Pet The World

Scratching is a very common symptom in dogs, and you as an owner should aim to nip it in the bud early before self trauma causes secondary injuries to your dog. However, before wondering whether your dog could have an allergy, you must rule out the common parasitic (fleas and mites), bacterial (hot spots) and fungal (ringworm and yeast) infections. See my article Is your Dog Scratching to explore these in greater detail.

Just as allergies have become more common in children these days compared to several generations ago, veterinarians are seeing far more allergies in pets too. It is difficult to explain this phenomenon, theories range from alterations in the content of pet foods to the use of modern day household cleaning products or simply genetic evolution. One thing is certain, whatever the cause, allergic dogs benefit hugely from avoiding the offending allergen or, if that is impossible, appropriate treatment to minimize the itchiness.

Lets start with the presenting signs of an allergy in dogs. Itchiness can manifest itself not only as obvious scratching at the neck and flanks, but also as face rubbing, foot licking or chewing and over grooming. Foot licking, for example, is often perceived by owners as normal, when in fact the dog is responding to itchy feet in the only way it can, by licking them. The skin between the toes may turn red and sore due to the compulsive licking, and in white dogs such as West Highland White Terriers and Bichon Frises, the fur is stained brown by saliva.

Ear infections are another common sign of an underlying allergy. Though general waxiness, hair in the ear canals, lack of ventilation, bacteria and yeast may trigger the infection, an underlying allergy is often the root cause of the itchiness. If your dog gets recurrent ear infections, by eliminating an underlying allergy you may prevent your dog from going over the itchiness threshold and developing full blown ear infections.

So, what are the common allergies in dogs?

For convenience they are best separated into 4 categories.

1) Flea bite hypersensitivity
2) Adverse food reaction
3) Atopic dermatitis
4) Contact dermatitis

Flea bite hypersensitivity is relatively straight forward to cure. It is a simple case of eliminating every single flea on the dog and, crucially, in his/her environment. The itchiness is caused by an allergic reaction to the flea saliva, and so even a solitary flea can trigger a scratching frenzy. To rule out flea bite hypersensitivity, all animals in the house (dogs and cats) should be treated with a reputable veterinary spot on medication monthly without fail, and the house should be thoroughly sprayed with an insecticidal spray.

Adverse food reactions are more difficult to treat as it can be difficult to isolate the precise ingredient responsible for causing itchiness in your dog. Not only that, treating adverse food reactions requires owners to be exceptionally disciplined and motivated in preventing their pet having even a single treat unless the exact ingredients are known to be safe.

There are two ways of diagnosing an adverse food reaction (also known as a food allergy). For those readers for whom cost is not an issue, a blood test can be done to measure for ingredient specific antibodies in the bloodstream. The blood test is quite costly, and if combined with a blood test for environmental allergens is usually upwards of $400 (?200). The company performing the blood test then provides a list of ingredients (chicken, beef, pork, rice, wheat etc) and a score next to them, suggesting which ingredients are best avoided. The owner then picks a commercial diet which does not include any of these ingredients, or indeed a special home cooked diet. The second way to diagnose an adverse food reaction is to conduct a dietary trial. This involves picking a very bland hypoallergenic diet and feeding your dog exclusively that for at least a month, preferably 6 weeks. The author usually suggests turkey and rice, as less dogs are allergic to turkey than chicken. Of course if your dog happened to be allergic to rice or turkey, which is rare but nevertheless possible, you would be none the wiser as the itchiness would continue and you would assume you had ruled out a food allergy having done the turkey and rice dietary trial. Remember if you are doing one of these trials, then your dog must not be given any treats, especially not pigs ears, chews, boneos, dental sticks or any rawhide products. Literally nothing must be swallowed other than turkey and rice (and water!) for the entire trial period.

If you have ruled out flea bite hypersensitivity and ruled out an adverse food reaction, the next step is to consider an environmental allergy, also known as atopic dermatitis. Symptoms of atopic dermatitis usually begin between 1 and 3 years of age, though any age is possible. The itchiness is often seasonal, which is consistent with a pollen allergy, though some dogs are itchy all year round. There are certain breeds which are predisposed to this condition: Boxers, Bull Terriers, Dalmations, English Bulldogs, German Shepherd Dogs, Golden Retrievers, Labrador Retrievers, Shar Peis, Shih Tzus and West Highland White Terriers being the most commonly affected. Diagnosis is usually made based on the history and ruling out all the other causes of itchiness, and many vets will treat the condition on these presumptions. However, definitive diagnosis can be achieved via a panel of injections into a patch of skin, or blood tests. Neither of these are particularly effective and generally not performed unless the owner is prepared to attempt a desensitization programme. This involves a long term course of injections given by your vet on, say, a monthly basis to desensitize your dog to the offending allergen, and so make the allergic reaction much smaller when he/she does come into contact with it.

