Some Basic Facts About Allergies in Dogs

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Dogs, just like people, can and do have allergies to many different things. Since my guy Jackdoodle has a very severe allergic condition called atopic dermatitis, or atopy, I have unfortunately become something of an expert in this area. There is a lot of confusion and misunderstanding about allergies in general, and about allergies in dogs in particular. I hope this discussion will help to provide some info and understanding of this condition.
True allergy is a genetic disease, or malfunction, of the immune system. In allergic individuals, the immune system is overactive, misidentifies common every day organic substances which enter the body as "enemies", and launches an attack...basically against itself. In it's more severe forms, allergies can be life-threatening.
While dogs are often allergic to the same things that cause humans misery, such as pollens, molds, and dust-mites, dogs do not react in the same way. Instead of runny noses, sneezing, & other respiratory symptoms, dogs react by itching...intensely. The subsequent constant biting, licking, and scratching creates skin infections which can be very serious. The skin infections cause even more discomfort, becoming a vicious circle necessitating ever-increasing amounts of drugs, and an increasingly hyper immune system.
Here are some basic facts about allergies in our dogs:
1. Allergies take repeated exposure to the substance in order to develop. This is the opposite of what most people think. In the case of food allergies, it typically takes at least a year of eating the food on a continuous basis to develop an allergy. In the case of inhalant allergies, the dog has to have been exposed to the substance at some previous time to develop an allergy to it. For this reason, it is extremely rare for a young puppy to have an allergy to anything. Most allergies in dogs do not show up until the dog is 2-3 years old. 
2. Food is the problem in only 10% of allergic dogs.
Symptoms of food allergies in dogs are the same as the symptoms of inhalant allergies...intense itching. Gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea, etc., are NOT indicative of allergy, but rather, a food intolerance, or just a problem with an unaccustomed food. The foods that most commonly cause allergy problems in dogs are wheat, corn, soy, beef, and chicken. THERE IS NO RELIABLE TEST FOR FOOD ALLERGIES. 
3. If it IS a food allergy, switching kibble will not help, unless the protein sources in the new kibble are different from those in the old kibble, and are proteins that the dog has not eaten before.  The only way to determine food allergy is to do an 8-12 week food trials using only a single novel protein, i.e. a protein source the dog has never eaten before. (There are some food trial diets in the Food Group, for those who want to learn how.) But keep in mind, out of 20 allergic dogs, only 2 or 3 have food allergies.
4. Storage MITES can be the problem. Storage mites are now thought to be responsible for as many problems with asthma & other allergy related breathing problems in children as house dust-mites.  Storage mites live in kibble & other packaged dry foods. Vets recommend disposing of the bags from the store immediately, outside of your home, and keeping kibble in air tight containers which are frequently washed in hot water & soap, and well-dried. Do not buy more than 1 months' worth of kibble at a time, and choose higher quality brands with less particulate matter. (So if someone you know switched kibble and her dogs' itching immediately improved, it was probably storage mites.)
5. Food allergies are tough to diagnose, but easy to treat. Once you find the culprit, eliminate it. Inhalant allergies, on the other hand, can be reliably diagnosed, but have few treatment options. (See my "All About Allergies" discussion in the main forum for more on this.) Dogs whose allergy symptoms are seasonal DEFINITELY have inhalant type allergies, not food.
6. Allergies can get worse as dogs age. The seasonal symptoms can become year round, and the drugs lose their power to relieve the misery, in addition to causing other problems. Treatment needs to begin as early as possible to spare your dog from future suffering.
7. Dampness and humidity can exacerbate the itching and also attract allergens. Keep the dog's paws, in particular, as dry as possible after going outdoors. 
Frequent bathing may help, but needs to be done in a specific way. See this update for more bathing info:
http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/healthandmedicalissues/forum/topi...
8. Most common areas for allergic itching to occur: FEET, groin and/or axilla, face, especially around the eyes, base of tail, ears. Many dogs will completely strip the fur away from these areas with constant licking & chewing. Also look for redness around the eyelids, and reddish coloring on the fur between the pads of the feet.
9. Finding the cause is important...but first, STOP THE SUFFERING! Please do not let your dog continue to itch unbearably while you start playing guessing games with his food. Your dog needs immediate help in the form of antihistamines, fatty acid capsules, and in worse case scenarios, antibiotics and/or steroids. None of us likes to give our dogs medicines...but you need to help him feel better and save his skin from further damage. Get some relief for your dog first, then start figuring out what to do to prevent it in the future. Call the vet.

