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Archive for the ‘Dog Atopy’ Category
If you’re worried your dog may be experiencing dog dermatitis, be sure that you have all of the facts straight on the matter. There is much confusion on the difference between dog dermatitis and other dog skin problems.
Dog dermatitis is ofter used as a general term for dog skin problems and conditions. It is more clinically known as a historic sensitivity prone to certain breeds.
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As a dog owner, you are probably aware of the possibility of your canine friend running off, getting into something gross, contracting fleas or another parasite, or even becoming ill. A dog may show signs of a health problem through its coat and skin.
Because so many different underlying causes exist, it is difficult to diagnose many dog skin problems for certain. Fleas may be obvious, but a nutrition deficiency may have the same symptoms as the underlying cause for seasonal hot spots.
Despite being a loving and caring pet owner, one who always takes preventative measures when it comes to their dog’s health and well-being, it’s impossible to prevent everything.
Proper and regular dog skin care will certainly point you in the right direction of preventing problems. However, more importantly sometimes, regular skin care such as grooming, will provide you with a first-hand knowledge of when something might be wrong. The quicker you detect a potential problem the better chance your dog has for a quick diagnosis and treatment.
Is your dog constantly scratching, licking, chewing or rubbing? Does he have dry skin, red irritated patches of skin or even open sores?
Since dog dermatitis is basically a general term for skin and coat problems or “hot spots” appearing for unknown or even various causes, finding specific information may seem like a daunting task. You will really have to narrow down symptoms and behaviors to even get started on a proper diagnosis.
If your dog has a hypersensitivity to a food, product or other potential allergen (such as wool or grass) it may not be obvious at first. You may notice your dog scratching or licking all of the time, but you will be more likely to notice the irritated, red skin that surfaces after a small period of time. This condition is referred to as atopic dermatitis.
However, many veterinarians attain that atopic dermatitis in dogs cannot be diagnosed without an existing history of the condition. You may have to put your dog through many expensive (though not typically painful) tests before proper diagnosis can be made.
Many dog skin problems take a while to surface but it always seems like it happened over night once you notice them. Some do surface more quickly than others, but it depends on the severity of the cause and how much hair your pup has.
For instance dog skin problems with excessive hair loss as a symptom may be noticeable to someone aware of it but other pet owner’s may not realize it until the dog has a bald spot. It is a good idea to regularly check your dog over. This is best done daily or at least weekly and should be done prior to bathing or brushing. Your dog may become frightened or hurt worse if water or a comb were to hit any soft areas, hot spots or open sores.
As discussed many times within this blog, atopic dermatitis in dogs is a genetically predisposed inflammatory and pruritic allergic skin disease associated most commonly with IgE antibodies to environmental allergens, including dust mites (e.g. house dust mites, storage mites), pollens (e.g. trees, grass, weeds), mold spores, dander, insects (e.g. moths, cockroaches), and other miscellaneous allergens.
From a veterianarians standpoint, three criteria must be met to diagnose atopic dermatitis in dogs: there must be a suggestive history, typical clinical signs must be present, and differential diagnoses must have been ruled out.
Long-Term Effects of Atopic Dermatitis in Dogs
Monday, April 12, 2010
posted by Dog Lover @ 10:01 AM
Let’s hope that if your dog has atopic dermatitis that you never find out the worse case scenario of the long-term effects this disease can have on your pet. However, to encourage you to treat your four-legged friend as soon as possible, we will discuss some of the known long term effects.
First of all, atopic dermatitis in dogs is not a newly discovered or uncommon disease at all. It was discovered in 1976 and it is because of the increase of the pet skin problem that has veterinarians, dog food companies and food supplement makers working on treatment. Unfortunately, much like human allergies and hypersensitivities, there is no absolute cure in most cases. However, if left untreated, or proper preventative care is not taken, then your dog will show signs of suffering rather quickly. Hair loss, patches of dry, reddish skin and even open sores from constant scratching are among some of the effects of this disease.
No pun intended, but “hot spots” or dog atopy isn’t always noticable at first. The most severe cases will spread over you’r dog’s body, potentially covering large areas as time goes by. However, there are also many cases of smaller, less obvious “patches” or even seasonal “hot spots”.
Dog atopy is not a matter that should be ignored. There is usually an underlying cause for the conidtion. Although it may take some time, money and extra effort to find the cause-you cannot properly treat dog atopy until you are aware of it.
If you found this blog post by searching for dog dermatitis then you are probably curious to know what it is, what causes it and/or how to treat it. Generally speaking, dog dermatitis is a an inflammation of the skin that can be caused by allergies, contact with a irritant, or have internal causes.
Because so many things may cause dog dermatitis, there is no “quick” solution for treatment. As with allergies in humans, it is likely there is no permanent cure and a lot of trial and error in finding the method of treatment that will work best for your dog.