If someone you know has been diagnosed with an allergy to dogs, you may be wondering just how serious it is. What exactly are the symptoms of allergy to dogs? How severely will you or your loved one be affected by an allergy to dogs?

Knowing the facts can help you to decide whether your, or your loved one’s allergy to dogs is a reason to avoid dogs altogether, or whether you can find ways to live with an allergy to dog. It also helps to know what you’re getting into, and when you should begin thinking about making tough decisions.

Mild Symptoms

Mild symptoms of allergy to dogs include a scratchy throat, runny nose, and sneezing. It can be annoying, but is easily treated with anti histamines, and by implementing a few subtle changes to your lifestyle. This kind of allergy to dogs is not a concrete reason to re home your dog, or avoid all contact with dogs, unless you want to.

Severe Symptoms

Severe symptoms of an allergy to dogs can include serious respiratory ailments. If you notice your, or your loved one’s experiencing difficulty breathing, wheezing or anything similar, even up to twelve hours after being around a dog, you probably have a severe allergy to dogs on your hands. This type of allergy may not be treatable, however, and if you do have these symptoms of allergy to dogs, you may need to consider not having dogs in your home.

Treating Allergy to Dogs

Except for the most severe allergy to dogs, most are treatable, if you really want to keep pets. The secret is to find a specialist in the treatment of allergies, and in particular, allergy to dogs. New treatments are being developed all the time, and a treatment plan made up of several medications, therapies, and actions within your home.

What Causes Allergy to Dogs?

Another important secret to finding a way to treat allergy to dogs, is to know what causes it. The first thing you should know is that allergy to dogs isn’t called by hair. It’s a combination of proteins in the dog’s saliva, and dander, or dead skin, that cause the symptoms of allergy to dogs. For this reason, even hairless breeds can induce symptoms, although usually to a lesser extent. Shaving your dog won’t help!

When this fine dander becomes airborne, it lands on the eyes, nose and is breathed into the throat. The body’s immune system reacts to this dander, and the allergen, by causing the symptoms we know as allergy to dogs. It’s for this reason that air filters, vacuuming, and wiping your dog with a damp towel are recommended treatments to the symptoms of allergy to dogs. By doing these things, you minimize the amount of dander, and your chances of reaction.

You may be one of millions of people who have allergies to dogs. Or maybe one of your close family members has allergies to dogs. The trouble is, maybe you’re a dyed in the wool dog lover. The question is, do you have any options?

Luckily, except in very extreme cases, the answer is yes. Either by taking specific steps to remove the causes of your allergies to dogs, or even choosing a breed that is less likely to cause symptoms of allergies to dogs. Here’s how.

Choose a Hairless Breed

They may not be the prettiest of creatures, but they are lovable, and they are dogs. If you don’t already have a dog, and you or someone you love have allergies to dogs, consider adopting a Chinese Crested or Mexican Hairless. Less (or in this case no) hair, means less of the causes of reactions to allergies to dogs. Plus, no shedding, and bathing is a breeze!

Try A Variety of Breeds

If you or a loved one has allergies to dogs, and you can’t face the thought of a hairless dog, there are other breeds that may induce fewer symptoms of allergies to dogs. In fact, the reaction of a particular person can vary greatly from breed to breed, so if you’re looking for a new puppy, take the person with the allergies to dogs along, and gauge their reaction.

Short coated dogs, like dachshunds, and wire coated dogs, usually produce less of a reaction in those who suffer allergies to dogs.

Take Precautions

If you do already have a dog, or even if you are planning to get one of the dogs mentioned above, there are steps you can take to minimize the reactions experience by those with allergies to dogs. For a start, make sure that your dog sleeps outside, or in an area of the house far away from the person with allergies to dogs. Next, limit their access to areas of the house with carpets and upholstered furniture, and vacuum regularly.

Make sure that you bath your dog regularly, and remember that even wiping them down with a damp towel can minimize the reaction of those with allergies to dogs. When you do bath, brush or groom your dog, do it outdoors, or send them to the doggy parlor. In most cases, with these tips, and perhaps an anti histamine, sufferers of milder allergies to dogs can happily live with their four legged friends. Don’t give up too easily, but also remember that if you or your loved one has very severe allergies to dogs, you may not be able to keep a dog.

