Trying a new vet...

[Cincy'sMom]

We are so tired of watching Cincy scratch miserably with her allergies. She has been on antibiotics, antihistamine and special diet for 5 weeks now, and is still fighting with it, so today I called a new vet. They have test they can do and find out the same day if we are indeed dealing with allergies!! If it is postive they will then send the blood sample for more extenvice testing. Their test will check for food allergies as well as airborn allergies. (Our current vet said their test will not check food).

We are really excited they will should know quickly what we are dealingwith...no more trying one thing at a time. I wish we had called around months ago!!

So, Thursday at 4pm....wish us luck!!!

[lizbud]

Cincy's Mom,

Oh, I do wish you & Cincy the best of luck with the testing.:)

I am so glad that you found a Vet who's willing to go the extra
mile and find out exactly what's causing Cincy this misery. I know
it must be awful for you to watch her suffer with it too.

Sometimes it can be just be a change of food / meds ,or both, and this itching will be a thing of the past.:) Best of luck Thursday & please let us know how it goes. Liz.

[ChrisH]

Good luck!! :) Fingers and paws crossed some answers are found for sweet Cincy girl.

[KYS]

Hope the new vet finds the cure for Cincy.
Poor thing, sending her wishes that her itching
will stop.

[ramanth]

Good luck! With Kia, her diet helps in the spring, summer, and fall, but every winter she itches the worst, so I know I'm dealing with a seasonal thing too. Itchies are no fun! :(

Hope the test helps! :)

[robinh]

Please let me know what you find out. We're taking Max back to the college the first part of April to run some more tests. We're with you on being frustrated.

I'm so happy you've found a vet that will go the extra step. Give Cincy a hug for us.

[anna_66]

Good luck to you Amy. I really hope this new vet can figure out something to keep poor Cincy from itching all the time!

[Cincy'sMom]

Well, we are back fromthe vet, and yes, Cincy has allergies. It will be a week before we know what to, but so much faster then the food trial!!! And this vet agreed with us, that the main allergy is probablly not caused by a food, but airborn (maybe dust mites?)

If it is one or two things, thelab will be able to make up her shots pretty quickly and she should started treatment in 1-2 weeks. If it is more complex and they need to mix 13-14 different things, it may 6-8. In the meantime, Cincy is now on Claritin (same as her mommy!) and has a new shampoo.

I really think we are getting somewhere and hopefully in the next two months or so we will be doing much better!!

[clara4457]

Glad to hear you are making some progress. I'm hoping the new vet will help give poor Cincy some relief and within a few weeks she will be much more comfortable.

[lizbud]

Cincy's Mom,

I'm so glad to hear they found the way to go in treating
Cincy's problem. I believe you have a larger range of options
in treatment with air born causes. :)

So Cincy's Mom has allergies also. So good to know how the
patient feels isn't it. LOL. Hope Cincy feels better soon.:)

[RobiLee]

Sounds like you are on the right track. I hope all goes well and the itching heals up quick. Poor Cincy must be miserable.

Robin :)

[ChrisH]

Glad to hear you have some light at the end of the tunnel at last! :) Good luck and please keep us posted!:D

[Cincy'sMom]

We got a call from the vet today and Cincy's allergies primarily are due to dust mites. I am so glad we now know, and since it is not a complicated cocktail, she should have her first allergy shots in about 2-3 weeks. We are almost there!!!!

[ChrisH]

That's great!! :) Hopefully the shots will spell the end of Cincy's itching! :D Yay!:D

[clara4457]

Great News!!!! I am so happy that Cincy is going to feel better real soon. :)

[Kona & Oreo's mom]

It's great to hear that relief for Cincy is on the way!

[Corinna]

Have you gotten the results back yet? How is it all going?

[Cincy'sMom]

Originally posted by Corinna
Have you gotten the results back yet? How is it all going?

the vet called Thursday and they know it is a Dust Mite allergy. The allergy shots are on order, and she should start her immunotherapy in about 2 weeks. Thanks for asking!

[shais_mom]

I missed this thread!!! I am sooooo glad that you have figgered out what is bothering sweeeeeeeeeetttt Cincy!!!!

[anna_66]

YIPEE!!! So glad that the vet found out what the problem was:D

[lovemyshiba]

Wow!!!
I'm so happy for you guys that you finally know what triggers Cincy's allergies!!! What a relief!!!

[Rachel]

My dog Bailey (1981 - 1995) had bad allergies ever since she was about 3 years old. We went the route of testing and desensitization shots. Unfortunately ours did not help at all, but it was certainly worth the effort for the possibility that it would help. My Bailey was such a dear. She knew that after taking her shot she would get a treat and would come running when I called and told her it was time to take her shot. She would sit real still and couldn't have been a better patient. I guess I'm relating this to prepare you for the possibility that this might not help, but again, I still believe that one has to try anything that might help. It is heartwrenching to see them so uncomfortable all the time. Also this took place in 1985 or 1986 and hopefully there has also been some progress in the process since then.

[4 Dog Mother]

After seeing Cincy today, I think the vet was really on to something. The claritin and the new shampoo sure has made a difference in her coat and it wasn't all that long ago that I saw her was it? (it's hell getting old!) I may have to bring Jack up soon to see if they can help him.

[Cincy'sMom]

I have not gotten to update this page because of Cincy's other health issues, but the new vet called Wednesday and said her immunotherapy shots are in. Obviiously, since that is the day she got so sick, we were not able to set up an appointment to get her started, but I will be doing that this week!

She is actually doing really great with her allergies right now. I have to been able to give her the claritin since Tuesday, but I think the shampoo has really helped, cause she has not been itching much anyway.

[Albea]

It's good to read that Cincy is doing better and I hope the shots help her get over the itching.
My first Golden also had allergies. The vet gave her 19 shots in her belly (all numbered) to find out what she was allergic to. The result was that she was allergic to just about everything: grass, newspapers, dust, and many other things. It was very difficult to control, but this happened in the late 70's and I'm sure that by now there are many better treatments than over 20 years ago.
Best wishes for Cincy's quick recovery and a big hug to her.

[Cincy'sMom]

Originally posted by Albea
My first Golden also had allergies. The vet gave her 19 shots in her belly (all numbered) to find out what she was allergic to. The result was that she was allergic to just about everything: grass, newspapers, dust, and many other things. It was very difficult to control, but this happened in the late 70's and I'm sure that by now there are many better treatments than over 20 years ago.
Best wishes for Cincy's quick recovery and a big hug to her.

Already it seems as though things allergies are easier to deal with then with your first golden. Cincy only had to have a small amount of blood drawn (a little more then for a heartworm test) and that was enough to find out what she is allergic to.

We have an appointment tomorrow evening to begin her immunotherapy. The vet will teach us how to give her shots. She will get one every 4 days for 40 days, and then the frequency will decrease, to opnce a week, and finally to the point where she has one shot every 4-6 weeks. The vet told us that previously they stopped the shots once the dog stopped showing signs of the allergy, but found that when this was done, the allergies came back stronger then ever a few years later. This means Cincy will be on allergy shots for the rest of her life, but in the long run it will be cheaper and hopefully more effective then the Benedryl/Claritin she has been taking everyday for the past two years.