#1
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Seasonal allergies - how long do they last?
Hi all!
As some of you know, Diamond has a food allergy to chicken. At least that's what we thought, until now. For the past couple of weeks, Diamond's scratching has progressively gotten worse, while it's starting to level off now. We've been giving her Chlor-triplon (her vet indicated it would help, and it does), but I don't know how long I'm going to have to give her pills for. It doesn't seem to be affecting her in any way and it beats going in for a shot, which would be the next logical step. I'm really starting to think think it's not a chicken allergy, but rather a seasonal allergy. When the snow starts to fly, and the allergens go away, we're going to reintroduce her to chicken. If the itching starts up again, we know she's allergic to chicken. We think it may be seasonal because we're very careful what she eats. She has no access to chicken in any way, shape or form. The question is: How long do seasonal allergies last? As I said, the itching seems to be slightly better, but it could be the medication. Any thoughts?
__________________
"Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else." - Judy Garland |
#2
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My last dog had seasonal allergies that started at the end of August, every year like clockwork. He itched at no other time of the year.
I'm wondering if something else may be causing your dog's problems. What kind of food do you feed him? Your dog might be a good candidate for raw foods. |
#3
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don't forget that chicken allergies often mean egg allergies as well
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#4
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Thanks for the replies.
When we got her, back in mid spring, her scratching started getting horrible. It may be coincidental that we thought of a chicken allergy and cut off her chicken intake to nil, and her itching started to go away because the spring allergy season may have been coming to an end. So, I guess the timing could have been just perfect to end of spring allergies to the length of time it would take to clear the system of any food allergens. Making us think that the allergies are to chicken/products. All summer her itching has been almost nil...just the usual dog scratching. We give her a wheat-germ oil suppliment to help prevent dry skin, just in case. Well, the itching is back. It started a couple to 3 weeks ago, and while Chlor-Triplon is helping, we finding that we're having to give her not as much (only when she's noticably in discomfort) as the summer turns into fall. That's why I'm starting to think seasonal allergies. When winter is in full blown fury, we're going to reintroduce chicken to her diet, to rule it out as a cause for her itching. We use a vinegar/water solution to wash the hardwoods. We use baking soda and HOT water to wash her blankets/towels. Cleaning solutions are, for the most part, confined to the bathroom area, where she isn't allowed. We're trying to keep her contact to chemicals to a minimum. So I'm pretty confident that her reactions are not chemical in nature. I'll have to check her food to see if there's any egg products as well, but it's not ringing a bell. So, how long does fall allergy seasons last? Does it sound about right that her itching is starting to go away because it's near the time when the snow is to fly?
__________________
"Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else." - Judy Garland |
#5
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Update to old thread
A little time has passed since I first started this thread and Diamond's scratching is totally gone again. Her diet has not changed since I posted this, and yet her itching is gone. This, of course, does make me think of seasonal allergies. Since nobody could tell me when the normal allergy season ends, I'm going to have to assume that it's now over.
This being said.... We're going to reintroduce chicken to her diet again, so when we go away for a week in January (Mexico!!!! ) we don't have to worry about what she's eating or getting into. I want my boss and her husband to watch her, since he's a regular Dr. Doolittle who makes everyone on this board seem like a monster who hates animals! (no offense is intended to anyone....he's THAT nice a guy to animals!!! He'll rescue a field mouse if he thinks it's hurt) So, of course, they're the folks we want to leave Diamond with, once we know for sure their animals will accept her for the week. (the have: 2 dogs, 1 cat, 5 birds, a rather large aquarium. They've also adopted: all the local deer, rabbits, turtles, anything that moves/eats/breathes) The vet said one drop of chicken in her diet would be enough to make her scratch, if it is indeed a chicken allergy. We're going to combine some chicken based food into her regular diet so it's not too much of a shock. How soon after we reintroduce the chicken to her diet can we notice an allergy, if there is one?
__________________
"Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else." - Judy Garland |
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