I told you about Silas’s skin problems, I know. What I didn’t go into was how horrible his allergies can be.
He broke out with these hives
while he was on Benadryl. This is the body shot that goes with the face-shot I posted before.
The grass allergy came up with a terrifying rapidity. We were on a road trip back home to visit the family. In the edge of Mississippi we stopped at a strip mall to get a bagel from Panera. I told my husband to take Silas over to the grass at the end of the mall to see if he needed to potty while I grabbed the food.
Once I got back in the car, I realized that something was terribly wrong. Silas’s whole head was lumpy, covered with huge welts. We raced to the other end of the plaza and bought some Benadryl from the grocery store. And they helped, some. After a while I called the vet, who told me I could give him a higher dosage.
We spent the next day watching him break out in fresh hives every time his Benadryl started to fade. I called the vet back, and she called in some Prednisone to the local pharmacy. It made Silas as crazy as a bessy bug, but it took care of things. After we got back home he pulled his pollen-y blanket out of the laundry and broke out again. I rushed him to the vet, convinced that the hives were never going to go away. He spent the whole visit licking her face, with the hives already gone before we got there. But I showed her the pictures.
Thursday we’re going back. (So, no weekend posts this week.) I called the vet just now:
“We have to go back home, and I’m afraid of the hives. Is there some medicine we can take with us just in case?”
“For anybody else I would think this is weird, but I know how Silas is. I’ll fill you a prescription.”
How high maintenance is your dog, when even the vet thinks that he merits an exception?
My Imperfect Dog 
Poor Silas! That sounds just awful. I hope the medicine works and you are able to find out what the issues are. When it comes to allergies, it can be so hard to figure out the cause. Poor little guy.
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We’re lucky that it’s apparently only a certain kind of grass/weed that isn’t native where we live. It’s on the list of things we have to think about before we can move out of this city, though–it would be a terrible thing to manage long-term.
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Poor fella. I can see why you’re worried. That doesn’t sound like fun.
I wonder if homeopathy would be a helpful tool to develop Silas’s immune system. It’s supposed to be quite effective with allergies.
Good luck.
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A well-recommended homeopathic vet is the one thing I *can’t* get in this town, unfortunately.
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I’m not sure where you’re located but I find myself recommending this vet over and over again. His name is Dr. Landau, he was instrumental in diagnosing and helping Delilah. He lives in Amherst, MA but he does travel. I’m not sure if it’s even an option but perhaps he (for a fee I’m sure) would consult with your vet via e-mails or phone calls. Honestly in this day and age with the technology available to us, almost no-one is out of reach. 🙂 He deals a lot with Chinese Herbs and perhaps there is something he could recommend, Poor Silas and poor you, I would be a wreck. http://www.landauvet.com
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Thanks for the recommendation! The food allergies are 97% under control, and the pollen allergy seems to be linked to a specific time/place. If they get any worse, though, or if we need to move to a place where they’re worse, a homeopathic vet is definitely on the list of things to try.
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