Sam'smom Posted July 17, 2008 Report Share Posted July 17, 2008 Just wondering if anyone has heard too much about border collies being more prone to insect allergies? Sam my new pup recently has a pretty severe allergic reaction to some kind of sting. He was wheezy, his eyes, nose, lips, tongue and even his ears were all quite swollen. I was lucky enough to get him to the vets fairly quickly as he was definately quite a sick pup, they gave him some benadryl and a steroid shot and he was pretty much back to normal with in an hour but is this common?? Kate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urge to herd Posted July 17, 2008 Report Share Posted July 17, 2008 Hi, Kate, I've got a Sam as well, just in the female version, so I had to respond. I don't think that border collies are more prone to allergies. One of my girls is allergic to some environmental stuff and dairy products, but we've not had an insect bite, (knocks on wood.) The other 2 don't have any problems in that area. I had a neighbor a few years ago with a young golden retriever. He got bitten by something and you could actually see the hives developing on the poor guy. He was fine after a trip to the E Vet, they told Vivian to keep liquid benedryl on hand for him. Glad it wasn't any worse than that. Allergic reactions do tend to get worse with repeated exposure, so you'll want to check your yard, etc for any nests of stinging insects and deal with them. Check with your vet about how you should respond if he gets stung again. If you travel around with him, you'll want to take some Benedryl with you. Ruth n the BC3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 Devils Posted July 17, 2008 Report Share Posted July 17, 2008 My bc Tempe had a severe to we suspect a spider bite. Got up one morning and she looked a little weird but could not pinpoint it. We left and went to breakfast came back and Tempe was covered in hives, her face was swelling, her legs were swelling, etc... we called the vets and they said give her some benadryl and see if that helps. We did, it helped for a very short time and we ended up the ER Vets. They gave her some more drugs - she was a little better by the time we got to the ER Vets and they said it was the adrenaline causing the reversal in reaction. We take Tempe home, I called the dog walker to give her a heads up in case there is a problem the next day. Tempe was fine when we left for work, was fine for the dog walker. I got home and Tempe was all swollen again. Off to our regular vets. They gave her more drugs and now we had to give her steroids for a week or so... We got past the reaction in a couple days and Tempe has never had another one. It has been a year or so now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam'smom Posted July 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2008 So just back from the emergency vet... Sam had another pretty nasty allergic reaction to an insect bite or sting. He was out in the back yard with me while I was hanging out the laundry and I heard him wimper, then he took off like he was being chased by a thousand evil cats from hell.... running up and down the fence and pawing at his nose( or mouth it was hard to tell) when I finally was able to get a hold of him and calmed down enough to have a look his eyes, nose, lips and tongue even the tips of his ears were all swelling at an alarming rate seriously he looked like an alien!! So called the vet and they said I could bring him right in, by the time I got there he was wheezing, and in obvious respiratory distress it was frightening! They brought him in to vet right away and he got a shot of benadryl and a steriod same as last time.. we are home now, he's on his bed sleeping now and everything is settleing down, he has to take benadryl pills for the next 2 days . Sigh... this is a very worrisome trend as allergies such as this tend to get worse as one ages (at least with people this is the case) and the vet thinks it's likely he'll always react this way recommended having an epi-pen and benadryl on me all the all time for walks an such... poor boy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urge to herd Posted July 25, 2008 Report Share Posted July 25, 2008 Check your yard and your neighbors' yards for wasp, bees, yellow jacket nests. Spider bites can cause a reaction as well, so keep shrubs etc swept free. Poor guy. I've had a bad allergic reaction and you feel like holy h**k for a few days. Ruth n the BC3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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