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[B418]Best Dog For Allergy

by John Hinkle, Joh

1. Wash your hands frequently.

Wash your hands with soap and hot water immediately after handling your dog. If you are unable to wash your hands right away, avoid touching your hands with your face especially your eyes, nose, and mouth. If you have severe allergies and are in close contact with your dog, you may need to take frequent showers and change your clothes throughout the day.

2. Feed your dog a well-balanced diet.

Your dog's diet should include some natural fat. This fat helps to make your dog's skin less dry, resulting in less shedding. Talk to your vet about his recommendations on how to safely add fat to his diet.

3. Don't allow your dog in the bedroom.

This tip takes a lot of discipline, but it does make a big impact on your reaction to allergies. Keeping your bedroom door closed is ideal because it keeps airborne particles away. Sleep on mattresses and pillows with hypoallergenic polyester fillings. Also, as an extra precaution, cover your pillows, mattresses, and box springs with plastic, zippered, allergy-proof covers.

4. Brush your dog often.

It is ideal to brush your dog daily. However, if you suffer from allergies, you'll need to give another family member the responsibility of brushing the dog. If possible, the dog should be brushed outdoors. If you live alone with your dog, consider taking him to a professional groomer. You could wear a dust mask and gloves for brushing him in between grooming visits.

5. Bathe your dog often.

Check your dog's current shampoo. It should be ahypoallergenic or oatmeal based shampoo. If it's not, try switching brands. If your allergies can't handle the bathing, have another family member be responsible for giving baths. Or, have your dog visit a groomer.

6. Wash your dog's belongings.

Get into the habit of washing your dog's bed, blankets, and toys on a weekly basis either by hand with a safe soap or in the washing machine.

7. Check your vacuum.

Make sure your vacuum cleaner has a HEPA (High Efficiency Particle Air) filtration system. This type of system will help pull up and trap more of your dog's dander from the floor.

Note: vacuuming is recommended over sweeping because sweeping can stir the dander into the air, rather than trapping and removing it.

8. Have carpets cleaned regularly.

Even though you use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filtration system, it is important to still have your carpets steam-cleaned throughout the year. Try to have this done at least quarterly.

9. Dust often.

Use a damp cloth to wipe down surfaces such as tables, shelves, window sills, wall hangings, lamps, and other furniture and accessories. If necessary, wear a dust mask as you clean. Reccomended cleansing solutions:Oti-Clens Cleansing Solution

10. Keep the air fresh.

Use an air purifier one that contains a HEPA. This type of system will help eliminate dander from the air.

The less a dog sheds the less dander it produces. The following breeds typically produce less dander:

Airedale

Basenji

Bedlington terrier

Bichon frise

Chinese crested

Irish water spaniel

Italian greyhound

Kerry blue terrier

Maltese

Poodle

Portuguese water dog

Schnauzers

Shih tzu

Soft-coated Wheaten terrier

Tibetan terrier

Wire-haired fox terrier

Xoloitzcuintli (Mexican hairless)

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If you've ever had a dog allergy problem, you already know how troublesome this can be. But if you're new to owning a dog, you might not ever know what to expect or how to handle it once you recognize there is a problem. However, if you own a dog for any period of time, you will surely have to handle the question of allergies in your dog's life. So, here's what you need to know to be the best dog owner you can be.

What are Dog Allergies?

Just as in humans, dogs are susceptible to having problems with allergens. When these allergens come into contact with your dog, they can cause the dog's body to react in various ways. If the allergens cause the dog's body to respond, the body then creates histamines in the body - which are what cause the symptoms that you can see in your dog. These symptoms include:

Frequent itching

Chewing

Biting on the tail

Biting the stomach

Biting the insides of the hind legs

Licking and chewing the paws

Sneezing

Coughing

Watery eyes

Vomiting

Diarrhea

Hives

Rashes

Actually, dogs react in the same way that humans do to many allergens, so if you notice any symptoms like you would have when you were having an allergic reaction, that's probably a sign of allergy in your pet as well.

Finding the Cause of the Allergies

In order to treat the allergies in your dog, you need to figure out where the allergic reaction is coming from. Once you've found this source, you will be able to stop the allergic reaction from happening. But the process of determining the source can be trickier than it seems. Here are a few different ways to start sorting out the cause:

Create a diary of your dog's activities - By writing down the things your dog was doing at the time of the allergic reaction or what the dog was doing right before, you might begin to see where the allergy came from. For example, if you notice that your dog is always sneezing after coming in from playing in the woods, there might be a connection there.
Create a diary of the dog's diet - If you're feeding your dog new things on a regular basis, that might cause allergies or reactions in your dog as well. By taking time to consider what your dog might be ingesting that is making them sick, you will be able to eliminate those foods from the diet and help reduce the reactions.
Check the skin often - When you check the skin and the coat of your dog on a regular basis, you can find fleas and ticks that might be causing your dog's allergic reactions. In some cases, you might even be able to find these fleas and ticks before they cause large problems in the dog's health.
Check with the veterinarian - Some vets are able to do allergy tests on the dog to see if there are any allergy problems that come up. This is often the last step in determining the cause of your dog's allergy problems when you can not find any obvious causes on your own.

Treating Allergies in Dogs

Just as with human allergies, some veterinarians might want to prescribe allergy medication to help fend off the reactions in certain dogs. Sometimes the symptoms are just too uncomfortable in the dog, leading them to having troubles with their everyday activities and medication is a great option to help them get back on their feet. You will have to give your dog this medication on a regular basis to ensure that they are protected from allergic reactions.

Of course, the best way to help treat allergies is to avoid the causes in the first place. By making sure you are reducing or eliminating the cause of the allergic reaction, you will be able to avoid troubles with the dog's allergies. Prevention of things like fleas and ticks will go a long way in keeping your dog healthy and happy.

Another way to treat allergies in your dog is to make sure always cleaning the skin and the coat of your dog to reduce the chances of ticks and fleas and pollen staying on the surface and causing troubles. Try using a good dry shampoo as recommended by your vet to keep the fur clean of allergens during high allergy times of the year.

The fact is that dogs are just as prone to allergies as their human owners, so if you want to make sure that you are doing the best that you can for your dog, you need to practice prevention and treatment as quickly as you identify the source of the allergy. Neither of you has to live with allergies.

Article Source : Sinusitis

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Both John Hinkle & Grant Eckert- are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

John Hinkle has sinced written about articles on various topics from Allergies, Medical Insurance and Anger Management. For more ,