamb or fish and be sure there are no signs of chicken or poultry on the ingredients list. If you see an improvement in the animal, you may think that chicken was your problem. Take the time to switch back to the prior food containing chicken and see if it bothers your pet. If symptoms re-occur, then you can be fairly certain that chicken is the problem. Try this approach with whatever meat your pet has been eating. Some animals react badly to more than one ingredient. It might be chicken or beef or even lamb. Some can’t tolerate any kind of dairy products. It’s all a trial and error game and your pet’s life and health are at risk. Most experts will tell you to spend as long as 12 weeks on each ingredient you are testing in a food trial. I found with my dogs that it only took 3 or 4, but each animal is different.
If your pet continues to struggle with normal foods, look at novel proteins. We ended up feeding Gator a Natural Balance Salmon & Rice food because nothing else worked. However, we never tried venison or bison. Perhaps they would also have worked for him. You can also find pet foods made with such novel proteins as ostrich and emu. The key is to look for foods with no hormones or steroids. To obtain that information, you may need to call the manufacturer and ask. Yes, you will pay more for foods containing novel proteins, but you likely won’t be spending all that money at the vet’s office trying to find a cure.
Canine Chemical Allergies
In 2012, we applied Gator’s usual flea & tick preventive to the back of his neck. It had worked well without problems in the 3 previous years. This time, within 10 minutes, he started panting, drooling and staggering as he walked. Watching my big, 100 lb. Weimaraner literally fall into the walls as he tried to move scared both of us. We treated him with a large dose of Benadryl and gradually, his symptoms subsided. This occurred late at night and we knew by the time we found an emergency vet clinic, our dog could die. Fortunately, we always keep a supply of Benadryl on hand. This was the kind of killer allergy that could have proven fatal.
In 1994, Jim gifted me with Coby, my blue Great Dane. Coby was 9 weeks old and ready for his next set of vaccinations. Our vet at that time operated a mobile clinic and she visited Coby, examined him and gave him the needed injections. Soon after she left, he began panting and drooling, and his gums turned blue. We phoned and our vet returned within a few minutes and saved Coby’s life with an injection of antihistamine. This killer allergy turned out to be a component in the vaccine she had given him. Coby was allergic to the Leptospirosis vaccine. We made sure in future years that his annual vaccinations never included that potentially deadly drug.
Allergy symptoms are caused by an abnormal reaction to some substance by the body’s immune system that, under normal circumstances, wouldn’t cause a problem. Always be alert to symptoms of trouble such as trouble breathing, vomiting, excessive drooling and panting, shock, or controlling urine or bowels. And seek veterinary advice and/or assistance if possible. Don’t allow killer allergies to get the upper hand with your pet.
