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 Skin Allergy
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Q: |
My Tammy scratches every few minutes. I do not see spots or ticks on her body. Could this be an allergy? |
A: |
Yes. If there are no obvious symptoms on her skin, the cause is likely the beginning of environmental allergy. Common allergens in the environment are dust mites, pollens, moulds, grasses and even our skin flakes. Treatments include anti-dust-mites spray, pet disinfectant treatment,vacuuming, washing of beddings, improving ventilation and protecting Tammy's skin with anti-bacterial spray. If treatment is not made, the symptoms may progress to inflammation and even hair loss.
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Q: |
My Lab puppy likes to sit on her urine and play with her faeces when alone. Out
of frustration, my mum showers her every day whenever she smells. Is this okay? |
A: |
Definitely not okay! Every dog's skin has a natural coat of oil. Excessive showering will strip away the oil layer and cause flaky skin. If your Lab is not using a mild shampoo, skin allergy may be a possibility.
Boredom: the big problem. Give your Lab a chew to keep it busy when it's alone. Next, learn to housetrain your Lab and let it associate where it can eliminate and rest. Try training your lab on a urine tray spreaded with training pads so that its area is kept clean. If your Lab is dirty, use a dry grooming spray or wonderwash instead. This will freshen your Lab and remove its body odour. Shower your Lab puppy only once to twice a week. |
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| Q: |
Red dots were found on my poodle Rascal's body. On closer look, I saw a few brown coloured insects with eight legs between its toes. I checked with a friend and she said those were ticks and if you found a few there were probably hundreds somewhere. What can I do now? Will the ticks hurt my Rascal? |
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What you have discovered on Rascals's body are indeed ticks. Ticks multiply in hundreds and thousands in weeks. Yes, ticks can cause Lyme disease, tick fever, inflammation and severe skin irritation.
Ticks are usually concentrated between the toes, on the tail and the ear flaps. Dogs respond to ticks infestation by biting their paws and tails plus excessive scratching. The red dots found on Rascal's body were raised bumps, an allergy caused by ticks' bites and saliva.
First, quickly apply medicated spray to kill the ticks on its body. Next apply spot-on solution as a monthly prevention. As garlic has a slight repelling effect on ticks, you can give Rascal a recommended dosage of garlic pills during this period. Shower Rascal only 48 hours after the medication is applied on its body. To treat Rascal's skin allergy, apply skin relief solution on his body to soothe irritation. Give him a regular dosage of fish oil supplement and vitamin A to reduce inflammation. Finally, wash your bed sheets and exterminate ticks in your home with Fogger or spray concentrate |
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