Question:
So it seems that little Oliver is having a bout of allergies. He had been suffering from some lose stools, minor vomitting and excessive sneezing so off to the vet we went, blood work was done and only a high white blood cell count was found, indicating allergies. He has also been chewing on his foot since late spring, which is now red. Vet thinks it is allergies.

So here is my question - before I go down the path of vets trying to prescribe things for his allergies (don't worry, I will not do cortisone shots!!) any recommendations from you homeopathic people (aka Luba ) re good allergy remedies. I suspect it is environmental allergies since he has not had a change in his food and this really only came on as the spring/summer season progressed.

It is really not too bad for him but I (obviously) would like to make him as comfy and happy as possible!

Michelle

Answer:
Ahh thanks for thinkin of me

Well your poor itchy baby! Lets see what we can do for him.

What we need to understand is that allergies aggrivate us because our immune system cannot fight them off. Increasing immunity and strengthening the immune system goes a long way.

The only way to do that is through proper diet and supplements. If the allergies are bad enough, you may want to get him off all commercial brands of dog food, atleast temporarily and home cook for him. This healthy nutritious cooking will boost his immune system and help him fight the allergy (if thats what it is)

Consider that #1 and let me know

#2 Supplements DO work wonders
Without hesitation you can give Shark Cartilidge, Vitamin E and Fish oil. Add flax seed oil (teaspoon) to a meal a day. This not only will help immunity, but also nourish the skin from the inside out.

IF there are hot spots on his skin and itchy areas. Put pure aloe vera gel on it (not cream) ALOE GEL! You can get it at health food stores. After u open it refrigerate it.

Depending on the severity of the allergy, will depend on how long it takes to start working.

What sometimes happens is 'one' episode of a bug bite sets off an allergic reaction which goes bonkers for several weeks or more.

IF it's really bad, get your vet to tell you the dosage of Benadryl you can give him just to get over the really bad spots from time to time and give him a good sleep. (if he's waking up because of the itching)

Then, distract him....during the day give him a big beef bone to chew on to take his mind off the itching.

If you are telling him to stop every time he itches it will only make things worse and he'll keep doing it, so distraction instead of 'no'.

And like I tell everyone else, don't use any chemicals to clean, wash with fragrance free detergent any bedding...no febreeze, no toxic air fresheners, no swiffer, oust or mr clean crap. All this can start or irritate an already bad situation.

Let me know if you have any questions

My dog Rusty was allergic to a lot of things, took years to get him down pat...but I learned a lot and through trial and error found the things that did/didn't work.

Answer:
Luba,

Thanks for you in-depth reply

The cooking for him thing is easy since I already do that. He does get some homeopathic dry food during the day since I am not there to feed him lunch and he gets pretty hungry after he comes back from being with the walker...

The allergies are still quite minor at this point (no hot spots except for his foot chewing and no excessive scratching) so I think I can skip the Benadryl at this point. I will definitely give the supplements a go though!

Lots of toys and bones for him to chew on (not to mention the cat... ) so he has plenty to distract him from scratching himself. He sleeps beside me all night and does not start scratching or chewing so I think he is doing pretty well.

Thanks again!

Michelle

Answer:
Most welcome let me know how it goes

Answer:
Just as sneezing can be an indcation of a cold, or weakened immune system, excessive licking or chewing of the paws i has been directly linked to over vaccinating. The "allergic" response is really a reaction to the pathogens in the vaccinations.

Answer:
justncase - thanks for the advice. It isn't vaccinations though since he was last vacinated 10 months ago and I will be doing teeters (sp?) testing before I vacinate him again. I too am wary of over vacinating the little critters, especially when they have been known to have reactions (and he has).

Michelle

Answer:
Titer testing is the way to go good for you!

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