Itching, itching, itching!

[Marilyn Norberg]

Please, please, please can someone help "Irish" my goldendoodle. Every year - August/September Irish constantly licks her paws almost until they're raw and generally just itches all over. She has been on a grain free diet almost 1 1/2 yrs now so pls don't tell me it's her food. It's probably mold or pollen that she's having the problem with and I understand it. But does anyone have any other meds besides, prednisone (which makes her pee uncontrollable) she's currently on cetirizine (10mg) she's only been on it for 2 full days and I really don't see much improvement and the vet last year placed her on chlorpheniramine (4mg). I am going out of my mind telling Irish to quit licking - any other suggestions? Been soaking her feet in oatmeal shampoo - but she's not getting any relief. August and September could be 2 very long months for us......I hate her licking.....poor puppy.... please someone help!

[F, Calla & Luca]

There is a group with tons of information.

Atopic dermatitis group.

Karen will help : )

[Marilyn Norberg]

thanks for the help .

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Is there ragweed in your area?  Luna has bad seasonal allergies to ragweed.  

You can supplement her allergy medication with Evening Primrose oil, it enhances the effects of the antihistamines.  When I give it to Luna I give her 500 mg with each meal (she weighs 35 lbs), I could probably give her 1000 mg with each meal though (that's near the human dose).

Also - when her allergies are really bad the only thing that helps her is Benadryl.  Loratidine didn't do anything, neither did Cetrizine.  It makes her sleepy but at least it stops the scratching!

[Marnie, Stanlee's Mom]

Benadry does the trick at our house as well.  Not for our doodle (no allergy issues there) but for our other dog.  Allergies around here are February, March and MAYBE April, we use benadryl on an as needed basis.

 

Good luck and keep us posted!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Actually, every dog is different with the antihistamines. Claritin works best for JD, Zyrtec or Atarax work better for others. JD's dermatologist feels that it's best if possible to use the 2nd generation antihistamines that don't cause drowsiness rather than Benadryl, but you do what you have to. :)

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Yeah I wouldn't use it if it made her super drowsy.  She still plays, is interested in walks and her food and pays attention to what's going on.  For some dogs I've heard it really knocks them out and all they want to do is sleep.

[F, Calla & Luca]

If it is a seasonal allergy your best bet is to have allergy testing done and then use immunotherapy . for this you will need a veterinary dermatologist.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Marilyn the chances are very very good that Irish has seasonal allergies, otherwise known as Atopic Dermatitis. This is a genetic immune mediated disease that runs in Labs and Goldens. We have quite a few dogs here who have it. I just approved your membership in the A.D. group. Ragweed is the worst, most common allergen for these dogs, and Aug/Sept is prime ragweed season.

The best thing you can do for Irish is make an appointment with  veterinary dermatology specialist. Atopy can be successfully managed, but not cured, and the earlier treatment starts, the better the chances of success. Atopy gets worse as a dog gets older and in its most severe state can be life-threatening. There are only a couple of treatment options (prednisone cannot be used long term) and the treatment of choice is immunotherapy, which requires skin testing done by a dermatology specialist. Blood tests are worthless and your regular vet is not equipped to do the skin testing or formulate the antigens for the immunotherapy shots.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

PS; GOOD FOR YOU FOR KNOWING IT'S NOT HER FOOD! I am so tired of people thinking that anything that involves allergies has something to do with food. In 90% of all cases, it doesn't. You are already a step ahead of the game for knowing that.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We give one of our dogs Zyrtec which was prescribed by his dermatologist. He can't have anything with cortisone in it.