Labrador Allergies: What To Look For
No commentsLabrador allergies related to food need some detective work on your part. If your Labrador starts to scratch constantly then you know it is suffering from an allergy. Labradors do shed a lot but if hair starts to fall out in clumps and you see red or exposed skin then you know it has an allergy. The only problem is that all allergies, whether food or contact, manifest in itchy skin. The same way a human might have a runny nose when they are allergic to pollen a dog will have itchy skin when it is allergic to something.
Without allergy testing a vet will not be able to diagnose the problem and will only be able to medicate your dog to treat the symptoms. This is not an ideal situation, as you don’t want your dog on steroids and other medications long term. Plus the scratching, chewing, and licking that your dog does to alleviate the symptoms will only make things worse and expose it to bacterial infections. There are a few things you can do to cut down on exposure to allergens so that your dog is healthy.
A sure sign that your pet is suffering from Labrador allergies is constant scratching that is accompanied by the head shaking and rubbing. Check your dog’s ears, they should be a healthy pink and have no odor. If the ear is red and the dog feels pain when you touch it then it has an ear infection. You should seek treatment for your dog straight away as continued scratching and biting will leave the skin exposed to bacterial infections.
A tell tale sign that your dog has an ear infection is constant head shaking and rubbing of the ear on the floor and furniture. Once the infection gets worse your pet will be whining and in constant pain. Before it gets to this stage you should see a vet immediately to determine the cause of the ear infection.
Labrador allergies are manageable once you know what the problem is. If it is an environmental factor then you can eliminate this factor from your home to solve the problem. If the problem is related to pollen then you can keep your dog indoors early in the morning and early in the evening.
The best way to avoid Labrador allergies that result in ear infections is to dry your dog’s ears after bathing and regularly clean it’s ears. To clean a dog’s ears ask your vet for a cleaning solution that you can use and consult your vet for the proper way to administer the cleaning solution. Labrador care of the ear means cleaning your pet’s ears about once a week.
The only way to avoid ear infections that stem from Labrador allergies is to avoid the allergen. In some cases this is a seasonal thing, for example if your Labrador is allergic to pollen. In other cases it might mean a lifestyle change on your part, as some Labradors can be allergic to tobacco smoke.
Other allergens such as molds, grass, trees and sometimes other animals, are not so easy to avoid. In this case your pet will need regular injections to boost its immune system to fight the allergies.
Thursday, June 19th, 2008 at 3:49 am and is filed under Dog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
