Your four-legged friend is scratching and itching and you wonder if dogs can get allergies? It could probably turn out to be true, as allergies are one of the most common skin conditions in dogs. They are also a common cause of ear infections or other skin infections. In this post, we will cover this topic in detail.
What is an allergy in dogs?
In general, allergies, whether in humans or animals, have one thing in common: they are innate. However, this does not mean that the body or the immune system immediately fights certain substances. It takes repeated contact with an allergen for an allergic reaction to develop.
The body's defense mechanisms normally react pathologically to mostly harmless substances. After repeated contacts with the particular allergens, the body begins to fight them. Allergens are the substances or agents that trigger this allergic reaction of the immune system.
What allergies do dogs get?
This can vary quite a bit, depending on the region. But here are the most common allergies that dogs can get:
Flea allergy
Environmental allergy
Contact allergy
Food allergy
hypersensitivity to insect bites
Reactions to medicines
Flea allergies in dogs
Flea allergies or parasite allergies are triggered by toxins or the saliva of fleas and mites and often lead to itching, hair loss and crusts. Whether your dog is infested with fleas can be detected quite easily with the help of a flea comb*(Amazon). Most of the time, even an itchy dog is a clear indication of fleas.
Environmental allergies
Environmental allergies, as you can already guess, are caused by influences from the environment. Similar to us humans, an environmental allergy can occur at a certain time of year or all year round. An allergic reaction is caused by certain pollens, grasses, chemicals, house dust, molds or mites.
Contact allergies
Contact allergies usually occur on areas of the body where the dog has had direct contact with the allergen. This allergy can result from contact with all sorts of objects. Chemicals in a tick collar, detergents and fabric softeners, carpet cleaners, plastics in toys, and metals are just a few examples.
Food allergies in dogs
As you can already tell from the name, this is a food intolerance. Often a gluten intolerance develops with grain or a lactose intolerance with milk as well as milk products.
Allergens in dogs are mainly proteins or protein compounds and carbohydrates, which are contained in dog food. The first symptoms of a food allergy can also appear only after hours up to weeks.
What are the symptoms of an allergy in dogs?
credit: wavebreakmedia/shutterstock.com
Possible symptoms of allergy may include:
Frequent itching
Itching at certain times of the year (May-June)
Ear infection / skin infections
Gastrointestinal complaints (diarrhea, vomiting, flatulence)
Itching in certain places or resting places (dog bed, carpet, car cover)
The leading symptom of allergy in dogs is itching. Since itching can also be caused by parasites and other diseases, these should be excluded in advance.
The constant scratching can also cause skin redness, skin infections and weeping sores. Often, ear infection in dogs can also be triggered by an allergy. After a rapid change of food, the four-legged friend can already suffer from an ear infection on the following day.
In case of contact allergy, the problem of inflammation usually occurs in the very places where the dog had the direct contact with a certain substance. Especially the neck, abdomen, paw underside and the mouth can be affected here.
Symptoms of a food allergy are also gastrointestinal problems such as diarrhea, soft or mucus-coated feces, vomiting, flatulence and abdominal pain. An allergy is quite difficult to detect for the layman, but also even for doctors, and is often a time-consuming challenge.
This is also due to the fact that many allergies have the same or very similar symptoms. Itching, redness and ear infections can be triggered by all kinds of allergies. In addition, a dog often suffers not only from one allergy, but often also from a so-called cross-allergy.
And since dogs cannot talk to us to tell us about their suffering, it is very important that the dog owner keeps a watchful eye to be able to provide the veterinarian with a detailed preliminary report.
Are allergies in dogs curable?
Allergies are usually not curable. They can only be brought under control through effective therapy methods or by avoiding the allergens. It's basically like with us humans. Medication can alleviate symptoms, contact with allergens can be avoided, but often this is very difficult or even impossible.
A food allergy is comparatively easy to treat, because after the diagnosis you can strictly avoid the known substances in the dog food by changing the food. The vet should inform you about an exclusion diet.
It is similar with a flea allergy, as long as it is purely caused by fleas. Flea and tick preventatives can often provide symptom relief. With environmental allergies, such as pollen or dust allergy, hyposensitization can often provide significant improvement without serious side effects.
However, in most cases, lifelong treatment is necessary. Optimal control of an allergy can often only be achieved through individualized and multifaceted treatment by a veterinarian.
Can allergies in dogs be prevented?
Preventing an allergy is generally extremely difficult or impossible because it is impossible to predict which substances a body can or will react allergically to. A flea allergy can be easily prevented by consistently watching out for fleas and other parasites and treating them effectively. In addition, a good and varied diet with multiple protein sources can reduce the risk of a food allergy.
A change in food should always be done slowly and the dog owner should pay particular attention to how the dog copes with the new food. The auricles should also always be examined for inflammation.
