All About Allergies- Jackdoodle's Test Results

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

This is what an intradermal skin test looks like. This is Jackdoodle's, and here's how it works. Two control injections are given- pure histamine, which produces the strongest allergic reaction the animal (or person) can have, and saline, which does not produce any reaction in anyone. The skin reaction to saline is a zero, and histamine is a four. Seventy-four common allergens are then injected and the reactions are measured against the controls to determine what the dog is allergic to, and HOW allergic he is. the scores range from 0- (no reaction) through 4 (severe reaction). The red welts in the photo are the reactions.
Jackdoodle did not score any 1's or 4's.  He had lots of zero's, only two 2's, and twelve 3's.
The substances that he is moderately allergic to are cat dander and maple trees.
The substances that he has significant to severe allergies to are: Dust mites (2 different species), storage mites (more on this later- this has to do with kibble, and all dry cereal type foods), Fescue grass (which we have in our yard),Johnson grass(anybody know what that is?), Quack grass(ditto), Red clover, Cocklebur (a weed), Lamb's quarter (another weed), Ragweed, Corn pollen, and one species of mold that is common both indoors & outside in wet places, including puddles of water and plumbing pipes, called Acremonium Strictum, or Cephalosporium acremonium (cephalexin antibiotics come from this). Whew.

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

Karen - I know how the allergy testing feels. I had it done about 30 years ago. I hated it. I'm allergic to pollen ragweed cats and dogs among other things. I have just suffered through it. But I do know that I have become almost totally desensitized to dog due to constant exposure. Also over the years my allergies have gotten muh better.

I hope that the shots help Jack. And hope is is feeling better quickly. He (and you) deserve a break, Wishing you and Jack all the best for the New Year.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks Andy. And I hope the New Year brings health & happiness to you & your crew, especially Mariner.

[Lynn & Sadie in WI]

Karen, sorry to hear about all of the things Jack is allergic to. I think the grasses may be the hardest things to control. The dust mites ( not sure what storage mites are ) can be dealt with. Do you have carpeting? Tile or wood floors would help and leather furniture. I know they have some type of mattress pads you can use on the beds that help with the dust mites in a mattress. Good luck with all of this, none of it will be easy.

How was Jack when you picked him up? Did he seem anxious from being there all day? I have you both in my thoughts and prayers.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks, Lynn. Jack has been very clingy and kind of nervous since the procedure, but I think that will settle down.
The big problem for him with the allergens is the ragweed, believe it or not. That was the one the specialist had predicted he was going to score high on. He gets by most of the year with the dust mites, cat hair, mold, etc., and even the grasses, we can manage with antihistamines & EFA's. But then in late summer/early fall, the ragweed hits, and his system just goes crazy...this past August I thought I was going to lose him, he was so bad. And the ragweed is the one that's absolutely impossible to do anything about.
My "downsize" home here has a concrete slab, no basement, and it is carpetted, which is the worst combination for dust. But I have been told that it would be very difficult to put in hardwood floors on a slab. Maybe Pergo. Jack would hate that, though, he couldn't play ball indoors like he loves to do. (My old home had central vac...and a basement. But I didn't have an allergic dog when I sold it, darn.) Leather furniture...the cat has claws, lol. They tell you to keep the pet out of the bedroom, that's where the most dust mites are, plus the cat box in the bathroom , etc., but c'mon...keep him out of "his" room? I threw away my dust ruffle, and will keep up with cleaning the blinds, washing his bedding, etc., maybe put in an electronic air cleaner. But the shots are really our only hope for any kind of normal life, I think. Anyway, thanks for your support, it means a lot.

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

Karen - Do you have central air and forced hot air heat? If so you might want to consider an Apraile Air Filter. It gets put in next to the furnace in the air duct system. It is a filter sytem that does NOT use electric. We have one. The air seems cleaner than when we had the electric filter.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks, Andy. We had a Honeywell electronic air cleaner on the furnace at my old house, & it worked pretty well. I have an Aprilaire humidifier attached to the forced air furnace here, but I will look into the air filter you mentioned...anything that helps take the edge off is great.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

At least he isn't allergic to dogs! The testing sounds exactly like my human son's testing. He, luckily isn't allergic to dogs either - but cats, trees, horses, hamsters, grasses, weeds, and on and on. It is nice to finally know what things are problems. You can't eliminate them all but you can eliminate many and deal with the rest. Good luck.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Well, I have written my first check of 2009, and it was payable to the Emergency department at Jack's Veterinary Specialty Clinic...he has had some kind of delayed allergic reaction to something, I guess the testing. (He was not thrilled to walk back in there today, I can tell you that.) He is back on prednisone for 5 days. Honestly, I don't know if I'm going to live to see him reach his senior years. Happy New Year!

[Lynne Fowler-Oodles of Doodles]

Oh Kar, What a way to start the New Year! I'll bet you weren't too thrilled to walk in there either. Poor baby! Things will work out. 2009 will be the year to get a handle on Jack's allergies.

[Leslie and Halas]

Hang in there! We're thinking about you.

[Cam & Oski]

Poor Jackdoodle! I hope he is feeling better after the steroids.

Sometimes with our "professional" patients (the ones we've had for a while who have been struggling with the same over & over again so can identify symptoms early) we give them prescriptions for a course antibiotics or prednisone when a "flare" is coming on (like with asthma or COPD patients) to nip it in the bud earlier/save them an ER visit. I don't know how comfortable your vet is with this but it might be worth it to bring it up.

Also, with your slab concrete floors could you just rip up the carpets & have them painted instead? I'm a HGTV junkie (when we had TV) & there's special paint & primer that you can use to paint concrete floors. Just a thought. Here's a link to an info site how to go about it:

http://www.stretcher.com/stories/03/03sep08b.cfm

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks, Cam. I do have antibiotics and prednisone on hand for the flares, but this is supposed to be his off-season. I didn't know what was going on with him today, (it started last night). It was only one eye and the test site, plus he was very agitated and having jaw spasms & trembling, and nightmares that made him yelp repeatedly in his sleep. The test site got horribly inflamed and had bright red raised & swollen areas, much worse than it looked in that photo above. At four p.m. it looked almost back to normal, and then about 8 pm, boom!
My daughter has been after me to tear out the carpet, she hates carpetting & wants wood. I think the concrete might be awfully cold, both in feel & appearance. (We do have some tiled areas.) But I'm entertaining all options, so thanks for the info, I appreciate it.