Contact dermatitis is a skin reaction caused by your dog coming into contact with a chemical that is an irritant. It therefore only tends to affect the stomach, groin and feet of the dog, and is characterized by reddening and drying of the skin in these areas. It can also be seen when owners shampoo their dogs with a product that is not intended for use in dogs. Contact dermatitis is rare, but easily ruled out by careful use of cleaning products around the household. Just think, did the itchiness coincide with the introduction of a new carpet cleaner, washing powder or fabric softener?

By far the best treatment for any allergy is avoidance of the cause. By careful investigation and following the steps above this is often possible, especially for flea bite hypersensitivity, adverse food reactions and contact dermatitis. If avoidance is impossible though, as is the case for many cases of atopic dermatitis, then seasonal or lifelong treatment may be indicated. Steroids are very effective at stopping itchiness caused by allergies, but long term use can lead to undesirable side effects, such as adrenal gland disease. Long term steroid use should only be used as a last resort, when other medications have been tried and failed. These other medications include antihistamines, essential fatty acids and medicated shampoos.

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Cost of investment:

The major elements involved in setting up a Shih Tzu Groom Shop are:

1. Rent and security deposits.
2. Renovation
3. Tools and equipment
4. Furniture and fixtures
5. Legal fees
6. Insurance
7. Advertising
8. Supplies
9. Cash reserve

The cost will depend upon your location and the materials you start out with. You can estimate at least $10,000 to start your Speciality Shih Tzu Grooming Shop.

Rent: Will vary according to the specific location. Rent in a major metropolitan center will be greater than in a rural area. A landlord will usually demand a security deposit in advance or with your first month’s rent. In addition, there will likely be deposits required for utilities.

Renovation: Is dependent upon the Shih Tzu Groom shop’s condition and your desire to alter or design the shop.

Tools and equipment: A basic assortment of clippers, blades, scissors, shampoos, brushes, combs, cosmetics for your Shih Tzu Groom Shop will cost at a minimum of $400. Heavy equipment such as dryers, cages and tables fitted with groom loops will cost at a minimum of $2,000.

Legal fees: If you choose a lawyer to negotiate a lease on the most favorable terms for your Shih Tzu Groom Shop, his or her services can cost more than $300.00. The investment may be well worth it, however, if you are unable to negotiate a favorable lease term yourself.

Insurance: Is a must have item.

Advertising: Before opening the doors to your Shih Tzu Groom Shop, you will want to advertise and promote the shop as quickly as possible. Ways of advertising could be through the Yellow Pages, newspapers, direct mail and flyers, at vet offices, pet supply warehouses and the internet. One page websites on the internet describing your business with e-mail and telephone numbers would be quite helpful. You would need to market and promote your website as well.

Supplies: Pet supplies such as designer pet clothing, shampoos, cr

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Are you irritated by your dog’s drooping ears or your kitty’s tail which is capable of sweaping off a coffee table in a mere second? Is your puppy being too loud and your Calico scratching a bit too much? In our society,
there are so many cosmetic procedures that have the capability of transforming our pets into the best citizens of their kind, into members of other breeds or into denizens of imaginary breeds.

Some could even say that these cosmetic surgeries enhance the overall quality of a pet’s life while others could possibly state that these procedures are mean-spirited, ego driven and more for the benefit of the pet owners than for the pets well being.

Cosmetic surgery for pets is not at all a recent idea. In the late 1800’s and the early twentieth century cosmetic surgery or alteration was a normal practice, most especially in the cat show world.

Such techniques as tail bobbing and ear reducing to produce the deceptive image of another breed were practices used regularly.

And there are other cosmetic procedures for pets that sound like procedures for people. We are not the only creatures who can get a tummy tuck. This is done especially for health purposes, as some animal breeds are indeed more vulnerable
to infection and so forth. Your pet could even have liposuction done. And that is not nearly the end of it. There is
also the changing of eyelids to alter eye shape and face lifts which alter the pet’s face. And for show pets there are prosthetic testicles for dogs as well as laser depilation for the looks of “hairless” cats.

Holistic Vet Dr. Jane Bicks has performed her share of these surgeries. At one time she gave a face lift to a dog who had facial folds so pronounced his eyes were part covered over! She had to rid the dog’s face of its unpleasing
folds and in the end the eyes looked around two times as big as before the procedure.

She also did a nose job on her horse, a horse whom that she had rescued and who had a mangled nose. She replaced the nose and stitched it back on while not changing the natural style.

Some animal advocates say there is a morality issue doing this to pets who did not request it done and who did not concur with it(or the actual pain that goes along with it) just to look a certain way.
It is really somewhat surprising all the other cosmetic surgery procedures that are done on a regular. For additional information about Pet issues and nutrition visit The Pet Food Zone and find out more.

R. Joseph is a writer/researcher. For more info go to http://www.premium4pets.com/

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