Mine have DP on as well H :smt102

Hi Foxy how is he today, still scratching? I noticed you said he`s made his face bleed you`ll have to watch that doesn`t get infected, the chances are pretty high if it isn`t already it will be soon if he`s still scratching it & another visit to vet may be needed

The thing with steroids is they don`t cure allergies & they don`t always relieve them either as you are finding out. Try & find a chemist open & get some anti-histamines asap & start him on them. I`ve had good success with 1 called atarax & so have a couple of people I know

There are 4 types, if 1 doesn`t work try another, hopefully 1 of them will work, just a case of finding the right 1

Heres a link giving info on the best ones to try

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/food_allergies.html

It depends on the manufacturer as to how the pills look. Prednicare, prednisilone are both the same drug, now the new directives are in place it is ONLY the DOG drug that can be used.

I would inclined to have extensive tests on Benji, I wouldnt be happy controlling symptoms of what appears to be a serious and very distressing condition for wee Benji, I would have to find the cause. Long term use of steroids causes real problems and he is just a young dog isnt he?

Hope his itching calms a bit, and he feels more comfy soon.

Dawn.

Hi Foxy, Happy New Year first. I would be inclined to agree with Dawn and get the tests done as i have racked my brain about what is causing these problems and the action to take and i don't think it will be solved until the offending allergens are identified. Have a word with the dermatologist i took Bandit to see in Dorset. His name is Mr Paul Coward and his phone number is 01202 821001. He should be able to explain everything to you and perhaps know of a dermatologist in your area as it seems you are just going round in circles. Hope this helps....Cheers...Ian..

Funny you should mention him Ian, coz he used to regularly visit a local veterinary practice near to me on the south Coast and I took Cassie when she was a puppy and was itching and dandruffy, and he was absolutely brilliant, took samples etc. etc. Unfortunately he couldn't identify what her particular problem was so she was put on a 3month course of anti-biotics which seemed to work, and 9 years down the line she has never scratched since! I wonder if he travels the Country still? Foxy you could try asking your vet whether he knows of him, as he is well known down south for skin treatments, I can't praise him enough!
Mind you, I think I ended up paying him over £800!!

About the allergy testing. The previous owner of my itchy dog Georgie spent hundreds of pounds having him tested and apparently he is allergic to just about everything, so what can you do? Maybe Benji is the same and it's an inherited problem, especially as he is also a white dog, as these seem to suffer more. I swear by the Piriton tablets and so does Foxy I think and at certain times of the year, or flareups, they just don't seem to have any effect, even by increasing them to 3 per day.

I did quite an extensive search last night on those prednisolone tabs and found myself on an irish setter website as this pyoderma seems to affect these dogs particularly badly and of course those white scottie type terriers (sorry, forgotten the name of them!) A woman in my village who has one of these has tried everything over the years including prednisolone, and she told me the other day she has got him on Atopica which seem to have done the trick and she is over the moon that she has found a cure, but they are very, very expensive and Foxy has already tried those. I also came across something else they use, but when looking that up, it appeared to be a herione related drug, so I didn't go there!

Anyway, I hope Benji is more comfortable today Foxy, but i know exactly what you're going through as the same thing happened the last time Georgie had that steroid jab and pills, in fact, I would say it actually made him worse! Where do we go from here then? Is he still of his salmon and potato? I'm beginning to think it must be food related somehow, and when I finish my bag of food, I'm going down the holistic food route or plain old human food like I eat (cremate!) A very Happy New Year too Foxy!

We just couldn't afford that sort of money especially as there is no guarantee of it working and from what I have heard there are so many dogs that have these tests and they still scratch. Like say he is allergic to grass - what do you do make sure he never comes into contact with grass again - thats impossible because we have a garden full of it and the pollen would be in the air from next doors grass and the grass behind our back fence so its impossible really isn't it People have steroids and they live a lot longer lives than dogs so surely short bursts of them now and again aren't going to do much harm

*Where do we go from here then?*

Ahmm H, maybe some of the elimation things I suggested wks ago & perhaps a change of anti-histamines, if 1 doesn`t work try another

Think Foxy will be in shock at the mo & need time to deal with this, poor girl

Hi Helena 54, we found Mr Coward extremely helpful and it was only when we saw him we started to get some answers. Luckily i have pet insurance so we were covered for treatment. We had Bandit blood tested [£292 ] at the vets and the samples sent off to York labs but is was only when we had him skin tested [ £160 inculding consultation fee] by Mr Coward we got anywhere as these results were more conclusive and our dog Bandit is a prime example of a dog suffering from Atopy and he is also allergic to about everything but more so to contact and airbourne allergens.
I'm afraid it is just a case of controlling it the best you can and fortunately in Bandit's case we have done that with good effect and you would not know he had a skin problem whereas 2 years ago he could hardly walk as his skin, paws, ears etc were so sore and infected. He was really bad after his stay in kennels when we went on holiday and they did not contact my vet as instructed if any problems arose. Needless to say that is the end of holidays for me and if we do go anywhere it is as a whole family with the dogs. I am also pleased to say the kennels in question has since closed down so at least they can't let any more dogs go through unnecessary suffering..Cheers....Ian..

Hi Christine, yes I posted this before I saw Foxy's sad news thread I am at the moment looking into a new food supply, totally holistic, home cooked, all natural, and I will try that route next. Yes, I think a change of the anti-histamines is on the cards too. Things are not too bad for me at the moment with mine, it's been a lot worse, but I now want to try a different food route with him to eliminate that and see what happens.

My rescue dog has had all the blood tests done over the years withhis previous owner, so there's no point me doing any more of that, but it would have been nice to have been able to see Mr. Coward with him too, and I might look into it. He certainly seems to have helped you out with Bandit doesn't he We are the same here about holidays, I go alone whilst hubby takes a week off to look after the dogs! He doesn't like holidays anyway, thank goodness!