Advice on fighting Allergies, Please!

[Carver]

Hello,This is My first posting and I'm looking for some Advice.I have a 2 1/2 year old Boxer Male,Baby-Cain.I've been reading a lot and I know it's a common thing but this is driving Me crazy.My Boy has been eating Himself Raw & Bloody and My Vet thinks it's Allergies But she says if it is it's the worse case She's ever seen He's on Clemastine and Prednisone right now and it's not helping at all.She says the Prednisone is the strongest Steroid He can handle without a reaction for fighting Allergies.He's going in tomorrow for a Skin Biopsy to find out if it's something else besides Allergies.I'm real nervous about Him going under for that process but I guess it's gotta be done to find out what I'm dealing with.Any advice on fighting allergies ? I think I will start with His Diet per what the Vet says.My wife grows a LOT of different Flowers,could The Pollen be a cause ? If this is Common in Boxers Is there like a list of things that Boxers are Sensitive too ? I Know this kinda long but I wanted to give all the details.Any advice on any part of this is Greatly Appreciated

 

[Dodgn_AK]

Hi, I can relate to what you are going through. My boy Tyson was in the same condition as Cain a few months back. We tried a blood test and skin biopsies but didn't get any clear answers from those. Ask your vet if there is a dermatologist in your area that you could be referred to. We finally were referred to a dermatologist and she was the answer to all Tyson's suffering. He scratched himself raw and bloody as well, he was itching so much and so often that he rubbed his hair right off in some parts of his body. Our dermatologist decided to treat Tyson for scabies, which is a type of mange, and can often bear the same symptoms of allergies. After we started treating him he cleared right up and is doing much better. He has been a little itch lately but I think its just seasonal allergies so I give him a bit of benedryl and he is fine. I hope Cain gets better. If you would like more info or a detailed description of Tyson's ordeal, PM me. Good luck.

Tara

 

[Topmoon]

Poor Baby-Cain! I am glad that you are going to look into food allergies because my Elsa suffers from food allergies. Once I started homecooking for her and stopped feeding her processed foods/treats, her skin conditions cleared up completely. Good luck in your search to resolve what is causing him to be so miserable!

 

[Dakodas Mom]

post to carver

If I were you, I would invest in skin allergy testing.. I have an 11 month old boxer that would break out in hives, and I was contantly at the vet, finally my vet suggested allergy testing which is inexpensive. I proceeded to do this and a whole list of stuff came back that is allergic too..Even the food I was feeding her...So now she is on allergy shots every 3 days..Check it out it can not hurt

 

[Dakodas Mom]

P.S. There is a shot the vet can give for temporalily relief of allergies

Your vet can also give your baby a shot of dexamethasone...It helped alot with my girl until I found out what she was allergic too.

 

[Jazz&Thumper]

Benadryl

Benadryl will sometimes work for allergies. Give one or two caplets depending on size. 50 mg for 50#. It will probably either make him hyper or sleepy. Our first boxer had very severe allergies. We did the testing and the shots but unfortunately for Barkley they didn't work. If he gets really itchy you can try a sun burn relief spray. It's soothing and numbs the skin. Try and make sure he doesn't lick too much. Does he lick his paws alot? Bark could wake us up at night with him licking his paws. Good luck I hope you find something that works for you. What a bummer!!
Steph, Jazz & Thumper

 

[cb977]

Sammi has been licking and biting her front paws a lot lately. She has actually caused a few little bald spots on her upper toes, and I saw today that she has drawn blood right above the nail on one toe. I'm going to try the Benadryl, and if that doesn't work, it'll be a trip to the vet. I'm hoping she doesn't suggest a change in food because with Sammi's stomach problems, the only thing that seems to have worked is ProPlan for Sensitive Stomach and Skin. Duh!!! As I wrote skin, I realized that the food probably wouldn't be the problem. Good luck with all of your babies

 

[rog1006]

I think many many BW members have had allergy issues with their dogs. The common solution? Changing to a human grade dog food. My MIL's boxer was so horribly itchy all the time and lost all the hair on her back in Jan and Feb the last two years. Did test after test to figure out what was going on until finally I convinced them to try a different food. After doing a ton of reading and sampling, we tried Solid Gold's Wolf King formula, which has bison meat rather than chicken or beef. After about 3 weeks, we saw such a huge difference in her! Her hair grew back, she stopped making herself bleed, etc. She had been on so many drugs she had gained weight and seemed very listless and her hair was so dingy and her eyes, so cloudy and red. Now she's healthier than ever, with glossy fur, bright, clear eyes, and she's lost 4 lbs! I am a very firm believer that probably 80% of the allergies we see are food related and could be minimized if not stopped all together by using a higher quality food. What could it hurt to try? Just an idea... Good Luck!

Christine
Boxer Luv Rescue

 

[cl2ysta1]

Hello,This is My first posting and I'm looking for some Advice.I have a 2 1/2 year old Boxer Male,Baby-Cain.I've been reading a lot and I know it's a common thing but this is driving Me crazy.My Boy has been eating Himself Raw & Bloody and My Vet thinks it's Allergies But she says if it is it's the worse case She's ever seen He's on Clemastine and Prednisone right now and it's not helping at all.She says the Prednisone is the strongest Steroid He can handle without a reaction for fighting Allergies.He's going in tomorrow for a Skin Biopsy to find out if it's something else besides Allergies.I'm real nervous about Him going under for that process but I guess it's gotta be done to find out what I'm dealing with.Any advice on fighting allergies ? I think I will start with His Diet per what the Vet says.My wife grows a LOT of different Flowers,could The Pollen be a cause ? If this is Common in Boxers Is there like a list of things that Boxers are Sensitive too ? I Know this kinda long but I wanted to give all the details.Any advice on any part of this is Greatly Appreciated

have ur vet try cephalexin instead of the clemastine....

 

[Poetic_thing]

My girl Dakota at 5 1/2 years started to lick her paws raw. I was given a topical spray which did not help, we put her on prednisone which helped a little (more to get her to quit licking). I then started to change her food. One protein (lamb, venison or buffalo) with one carb (potatoes). After that I introduced veggies and other carbs (rice, barley, pasta). Turns out she had a problem with chicken, turkey and beef and pork. SHe was great on the exotic meats. Good luck.