So back again in this section Barley has had to go back on piriton as he has been very itchy today, already made his groin and front feet very sore from chewing and licking, most of which happened overnight. The muzzle has had to be put on a couple of times as he has not been leaving his feet alone. Antibacterial cream has already been applied to the sore spots to stop them from getting infected as that is the last thing we want. He also had to go back to the vets to get some more stuff for his eyes as the previous stuff did not work. Fingers crossed that the new stuff works
Re: Here we go again Thats a shame Annabelle , I know what its like too , little Millie is currently on a daily dose of Piriton as she gets very itchy , hope Barley is better soon
Re: Here we go again [quote author=heidrun link=topic=6425.msg85264#msg85264 date=1401911484] Has he ever had an allergy test, Annabelle? [/quote] Not as of yet as his symptoms have been controlled with him being on piriton. Last year we came close to getting him done but he settled down again. We know that it is environmental and not food but that is as far as we have got, it is most likely to be a pollen allergy (says our vet)
Re: Here we go again If barley had an allergy test would they be able to treat it specifically or would it be a case of still using piriton ? If he is worse at this time of year it makes sense that it is pollen. Poor barley. I hope he's feeling better soon annabelle. The only thing I know about pollen allergy is to shut the windows before it goes dark as pollen settles at night so can come in through an open window. Don't think that will help barley though. :
Re: Here we go again I had Ziggy tested recently. According to the test result he is allergic to dust mites and storage mites. Knowing exactly what I'm dealing with makes it a lot easier in trying to keep allergens to a minimum. The test wasn't that expensive, about £60.
Re: Here we go again This is probably totally random but I don't know if you know that the piriton you get prescribed from your vet is most likely the same piriton you buy over the counter at a pharmacy. When I worked at the dogs home we used to go buy it from there as it was cheaper than getting the vets to order it in. Just a thought.
Re: Here we go again My daughter has severe hay fever and is on prescribed antihistamines. She has been advised by the GP to rinse off every day before going to bed as once you settle, so does the pollen. She also has to wear glasses/sunglasses all the time, wear a scarf of some sort to cover her mouth and Jose where possible (I know dogs can't do this bit!). Hers gets worse when it rains as it kicks up the pollen! Could you rinse Barley down at night, or wipe him over with some sort of damp cloth to get rid of the worse of it??
Re: Here we go again [quote author=Penny+Me link=topic=6425.msg85291#msg85291 date=1401913908] This is probably totally random but I don't know if you know that the piriton you get prescribed from your vet is most likely the same piriton you buy over the counter at a pharmacy. When I worked at the dogs home we used to go buy it from there as it was cheaper than getting the vets to order it in. Just a thought. [/quote] We get the piriton from the vet, 500 tablet tubs, around £12 for a tub, much cheaper than buying it else where
Re: Here we go again Sorry for the long post but I thought I'd put something up for folk who don't know a lot about allergic skin disease in dogs. Atopic disease in dogs is the commonest form of allergy we see and is an environmental allergy. It usually starts between 1 and 3 years of age, may be initially seasonal and become perennial with time, dogs do any or all of chew their paws, rub their faces, scoot their backsides along the ground, get sore eyes and ears and be prone to all sorts of secondary bacterial and yeast infections, especially in the groin, axillae and ears. Symptoms are frequently worse when the weather is wet, as wet skin absorbs allergens more easily than dry skin, and symptoms are exacerbated with any parasite infestation. Diagnosis is clinical, ie rule out other allergies and intolerances (food, parasites, etc) and allergy testing is only really useful if you intend to use the result to desensitise the dog with a course of vaccine, although sometimes knowing which allergens are involved may allow you to avoid those allergens. The success rate of desensitisation rather depends on how the dog was tested, full intradermal skin testing by a dermatologist being associated with a higher success rate than blood testing. Even so, only around two thirds of dogs will respond to desensitisation and it takes 3-9 months to take effect. If you were to test Barley now and he is pollen allergic then you would not expect any improvement with a course of desensitisation until pollen season 2015. Because of this, if he responds to Piriton I would keep him on it as it is relatively cheap and safe. Other medications available include steroids (very effective, cheap, lots of potential side effects), ciclosporin (mega expensive, takes weeks before you see an effect, may have nasty side effects in some dogs) and the new wonder-drug Apoquel which is reasonably priced, is extremely effective - many chronically itchy dogs who have suffered for many years with atopic disease will stop scratching within 4 hours of administration of the first tablet - has few side effects (I've not seen any and have been involved with this drug for years before it was marketed) and is generally the answer to many peoples prayers with dogs with atopic disease. The huge problem with it is that the manufacturer failed to predict what the sales would be like (enormous) so have virtually run out of product and will only sell it to practices for dogs which are already on it ie no new patients until 2015. So for Barley, guessing he is pollen allergic I would go for hose him down after every walk and dry him thoroughly afterwards, sleep in a room with closed windows, don't dry his towels or bedding outside and don't let him eat grass as this may exacerbate things. Hope this helps, atopic disease is a miserable condition and I feel for the poor lad.
Re: Here we go again Thanks for that post lochan. Thats sounds about right for barley, he has had this problem for several years now, getting worse each year. And seems to be at its worst this year as he has started itching a lot earlier, last year he started around june, this year he had an episode in February then he stopped so piriton was reduced then stopped and has now started again as he is mega itchy, on double dosage just to try and get it under control. He definitely is a paw chewer, this year he has sore eyes hence more eye drops, vet says it must be related to pollen, he is very itchy around his groin, he gets medicated shampoo on this area when he has made it sore once a week, much to his delight his groin and bottom of his feet get shaved for easy monitoring as we can see if the redness grows or subsides and makes for easy application of antibacterial cream and soothing cream as especially on his groin it gets all matted from the cream and licking. If he does not start to show signs of improvement in a couple of weeks we will go back to the vet and discuss other options, and bring up the wonder-drug and see if that can help him. He has had steroid cream when he has made his feet really sore but never steroid tablets. He also has to be muzzled as buster collar does not work with his feet and that is the only way we can stop him from licking and chewing (he is not left unsupervised with the muzzle on, that means it comes off at night)
Re: Here we go again I really hope things improve soon Annabelle. Many thanks to Lochan for your post- very informative!
Re: Here we go again Great info, Lochan. I am looking forward to this drug being approved and available in Australia.
Re: Here we go again Its fantastic a medication is out there to relieve these poor suffering dogs,what a shame production will take all that time to catch up. I was only thinking what a good run Barley has had recently when you put the pictures up of you on your walk the other week ,sorry he's having a serious flare up x
Re: Here we go again Thanks from me too Lochan for this information . I got an old baby bath to dunk Millie into after walks , I think it helped a lot but hadnt thought about the line dried dog towels . Barley is a lot worse than Millie Annabelle , so I really hope that he feels better soon x
Re: Here we go again One very tired and sore boy this morning He spent most of the night licking and chewing his paws, he is currently catching up on his lost sleep. Have not had a chance to look at his paws yet as he already growled at me, dad and puzzle for going near him. Will give it another hour before taking him for a walk, have to dig out his boots which he will be really pleased to see (not).