10. Itching does not always mean allergies...it could also be mites, mange, fleas, other parasites, or even a hormonal imbalance. Just because you can't see parasites, doesn't mean they're not there. Dogs can also get poison ivy, and don't forget the occasional plain old ear infection. (On the subject of ear infections, bacterial infections are very different from yeast infections, and need to be treated differently.) Once again, don't guess...see your vet.

And be aware that general practice vets are not experts in allergies, just as your primary care physician is not an expert in allergies.  Your best bet in severe cases is to consult a veterinary dermatology specialist.

For temporary relief of inhalant allergies, here are some things that you can do:

Give Omega 3 fatty acid supplements. You want the Omega 3 fatty acids DHA & EPA, which are only found in fish. You can also give GLA in the form of evening primrose oil supplements. In both cases, use human softgel supplements. 

If you feed dry dog food, check the Omega 6:3 ratio. You want a ratio of 5:1 or less, the lower the better, and the Omega 3 content should come from fish.

Give antihistamines. Different antihistamines are more effective for different dogs. Typically, you want second generation antihistamines that do not cause drowsiness, like Claritin, Zyrtec, Atarax, etc. rather than Benadryl.

Use OTC anti-itch sprays on the affected areas. These are available at most pet supply stores.

Wipe the dog down every time he comes in from outside, paying particular attention to the feet. Brush the dog daily.

Keep the indoor areas where the dog spends the most time as clean and dust free as possible. Wash bedding weekly, wash food & water bowls daily. Vacuum as often as possible.

Keep dry foods in air-tight storage containers and don't buy more than you can use in a month unless you can freeze it. Discard the bags the food came in and use ziplock freezer bags. 

If the feet are affected, you can soak them in tepid water with epsom salts. Be sure to dry thoroughly afterwards.

Bathe the dog often, weekly if possible, with a shampoo formulated for allergic dogs. (I like Douxo Calm). Do NOT use leave-in conditioners or other grooming products. Use a cool dryer setting or air-dry. 

As much as I hate doing it, keeping windows closed really helps with pollen allergies. Run the A/C in warm weather especially, the allergy symptoms are exacerbated by humidity. Use a furnace filter with a high allergen rating and change it monthly. 

I hope this has been helpful. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Some more interesting facts about allergies: Dogs who are having an intense allergic reaction may also have nervous system issues...which makes sense when you think how stressful it would be to have your entire body constantly itching unbearably, and not be able to get relief. Symptoms of nervous system involvement may include restlessness, pacing, circling, shallow rapid breathing or panting, twitching, and even focal seizures like facial or jaw spasms.

[Vicky Mueller]

What do you mean by facial or jaw spasms?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

In Jackdoodle's case, he loses control of his lower jaw, and his mouth opens & closes very rapidly, with teeth clicking, like chattering. He is fully conscious and seems a little bit distressed by it. It usually lasts about 30 seconds. They seem to occur in clusters, i.e,. it may happen 2 or 3 X a day for a couple of days, and then not for a month. It is my understanding that it can happen with other muscles in the face as well, kind of like an extended tic or twitch.

[20xlhzzaoccks]

