allergies and ets

Allergies and pets

As spring arrives, temperatures rise, grass grows, flowers bloom, and pollen fills the air, leading to the return of seasonal allergies—both for humans and pets.

If you’re wondering whether your pet is simply scratching or showing signs of an underlying allergy, keep reading. Discover how to ease your pet’s discomfort and prevent their symptoms from escalating.

What are allergies and pets?

An allergy is a type of hypersensitivity to an allergen that results in the body’s immune system reacting in an unusual way.

The majority of allergies that our pets suffer from are type 1 hypersensitivity reactions mediated by IgE. We also call these reactions an atopy or atopic disorder.

These reactions occur within an hour of exposure resulting in clinical signs such as:

  • Red, inflamed and itchy skin
  • Sneezing and runny nose
  • Red, inflamed eye conjunctiva
  • Wheezing and harsh cough as in asthma
  • Diarrhoea

Just like people, pets can be allergic to many different things – food, environmental allergens like pollen or grass, and parasites such as fleas.

For many pets, atopic allergies first show clinical signs between 6 months and 3 years of age. Although some dogs may develop clinical signs outside this age range. Food allergies can start at any age.

Common signs of allergies

Allergen Clinical Signs
Fleas

Some pets react strongly to flea saliva, and when bitten can develop flea allergy dermatitis (FAD)

Severe itching at the flea bite site

Hair loss (alopecia) at the bite site (from scratching) particularly at the tail base

Environmental allergens (contact)

Examples include pollen, grasses, plants such as wandering dew, dust mites or moulds.

Red, inflamed, skin, particularly at the armpits, groin, or between the toes

Increased itching and licking

Rubbing eyes, face, ears on ground

Runny discharge from the nose or eyes

Sneezing or coughing

Conjunctivitis of the eyes

Scooting and anal gland problems

Recurrent ear infections

Food

Food allergies are less common than FAD or environmental atopy.
They occur if a pet is allergic to a specific protein ingredient in food.

Red, inflamed skin

Itching and licking

Vomiting, diarrhoea, flatulence and increase in faecal mucous

Scooting and anal gland problems

Regular ear infections

“Smelly” dog – especially if smell returns within days of of a bath

Greasy skin and hair coat.

Diagnosing allergies:

The clinical signs of allergies can be very similar, therefore finding the exact cause can be incredibly difficult. A thorough history is required to try and narrow down the type of allergy that might be initiating the signs.

It’s important for our vet to rule out other skin diseases that may be contributing to the signs eg. metabolic disease such as hyperadrenocorticism (Cushing’s Disease).

Diagnosis of environmental contact allergies usually involves intradermal skin testing and in some circumstances we may recommend blood testing.

Flea allergy dermatitis only occurs if your pet has been bitten by fleas. Flea dirt (their faeces) is easily found on the skin.

Diagnosis of a food allergy can be complicated and takes time and patience. It involves feeding your pet a novel protein or hypoallergenic diet for a period of 4-8 weeks. No other food or treat should be fed or pass your pet’s lips during this period. If your pet’s symptoms improve, then the next step is to then go back and feed the former diet. If clinical signs return then that is suggestive of a food allergy.

Under veterinary guidance, the next step is to identify which protein is the cause. This involves a slow reintroduction of specific protein types and watching for a reaction. Safe foods won’t elicit a return of atopy clinical signs.

If you miss the step of re-challenging with the existing diet, we will never know if it was pure coincidence or actually the diet that helped your pet.

How Are Allergies Treated?

Treating allergies is extremely important for your pet’s wellbeing, as constant itchiness and inflammation is not only extremely uncomfortable but can also lead to secondary infections if the skin is broken. Luckily, there are a range of things you can do to ease the symptoms of allergies and make life more comfortable for your pet.

Flea Allergy Dermatitis – FAD

Prevention is the best treatment for FAD.

Ensuring that your pet is using an anti-flea medication can prevent the allergic reaction from developing in the first place.

If your pet already has FAD, topical steroids or oral antihistamines can be used to relieve symptoms, as well as anti-flea medication to kill any fleas still left on your pet.

If you suspect that your pet has FAD, one of our veterinarians can advise you on the best treatment options.

Atopic dermatitis

These skin allergies require long-term management.

The first step is to try to eliminate the allergen from your pet’s environment eg. if you’ve identified wandering dew in your garden – then remove that.

After walking your pet, use a damp cloth to wipe their feet, belly and face. This removes allergens.

When an allergic flare occurs, giving your pet a bath using a medicated shampoo will help soothe inflamed skin as well as washing the allergen out of your pet’s coat.

Be sure to use a pet specific shampoo. To protect the natural oils in your pet’s coat we don’t recommend bathing too frequently (unless under vet direction). Focus on washing areas that cause your pet the most discomfort, such as their armpits and in between their toes.

Adding fish oil or a diet that is high in omega 3’s can improve the integrity of your pet’s skin and decrease the inappropriate response to allergens.

For some animals allergies can be very hard to prevent. Thankfully our vets have multiple options to help  keep your dog itch free:

  • Medicated lotions to apply to red, inflamed areas eg. Neocort
  • Anti-histamines
  • Steroids
  • Protein itch inhibitor eg. Cytopoint
  • Janus Kinase (JAK) inhibitor eg. Apoquel
  • Calcineurin inhibitor eg. Cyclosporin

If intradermal skin testing or blood testing has confirmed a particular allergen, desensitisation immunotherapy or ‘allergy shots’ is recommended.

This process involves giving your pet repeated injections of the offending allergen starting with a low-dose and gradually increasing over a period of about 12 months.  During the year of allergy shots, the pet will still require other allergy medications to control the clinical signs. After a year, these other medications are weaned to assess the success of the immunotherapy.

In cases where the immunotherapy has worked, the pet will require them for life. It needs to be noted that immunotherapy is a control procedure, not a cure.

Food allergies and pets

Once a diagnosis of food allergy has been made by a food elimination trial, then it’s important to eliminate the offending proteins from your pet’s diet to prevent clinical signs.

This means that you must be very careful to ensure that your pet’s food and treats don’t contain any of these proteins.

Our vets will often recommend a diet made with hydrolysed proteins. In these foods, the proteins are broken down into very small pieces and are less likely to elicit a reaction.

A note about grain-free pet foods. These are a marketing fad and contrary to popular belief for the vast majority of pets grain does not cause allergies.

The most common proteins responsible for allergies are animal proteins:

  • Chicken
  • Beef
  • Egg
  • Dairy
  • Fish (cats)

Likewise, it is incredibly rare for pets to be allergic to wheat or gluten.

What if you think your pet has an allergy

If your pet is suffering from any of the clinical signs mentioned above, book an appointment with one of our vets.

 

en_AUEnglish (Australia)