|
Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2014 20:58:16 GMT -5
Nothing in the house has changed, I haven't changed any lotions or shampoos, I only ever clean with vinegar and water, haven't done laundry in forever, no ones come over since like the first week I got Fez. Just can't think of anything that's changed. Except for introducing new meats really. Or the weather getting colder? I do have a pretty severe roach problem in my house, and there's an annoying amount of mice too. I've seen a mouse come running from Fez's cage a couple of times when I've walked in....... Apparently Fez hasn't bothered to catch it, maybe he made a friend. I'm wondering if maybe that's a possibility for an allergen too. Either the roaches or the mice. The red skin was before the vaccination, and the vet did it anyways, she wasn't too worried about his skin, she thinks it's going to be an allergy. Newest protein added was beef (heart). Last week. Could have been that. I think I also gave him chicken liver around the same time. As for a switching thread, I only just got one the other day. Still going
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2014 21:34:44 GMT -5
I'm not sure about roach/mice allergies. Tagging Heather and bitbyter ... what do you guys think? And is beef heart considered a new protein, per se? Have you fed any other types of beef other than heart? When? Exactly what type of poops does he have, are they runny? Black and tarry? Brown and seedy? All of the above? etc etc katt really is the expert on this, I'm not familiar with allergies except my own (lol).
|
|
|
Post by bitbyter on Nov 23, 2014 22:11:36 GMT -5
I wouldn't think they would be allergic to mice but roaches could be a possibility I guess.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 23, 2014 23:01:53 GMT -5
Gosh, poop wise... I think he's got one of every kind of poop in his litter box! There's a poop chart isn't there? I might need to find that... But yeah, his poops are all over the place depending on what the daily food was I think..
|
|
|
Post by RedSky on Nov 24, 2014 13:18:37 GMT -5
Just wanted to chime in that allergies can be to anything, and I mean anything and they can develop at any time and most vets seem to recommend that a trial/removal of something be for 6 weeks to allow it to leave the system but usually the symptoms start to fade after a week or so. My dog has lots of allergies, as a young dog he had allergy tests and came back with dust and house mite allergies. But a more recent test shows allergies to chicken, beef, fish, venison (which he only had a couple of times and not close to the test date) and most of the carbs they test for. Also some grasses and weeds and obviously his mite allergy. We now think he is allergic to turkey or lamb, so doing elimination diet.
He has had a few different allergy treatments, some have had no effect like the antihistamine chlorphenamine maleate, while loratadine caused an unpleasant reaction, in which he was very out of sorts, confused and I think scared. He currently takes Cetirizine, but also has immunotherapy treatment for the environmental allergies (mites, grasses, weeds) and we try to limit his exposure to these while still letting him enjoy life. I would rather give him these meds than never take him to the park again. I'm not sure what drug the benadryl is, but there are more options out there than just the one, so my recommendation if it is an allergy is to try to find the source but if you can't then work with a good vet to find the best treatment for your little one and slowly increase the dosage.
|
|
|
Post by gfountain on Nov 24, 2014 14:53:54 GMT -5
You mentioned that the weather is colder. Have you recently started running the heat in the house? My dog has skin issues - itching, redness - when we turn on the heat because of the drier air in the house. We have to run a humidifier whenever the heat is on.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2014 23:02:08 GMT -5
Hmm, come to think of it, the heat probably did start running several weeks or so ago now... That could be it. The heat is constantly on, usually around 70, sometimes a little higher to warm the house up, then down again. I've been thinking about a humidifier for myself cause of the dryness, how would I tell if it is the heat for him?
|
|
|
Post by katt on Nov 25, 2014 4:58:10 GMT -5
70 shouldn't be too hot for him but it could be making the apartment too dry. A humidifier wouldn't hurt. And a roach allergy could certainly be possible though it seems unlikely. This doesn't solve the underlying issue, but you can try putting a tiny bit of olive or coconut oil on his skin where it is dry once or twice a day. Massage it in with your fingertips so you know it actually gets on the skin really well and not just on his fur.
|
|
|
Post by gfountain on Nov 25, 2014 9:28:01 GMT -5
I don't know how you'd know positively unless that's the ONLY thing you change. My dog's issues cleared up within 2 days of turning on the humidifier.
|
|
|
Post by katt on Nov 25, 2014 17:18:50 GMT -5
Yes, Gina is right - it is super important if you're trying to find the cause to only change one thing at a time. Otherwise you'll have no idea which of the changes made it get better.
|
|