Hi
Does anyone have any success stories when using antistamines for allergies.  My bitch has HD mite allergy and has to take 2 medrone every other day. When first diagnosed the vet gave me Tavegil but to be fair it didnt do anything.  She is 15 months into a allergy vaccine but its having little effect.  I am unhappy to think she will have to take steriods for ever and have just had bloods done to check that she has no damage as yet to her body. She had a clear test result but for how long.  I would like to try, maybe, antihistamines to see if that would help her and maybe even give her a break from steroids.  I am due to see my vet in 2 weeks but wondered in the meantime if anyone has had success with them.

Hello,

I have just rehomed an American Cocker through the rescue and he (Alfie) is allergic to almost everything, it is controlled by a low protein diet (pedigree better by nature) 1x5mg steroid (Prednisalone) every other day and a piraton every morning and evening..having kept in regular contact with his new owners they tell me he is doing great on this treatment.

I also understand that there is a product called skin-eze which you can purchase on the internet which i believe is supposed to be quite good.

Hope this helps.

Annee

I have used Piriton Allergy one a day for a small dog JRT and have used Benadryl ( dont know proper spelling )on a skin allergy which worked great. I would however ask your vet about using these before hand

I have also used piriton for one of mine  , works really well for him.

Ditto above, my boy had an allergy last summer, not reoccured but vet prescribed piriton and its cheaper through the vets as a rule than off the counter.

i have just start to use pition 1/2 day can raise it to one tablet day for a spanish water, i rang my vet to ask about using them first. yes ok for my dog,.
her ear have started up again due to the grass and tree pollen.

if you go on martin lewis the moneyman you can sign up for very cheap antihistamines on that site.
just read the what in the tablet to see if it the same as pition.

Do you know if you can use them everyday or is there a limit of how long?.  Vet advised me to use piriton initially when we started to investigate her itching. Thanks for your reply.

Hi
thanks for your reply.  My dogs are fed on BARF which has improved their overall condition. They also have a oil supplement from the vets called Aller-G3 which is an omega/efa capsule.  Piriton is expensive if given daily so I am hoping my vet can get it for me but I think I would definately like to try her on it.  She is on medrone e.o.d but her itching is quite bad at the moment and I would prefer not to increase the steroid.
Thanks

i will only use from may to sep for my dog

During the summer i use 2 in the morning and 1 at night , you can get tubs of 500 from the vet  , dont know how much they charge , think when i got mine last year it was about £12  but must admit my vet is really good and doesnt overcharge.  the dosage i use is for giant breed

I use Piriton for my dog and buy it in pots of 500 from here.  £9.99.  I find it works well during the pollen season but do check with your vet re combining with your other medication.  The amount your dog can safely take will be dependant on her weight.

I also use a dilute solution of Hibiscrub to wash off mud after walks and wipe dust away from my boys eyes and mouth.  This has made a noticable difference to his itch scratch itch cycle.

Dermacton is a very useful cream for any sore patches.

If you are on an immuno therapy regime with regular injections your dog shouldn't also be taking oral steroids - perhaps I've misunderstood.  Even on injections we used to sometimes need a topical steroid gel but with a pro active and vigilant approach to any signs of redness or scratching, and using the above methods I can keep things quite calm and I no longer use any steroids.

HTH - itchy dogs can be very distressing

I have actually been to the vets this morning about my dogs allergies as they have flared up again now summer is here.
I have always given him a piriton when it causes him to sneeze or cough badly and that works.  Today the vet has said he has to go on them permantly 1 tablet 2-3 times a day max can be given.  He is a JRT weighing approx 7kg, but I think the dosage is the same for larger dogs too.

[url=]If you are on an immuno therapy regime with regular injections your dog shouldn't also be taking oral steroids - perhaps I've misunderstood.  Even on injections we used to sometimes need a topical steroid gel but with a pro active and vigilant approach to any signs of redness or scratching, and using the above methods I can keep things quite calm and I no longer use any steroids.

She is under a specialist from the Vet school in Bristol - they have prescribed the drug along with the immuno therapy.  She has no sore patches or redness, she just nibbles alot and scratches.

> She is under a specialist from the Vet school in Bristol - they have prescribed the drug along with the immuno therapy

You are perhaps on a different immuno therapy treatment than us.  My understanding is that steroids would completely suppress the allergic response thereby cancelling out the benefits of the specific allergy serum that has been prepared for the dog.  With regular and increasing doses the dogs immune system ought to become less sensitive to the allergen over time and should become more tolerant.  I was specifically advised to discontinue steroids several weeks before starting the injections and have not used them since.

I'm not intending to correct your advice but offer the casual reader an alternative view given by my vet.  I, like you, do not like the idea of long term steroid use.

Do try Hibiscrub on her itchy areas - I've found it very successful - and it certainly won't do any harm.

The only way Hibiscrub would be useful would be if I bathed all of her body except her back and head as she itches and nibbles all over, but as mentioned before she does not have any sore spots. For the first 12 months of her immuno therapy she was taking no drugs at all. The steroids were introduced on a high dose for the first few weeks reducing down to the minimum reqd to keep her comfortable. We are giving immuno therapy 6 more months (24 months in total) before we decide to continue. The vet is unsure whether the immuno therapy is working and I agree but got to give it more time before abandoning it.

My initial post was not to justify the treatment so far, as far as I am concerned she is under a very knowledgeable skin specialist who liases closely with my vet, my question was to ask others of there experiences with anti-histamines.

Thanks for your reply

We use piriton for itchy skin caused by an allergy in our Gordon setter - she gets 2 twice a day. If you are buying over the counter make sure you get the original piriton not the non-drowsy one (piriteze) as they have different ingredients. We buy boots own make ones as they are cheaper.

How long have you been using it. ie. can you use it continually or should there be a break in taking it?.  What is the ingredient of the ones that Boots make? I take Loratadine 10mg for my hayfever as its the same ingredient as some more expensive hayfever tablets with well known names and very expensive prices! I pay 99p for 7 compared to £3.00 ish, I get mine from either Savers or Lidl.  Thanks for your reply.

Its not Loratadine or Cetirizine (they are the ones I use). Its Chlorphenamine Maleate. Quite hard to get in supermarkets as its the older type that can make you sleepy and most of the newer ones are non-drowsy. Treacle has been on it for around 2 years and takes it continuously. You have to go to the chemist counter at boots and ask for their version of it, its not on the shelves normally.

Thanks for that info, I will ask my vet next week if we can try it, either I could get it or maybe he could, that way it can go on the insurance.  I appreciate your time in replying.