Elleboss

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My 9 month old bully has had hives for 4 days now. I've been giving him Benadryl twice a day which calms the swelling but they don't go away. By the morning he is covered again and itching like crazy. About a month ago he had hives for the first time and as a new bulldog owner I rushed him to the vet scared. $250 later they gave him 2 shots, one of which was Benadryl and told me to continue to give it to him for the next 48 hours. They said maybe a spider bite. This time I just can't figure out what it could be and I don't want to rush to the vet for them to tell me the same thing. Nothing has changed in his diet nor has anything changed in his daily routines or around my house. His behavior is the exact same too, happy as anything, hyper, jumping, running etc. Any ideas? Suggestions? I'm worried that it's lasting this long.
 

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Elleboss

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Hives won't go away??

My 9 month old bully has had hives for 4 days now. I've been giving him Benadryl twice a day which calms the swelling but they don't go away. By the morning he is covered again and itching like crazy. About a month ago he had hives for the first time and as a new bulldog owner I rushed him to the vet scared. $250 later they gave him 2 shots, one of which was Benadryl and told me to continue to give it to him for the next 48 hours. They said maybe a spider bite. This time I just can't figure out what it could be and I don't want to rush to the vet for them to tell me the same thing. Nothing has changed in his diet nor has anything changed in his daily routines or around my house. His behavior is the exact same too, happy as anything, hyper, jumping, running etc. Any ideas? Suggestions? I'm worried that it's lasting this long
 

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Cbrugs

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Definitely seems to be an allergic reaction. It could be to something he is coming into contact with (inside or outside) or it could be something in his food. What are you currently feeding?
 
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Elleboss

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I feed him Performatrin Ultra for puppies...lamb and brown rice and I just started adding plain yogurt yesterday after seeing some tips on here. It's the same food I've been feeding him since 4 months. I just can't seem to figure out what he could be allergic to? nothing is different. Can they develop new allergies as they get older?
 

2BullyMama

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I feed him Performatrin Ultra for puppies...lamb and brown rice and I just started adding plain yogurt yesterday after seeing some tips on here. It's the same food I've been feeding him since 4 months. I just can't seem to figure out what he could be allergic to? nothing is different. Can they develop new allergies as they get older?

Yes it can just show up one day... my guy is allergic to lamb and another allergic to rice so I avoid those in my house.

My girl broke out like this twice and we never found out why... I think it was chicken or she ate a house fly, which she was allergic to.

Give a cold bath or wipe with cool cloth to soothe the skin


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Cbrugs

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As Christine stated, allergies could pop up at any time, just like with humans. So even though you haven't changed anything, something could have changed with him. Unfortunately, it could be very difficult to pinpoint when you don't know here to start. Is he licking and chewing his paws at all? Getting yeasty? It could be something in his food, it could be the grass or trees or something outside he has come in contact with, could even by your laundry detergent or some other household product.
 

cefe13

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Poor pup. Castor had something like that last spring and although we never founf out what caused the reaction, we suspect sand fleas as we had been to the beach. A shot and some meds helped.
 

helsonwheels

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I feed him Performatrin Ultra for puppies...lamb and brown rice and I just started adding plain yogurt yesterday after seeing some tips on here. It's the same food I've been feeding him since 4 months. I just can't seem to figure out what he could be allergic to? nothing is different. Can they develop new allergies as they get older?

What’s odd is he doesn’t have any on his feet, neck n head. According to the photo, seems to be only on the body part. Is that correct? Where in Canada are you as some provinces has more of different insects than others....why I’m asking. An allergy wouldn’t be on a specific part of the body, it would show up a bit everywhere.
 

Dollys Owner

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You can try upping the dose of Benadryl much higher if you want, max dose is 4 mg/kg 3 times a day, or switch to cetirizine (Reactine) 10mg twice daily. As mentioned, try switching to a different food, eg. Carna4 Duck or Canisource GrandCru turkey. Also, as mentioned try using a hypoallergenic detergent for washing your dogs bedding eg. I use Nellie's bulk laundry soda from Costco.
 
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Elleboss

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Thanks all for responding. He does have a few on his head but mainly his body....and he's been gnawing his legs and now I'm noticing a bit of hair loss. I'm going to look into changing his food? I just don't know where to start with that!!
 

Cbrugs

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Thanks all for responding. He does have a few on his head but mainly his body....and he's been gnawing his legs and now I'm noticing a bit of hair loss. I'm going to look into changing his food? I just don't know where to start with that!!

If you want to stick to kibble, try a limited ingredient one with a single protein. Some good brands are Acana, Orijen, Fromm, Zignature and Earthborn Holistic. If you want to try a dehydrated raw, a couple brands are The Honest Kitchen and Grandma Lucy's. There are also some great frozen raw foods if you want to go that route.
 

cefe13

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What’s odd is he doesn’t have any on his feet, neck n head. According to the photo, seems to be only on the body part. Is that correct? Where in Canada are you as some provinces has more of different insects than others....why I’m asking. An allergy wouldn’t be on a specific part of the body, it would show up a bit everywhere.

Hm, I seem to remember that Castor had those bumbs on his body rather than on his legs too. Worst parts were his armpits and along his sides. The hives were hard and raised (like plum halves had been placed under his skin).
 

oscarmayer

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Start with Acana Duck formula. We've given it to hundreds of dogs with great results. Not a single 1 was allergic
 

helsonwheels

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Start with Acana Duck formula. We've given it to hundreds of dogs with great results. Not a single 1 was allergic

Just bought a bag last week... gone up to 91$ N bag shrunk. :faint:

But yes great product
 

oscarmayer

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Just bought a bag last week... gone up to 91$ N bag shrunk. :faint:

But yes great product
here it’s $75 for 25lbs or 11.36kg. Still pricey. We’ve always fed a Duck formula but have switched to Zignature Duck to save $10 per bag. MINI still eating mostly Acana but we are very slowly transitioning her
 

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