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    • Home
    • About Us
      • About Us
      • Meet the Staff
      • Hospital Tour
      • Testimonials
    • Our Services
      • Dentistry
      • Diagnostics
      • Mobile Veterinary Specialists
      • Preventive Care
      • Puppy and Kitten Care
      • Senior Care
      • Surgery
      • Wellness Packages
    • Patient Center
      • Dog Training
      • Payment Options
      • Emergency Referrals
      • Client Information Form
      • Blog
    • FAQs
      • What Insurance Should I
        Choose?
      • Why is Bloodwork
        Recommended When My Pet
        Is Healthy?
      • Is Dental Health Really That
        Important?
      • What Can Be Done To Make
        A Vet Visit Less Frightening?
      • What do I Do If My Pet
        Ingests Something Toxic?
      • My Cat Has Been Diagnosed
        With Hyperthyroidism
      • Recommended Heartworm,
        Flea, & Tick Prevention
      • What are Allergies and
        Why is my Pet so Itchy?
      • Essential Oils and Cats
    • Contact Us

    What are allergies and why is my pet so itchy?

    dog standing up

    Itchy pets can be so frustrating for a pet owner. One can feel helpless when it comes to this seasonal or perhaps year long symptom. It is important to keep in mind that an itchy pet is a symptom of an underlying allergy. Pets generally have allergies to one of three things, fleas, food, or something in the environment.
    The symptoms of allergies can range from ears infections, paw licking, hot spots, or itching the various places on the body.
    It can be a long process to determine what may be causing your pet to be itchy. So, discussing the history of the problem with your vet is very important. Is the itching seasonal, occur year round, what areas are affected and how severe is the itching.
    Once we dicuss the history, we may recommend a food trial. A food trial would consist of feeding your pet a prescription or home cooked hypoallergenic diet. It is important to choose a prescription food because these foods are manufactured in a facility that only makes this food. An over the counter food that may have limited ingredients is still processed in the factory that makes other more mainstream varieties. We try to choose a food that has a protein your pet has never been exposed to before. Chicken and beef allergies are the most common. A food trial needs to be attempted for a minimum of 12 weeks to see the benefit and your pet cannot have any other source of food.
    When treating for environmental allergies, we have to decide if it is important to determine the source of the allergy or if it makes sense to just treat the symptoms. This becomes a question of how severe and how often your pet may be suffering. Allergy shots is an option for pets that have frequent and severe symptoms and our goal is to diminish this over the course of the pet's lifespan.
    When treating the symptoms of your pet's allergies, we have a variety of oral drugs that can reduce the itching. We also recommend various topical medications such as shampoos, rinses, and ears cleaners.
    Allergies are a condition that has to be managed at home with the help of your vet. We are here to work with you to make your pet as comfortable and happy as possible.

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    Goose Creek Veterinary Hospital
    Address: 42755 Creek View Plaza
    Ashburn, VA 20147
    Phone: 571-444-8600 | Send Us An Email
    ​​​​​​​
    Hours of Operation
    Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 6:00pm
    Saturday: 8:00am - 12:00pm
    Sunday: Closed
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    The LifeCentre
    165 Fort Evans Rd NE
    Leesburg, VA 20176
    Phone: 703-777-5755
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