Kia and dreaded allergies

[ramanth]

When I first got Kia she'd itch a little. I took my concerns to her vet, and he suspected she had a food allergy. I put her on Nature's Recipe Venison and Rice formula and Kia loved it.

She itched a little more in the winter and mom thought it might have something to do with winter dryness.

She said grandpa always used sulfadine on his Springers and it worked great.

I've tried hypo-allergenic shampoos, the Sulfadine shampoo, as well as just the liquid.

She's itching even worse. She itches at her ears, arm pits, and belly. Sometimes she itches her muzzle.

Does it sound like a food allergy?

I'm calling her new vet to see what they think.

Does anyone use Benadryl for their pets?

[Cincy'sMom]

I give Sadie benydryl for her allergies, but I think they are airborn, not food realted. She does well with it. I also give her 3V vitamins to help ease her dry itchy pads

[LoudLou]

Louie has airborn allergies. They haven't been really bad this year....yet. When he does start to itch like that though I put some extra Oils in his food.... like Linatone or something and he gets 1-2 Benadryl mixed with his food.

[ramanth]

I took Kia to her new vet this evening for her first visit. He was out but his assistant was working today.

She suspects it's the beginning stages of mange. She gave Kia a Cortizone shot and took blood to do a heartworm test. She looked for fleas and mites and could find none.

Since the vet never called tonight, then that's supposed to mean that the heartworm test came back negative. Which is a relief. :)

I hope the cortizone shot eases her suffering a little. I feel so bad for her... :(

[mruffruff]

Did the vet advise a dip?

I'd be inclined to use a dip to kill the mange before it got any worse. The cortisone shot was to keep the dog comfortable, not to kill any mange mites. Mange can get really bad really fast.

Mary

[ramanth]

I took her back in this last Saturday and saw Dr. Holbrook this time and not his assistant. He's not sure if it's the mange or not, but he's going to treat it as such. He gave her shot one of a series of three. I have to take her back in two weeks for her second shot.

She doesn't have any flakey or bald spots. She just itches a lot.

Not sure what it is....