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julz
Oct 17, 2012 at 00:28
Post 9 
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Allergies
Does anyone else's dog here have seasonal allergies? I adopted Ellie over a year ago and this spring she started chewing on her paws constantly and scratching her ears. I took her to the vet at that time and she was diagnosed with seasonal allergies. He prescribed her with an antihistamine pill and it seemed to work all through the spring and summer. Now just a week ago she started chewing and scratching again. I'm a nursing student (graduate in December..YAY!) so I know that with humans, you can build up a tolerance to allergy meds and they won't be as effective. I wonder if this is happening with Ellie?
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Annie Wray
 
Oct 17, 2012 at 07:08
• Janie
(Texas)
Post 1753
 
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Re: Allergies
Right now I am hearing of the seasonal allergies flaring up more. What food are you feeding her? Most of these terriers can not tolerate any corn or wheat products. Make sure the food she is eating has neither. I use oils daily in my girls food. I get Grizzly Salmon Oil and they get one pump each. There are also good shampoos for itches, such as Oatmeal. She may need bathing more often - 2 x a week. I do have to give a Benedryl at times.
Good luck and congrats on your graduation...
Janie
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julz
Oct 17, 2012 at 14:53
Post 13
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Re: Allergies
Annie Wray wrote:
Right now I am hearing of the seasonal allergies flaring up more. What food are you feeding her? Most of these terriers can not tolerate any corn or wheat products. Make sure the food she is eating has neither. I use oils daily in my girls food. I get Grizzly Salmon Oil and they get one pump each. There are also good shampoos for itches, such as Oatmeal. She may need bathing more often - 2 x a week. I do have to give a Benedryl at times. Good luck and congrats on your graduation...Janie
I read the ingredients and there is no wheat in her food but there is whole grain corn. I will try another brand that has neither and see how that goes.
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Tuffstuff
Oct 17, 2012 at 11:46
• Ella
(Oklahoma)
Post 1174
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Re: Allergies
I also have westies that are allergic to wheat and corn and most recently discovered barley and chickory root also. It seems like the dog food companies are constantly changing their food formulas so I'm always checking the labels. It seems that these terriers have many food allergies and our rescue group has been able to clear most of them up with just a good quality dog food and restriction of the ingredients listed above. Good luck, sometimes it takes some trial and error and definitely time and patience!
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julz
Oct 17, 2012 at 13:44
Post 12
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Re: Allergies
Thanks for the responses! I asked the vet about food allergies because I remember reading it somewhere but he didn't think that was the reason. I do, however, feed her quality food with meat as the first ingredient.
She gets a bath at least once a week and I have a shampoo that has time released hydrocortisone beads in it and follow with oatmeal conditioner. She had a bath last night and right afterwards she started chewing her paws again! I am going to stop at the vets office today and ask them what they think.
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Cathy
Nov 13, 2012 at 10:23
(Massachusetts)
Post 10
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Re: Allergies
Food allergies and environmental allergies are not the same thing. A food allergy is an allergy to an ingredient in the food - either the carbohydrate source or the protein source. It can be anything - beef, chicken, fish, corn, wheat, etc. And it can happen at anytime - either very young or very old. Environmental allergy is an allergy to something in the environment - dust,pollen, dust mites, etc. This can happen at any time also. The only way to diagnose a food allergy is to feed the dog a 'hypoallergenic diet'. There are 2 basic types - either a diet with novel ingredients - novel protein source that the pet has never seen before - some examples would be venison, rabbit; and a novel carb source such as barley, oats, peas; or a hydrolyzed diet - a diet whose molecules are so small as not recognized as allergens by the body. This diet needs to be fed for a total of 8 weeks - no treats, no flavored medications, etc and if the symptoms are better (itchiness, ear infections decreased, etc) then you can come to the diagnosis of food allergy and then feed only the diet that helps the pets symptoms. Environmental allergy can be more difficult to diagnose - sometimes this is done with a blood test or an intradermal skin test. Another way to differentiate the 2 is environmental allergies tend to be more seasonal, and food allergy symptoms happen all the time (all year long)
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Franz
Dec 02, 2012 at 20:27
(Kansas)
Post 29
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Re: Allergies
I did the same thing. I would chew my paws until there was no hair left and they were bleeding. Mommy talked to the vet and they said to do the benedryl thing. I take half a 25mg pill 3x a day. That has helped but the thing that has helped the most is changing my food. Now I eat Natural Balance Sweet Potato and Fish. It is kinda pricy but mommy says if you are their friend on facebook you can download coupons for the food and treats. Mommy also changed my shampoo. We use GNC Pets Oatmeal shampoo that we got at Petsmart. I am doing much better now. I have fur on all my paws and I don't chew on them hardly at all. Mommy tried all the hydrocortisone things with me and it seemed to make it worse. Hope this helps!
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Theresa
Dec 03, 2012 at 21:09
(Pennsylvania)
Post 8
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Re: Allergies
Interesting! Reilly is 6 1/2 months and had the same problem. The vet was sure he had food allergies! He was on a special diet that he couldn't tolerate. We put him back on his regular food (corn and wheat free). Come to find out, he was having a reaction to the frontline. I hope all goes well with your special little westie!!
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Buzz
 
Mar 24, 2013 at 17:45
• jean
(Arizona)
Post 7
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Re: Allergies
Our little Buzz gets seasonal allergies twice a year at the same time people begin to suffer. After his first year in March, he would start rubbing his face, back on the carpet and chew his tail till the hair came off and areas would bleed a bit. He's on a raw diet, no wheat or corn ever. Doctors tried antihistamines, etc, but the only thing that works for him is a short (5 day) course of Prednisone. Itching stops in a day or so and usually only takes one course. Also happens around October. It's a tough decision to resort to steroid treatment, but when all other dietary and natural treatments didn't work, little Buzz would get better and his hair grow back pretty quickly.
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