Recognising and Treating the Common Symptoms of Allergies in Dogs

Find out here about diagnostic options and how to manage allergies in dogs.

Did you know that about one in five dogs suffers from allergies? And the trend is rising. There are several reasons for this alarming development and cross-allergies with manifold symptoms make a clear diagnosis difficult. In order to understand the dog’s allergy correctly, it is first of all important to uncover the possible sources of the allergy. These include environmental pollution, food intolerance, etc. Intolerance and allergy are medically completely different! This is also the reason for the enormous number of allergy sufferers in recent times. So: An allergy is a hypersensitivity reaction caused by the immune system.

Intolerances are hypersensitivity reactions that are not caused by the immune system. Certain components of the food cannot be digested e.g. due to a lack of enzymes, metabolic diseases or additives that can trigger hypersensitivity reactions. But it cause also be caused by breed-specific dispositions.

Just like human medicine, veterinary medicine understands “allergy” as an innate tendency of the body to respond to certain substances with a pathological reaction. These substances are not dangerous for the animal. The misdirected immune system classifies these substances as toxic or incompatible in the case of external (skin, respiratory tract) or oral (ingestion) contact and reacts with defence, thus putting the entire body on alert. Substances that trigger such an immune reaction are called allergens.

Dog skin diseases are often equated with allergies. Although dogs’ allergies belong to the field of skin diseases, this generalisation is not correct. Skin diseases in dogs require a more precise differentiation.

What are the most common allergies in dogs?
The most common allergies in dogs include environmental allergies, parasite allergies and food allergies.

When does an allergy occur in a dog?
It is impossible to predict when and whether an allergy will break out. As a rule, it takes several, or continuous, contacts of the dog with the allergens for an allergy to become manifest. This usually happens only in the second or third year of the dog’s life. Food intolerances, on the other hand, can occur in dogs at any age. Allergies and food intolerance can be managed well, if the cause is known.

These can all be serious signs of one or more allergies. If you suspect an allergy in your dog, it is best to consult a vet or veterinary clinic that specialises in allergies. It takes a lot of experience and additional training to correctly diagnose allergies in dogs.

Tell the vet about any symptoms you have noticed in your pet over a long period of time. Keep in mind that flea saliva allergies and some contact allergies can occur seasonally or intermittently. Make videos, as the animals often do not show their natural behaviour in the treatment room.

The animal’s nature will change if it has a lot of psychological stress. If your “cuddly dog” does not let you touch him or scratch his head or ears, and perhaps even responds to your approach with aggressive outbursts, then this may well be due to a long-standing allergy.

A vet has many options to diagnose allergies in dogs.

Experience in veterinary diagnostics has shown that blood tests and intradermal tests (tests under the skin) alone do not provide reliable information on the dog’s allergy status.

In the end, the vet makes the diagnosis using the clinical exclusion procedure, gradually excluding diseases that are accompanied by the same symptoms. Blood tests and allergy tests can provide additional clues for the diagnosis.

An exclusion diet is prescribed, if there is suspected food intolerance. Initially, you will only feed meat that your dog has never eaten or has eaten only sporadically. This could be, for example, horse meat or ostrich meat with a side dish of carbohydrates. If the dog’s symptoms improve during this strict diet, then other ingredients are gradually added in order to determine what triggers symptoms. In any case, an expert should monitor this diet in order to recognise undesirable side effects or deficiency symptoms in time.

Initially, the vet can give your four-legged friend medication to alleviate acute symptoms.

However, once the trigger of your dog’s allergy, i.e. the allergen, has been found, avoidance is the best medicine!

In the case of a contact, mite or flea saliva allergy, action is taken against the cause itself and fleas, mites or allergenic substances from the dog’s environment are removed or killed.

The food must be changed specifically and consistently if your dog’s allergy is due to an intolerance to individual ingredients in the dog food, such as certain sources of proteins, gluten or carbohydrate.

The advantage of BARF lies in the natural components, i.e. meat, vegetables, fruit, etc., which make up the main part of the diet. To avoid nutritional errors that could cause deficiency symptoms, seek advice and a feeding plan from specialist veterinarians for animal nutrition, trained animal healers or veterinarians initially.

At Maxi Zoo, you can find fresh meat and vegetable packages as well as ready-made dog meals.

A dog’s intolerance to food should be taken seriously, because a diseased intestine is unable to utilise vital nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and trace elements. Chronic intestinal inflammation leads to a weakened immune system and is a trigger for other autoimmune diseases and allergies in dogs.