This is a broad subject in that allergies can not only affect your pet but they can affect you as well. The most common human allergy as it relates to pets is pet dander. Pet dander is hair and skin that sluffs off your pet and while there are dogs and cats that are MORE hypoallergenic (poodles, golden doodles, hairless cats, etc) there is no such thing as a fully hypoallergenic pet. ALL mammals have dander, even humans. All that said, do your own research here as it is out of the scope of this document.
Our Experience
Allergies can affect your puppy as well. While pronounced allergies are not extremely common, they do happen. We had a Australian Shepherd mix (Lexi) for over 17.5 years and she developed food allergies late in life. The allergies caused her to chew and scratch off huge swaths of hair – especially on her tail. After several trips to the Veterinarian we decided it must be a food allergy. At the time we were feeding her medium quality food that we bought at the local grocery store. We switched her to a high quality chicken and rice food and she cleared up in a few weeks. We never did find out specifically which ingredient gave her trouble but this should serve as an example of what can happen. It also shows that allergies can show up and/or get worse with age.
What are they allergic to?
Dogs can be allergic to pretty much anything that humans can be allergic to; a short (non exhaustive) list follows:
- Tree, grass and weed pollens
- Mold spores
- Dust and house dust mites
- Dander
- Feathers
- Cigarette smoke
- Food ingredients (e.g. beef, chicken, lamb, pork, corn, wheat, corn, soy, etc)
- Prescription drugs
- Fleas and flea-control products (Only a few flea bites can trigger intense itchiness for two to three weeks!)
- Perfumes
- Cleaning products
- Fabrics
- Insecticidal shampoo
- Rubber and plastic materials
- Food
The above list is not complete but it should demonstrate that pretty much anything is possible.
Acute Allergic Reactions
Anaphylaxis is an extreme allergic reaction that can result in anaphalatic shock and may be deadly. Fortunately this issue is rare in dogs. it is most commonly caused by stings (bee, scorpion, etc) or medications, including vaccines. Again; this is very rare so it is not a general excuse to avoid vaccinating your Golden Retriever but in the interest of completeness, it needed to be mentioned.
After administering any new medication be sure to monitor your Golden Retriever and if they experience swelling in their eyes, ear flaps, face, lips or throat, consult your vet right away. Minor swelling in these areas are often treated with an antihistamine but you coordinate treatment with your vet.
Symptoms
According to the American Kennel Club, common symptoms include:
Itchiness
Hives
Swelling of the face, ears, lips, eyelids, or earflaps
Red, inflamed skin
Diarrhea
Vomiting
Sneezing
Itchy ears
Chronic ear infections
Itchy, runny eyes
Constant licking
Diagnosis
Proper diagnosis can be tricky business. The first thing to do is rule out other causes. Your Golden Retriever could simply have fleas or ticks that naturally make them scratch. They could have other issues such as parasites, fungal or yeast infections, hypothyroidism or even canine ichthyosis. As always, we recommend you work with your vet to rule out other more serious issues.
Food allergies are a little trickier to diagnose; the most common method is simple experimentation. You can try changing their food to a good quality food with a single source or protein and a single carbohydrate and keep them on that diet for 12 weeks. If that does not resolve, try another combination. Commercial dog foods tend to combine many ingredients so for the purposes of this test, you may need to make your own. for example you can boil chicken and shred it into rice. If you find that a particular combination works and the issues are resolved, then start looking for a good quality commercial food that contains ingredients that match what worked as close as possible, test for 12 more weeks, adjust as necessary, repeat. Note: most food allergies are related to the protein source, not the carbs so if home cooking for the experiment does not work for you, try using good quality commercial foods that contain a single but different protein source.
We at Texas TLC Goldens do not suggest feeding home prepared meals for long periods of time. Good quality commercial foods do a MUCH better job of providing all the necessary nutrients for the long term health of your Golden Retriever. We also do not recommend getting too involved with prescription dog foods. In our research we’ve determined that those foods are terribly expensive and typically contain ingredients that can be found easily at the store at a much lower price. There is nothing magic or medicated about prescription dog food in our experience.
Treatment
For occasional allergy symptoms we’ve found that Benadryl can help but be advised these sorts of medications can make your puppy sleepy and make them endlessly thirsty and can be tricky.
If the symptoms are not too severe, you can try food experimentation as I’ve described above but for the most part, you will want to work with your Vet for proper treatment.
About the author.
Bryan Curry loves all dogs in general, especially Golden Retrievers. He has had dogs for all but 6 months of his long life and all have lived happy and much longer than average lives. Bryan and his wife Terri are co-owners of Texas TLC Goldens; a small responsible breeder producing high quality Golden Retriever puppies.
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