So it has been another 5 weeks since I started the amended elimination diet with Maddie.
Today the vet and I had our call to evaluate the progress.
Note that I called her today for a few very specific reasons:
- Venison roast at $10.99 a pound is not sustainable for this family’s budget
- I have boiled and chopped enough potatoes to feed the National Army of Kazakhstan (pretty flag, no?)
- Last night, for the 5th (or was it 50th) night in a row Maddie has awakened me licking and scratching her vulva and accompanying regions
The conversation went something like this:
Doc: How’s the scratching?
Me: On the margins somewhat better but she still wakes me up scratching.
Doc: Next step would be an allergy test.
Now at this point I am waiting for her to describe the scratch test. You know the one where they inject small amounts of the allergen and monitor the bumps that form.
But noooooooo……
Me: So the scratch test right?
Doc: No, they now have a blood test that looks at 40 different allergens and it is specific to Southern California (grasses, plants, etc.)
Me: How long have they had that test?
Doc: About 15 years.
What? Wait. WAIT! I have been doing the whole elimination diet thing as a way to try to figure out what is causing Maddie (and me) to be miserable and to save the $1800 plus dollars for allergy testing.
Me: So how much is the blood test?
Doc: $231.00
Me: WHAT? WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME THIS $231 TEST WAS AVAILABLE BEFORE I FED THE ENTIRE ARMY OF KAZAKSTAN POTATOES AND VENISON???!!!
Maddie went for her $231 allergy blood test today.
The results are back in two weeks.
My money on still on the fact she is allergic to the cat.
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In memory of Annie
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
We are having very similar experiences. My dog has both environmental allergies and horrible food allergies. While my situation is very much still a work in progress, I’ve had some recent success. I understand the frustration and helplessness so I wanted to share. I highly recommend reading a book called: Dr. Pitcairn’s New Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats – there’s a great section on allergies. I also highly recommend Bravo pet food. They have a variety of unique proteins to chose from – so much easier/cheaper than cooking. It’s raw food which some traditional vets scoff at but the changes in my dog have been significant so far. Good luck!!!
I too have been cooking my dog’s food for several months now. Berkley eats canned Kale, baked Sweet Potatoes, and canned Mackarel. He also gets supplements from the vet because these foods alone are not balanced for him. This has been very expensive and time-consuming. At first, he showed signs of improvement, but now, we’re back near the beginning with his itching.
I’m going to the vet tomorrow to talk about allergy testing by bloodwork. Then, I guess I’ll start with the allergy shots.
I saw the Bravo food in our local pet store. They also had Primal, which seemed to have included some of the supplements you’d have to use with Bravo.
I also found this food called EVO by Natura. It’s a kibble food, which I’d really like to get back to.
Once I find out what Berkley’s allergic to, I hope to be able to go to a more reasonable food.
If not, Berkley will have to get a job to help support all this!!
Good luck to you all!
@Heather and @Roxanne
The results of the blood work came back and the number one thing that Maddie is allergic to is…ME! Yes, human dander is her number one allergen. I’ll be writing about it soon!
I too am going thru allergy issues with my Great Dane Oliver. Started when he was 8 months old (4 months ago). After spending $1400 in one month on anti-histimines;steroids,and antibiotics to clear up all the secondary infections (yeast,staph) and his ridiculiously priced hypo-allergenic food, it’s time to stop the vicious cycle and get a real clue as to what is itchin my Oli!! Appt for the 20th hoping for some answers! I got a giggle when I read Rob’s post that his dog is allergic to human dander because I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what my boy is allergic too! time to hire a housekeeper!!! Good luck and would love to hear more on what’s happened with everyones allergy issues!
@A
Good luck! Trying to find the right combination of food and medication to address Maddie’s issues is a full time job.
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