Mary & Dogs Posted June 23, 2002 Report Share Posted June 23, 2002 Does anybody know if dogs can get poison ivy or oak like people do? My Molly started itching and scratching. And ended up with a really sore place right where her back leg attaches to her body. I took her in to the vet and he said she was getting a hot spot there. He said that problems in that particular area usually start when the dog is running through high grass. She is better this morning - cortizone and antibiotics. But I have poison ivy out back and got to wondering if a dog could be allergic to it. Have never had any problems before. ------------------ Mary Hartman Kansas City, MO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Margaret M Wheeler Posted June 23, 2002 Report Share Posted June 23, 2002 My husband the immunologist tells me that it is probably possible for dogs to react to poison ivy. He says that the puzzling thing is that they don't react to it often and their reactions are much less severe than that of humans. Why? He thinks perhaps they are genetically predisposed to be resistant or that they are exposed so much that their sensitivity is decreased. Oh well, enough of him! Several of my terriers have grass allergies and it seemed that these were particularly pronounced when they were young dogs. If they get a lesion, I like to try to treat them myself instead of going with the standard cortisone injection, just because I like to save cortisone for those times that standard treatments won't work. Cortisone can have some nasty side effects, especially if used frequently. I keep the terriers coats quite short in the summer. Then I can check them over for various skin problems regularly. My current bugaboo is ticks that die attached and create big abcesses. Anyway... I clip the hair away from the lesion and hotpack it three times a day. Then I load it up with panalog ointment. If you keep her with you, you can teach her not to lick and chew her itchies just correct her and make her stop. Pretty soon she won't even try it in your presence. In the case of the grass allergies, I give the dog antihistimines if their feet look like they are getting pink and itchy. You should have benadryl on hand anyway as a response to anaphylaxis from bee stings or innoculations. If they seem particularly itchy, I soak them every so often in Aveeno, the colloidal otmeal skin treatment for us human types. Just rinsing them once in awhile with the hose will remove a bunch of the pollen that could be irritating the skin. You probably want to avoid shampooing with drying agents which will increase dryness/itchiness. Oh and I'm sure you know that you can get poison ivy from petting her if she's run through it. Just thought I'd mention that in case the uninitiated read this. ------------------ Margaret retired terrierwoman, border collie wannabe drumlins@adelphia.net Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary & Dogs Posted June 24, 2002 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2002 Thanks Margaret. Molly seems to be a lot better. This dog was really badly abused and I can't just handle her like one would a normal dog. Just getting her to the vet is a major thing. She never has had this problem before - but we have had a really wet spring. Since she won't let me put packs on her leg I am hosing her down. She loves to play in the hose and that was the only way I could get the area wet. But, we are making progress here and that is what is important. The bad spot is very circular in shape and I got to wondering if it might be a spider bite. They tend to be round and really itchy. Spiders have gotten really bad here in just the last week or so. ------------------ Mary Hartman Kansas City, MO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam Wolf Posted June 24, 2002 Report Share Posted June 24, 2002 Mary, hot spots can be due to stress--and I know Molly and she was just recently under stress. It can also be some sort of allergic reaction. I find a hydrocortizone ointment-- or something like dermacort which you can get from the vet) works well. Shady (the Lassie I have) just got one. maybe Molly and she got into the same thing? I have a spray which works great and you should be able to use it on Molly) Pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary & Dogs Posted June 24, 2002 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2002 Pam, There is no way I could get cream on that dog. I would lose my hand. And she would just lick it off. This place is down on her back leg so its right where she can lick it all the time. The vet told me just to hose her down. You know how she loves to play in the hose - so I just get her going and then make sure I really get her leg drenched. But - she is a lot better. She is starting to boing again. And the skin all around it is not that fiery red any more. And I think you may be right. She may have started licking that place and scratching it as a stress reaction. She has never had any reaction to grass or anything before. She is just such a creature of habit that being away from home and her crate would probably be enough to set her off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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