Spring is in the air...and our lungs and eyes and sinuses. As beautiful as this season is, it comes at a price when you live in allergy alley. If you've been following us from the early days then you already have the 411 on Chaos and his allergies. In case you're new or joined us somewhere in between, here's the low down in a nutshell. Humans aren't the only creatures affected by allergies. Dogs can have them across the board as well from seasonal to food to life threatening. And if you live in the Ohio Valley like we do, chances are you and your pup have the seasonal kind to some degree. But unlike humans who often grow OUT of their allergies or at least the severity as they age, dogs are the opposite. When Chaos was 4 months old (springtime) he had his first allergic reaction. Our vet thought it was an isolated incident at the time. But it happened again and then again before we discovered there are doggie dermatologists. Who knew? The severity of Chaos's reactions was highly concerning since he was so young and we immediately had to put him on steroids to suppress the immune response. After almost a year of trying difference medications, a full allergy panel (where we discovered he's allergic to EVERYTHING), allergy injections and a antibiotics to combat the secondary skin infections he developed from continued reactions, we found the holy grail. Apoquel is a very new medication for dogs and cats with allergies like Chaos. It's a once a day pill that costs about 3 times less a month then everything else we tried. We learned about it early on with Chaos's diagnosis from the dermatologist but the major problem was that it worked so well and was the most affordable option and the manufacturer grossly underestimated the demand. We were put on a waiting list for it while we kept trying other treatments. Finally a visit to our regular vet's office gave us the golden ticket. They were put on the list of offices to receive Apoquel and Chaos went to the top of the list of patients. He was used to taking pill so tossing one in his food every morning was nothing compared to what we had been going through AND it worked like a charm. His skin cleared and his itching nearly went away all together. We went through several months where we weren't always able to get a full supply due to the continued shortage but finally the manufacturer caught up and we now pick up a refill each month without fail.
Chaos is allergic to all the lovely things blooming around here as well as cat dander, and shedding season is in full force. You're well aware of this if you have a furry family member. So this is his worst time of year. Fortunately, since he has been able to stay on Apoquel daily this year his reactions have been kept under control. He still gets a little itchy and his eyes get pink and we can just tell when he doesn't feel his greatest, but overall this is the best Spring yet. We have a humidifier to set up by his crate on nights when he seems bothered, plus it is completely safe to give him a dose of Benadryl before bedtime for extra comfort. We give him baths more often than normal to try and keep the pollen from the yard off his skin but finally I'm not in a constant state of worry over his reactions. Pittie lovers might already know this but Pit Bulls are especially prone to skin allergies and the lighter the skin color the higher probability. Chaos is a pretty rare case so we have been through the ringer with him and I'm happy to answer any questions you have if I can. I just thought it was time for a little update since it's been awhile and I can finally give a pretty awesome report. Living with a highly allergic dog is far from easy but we wouldn't change him for the world.
Happy sneezing!
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