Your furry friend loves to share almost everything in your life, with the notable exception of allergies. New York State typically has a long allergy season—from late February or early March through October—and an unusually warm winter made it start earlier than usual this year. 

In the Syracuse area, spring brings pollen from oak, walnut, hickory, maple, and willow trees. Summer brings more pollen from timothy, orchard, and sweet vernal grass. In autumn, weeds, such as ragweed and wormwood, are the major culprits. While pets and people get a break from outdoor allergens during the winter, hard-to-banish indoor allergens, such as mold and dust mites, still cause issues. Although food allergies are rare in pets, they can also cause trouble at any time of year.

Our Stack Veterinary Hospital team wants you to be able to recognize pets’ allergy signs. Learn how allergies are diagnosed and the most effective prevention and treatment options available to help your pet cope with the signs. 

Common allergy signs in pets

The skin, ears, eyes, and anal glands are where most dogs’ and cats’ allergy signs appear. Keep an eye out for these signs:

  • Intense itching that causes skin licking, scratching, chewing, biting, or rubbing
  • Hair loss
  • Red skin bumps 
  • Reddened, dark, or thickened skin patches
  • Skin infection and rash
  • Skin sores and crusting
  • Chronic ear infections
  • Recurrent anal gland issues that cause pets to scoot along the floor
  • Vomiting or chronic diarrhea

Cats may also have respiratory signs, often with nasal discharge. In addition, allergic cats may develop conjunctivitis—inflammation of the mucous membrane lining their lids and eyes.

Allergy types that affect dogs and cats

Of the three allergy types that might be making your pet uncomfortable, the most common is caused by flea bites. Environmental allergies are a close second. Dietary allergies are rare but can take quite a while to diagnose and treat. Consider these allergy types:

  • Flea allergy dermatitis (FAD) — Your dog’s or cat’s immune system can overreact to the saliva that fleas inject as they bite them. This can lead to itching, fur loss, and inflamed skin. FAD is the first allergen for which our veterinarian tests if we suspect your pet has an allergy. Battling a flea invasion is a tough job. Our veterinarian can treat any infection the fleas may have given your pet and prescribe an anti-itching product as well as a year-round preventive to minimize an additional allergic reaction’s possibility. Your mission is to eliminate the tiny parasites from your home by using flea-control products. Our team will recommend products that are effective and safe to use around dogs and cats. You’ll also need to vacuum your floors and upholstery frequently and launder your pet’s bedding and anything else on which they like to lie such as area rugs or the comforter on your bed.
  • Environmental allergens — Pollen causes most environmental allergies, and these substances can affect your dog or cat during the spring, summer, or fall. Wiping your pet’s paws before they enter your home after having been outdoors helps prevent them from tracking pollen into the house. However, you can’t eliminate all pollen from your pet’s environment. If you suspect your pet is allergic to an outdoor, plant-based allergen, our veterinary team can test their blood or skin for allergies to tree, weed, and grass pollens. If something indoors seems to be causing the problem, we can also test for dust, dust mites, and mold spores. Once we know what’s causing your pet’s allergic reaction, we can tailor a treatment and prevention plan based on our findings.
  • Food allergies — Pets’ food allergies are rare, but when they do occur, they can cause your four-legged friend a lot of discomfort. Beef, dairy products, chicken, wheat, and lamb are the foods that most often trigger allergic reactions in dogs. Some dogs are sensitive to less common allergens such as soy, corn, egg, pork, fish, and rice. Beef, fish, and chicken cause the most allergic reactions in cats, but they can also be allergic to wheat, corn, dairy products, lamb, eggs, pork, rabbit, whale meat, and barley. Pets can be allergic to more than one food ingredient at a time.  To rule out a food allergy, our team has to place your pet on a food trial or elimination diet. This needs to last at least 8 to 12 weeks for pets with skin issues and three to four weeks for those with digestive issues. A novel ingredient diet, featuring foods your pet has never eaten before, is one food trial option. Another is a hydrolyzed diet in which the food’s dietary proteins have been rendered too small for the body’s immune system to detect. Once you know the food to which your pet is allergic, you can eliminate it from their diet going forward.

If you suspect your dog or cat has an allergy, schedule an appointment with our Stack Veterinary Hospital team. We’ve been taking good care of pets for 110 years, and we’ve been American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) certified for the past 65. We look forward to helping your four-legged pal become allergy-free.