[CmFairygodmother]

The poor thing is allergic to life!!

Walnut trees....we have a black walnut in the yard
4 different kinds of grass
Mold
Dust mites
Human dander
Sheepskin
Lambswool

In essence...his bed is sheepskin, he is allergic to US, the house gets very dusty because of the farm....

 

[CmFairygodmother]

had him tested because after spending thousands on vet bills and meds...(steriods, antibiotics, anti-itch creams, ear gels, eye drops) and having him scratch all the fur off of his belly, and no fur under his arms...he is up all night itching and rubbing and really is miserable...

His food allergy includes chicken and turkey...he poops blood when he gets that, and he vomits alot.

So....when I taught asthma and allergy classes ( I have both)I learned and I am a firm believer that meds are just a bandaid to the problem underneath...You have to discover the triggers or allergens and immunize, and avoid as much as possible.

He starts allergy shots in a couple of weeks. If not, as he gets older, he will get worse...everytime someone is exposed to an allergen, the mast cells build up more histamines, more luekotrines more every thing. In other words, the body, percieving the trigger or allergen is BAD, will build up more and more of a defense, causing a whopping attack.

Antihistamines? He takes 2 a day...they barely touch him now. We need to change his whole IgE profile (Immunoglbulin profile)
...shots will do that for him, hopefully. Not all immunizations for this stuff takes.

Of note, a human can have a RAST test and test for foods...a Dog cannot. For some reason the test becomes unreliable.

Can you tell that I love immunology? I would have loved to be an immunologist!

 

[ggklocke]

Poor Louie, but YEAH for finding his demons!

I second the thought that antihistamines (and a lot of other medications, for that matter) are nothing but a patch! They will treat the symptom, not the cause. For mild symptoms that would seem to be enough, but Louie seems to be more afflicted. Do you think that being hyper-allergic to one thing could eventually wear down the resistance to other things?
I think you're wise about the avoidance thing. I don't know how you can keep him from the trees and you certainly can't just cut 'em down. I've never been much of a believer in allergy shots (seen a lot of money made for the doctor with no results for the patient) but if he gets some relief from his suffering from them, then it's all worth it. I know that black walnut trees are sort of toxic (you can't grow a garden anywhere close to them-the soil is bad). As for mold and dust, I think it is natural for any body (dog or human) to sneeze a bit around these, it's the body's natural defense, but itching is another thing. Lanolin is tough on a lot of folks with sensitive skin. I can picture Louie resting on a new 100% cotton canvas or cordouroy bed soon.

Good luck CM and Louie. Let us know how things develop.

 

[shallhb]

I'll be curious how the shots go. Pearl's been on them for three months, and I don't think I see an effect yet. They said it could take up to a year, and that they'll work for about 70% of the dog. What really seems to be helping is--of all things--an air filter in the room she sleeps in. She's allergic to a bit of everything--cat dander, grass, trees. Hope the shots work for both Louie and Pearl.

 

[shallhb]

Oh, yeah, I forgot dust mites. I think every being in the world is somewhat allergic to dust mites.

 

[CmFairygodmother]

I agree. It is the #1 allegen in asthmatics...

I have noticed that Louie has less symptoms when he has had a shower...( I have a 5 foot shower in my home), and he knows that when I tell him it is bath time, he waddles into the bathroom and steps right in the shower! LOL!

 

[Soundtrack]

Having had an allergy dog, I understand the frustration.

As far as the food allergies, what I had to do with Webster was put him on an elimination diet (2 parts potato, 2 parts sweet potato, 1 part turnip (rutabaga) and some olive oil). Then once his skin cleared up I started adding back one food at a time and waiting a week or two to see if it affected him. Most foods he reacted to right away. Chicken made his skin turn bright red. I finally did find a combination of foods that kept him symptom free without meds most of the time (he would get a bit itchy during hayfever season), but I was never able to find a kibble he could eat.

Until I got the allergies under control, I gave him regular baths in oatmeal shampoo to soothe his skin. But some oatmeal shampoos were fine on him, others made him break out, so again I had to experiment to find what was right for him.

[ September 18, 2005, 08:48 PM: Message edited by: Soundtrack ]