my doggy has allergies

[tashygirl]

can anyone help with any home remedies or allergy medications that would make her feel better we have been giving her benedryl but does not seem to help as well. it happens every late summer season. she loses her hair around her eyes and they are runny and she digs at her under arms of her for legs,the front of her chest.and she is starting to get scabs,i feel so sorry for her but just don't know what to do? and i don't believe in any of the steroid stuff. she is a mix of mini shepard and chow she is all black and now heer eyes almost glow with losing the fur. please help with making her more comfy.

[Lucky Rescue]

My last dog - who was also part Chow - used to suffer the same allergies every August. A week's course of prednisone relieved it immediately.

You are right , the steroids are not good for dogs, and neither is Benadryl.

I believe acupuncture is quite effective for dog allergies, if you are willing to go that route.

There is a place online - Drs. Foster & Smith - who sell natural supplements for allergies. I don't know how well they work, but might be worth looking at!
Drs.Foster and Smith

[Carina]

Here's another EXCELLENT resource for info and supplements; the site owner will answer personal questions, too. She is extremely knowlegable.
http://b-naturals.com/Sum1998.php

Another thing to look at may be a complete diet change...a friend of mine has a Chow who was losing fur and looked & felt awful. She switched to a grain free diet and Chewy looks amazing now.

A word on steroids - they do have side effects, but can really be a wonder drug. I wouldn't rule them out. My very old dog was on prednisone for over a year for arthritis...apart from being hungry all the time she really responded well. And my significant (human) other has been on daily prednisone for several years - he has rheumatoid arthritis (very difficult to treat, there's no cure) and without steroids he probably would not be able to move. He's a physician and knows all about the side effects, believe me!

Like LuckyRescue says, somtimes a short course of steroids is enough, too.

I'd also look into diet change; do a search on grain free/dog allergies or something. You'll find lots of interesting stuff!

Good luck with your pupper, poor thing must be miserable...

[amaruq]

I actually have 2 dogs with allergies.

I had a terrible experience with the steriods on the one.

I did some searching and found a supplement that has worked miracles on my dogs. Its called MSM.

There seems to be no sideffects from it which is wonderful. The one has been on it a year and (knock on wood) has not had an attack.

The only thing with this product is make sure its in a pure form.Check it out on MSM