sas Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 (edited) Hi Everyone, You don't have to reply if you don't want to expand upon your experience, however I would like to touch base with people who wouldn't mind be potenitaly used in an article on this topic in a breed club journal. Although I'm not going to go into a huge amount of details as we'd be here forever but my dog become an allergic dog as a young dog, I had numerious issues with him behavioural wise, I found it very hard to bond with him and train him, in addition he wasn't very affectionate - wasn't the biggest fan of being touched either. At just over 2 years of age we are making great headway treating his allergies and he's become a different dog and we're starting to really bond so it's been really interesting to see the difference! I recently spoke to another DOLer who had a young allergic dog who reported similar issues and I thought it would be worth investigating it further. Also would like to hear from those whose dogs became allergic as Adults and if you saw any change to their personality. Please feel free to post any of your comments below in addition to the above poll. Thanks heaps! Edited May 20, 2009 by sas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavik Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 I'm not really sure when Diesel's skin problems became really apparent. But I have had numerous health issues starting with him breaking a leg at 6 months. I don't think I have as good a bond with Diesel as I do with my other dogs. Not sure if it is a personality thing, or whether the contsant stress and worry about his health has anything to do with it. I don't think his personality has changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cavandra Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 Many of the "allergic " dogs are actually immuno suppressed due to reaction to Vaccines & in particular in older dogs a build up of damage through unneccessary annual Vaccines. My own "allergy" dogs as youngsters have been due to hormones, desex them or have a litter & symptoms have ceased....... Unneccessary Annual Vaccines also can cause inflamation of the brain (encephalitis), and you can have behaviour issues associated with that. Annual Vaccines due to suppressing the immune system also affect the thyroid, symptoms include allergy type symptoms.... you can also get allergies & poor behaviour including aggression through the commercial dog foods due some of the "premium brands" being abnormally high in Protein. The extremely high grain content is also a culprit of "allergy symptoms", mainly due to carbs (like grains, corn, rice /pastas) converting to sugars in the body & Yeast (candida) and cancer feed on yeast. Studies are being done linking lack of Folic acid cause of allergy symptoms in people particularly asthma...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 20, 2009 Author Share Posted May 20, 2009 I'm not really sure when Diesel's skin problems became really apparent. But I have had numerous health issues starting with him breaking a leg at 6 months. I don't think I have as good a bond with Diesel as I do with my other dogs. Not sure if it is a personality thing, or whether the contsant stress and worry about his health has anything to do with it. I don't think his personality has changed. Yeah, that's another thing to factor in, whether it is just the dogs personality that affects a bonding process. Although I think now seeing a healthier dog and a better bond, I 'think' the two would go hand in hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 20, 2009 Author Share Posted May 20, 2009 (edited) Many of the "allergic " dogs are actually immuno suppressed due to reaction to Vaccines & in particular in older dogs a build up of damage through unneccessary annual Vaccines. My own "allergy" dogs as youngsters have been due to hormones, desex them or have a litter & symptoms have ceased....... Unneccessary Annual Vaccines also can cause inflamation of the brain (encephalitis), and you can have behaviour issues associated with that. Annual Vaccines due to suppressing the immune system also affect the thyroid, symptoms include allergy type symptoms.... you can also get allergies & poor behaviour including aggression through the commercial dog foods due some of the "premium brands" being abnormally high in Protein. The extremely high grain content is also a culprit of "allergy symptoms", mainly due to carbs (like grains, corn, rice /pastas) converting to sugars in the body & Yeast (candida) and cancer feed on yeast. Studies are being done linking lack of Folic acid cause of allergy symptoms in people particularly asthma...... Thanks but that kind was straying away from the question? The topic of why dogs have allergies is an never ending one hehehe So at this stage I'm just interested in hearing peoples answers to the poll and their experiences bonding with allergic dogs (regardless of why they are allergic). Thank you though, you posted some interesting opinions Edited May 20, 2009 by sas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First Time Puppy Owner Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 (edited) Benson was okish as a very young pup but when he hit 7 mths he started to scratch a fair bit and was lossing interest in things quickly and seemingly hot all the time and then he got his first hot spot at 8 mths and it went down hill from there. He was lethargic, depressed, could not lie still for long periods on time, unaffectionate, placing your hand on his back would immediately