If you do find that you can’t keep a dog because someone in your family has allergies to dogs, why not volunteer at your local animal sanctuary? You’ll be doing the animals a big favor, and you’ll still get to enjoy the company of man’s best friend. Sounds like a win win situation to me!

• If your dog has another illness, it could lead to your dog’s loss of appetite. This could be something minor, or something far more serious, like parvo virus or another canine disease. If your dog’s loss of appetite is linked to other symptoms, like vomiting, or loose stools, particularly if there is blood in them, do not hesitate to take your dog to the vet immediately! Swift action, in some cases, is the difference between life and death.

• If your dog’s loss of appetite is linked to an event, like moving home, or the death of another pet or family member, your dog’s loss of appetite may be psychological, rather than physical. Just like humans, dogs get depressed, and they may stop eating. If this is the case, shower your dog with more affection, and try to tempt him with his favorite treats.

• Dog’s loss of appetite may also be linked to a change in diet. Some dogs will eat anything and everything that is put in front of them, but others have more discerning palates. If you suspect that a change in diet has caused your dog’s loss of appetite, try introducing the new food gradually, mixing it with their regular food, gradually increasing the proportion of the new food to the old.

• If your dog’s loss of appetite is linked to behavioral problems, like digging, chewing on objects that they should not be, or even excessive barking or howling, it may be a symptom of separation anxiety. In this instance, getting another dog, to keep your dog company may be a solution to the problem of your dog’s loss of appetite, and the behavioral problems.

• If you notice your dog losing weight, but your dog’s loss of appetite is negligible, or nonexistent, that may be a symptom of a stomach parasite, or it could be a sign of a more serious disease. Try giving your dog deworming tablets, and if that does not work, approach your veterinarian, to rule out more serious problems.

When you notice your dog’s loss of appetite, a warning signal should go up. Never ignore this, and if your dog simultaneously stops drinking water, or shows any other symptoms of illness, go to your vet immediately. With some canine diseases, a delay of a few hours can be the difference between survival and death.

Most dogs will not simply stop eating for no reason, and whether the cause of your dogs’ loss of appetite is physiological, or psychological, you need to find the root cause, in order to effectively solve the problem.

Of course, the prevalence of the different allergies of dogs varies, as does the treatment of the condition, but here are a few of the basic facts relating to allergies of dogs that might help the process go a little bit smoother.

Contact Allergies
Contact allergies of dogs are allergies to something in the environment. It may be a specific plant, item or even something in the air or it may be something more general, like an allergy to grass. For contact allergies of dogs, the ideal treatment is to remove the cause of the allergy from the environment – easier said than done in cases where the allergen is a common one!

Other options for allergies of dogs, where the allergen is something the dog is in contact with, are anti histamines, immunotherapy, or even steroid treatments, all of which can be used with varying success on dogs with allergies of dogs like these.

Identifying an allergy may be quite tricky. Of course, contact allergies of dogs that begin suddenly, shortly after the introduction of something new in the environment are easy to spot, but if the dog suddenly develops an allergy to something that has been in the environment for some time, allergy testing may be required to identify it.

Flea Allergies of Dogs
More common than contact allergies, flea allergies of dogs can still be a tricky problem to treat. Far from an ordinary reaction to a few fleas, pooches that suffer from flea allergies of dogs will have a severe itching, scratching and biting reaction to even one flea!

Anyone who’s ever tried to keep even a non sufferer of flea allergies of dogs from getting fleas will know that it requires vigilance, and a good arsenal of anti flea products to do so!

You’ll have to invest in a spray for the environment, anti flea shampoo for the sufferer, and any other dogs you have, anti flea dip, and probably a flea collar. Medication, including steroids, may also be prescribed in severe cases. If you have a sufferer of flea allergies of dogs, try to check the dog, and his sleeping area, regularly, and if you see even one flea, take immediate action!

Food Allergies of Dogs
Another fairly common of the allergies of dogs is an allergy to specific foods. Often, these types of allergies of dogs are to common foods or ingredients in commercial dog food brands. Typically, your dog will display generic symptoms of allergies of dogs, including itching, scratching, biting and hives.

When diagnosed, your vet will typically put your dog onto a hypoallergenic food, or recommend a hypo allergenic diet like chicken and rice, and usually, if you adhere to the dietary guidelines, your dog will stop having any symptoms of allergies of dogs.