Thank you so much for posting this. It is very helpful to have all of this information in one place to reference. I'm pretty sure that Steve has a wheat allergy because he had severe itching on regular kibble and when I switched it to a wheat free, soy free food the itching dramatically decreased within a few weeks. I also have been doing fish oil for a while which I think seems to help. I was going to ask your (or anyone in this group's) opinion about a question related to allergies. Steve has had two incidences of full body hives. They have been over every square inch of his body, in his ears, around his eyes, and his breathing was labored as well like his throat was closing up. Both times it has happened have been in the middle of the night. He woke up scratching and rubbing himself all over the carpet and walls. Of course I saw the hives right away and freaked out. I gave him a dose of Benadryl and within a hour they went away. The vet had no idea what could have caused it and I couldn't trace it back to anything based on the day before. The second time it happened it took a full three days with regular Benadryl doses every 4 hours for the hives to go away. We kept calling the vet and they said there was nothing else they could do. I was thinking it might be an insect bite of some sort I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas. I would love to figure out what is causing the hives because it is a scary experience for both of us. I think that Steve is affected somewhat by seasonal allergies because I notice that he itches more when I have allergies related to pollen.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Meredith, hives accompanied by laboring breathing or gagging sounds are classic symptoms of a severe allergic reaction, which can be serious. These are the symptoms that required us to bring Jackdoodle in to the emergency treatment facility following his skin testing procedure, and what we will have to watch for after he begins his allergy shots. How far apart were the incidents, and can you think of anything that connects the two incidents...extended time spent on freshly cut grass, very rainy weather, that type of thing?
There are only two reliable ways to test for allergies. One is by doing the skin-testing procedure, which you can read about here:
http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/all-about-allergies
This will test for environmental and inhalant allergies only. There is no reliable medical test for food...the only way you can find out if there are food allergies is to do elimination trials. Here is some info about that:
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/food_allergies.html
In addition, Dr. Pitcairn has a couple of food trial recipes you can use, which you can find here:
http://doodlekisses.com/group/dkcookbook/forum/topics/special-needs...
However, as I mentioned above, if there is a seasonal pattern to Steve's troubles, it is probably not the food. It could be storage mites, which switching to a better quality food may have helped. Some dogs have both food & inhalant allergies, so eliminating the wheat was probably also a good move.
If Steve continues to have problems, you can ask your vet for a referral to a veterinary dermatology specialist, preferably board certified. I have to tell you that there are not many of them and they are very expensive. Mine charges $225 for an office visit. The skin testing was $500 plus $200 for 4 months worth of the serum. If Steve's allergies can be controlled at a tolerable level with antihistamines & fatty acid supplements, that might be the way to go, as long as he is not causing himself skin infections and the itching does not escalate to unbearable levels. I hope that if Steve does have allergies, they are mild. My poodle had mild seasonal allergies, and lived a long, happy life. Good luck with this, it's no fun! Please let me know how he's doing.

[20xlhzzaoccks]

Thank you for the information. Other that the two scary hive incidents his other allergies really are not that bad. He just has mild itching at times, no broken skin or infections. I really have not been able to connect the hive incidents to anything other than they both occurred in the middle of the night. That is why I thought he may have been bit by a spider while sleeping or something. The two incidences were about 8 months apart. I'm sorry that Jack had such a severe reaction after skin testing, I hope it is better with allergy shots and he does not have a reaction. I had skin testing once and the first thing they tested for was dust. An hour later I broke out in hives and felt like my skin was crawling from the inside out. Needless to say, I have been hesitant to do anymore allergy testing because of that. I know it must be miserable for Jack and Steve when they have a severe reaction like that and I know that it can be dangerous. I have heard before that lighter colored dogs are more prone to skin allergies. Do you think there is any truth in that? I know Jack has been through so much so I hope that the allergy shots give him some relief. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge!

[Jenn&Bruce]

I am so enlightened by what you are saying Karen, and can't thank you enough for this knowledge you share.
I have taken Bruce to the vet 3 times in the past 6 months regarding his continuous face and neck scratching. the first trip I was left unsatisfied with a response of "puppies scratch, and there's no visible signs of a problem" But I knew in my heart that Bruce's frustration wasn't normal puppy scratching.
the second trip was for a full blown attack that happened in the fall...his symptoms were as follows
vomiting ( continuous)
swollen lips, and eyes
swollen tongue
and of course, the scratching (just the face and neck)

Bruce was treated with benadryl and Dramamine and felt much better and all symptoms parted, but not the scratching...

so I took him back in to the vet 3 weeks ago, seeking relief once again....he is now being treated topically with Topagen spray, and we're adding omega-3 fatty acid to his diet and I was told to continue with his diet as is.(Wellness Simple Solutions Duck and Rice) but there is was no antihistamines prescribed.
I am now loosing my faith in the professionals here.