start him scratching and sometimes even chewing, training became useless he just would not focus etc, etc, etc. He is now on Atopica which is treating the symptoms of atopy (not a cure and very expensive) but boy has his temprement changed, more affection, listens to commands better and seems happier in his own skin. Edited May 20, 2009 by First Time Puppy Owner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerraNik Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 Jedi's allergies appeared when he was 6 months old. It was 2-3 months later when we confirmed what the allergy was to (chicken) and since then he has been doing much better. He still licks at one of his paws and eats under one of his back legs, but it is no where near as bad and the behaviour is slowly dying off. Jedi and I have an awesome bond - I have never had such a strong relationship with a dog before so I have to say that his allergies had no influence on our bonding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samboy Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 Sammy has had allergys since he was proberly around six months, however it hasnt been till the last couple of months that we found out, cause he has has never really scratched that much and still doesnt.. I dont think that our bond with him has been affected by his allergies at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peigirl Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 No it didn't affect our bond. By nature he is not an overly affectionate dog, but I don't think that's relative to bond. Certainly no issues with him trusting me when it came me touching him or administering medication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 20, 2009 Author Share Posted May 20, 2009 Looks like the situation may just be a cowince-dinkee! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 20, 2009 Author Share Posted May 20, 2009 No it didn't affect our bond. By nature he is not an overly affectionate dog, but I don't think that's relative to bond. Certainly no issues with him trusting me when it came me touching him or administering medication. Thanks for responding Trust wasn't something I had thought of when I was initially posting, more of the affection bond humans have with dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First Time Puppy Owner Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 Looks like the situation may just be a cowince-dinkee! I thought all dogs with allergies must be like mine, but I guess not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zayda_asher Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 I'd be happy to discuss it with you further if you need people, so feel free to drop me a line... Short answer is no, I actually think I bonded more with my dogs because of the extra care and attention that I had to put into them. With Asher, he actually has very bad contact allergies which burnt his skin, so he became very wary of being approached, particularly when you were holding things like bottles or other medication type applicators... We had to put in a lot of very hard work on behaviour mod so that he was happy to be approached, touched, examined, bathed, ears cleaned etc. Maybe because I had already been through allergies once this development didn't effect how I felt about him. Don't get me wrong, it was traumatic and my heart broke for this poor dog who was so terrified, but we worked through it together and had a fabulous bond develop. Now he is happy, loving and easy to examine etc. and we are really proud of his achievements. Both my dogs have ADD type reactions to some of their allergens and this certainly meant we had BAD training days, but over all it was not an issue. Despite this training with Asher was fun and relatively easy, he's a brainy one, so the "training spats" I had with him were more about him figuring out things I would've rather he didn't! Zayda is my heart dog, so Asher I now call my soul dog, I just can't imagine that the bond I have with these guys would be as strong if we hadn't been through all we've been through together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zayda_asher Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 No it didn't affect our bond. By nature he is not an overly affectionate dog, but I don't think that's relative to bond. Certainly no issues with him trusting me when it came me touching him or administering medication. Thanks for responding Trust wasn't something I had thought of when I was initially posting, more of the affection bond humans have with dogs. Yeah, that's the distinction exactly! The bond was always there for us, it's just that we had to develop the trust that the things we needed to do would not be painful experiences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zayda_asher Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 Just to add too, Zayda came home scratching at 7weeks and also had to go through treatment for demodex. She is an a class affection hussy, always has been and always will.. to the point that she is a separation anxiety dog. Both my guys, when they are unwell with the allergies, also prefer to be near us, maybe not touching if they are uncomfortable (although sometimes they will want to be right on top of you), but close and take comfort from us being there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 Here's a spin based on my take of relationship change (ie for the purpose of this thread "bond") and based on what I see and feel with my own boy. When he is throwing allergy symptoms I feel sorry for him. The instinctive inclination is to go a bit easier on him and even subconsciously to lower expectations. IMO, that in itself can have an affect on the relationship because boundaries, expectations etc. have been changed (ie reduced), even if only by a little. Of course this impacts on the dog and its behaviour can alter as a result. It might not be an overt change, but it can be a change all the same and something that one might pick up as a "reduced bond level" or conversely, when things are well again and people start working with their dogs as they normally would, an "improved bond level". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted May 20, 2009 Author Share Posted May 20, 2009 Here's a spin based on my take of relationship change (ie for the purpose of this thread "bond") and based on what I see and feel with my own boy. When he is throwing allergy symptoms I feel sorry for him. The instinctive inclination is to go a bit easier on him and even subconsciously to lower expectations. IMO, that in itself can have an affect on the relationship because boundaries, expectations etc. have been changed (ie reduced), even if only by a little. Of course this impacts on the dog and its behaviour can alter as a result. It might not be an overt change, but it can be a change all the same and something that one might pick up as a "reduced bond level" or conversely, when things are well again and people start working with their dogs as they normally would, an "improved bond level". Yeah that's a good point too. Not the situation for my own dog but I can completely understand the notion! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monah Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 No trouble bonding here. I agree with the person who said they bonded even more. I really felt for my dog and had no bonding issues at all on boths sides Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavik Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 I agree Erny Quite possibly I act differently towards Diesel when he is having a tough health patch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crysti_Lei Posted May 20, 2009 Share Posted May 20, 2009 i really struggle to maintain the little bond i have with my allergic girl, Naut. but she has had a lot of issues other then just allergies. though her itchyness and her skin make me less inclined to be affectionate. whereas my other dog is always getting cuddles and even sleeps on the bed, Naut has been banished from the bedroom entierly as her itching kept waking the baby. i feel terrible about it, and have only just really admited it to myself that there is a preblem with the lack of bond we have, and i have started to really try to work on it. but a quick rundown of her history will give you an idea of why it has been so hard. *bought her as a show dog. *14 weeks old she started itching *did well as her first (small) show *by the time she was out of puppy class, she was still missing one of her canines. *at 9 months as was desexed and xrays were taken (not my at my vet clinic). Xrays showed a mass above the canine and the tooth odged in her jaw. *several days later her 2nd surgery to biopsy the mass in her jaw and repair her stitches from her desexing (has filled with fluid). *while waiting to get her stitches out i found a lump on her side, vet said either MTC or Hystiocytoma. i expected the worst and said good bye to her that night. *Lump in her jaw ended up being a Complex Odentome. very rare but not cancerous. 3rd surgery to remove lump (about 10 months old now) *4th surgery to remove the lump on her side (vet forgot to do it in the 3rd surgery, so did it for free) turns out it was histiocytome, common and non cancerous. *on her 1st birthday i took her to the vet to have a few things checked out. the whole that was still in her jaw smelt putrid and there seemed to be a lump in her belly that wasn't going away. the vet put a needle into her belly and got only puss out of the lump. she was under within 5 minutes and opened up ands has this removed and the infection in her jaw cleaned up. inside the lump was a stitch left from her desexing op, that either wasn't disolvable or hadn't disolved. all that in her first year and not including all the vet trips for her itchiness, including having her diagnosed with earmites by a vet to arogant to even touch her, test and treatment for mange dispite negative results (a treatment which had her throwing up all night), a bee sting when she was 5 months that had her swell up and look like a pei, an infection on her foot from her licking it, and blood tests for hormone disorders and allergies, and vet trips for bladder control problems. oh and the huge amount of food i have to feed her to keep her in any respectable shape. so, understandably i hope, i do feel a lot of disappointment for my show dog that came from excelent lines and i waited two years for. and a bit of resentment too as she has cost me so much i feel as if i have to lie to the OH and hide her true cost from him. anfd i also feel guilty, though none of her issues are genetic, i know people will see her as a mark on the fine breeding that she comes from. but i do make a point to train her when i can, and pat her whenever i walk past, and to take her to dog parks to have a good run around. but it does take a concious effort. i do love her, just not like i though it would and not like my other dog or my first saint. and i feel terrible for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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