It’s that time of year: my car, porch, deck, and even some of my plants, are covered in a yellow dust. Pollen season is upon us, and for many unfortunates that means it’s time to suffer through allergies.
As is true with many things, humans aren’t the only ones that might be affected by the dreaded plant powder. All this past week my dog has come in with her snout, muzzle, and sometimes even her eyes, covered in pollen. She didn’t seem any different than normal, however, which leads me to believe that despite her many itching problems pollen is actually one thing that doesn’t affect her.
However, although my dog doesn’t seem to be affected pollen is actually a common allergy for animals. I know I can feel miserable enough when the dreaded yellow dust season comes around, so it’s hardly surprising to me that it might affect my pets as well.
According to the Seattle Times there are four main types of pet allergies: food, airborne (think pollen or dust mites), fleas, and contact (if they touch something, like detergents or grass). These sound right, given that one could roughly put human allergies into these categories as well.
However, unlike with people who might sneeze when coming into contact with pollen, the main symptom for any type of pet allergy is itching. That’s why it’s something we considered when diagnosing why my dog licked her paws all of the time.
Unfortunately, there are other, worse symptoms your pet might display when having an allergic reaction. They include rashes, discoloration, a runny nose, vomiting, diarrhea, and watery eyes. As with any persistent symptom, no matter how severe or not, obviously the first thing to do is to consult a veterinarian. Now I might take a bit longer to take my pet to the vet over a recurring runny nose than vomiting, but at the end of the day that’s your best bet for diagnosis.
The tricky part is that even for the vet allergies can be difficult to identify. They’re just one on a long list of possibilities, but the point is to make sure you consider them. Don’t think that it’s only a human thing to be allergic to pollen or certain types of food; animals can get those allergies as well.
The other important thing to remember is that it will take time to find a solution to allergies. Your poor pet might have to live in a cone for a long period of time until you’re able to find what’s making it lick that raw spot on its leg. It’s annoying because it could be something random: a type of wood dust or an ingredient like poultry that’s in almost every type of pet food.
We went through this with Chihiro. She definitely has a persistent licking problem, and for a while I was concerned that it was some type of allergy. I was dreading but preparing to spend months, even years, sorting through all of the possibilities.
What’s important with allergies is to keep an open mind. After various tests I’ve decided that Chihiro’s itching problems have other, non-allergy-related sources. Just always remember that it’s an important possibility to consider, even if it’s one that can be difficult and frustrating. But us pet owners know that it’s worth it.
Related Articles:
Understanding the Relationship Between Pets and Allergies
How Far Would You Go to Save a Sick Pet?
*(This image by blmurch is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.)
