Anyone's dog have grass allergies?

[BullyLady]

I think we may have discovered Shelby's big allergen! We just got back from vacation, during which Shelby boarded at a local kennel. When we got back her belly was literally SPOT FREE!!! Not a red mark to be found, her armpits were so lovely! Now, fast forward five days later, she has spots again and the beginning of an armpit sore. I was trying to think of what we have that the kennel didn't and I've come up with grass. They have concrete kennels with wooden bed things and their play area is all sand. Meanwhile, here, Shelby eats her raw outside on the lawn and lays in the grass after wards.

So, I'm going to change her to eating on the porch, but she's going to come into contact with grass sometimes, what can I do to make her belly better? Do you think wiping her down with a peroxide/vinegar drying solution when she comes inside will help? I have a vet followup on Thurs, so I'll ask then as well, but I thought I'd pick your guys' brains as well.

[Pit♥bull]

Grass allergy isn't uncommon but do you use pesticides or fertilizer?

[PetieMarie22]

I know someone whose dogs has grass allergies and she gives the dog Benedryl everyday.

[LMM]

My mom's Molly is allergic to a bunch of different grasses. She is on daily atopica or she will break out

[BullyLady]

I know someone whose dogs has grass allergies and she gives the dog Benedryl everyday.

She takes 100 mg a day, already!

[BullyLady]

Grass allergy isn't uncommon but do you use pesticides or fertilizer?

We do use a fertilizer. Can she be allergic to that? Is grass allergy not that common?

[Natalie]

Like you, I suspect my dog has grass allergies, in addition to other outdoor seasonal allergies. We've declined the test to find out for sure and have opted instead to manage his symptoms according to the advice of the super expensive university dermatologist. That being said, we know which of his spots are from yeast and which from staph, so we treat accordingly. If you don't know what the spots are, managing them will be impossible. Might be worth a visit to the vet for a skin scrape and some advice.

The routine:
Cetirizine (Zyrtec) twice a day
Genesis topical steroid spray as needed on feet, chest, neck
Malaseb wipes, typically after outside time on feet, neck, chest, pits
Athlete's foot spray with miconazole as needed on feet
Twice weekly baths with either Nizoral, Malaseb, or Douxo Chlorhexidine

Outside time is very limited during the worst time of year (now)
Bedding is washed weekly with Tide Free, no fabric softener
All floor cleaning products are hippy-natural, no chemicals
No chemicals in the yard
Frequent vacuuming
No food other than his kibble, treats are ice cubes (can't beat free!)
Food and water dishes go through the dishwasher weekly
All hard toys for chewing (nylabone, cuz, etc) get soaked in boiling bleach water weekly

Am I a little OCD? Okay, maybe. But this is the best year my dog has had as far as allergies his whole life. I'm sticking to it!

[Pit♥bull]

Grass allergy isn't uncommon but do you use pesticides or fertilizer?

We do use a fertilizer. Can she be allergic to that? Is grass allergy not that common?

Grass allergy is common but we have been fighting 'allergy dog' with Trouble for the last 12 years and were vet advised about not using any pesticides or fertilizer.

[amazincc]

Faust has grass allergies (among his many)... definitely, definitely stay away from any pesticides and fertilizers.
Last summer I had a guy mow my yard who - unbeknownst to me - sprayed pesticides along my fence and the next day Faust was one big "walking sore".
Even now he has some break-outs as soon as my grass is freshly mowed, and then it tapers of for a couple of weeks, until next time. I give Benadryl as needed, but if I'm not right on top of it each time he develops those dreaded and nasty secondary skin infections from scratching so much.
He is also the one who LOVES to roll around, and sunbathe, on a freshly mowed lawn, so I'm forever yelling at him to "get up" and "stop it"...
I can see a huge difference as soon as it gets cooler - we had almost no problems during the fall and winter of last year (as long as he also stayed on a strict low-allergen kibble)... but as soon as it got warmer and the grass started to grow - voila.

I do try to limit his exposure, but it's hard when you have a huge yard and all the other dogs enjoy being outside.

Allergies in any form SUCK, but environmental ones are the WORST, IMO.
I'm thinking of bubble-wrapping him next year, from about April 'til October, and he'll just have to spend the whole summer sitting on a shelf in the living room.

[plebayo]

My friend's pit bull Reno has grass allergies. His belly always breaks out really bad. She uses gentimicin/betamethasone spray and it helps soothe it. Like someone else mentioned Genesis is good too, they are steroid based but it's topical and really helps with the itching and redness.

[Pit♥bull]

I'm thinking of bubble-wrapping him next year

Now that sounds like a plan

[ParisStreetPitCrew]

Sidda has grass allergies.
When we were trying to minimize her exposure, the vet had us putting a t-shirt or jammies on her when she was in the yard and then wiping her down with a towel after she came back in. Seemed to help a little bit, but was a huge hassle to dress her up every time.

She's on Atopica and raw diet now.

[Lucky09-mom]

I had thought Lucky was having allergic reactions to grass, but I couldn't say positively and my fiance kept telling me no he doesn't. I said he itches, starts to get little bumps, sneezes, etc. after being in the grass too much, especially when it goes out and the grass is freshly cut. "no no no, he is ok, but maybe we should take him to the vet if you are worried" said my fiance. Well guess what....I was right, vet did a skin scrap and he does have a allergy to grass, and when you get a bad breeder then with a dog that already has skin problems they are more prone to it. So batheing, wiping everytime he comes in, and less contact with grass the better. Suppose to give him 3 adult benadryl 2 times a day (makes me a little nervous). Antibotic and a shot to help with the itch. But I have read a lot and it can be really common. I feel sorry for him because my daughter and I have bad allergies so I know how uncomfortable it is.

[Malli]

The only time I've ever seen Oscar get hives was when I looked closer at the field we went to and they'd just fertilized (I could see little granules and it occured to me later after we got home when he started dive bombing the carpet )

I don't think you'd have to use the peroxide/vinegar solution unless you see a breakout. Soap(unscented ) and water and then a rinse cloth would probably suffice. As effective as that mixture seems to be, it is also fairly drying and irritating so I'd "save it" for actual break out issues.

It makes sense, if her breakouts are all on contact areas...

[BullyLady]

It makes sense, if her breakouts are all on contact areas...

Yup.... she's back to being pretty broken out and had a vet visit today. Dr. Katie said the exact same thing, given that it's all contact areas let's just do the allergy testing, and when it comes back laden with report of environmental allergies then let's start the shots. Good thing I have 40 hours of overtime on next week's paycheck, I'm going to drop $300 on this dog a week from Tuesday for the testing and 4 months of serum.

[TheRedQueen]

The Wiener has contact allergies...but I'm thinking it's not so much grass as it is wet grass. He's so low that his belly is ALWAYS in the grass, no matter how short it's cut. He seems to break out when the grass is wet, and his belly stays wet afterwards. I dry him off if it's rainy or early morning and there is dew. That seems to help. He also has grain allergies, so he's on a grain free kibble. Sometimes he just pops up with bumps, and I have no idea why. He gets benadryl for flare-ups and some Buddy Boo Boo for his scabby rashes.

Luckily it's under control with just the benadryl and topical ointments...we'll keep our fingers and paws crossed for Shelby's allergy testing.