Puppy Forum and Dog Forums banner

Allergy Pup

908 Views 12 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  DaySleepers
So i'm looking for an allergy shampoo for my dog that actually works. She's a bully mix, about 10 months old. She's had allergies since i got her 5 months ago, but they were very manageable with baths and salmon oil. But the cold weather has been awful for her allergies, if she so much as goes outside when it's cold in the mornings she'll come in with hives. So i decided to try a new shampoo specifically for allergies. I tried the "top recommended" Vet's Best Allergy Itch Relief, gave my dog a bath, followed the instructions, left it on for 3ish minutes like it told me to, rinsed thoroughly, and dried her. And less than 20 minutes later my dog was COVERED in hives on her back and ventral. She's not itchy or red, just with little bumps everywhere. Which is one of the primary symptoms of her milder allergic reactions, her worse ones normally involve red and watery eyes, and red rashes on her ventral. Which I'm not seeing yet from this last bath/ reaction from the shampoo. So the "top recommended" allergy shampoo gave my dog an allergic reaction. The shampoo i used to use wasn't giving her any adverse reactions, but it wasnt medicated either, it was just made for sensitive skinned dogs, so it wasn't helping much with her allergies either. I give her supplements, salmon oil, and bathe her twice a week, but especially lately with the changing weather her allergies have been awful. It's something environmental to the outdoors, because she's always perfectly fine at home. I give her 50mg benadryl (as prescribed by the vet for her weight) when i notice her allergy symptoms making her uncomfortable, but if I can find a good medicated shampoo i feel like it would help her greatly. Any recommendations would be great.
1 - 3 of 13 Posts
Could be Cold urticaria making a worsening of hives.

Are you really really really rinsing any shampoo out? Lingering shampoo irritates the skin.

I'd probably try a warm (not hot) rinse with an apple cider and water rinse after that and then another warm rinse.

edit to add comment to your newest post:

mud washes off with water or brushes off when dry.

do you have city water or well water, do you have a whole house water softener?

My observation is that bathes dont do much for allergies causes by inhalation or ingestion, only for topical contact. Any chance her symptoms correlate with something other than skin contact?
See less See more
Is she a blue pit/bully type by any chance?

yeah, tea tree oil could be a cause of the worse reaction to the new shampoo but that isn't getting to the main cause of her allergies. Since you were using the shampoo to treat a reaction to begin with.

I had made some edit comments to my first post while you were probably reading and replying at the same time
The dilute color gene for blue pits is linked to allergy sensitivities.

In my completely non-vet opinion, here is what I would do for the next month:

No shampoo baths. Rinse really yucky mud off with plain water, use 50/50 apple cider vinegar and water mix for spot treatment if she rolls in poop or such. Normal dirt, just ignore and let dry and brush off.

Rinse in warm (tepid) water only.

Remove any air fresheners, oils, wax melts etc in the house if applicable

No treats unless they are solely the only protein of her food. As in, if chicken based food, only 100% chicken part can be a treat.

Be careful what you clean the house with and make sure it is well aired out after a cleaning. Yes, it is winter in North America but the trick to saving costs on heat while airing out a house is to open the windows wide open and let the air rush past but then close them before the materials of the house (furniture, walls, flooring) can drop in temperature. Those are the heat holders/releasers, not the air so much.
See less See more
  • Like
Reactions: 1
1 - 3 of 13 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top