So I add the oil to his diet, and attempt to treat the areas he is scratching ( there is no irritation or redness in those areas he scratches, but I treat them anyway) and still no relief.

last night, Bruce had a violent seizure, with convulsions and a locked jaw (which locked on his tongue poor guy, blood everywhere) and he lost control of his bladder and the use of his legs. I was terrified! I layed there and held him talking to him and after a few minutes, he backed away from me his eyes all glazed and weaving, he backed into his chair and was displaying confusion, fear, growling, and barking (not his regular voice) for about 30 minutes. bumping into walls, furniture, very skittish like he couldn't really "SEE" me. Not to long after he just snapped right back, and looked at me like I just got home, tail wagging, but still some confusion. I took him to bed, and he has be fine since, matter of fact he just had a great afternoon playing in the snow and it's apparently now nap time.
I plan on taking him to the vet again this week regarding this episode, and can only hope that we get somewhere with this journey soon.
does anyone else have a doodle with allergies that have led to a full body seizure? and whats everybody's thoughts on treating him with benadryl until the vet visit?


(I know, I'm sorry this is long, but one last thing, Karen, I have to thank you for the post about the nervous system, and allergies....Bruce has all of those symptoms minus the circling. right down to the jaw spasms.What I thought were normal Bruce behavior I now see in a different light. I will be armed with this info on our next vet visit, I had no idea all these things were symptoms of allergies.)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Jenn, I am horribly sorry that Bruce is having these problems. I agree that the response you are getting from your vet is not acceptable. While most vets are not specialists in allergies & other immune system diseases, they should be able to recognize an allergic reaction and either attempt to treat it or refer to a specialist. Antihistamines are a fairly standard treatment for all types of itching, and doing skin scrapings is standard procedure, too, to rule out mites or mange. In addition, when we were at Jack's specialist this week getting instructions for beginning his shots, we were given detailed info as to what to look for if he should have an allergic reaction following the antigen injections; and you just described it above, practically word for word:

vomiting (gagging or drooling as well)
swollen lips, and eyes
swollen tongue

These are classic signs of a severe allergic reaction. There is nothing "normal" about it.

I have not heard of a full-blown grand mal seizure such as you describe above being associated with allergies, it is possible that it is not connected, but I don't know. One thing much of this can also be associated with is a thyroid disorder. Jack's regular vet ran a full thyroid blood panel prior to his skin-testing to rule that out first.
Make a list of all these symptoms and concerns and take it with you to the vet. You know they are not normal puppy issues, and your vet knows it, too. If you present it all together to him, a lightbulb may go on, and I would also ask about thyroid testing. If you do not get some answers, or if the vet does not seem to at least be appropriately concerned, see another vet, or ask to be referred to a specialist. You must be Bruce's advocate, the vet is there to serve you both, and if he can't do his job, he doesn't deserve it.
Never apologize for making lengthy posts about these issues; mine aren't short, either, lol. You are helping the next person who will come along with a similar problem. Please don't hesitate ever to ask questions, and I want very much to hear what happens after Bruce sees the vet. Hope you can find him some help. Hugs to you both!

[Jenn&Bruce]

well, the swollen lips, eyes, and tongue were a one time thing (thank goodness) and I took him right in and after the shot of benadryl and dramamine, he was great and it hasn't happened since.

as for the seizure, I'm praying it doesn't happen again, at least until I find a new vet. I would have already changed vets, but I live in a very small town, and there is just the one clinic, and he has seen all three of the vets there (all women), after being unhappy with the first, and then the second, and now finally the third doctors responses to my concerns....I am running out of options. the nearest vet would be three to five hours away from here. I am however seriously considering moving to a city (the one 5 hours away) to do an animal grooming program, and 50% of me is doing it because I might actually find some real help for Bruce.
thanks for the thyroid tip, I will mention it!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I thought I went above & beyond for my doodle...moving to a different city for vet care would really make you the champion of the Concerned Doodle Moms, lol! Seriously, Jenn, if changing vets is not an option, then simply present your list of all your concerns and go over each issue with the vet. Maybe when she considers them all together, she will see a pattern. I hope you can get some answers.

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

Jenn - Karen is much more familiar with allergies than I am, she is a great resource. As for the seizure, take a look at the discussion on seizures in the group "Doodles with Special Needs", I spoke to our vet today, he said the new thinking is that seizures should be limited to no more than once every 6 months.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

PS: We were told that if Jackdoodle DID have the swelling of the lips or tongue following his injections, to bring him right in to be seen.