Dog Skin Allergies and How To Prevent Them
Every Spring people turn out in droves to visit their physicians and pick up medicine to keep their allergy symptoms at bay, but did you know that humans aren’t the only ones who can get allergies? It is now estimated that one in seven dogs suffer from allergies, dog skin allergies being the most common reasons for vet visits according to Veterinary Pet Insurance. With a danger like this to our beloved pets, pet owners should do everything they can to identify and learn the ways to treat dog skin allergies right away to prevent any long-term damage. First, however, we need to look at what causes these skin allergies and how to recognize when a dog is suffering from them.
Dog skin allergies have a wide range of causes and can be anything from parasitic irritants like fleas or mites to the foods they’re eating or even the pollen from plants and dust inside your own home. Regardless of the irritant, dogs will generally react in the same ways to irritants. The human reaction to an allergy is often with respiratory distress the most commonly targeted organ for canines is their skin. This presents itself with the dog being persistently itchy either in a localized area or across the whole body as well as being irritable or easily roused to anger. Dogs are known as animals who scratch itches frequently but the key is that the scratching (or biting and licking) will persist beyond the span of the occasional few moments. If left untreated, the symptoms can spread to diarrhea, vomiting or even death in cases of a severe allergic reaction.
The most commonly presented kind of dog skin allergies are hives. No different from human hives, you will notice small inflamed circular patches of skin which itch intensely. They will often be discolored but this is not true in every case. The hair around hives that appear will stick out in patches as the hives can appear all over your dog’s body, even on the face or around the eyes (potentially causing the eyelids to swell). Hives generally appear within half an hour of exposure to an irritant and will generally disappear within a day of no exposure to what is causing the reaction. Common causes of hives are all types of insect bites, but it can also show up after vaccinations so be careful directly following giving your pooch his or her shots. It can also be caused by certain shampoos or medication with direct skin contact in which case you should immediately give them a bath and clean them thoroughly with only water to remove the irritant. Otherwise it is often easy to deal with a light allergy with Benadryl though Cortisone can be used for more severe reactions.
Another major allergic reaction in the skin is called dermatitis or flea allergy. Caused by flea bites this condition is characterized by inflamed red skin most commonly around the base of your dog’s tail and underside of the body and legs as well as red acne-like bumps where the fleas congregate and bite. You will also notice your dog’s skin become more darkly pigmented and flaky, sometimes even becoming crusted or infected if left untreated. Most commonly this can be cured with a simple removal of the fleas via a flea bath either in your home or at your local veterinarian’s office. Remember that if you are ever unsure of whether or not your dog is suffering from any dog skin allergies that you can visit your vet in any case for a check-up.
Now armed with this knowledge of how to spot and treat common dog skin allergies you can be more confident when it comes to keeping your pet safe. Just be sure to perform regular checks of your dog’s skin’s health (which can be done even while merely playing in or outside) and be sure to take him or her to a veterinarian if you find yourself unsure of the circumstances.
