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My dog Romeo is affected by some kind of mild allergy. He goes through random outbreaks of inflamed skin and stained hair on his front legs, under the base of his tail, lower abdomen and inner thighs due to excessive licking. He also gets gunky ears once in a while, and has constant runny eyes and tear stains.
He's been on PMR since August and the symptoms still randomly flare up, so I don't *think* it's food related, as I know that allergies to raw proteins are extremely rare. I don't feed any grain-inclusive treats, just occasional pure freeze-dried meat bits.
I can't pinpoint any one thing that causes flare-ups, I just try to stick with natural cleaning products, fragrance free detergents, shampoos, etc.
We went to the vet today because his left ear was bugging him more than usual (generally I clean it for a few days and it clears right up) and a few days ago he was actually screaming everytime he'd shake his head. The screaming started on Thursday and stopped on Friday (the day I made the appointment) but the shaking continued.
Well, the vet said that his ears were both clean on the inside with no inflammation, although there was some visible irritation along the outer edge of his left ear where he'd been scratching, so obviously it was bothering him. He wanted to give him a steroid injection, which I declined, and some drops. Hopefully the drops will clear up whatever is bothering him.
The vet wants to test for allergens. I expressed that I will not get into the cortisone injections and all of that. He said that wasn't a part of his game plan, but what they'd do was send an allergy test off to the lab and then make a "vaccine", so to speak, of the allergen(s) that are affecting him, then inject him starting twice a week and gradually decrease the frequency over a pretty long period of time. This isn't something I've heard of or looked into before, but I'll certainly start now. I told him I'd think about and get back to him.
I don't use chemical flea products, they receive limited vaccines and I try to use alternative meds as much as possible, so the thought of injecting my dog with stuff multiple times a week for a long period of time makes me INCREDIBLY uneasy. Should I be? What are my other alternatives? I don't want him to be uncomfortable, either.
I could also try taking proteins out of his diet one at a time to see if it IS in fact a food allergy. Of course, my vet believes that's what it is, and suggested that I try the hypoallergenic Hill's prescription diet. I'm all set with that, thanks. I expressed that I was pretty positive it wasn't food related, and he asked why. Not wanting to get into the great raw debate, I just said "Because I've tried a limited ingredient diet for months with no improvements, and the symptoms seem to appear at random" which is actually the truth! It's just not the limited ingredient diet that I'm sure he'd prefer I use!
Should I at least do the tests?
He's been on PMR since August and the symptoms still randomly flare up, so I don't *think* it's food related, as I know that allergies to raw proteins are extremely rare. I don't feed any grain-inclusive treats, just occasional pure freeze-dried meat bits.
I can't pinpoint any one thing that causes flare-ups, I just try to stick with natural cleaning products, fragrance free detergents, shampoos, etc.
We went to the vet today because his left ear was bugging him more than usual (generally I clean it for a few days and it clears right up) and a few days ago he was actually screaming everytime he'd shake his head. The screaming started on Thursday and stopped on Friday (the day I made the appointment) but the shaking continued.
Well, the vet said that his ears were both clean on the inside with no inflammation, although there was some visible irritation along the outer edge of his left ear where he'd been scratching, so obviously it was bothering him. He wanted to give him a steroid injection, which I declined, and some drops. Hopefully the drops will clear up whatever is bothering him.
The vet wants to test for allergens. I expressed that I will not get into the cortisone injections and all of that. He said that wasn't a part of his game plan, but what they'd do was send an allergy test off to the lab and then make a "vaccine", so to speak, of the allergen(s) that are affecting him, then inject him starting twice a week and gradually decrease the frequency over a pretty long period of time. This isn't something I've heard of or looked into before, but I'll certainly start now. I told him I'd think about and get back to him.
I don't use chemical flea products, they receive limited vaccines and I try to use alternative meds as much as possible, so the thought of injecting my dog with stuff multiple times a week for a long period of time makes me INCREDIBLY uneasy. Should I be? What are my other alternatives? I don't want him to be uncomfortable, either.
I could also try taking proteins out of his diet one at a time to see if it IS in fact a food allergy. Of course, my vet believes that's what it is, and suggested that I try the hypoallergenic Hill's prescription diet. I'm all set with that, thanks. I expressed that I was pretty positive it wasn't food related, and he asked why. Not wanting to get into the great raw debate, I just said "Because I've tried a limited ingredient diet for months with no improvements, and the symptoms seem to appear at random" which is actually the truth! It's just not the limited ingredient diet that I'm sure he'd prefer I use!
Should I at least do the tests?