Help! Allergies from grass and pollen
My Meatball has been suffering from allergies from grass and pollen for the past 2 months. I've first noticed this because she was itching her back paws frequently and they looked red and inflamed. We've been to the Vet at least 3 times for allergy shots, allergy drugs, as well as antibiotics and they really help. I also know it's allergies from grass/pollen because the Vet scraped her paw to test for mites but came back negative. And every morning when she comes back from wet grass after her business the paws look more red and inflamed. But when the grass is not as wet, her paws are fine. The Vet recommended baby wiping her paws when she comes inside from potty or walking or playing. I even have benadryl cream that I apply to her paws. I just feel bad for the gal because she has to wear a cone to prevent her from itching her paws since her saliva and itching caused infections and made the paws worse.
And to make things worse, just when her paws were getting better and healing from the medicine, she's learned how to itch and bite her back paws even with a cone on and now it's super red and inflamed again that I have to take her to the Vet again to probably get antibiotics and stronger allergy drugs.
Does anyone have any experience with this? Is there something I can do to make her less itchy? or to help her heal faster? I'm planning on getting her doggie shoes so that she doesn't have to wear a cone all the time and she can't get to her back paws. Is that a good idea?
Any input is much appreciated!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Chris, Kadi & Brodie on
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What you are describing is commonly known as 'dew poisoning'. If you can avoid her walking in the grass when there is dew on it, that will greatly reduce her irritation. I know that's hard, but you might try to alter where you walk her of a morning, so that the grass is as dry as possible. The baby wipes should help, or you could just rinse her feet off as soon as she comes inside if she will tolerate it. I had a beagle that suffered from this years ago, back when vets still put them on prednisone for it. Took care of the itching, but created all sorts of worse side effects. Have you tried giving benadryl orally for it? One 25 mg tablet is the normal dosage for a corgi sized dog. It usually really helps.
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Permalink Reply by Cindi on
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Agree with Chris. I've had a number of dogs with this problem. You can also try using dog boots. Corgis can be funny about their feet, so it's a shot in the dark. But, if you can use them, they help. I keep a plunge bucket at the back door. That way I can clean feet well. It took a while for them to like it. Also, if your Meatball can reach back feet, the cone isn't wide enough. One of the biggest mistakes folks make is buying the cone by neck size only. It has to be long enough that they cannot reach around it. You can also try putting baby socks on to keep Meatball from chewing.
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Permalink Reply by Jane on
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Have you tried benadryl or claritin/zyrtec? We also had some success with Genesis spray which I believe is a low dose topical steroid spray. Luke had a lot of irritation on his paws from running through the field at the dog park last year, and that really seemed to help his itching.
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Permalink Reply by Mila & Meatball on
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Thank you for the information! I'm sorry if this sounds really dumb...but what exactly is "dew poisoning"? I tried to google this but most of the things that came up are horse related...
And I thought it was allergy related since she's 1 year old but we never had a problem with this until this spring...and since I got her last summer, i thought it was allergy because this is her first spring and allergy is pretty common in the spring time in humans. Could dew poisoning develop anytime too?
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Thank you for the information! I'm sorry if this sounds really dumb...but what exactly is "dew poisoning"? I tried to google this but most of the things that came up are horse related...
And I thought it was allergy related since she's 1 year old but we never had a problem with this until this spring...and since I got her last summer, i thought it was allergy because this is her first spring and allergy is pretty common in the spring time in humans. Could dew poisoning develop anytime too?
And no I haven't tried oral benadryl. My vet recommended it but he said it would only work if the case is mild...but at this point her paws are super inflamed that I think only prescribed stronger medicine could help. But I'll definitely keep it in mind for future references. Thank you!
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Dew poisoning is a type of allergy. Basically they are having an allergic reaction to the dew on the grass.
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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on
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Unfortunately best thing to do for allergies this severe is steriods. Your vet can prescribe either temaril-p or prednisone. Give a short course and once the itching is under control you can start giving benadryl two or three times a day. Benadryl dose is 1 mg/pound. Human antihistamines tend to not work as well in dogs though so won't help her severe allergies, it will help however once you get them under control to prevent them from getting really bad again.
Foot baths and/or booties are a great idea, again though, you have to get control of this current issue. Some vets will write prescriptions in the record so you can call and get a refill without having to take her in since this is a known condition. Most of the time infections are due to yeast when they are licking their paws so maybe they have a good anti-yeast shampoo or antii-yeast wipes that you can use once the hair on her feet starts looking red and developing a weird smell.
In her case since its so severe it may be worth doing allergy testing to see EXACTLY what she is allergic to. Maybe it is something simple that you can control (i.e. a specific plant in your yard) to prevent further outbreaks.
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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Throneberry on
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Our dog can have allergies to many things. Mine had the same problem and I switched to a grain free dog food and it all got better. They have shoes you can put on your sog for when they do go out on the grass. They have many creams wipes and eveyrhibg at the pet store meant for paws. My chihuahua has major allergies during the summer he is constantly sneezing and has weepy eyes. But Try switching I a grain free dog food. There is also a cream you can get from the vet called resicort that is a lotion for animals that makes them stop itching.
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Permalink Reply by Sarah C. on
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Didi has seasonal allergies that make her eyes run. A LOT.
When it's time, and I know it's time because it's when I wake up with the sniffles, I give her a benadryl. It works pretty well and doesn't cause her any problems.
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Permalink Reply by Beca and Mishka on
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I'd ask for a referral to a dermatologist/allergist. Expensive, but worth it. We went through this with Mishka and our regular vet last year - she is a great vet, just not a specialist. We kept treating for yeast infections and it felt like he was in a cone for the entire spring, summer, and fall. And his feet were still raw and awful, even though we never gave him access to them.
When we finally went to the dermatologist she busted out slides and the microscope (no yeast) and the 40-shot allergy test and was able to identify what the problems were (grasses, mold, dust mites, mustard....). Now we have a long-term plan (immunotherapy shots) and a short-term plan to manage his symptoms until the shots start being effective (antihistamines + a topical powder). It is SO GREAT to have him out of the cone and playing again instead of itchy and miserable all the time. In hindsight, I wish we had seen the specialist sooner.
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Permalink Reply by Julia on
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Check to see if there is alcohol in the baby wipes you're using. That can sting. As for the timing of the allergy showing up, grass pollen has its own season, which is over by late summer. So if it is grass, that's why it didn't show up before. If your vet mentioned grass pollen, he probably made the diagnosis based on the timing of it. If it lasts longer than late summer, there's probably other allergens involved.
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Thank you everyone for your input and good advice! We just got back from the Vet. So Meatball is now on temaril-P and antibiotics to first get her condition under control. We will stick with the baby wipes (no alcohol). We will also experiment with benadryl, booties, and oatmeal bath. If things go well, hopefully we won't have to go to a specialist and we can just keep her comfortable with benadryl. But if not, we'll definitely go to the dermatologist.
Again, thank you for all your advice! Much appreciated! =)
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