3 Most Common Allergies in Dogs: Symptoms and Treatments
Have you ever heard that dogs also suffer from allergies? Well, like humans, dogs also have allergies to certain things. If you want to know about some common allergies in dogs, you are at the right place.
While dogs can’t speak, so it is hard to know their allergies initially until it get severe. Therefore, it is difficult for you and your veterinarian to find out the cause of the issue and how to relieve your dog from irritation due to allergy.
Keep reading to know the 3 most common allergies in dogs.
1. Atopic Dermatitis
The most common allergy in dogs is atopic dermatitis. The allergens are present in your dog’s surroundings. These allergens are dust, dust mites, pollen, fleas, mold, and synthetic products (shampoo, cleaning products, etc).
Your dog can show symptoms depending on its sensitivity to any of these things, such as skin irritation localized to ears or paws or the entire body. You may notice her licking her paws, turning them red from her saliva.
2. Respiratory Allergies
Dogs also can get respiratory allergies. The causes of this type of allergy are dust, dust mites, or pollen. Consequently, the dog will show symptoms like coughing, sneezing, and itchy to runny eyes. The symptoms may occur yearly or seasonally. The good point is, such allergies have a few possibilities and are less common.
3. Food Allergies
The occurrence of food allergy is quite rare in dogs. Mostly, this kind of allergy is caused in response to protein-rich foods such as beef, chicken, eggs or dairy products. The symptoms are similar to that of atopic dermatitis. But some dogs may suffer from diarrhea or vomiting.
In addition, the treatments have to be different as your dog will not cure with the same treatment used for atopic dermatitis.
Symptoms of Allergies in Dogs
Although these symptoms may occur in more than one kind of allergy, you have to take your dog to a veterinarian for proper treatment. Depending on the type of allergy, your dog may show the following symptoms.
- Itchiness
- Hair loss
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Runny eyes
Treatments and Preventions
One has to avoid the cause to stay safe. If you find out which things your dog is allergic to, you have to avoid your dog’s exposure to them. There are several ways to help your dog be healthy and comfortable, from medicines to other strategies.
There are multiple medicines to treat atopic dermatitis in your dog. Drugs like Zyrtec, Claritin, and Benadryl are safe to use for the treatment of your dog. The veterinarian will also prescribe you an allergy relief medication.
Other than that, Immunotherapy takes the allergy testing results and prepares a custom medicine for the treatment. Whereas, the hyposensitization process can help your dog to be desensitized to allergens that she is allergic to.
The study showed that 50% of dogs treated by Immunotherapy have shown significant improvements and 75% do not need any treatment anymore.
Moreover, consult the veterinarian for the best-suited shampoo, fatty acid supplement, and cough suppressant to keep your dog healthy!
Key Takeaways
You should always be concerned about your dog’s health. If you find any of the above-mentioned allergies and symptoms just run to the veterinarian. You must follow the instructions a veterinarian prescribes for your dog.
