ESPN Hunting

If you have a Labrador (especially yellow or chocolate), Weimaraner, Golden retriever, or if you have an English setter, German shorthair, or Irish setter — you will want to read on. What do these breeds have in common? They all tend to be prone to developing the irritating and often frustrating condition of allergies. Representatives from all of the most popular hunting dog breeds are subject to the irritating and frustrating problem. Our discussion will reveal some of the why's and how's concerned with caring for an allergic dog.

Canine allergies are not difficult to understand once you accept that they do not act like human allergies. I can't tell you how many times I have heard the comment, "well, he's been sneezing and hacking some, so I just figured he had allergies." While there are many areas that we have in common with our dogs, allergies are not one. For your dog, allergies show up as inflammation of their skin, not upper respiratory problems. Although the upper respiratory system can become inflamed for other reasons, sneezing, runny eyes, and sore throats are seldom due to a primary allergic condition when it comes to your dog.

Allergies in their most basic form are an over-reaction of the immune system. This over-reaction occurs when the immune system recognizes specific allergens as something that needs to be destroyed and then the system reacts. Instead of reacting in a reasonable controlled manner, the system goes haywire and unleashes itself. An allergic reaction is like using a nuclear bomb to blow up a beaver dam when one stick of dynamite would suffice. And, as you can surmise, the after effects are similar, with the allergic reaction causing more damage than help.

Allergens come in many flavors. Sporting dogs can be allergic to just about as many different allergens as we can. The most common allergic conditions are inhalant allergens, insect bite sensitivities (i.e. fleas), and food allergies — and just because you have one doesn't mean you can't have the others also. In fact, it is very common for allergic to dogs to have two or more forms of allergies at one time.

This is a good place to talk about the differences between the way allergic and non-allergic dogs react. Actually, both types of dogs react to allergens, but they react differently. We have talked about how allergic dogs over-react, but you also must understand that they also have a prolonged reaction. That's right, a non-allergic dog may have a hundred fleas on him and only scratch occasionally, where the flea-allergic dog may have NO fleas on him, received one bite two-weeks prior, and still be scratching!

Multiple episodes of scratching and chewing signal the beginning of the allergic condition. Allergies may present themselves at any stage of life. Inhalant and insect bite allergies usually begin sometime between the first and second year and are uncommon to start after mid-life (for a retriever [most pointing dogs] that would be around 6 or 7 years old). Food allergies tend to begin on the ends of the age spectrum, sometimes as early as six months and as late as 8-9 years.

About Ben Character

Dr. Character is a freelance writer and private veterinary practitioner concentrating on sporting dog issues. He has practiced large and small animal medicine and surgery since graduating from Auburn University. Recently, he went on to complete post-doctoral studies at Mississippi State University. Dr. Character is a certified PennHIP member and writes for magazines such as Retriever Journal and Pointing Dog Journal. He is an avid outdoorsman who resides in Union, Alabama, south of Tuscaloosa, with his wife and two children.

Symptoms of the allergic dog may include licking at feet or chewing at their toes, and having very red skin, especially under the armpits and in the groin areas. Secondary infections will cause bumps and scabs to develop, with deep infections sometimes producing a moist dermatitis, also known as a "hot spot." These usually ooze out a discharge and have a foul odor. But, by far the most common symptom allergic dogs exhibit is scratching, scratching, and more scratching.

The timing of the allergy occurrence can reveal much about the problem. For many dogs, allergies are a seasonal problem — occurring in conjunction with the appearance of the allergen. Tree pollens, such as pine, in the spring, ragweed and grass pollens in the summer, and Golden Rod or other late bloomers in the fall are all allergens that can cause problems at different times of the year. When single allergens affect your dog, sporadic symptomatic treatments during an episode are usually effective. The worst (and most costly) mistake to make is to put off treatment, which leads to results that are always worse than they need be.

For the isolated single episode, the main objective of treatment will be to stop the itching, which should neutralize the scratching. If you catch it early and there has been little to no skin abrasion occur, then there may be no skin infection to address. However, if the scratching occurs for even a short time, abrasions will form rapidly with subsequent infection of the skin that will need antibiotics. Unfortunately, most single episodes of intense skin allergy are actually just a prelude to having the full-blown condition.

Chronic year-round allergies are best handled with definitive treatment of the allergies. Long-term use of symptomatic medications (such as cortical steroids) can cause damaging side effects making them poor choices for long-term treatments. Definitive treatment may also be necessary for the seasonally allergic dog that begins to have these side effects or if treatments begin to loose their effectiveness.

Definitive treatment of an allergic condition involves two steps: determining the allergen(s) causing the allergy, and desensitizing the patient to the allergen. To determine what allergens are causing the allergy, diagnostic testing may take two forms: Blood or skin tests and clinical trials. Blood and skin testing are the best ways to determine inhalant and insect bite sensitivities, while clinical food trials are superior for diagnosing food allergies. After the allergens are determined, steps are taken to de-sensitize the dog to the allergens. For inhalant allergens and insect bite sensitivities, hyposensitization therapy is used, while for food allergies, elimination diets are usually prescribed.

Just as with the treatment of human allergic conditions, definitive treatment of allergies is not usually our first choice in combating the problem. Because of this, successful treatment of a severe allergic condition takes patience, commitment, and perseverance on the part of owner and veterinarian.