(WFXR/STACKER) — Allergy season is here, and it can sometimes be tricky when dealing with your furry friends. From skin to food allergies this can be one of the most expensive medical conditions to treat.
Stacker has compiled a list of five common types of dog allergies that can trigger pets. According to Stacker, most dog allergies fall under the “skin allergy” category. This can include flaky spots and dry, itchy skin. No matter the age, a pet’s immune system can create antibodies that can react to specific allergens.
Some reactions can be more severe than others, and your pet’s immune system will begin to gradually react to allergens after being exposed over a period of time. This is known as gradual exposure. Typically the dog’s immune system will defend your four-legged buddy from infection and sickness, but with allergies, the immune reaction can damage the body.
Here is a list of five types of pet allergies:
1. Habitat Allergies
This type of allergy is an overreaction of a pet’s immune system to an allergen in the environment. This can be grass, mold, pollen, and dust, which can cause atop demerits. In most cases, habitat allergies are seasonal and can be noticed during certain times of the year.
Treatment: The best treatment for habitat allergies is to try to keep your dog away from these allergens and consult with your vet on medications.
2. Plant Allergies
Plants can be a way to decorate your home, but they can sometimes cause issues for your pets. Plants can include fiddle leaf figs, which interior decorators and houseplant enthusiasts love, but can be highly toxic to dogs. Several outdoor and indoor houseplant enthusiasts can trigger an airborne or contact allergic reaction, that can range from skin irritations to difficulty breathing.
Symptoms: Dogs with these issues often show symptoms including wheezing, sneezing, coughing, and itchy, red, or watery eyes. In cats, inhalant plant-based allergies can result in itching.
Treatment: Plant allergy treatment can include giving your pet frequent baths to prevent the absorption of allergies, or applying a topical medication treatment.
3. Bug Bite Reactions
These reactions are often caused by the environment and pet food. Itching from a flea bite is an allergic reaction. Certain proteins in the flea’s saliva can irritate the pet’s skin and cause an allergic reaction.
Symptoms: Pets with these allergies often bite, lick, scratch, and chew excessively at the inflamed area. Fleas can be tough to get rid of once they’ve infested the environment and area of your pet. In some cases, pet owners may need to treat their pets many times to remove them from the infected area.
Treatment: Effective treatment often targets adult fleas, but sometimes veterinarians recommend more than one product to kill the fleas and stop their life cycle. In the case your furry friend has fleas, vets recommend medicated baths or over-the-counter shampoo that contain oatmeal and pramoxine to treat skin irritation. During a mild case, dog owners can give antihistamines to their pups based on their vet’s dosing instructions. Monthly preventatives are also recommended to combat fleas
4. Acute Reactions
Some acute reactions are mild and others can be immediate and severe and sometimes life-threatening. This can trigger can be difficult to pinpoint but the characteristic symptoms are similar whether environmental, chemical, or pharmaceutical.
Symptoms: The symptoms include itching, red, skin, hives, swollen snout, vomiting, diarrhea, and excessive salivation or drooling. The common causes of such acute reactions are insect bites, antigens in vaccines, medications, chemicals, and environmental pollutants.
Treatment: If you notice an acute reaction you should remove the triggering substance if possible. In moderate cases, antihistamines and corticosteroids will work, followed by 24-48 hours of strict observance. The safest option is to treat the situation as a medical emergency and seek treatment immediately.
5. Food Allergies
This allergy can occur at any point in the pet’s life, even if your pup has previously consumed the food. This type of allergy is sometimes confused with food sensitivities but the main difference is that the allergies reflect a more immediate reaction.
Food sensitivities are a gradual reaction to an irritating element in a pet’s food. Some of these reactions can be from protein, driven by dairy, chicken, beef, chicken eggs, soy, wheat, or gluten. For cats, these allergies may be, vegetable proteins. Stacker says each time a pet consumes these substances, the antibodies will react with the antigens and trigger symptoms.
Treatment: The best way to diagnose a food allergy is to change your pet’s diet under your veterinarian’s supervision. This type of diet is known as the elimination diet and takes several weeks to complete in for all elements of the potentially offending food to work their way through the digestive system. Food allergies cannot be cured, but they can be managed with a hypoallergenic diet.
