5 Ways to Help Your Pup Beat Their Seasonal Allergies

It’s bad enough dealing with your own itchy eyes and runny nose in the spring — but watching your pet suffer from allergies is a special kind of torture. Unfortunately, dogs are every bit as susceptible to environmental allergies as we are, though their symptoms are often misdiagnosed or ignored. In fact, environmental allergies affect up to an estimated 27% of dogs. 

If your pup has been scratching more than usual, has greasy or flaky skin, or has been chewing on their paws lately, they may be dealing with seasonal allergies.* But don’t fret: here are five ways you can address them. 

SWITCH THEM TO A RAW DIET 

Puppies fed kibble are almost twice as likely to develop skin allergies as adults than puppies fed raw. These findings came from the DogRisk independent research program at the University of Helsinki, which is working to determine the impact of raw pet food on dogs’ health. The program found that feeding your dog raw pet food can help prevent irritating and uncomfortable skin allergies.  

A raw diet can also help your grown dog’s allergies since it has a broader range of anti-inflammatory functional compounds and no cooking toxins (which cause inflammation) at all.

BATHE THEM MORE OFTEN 

Frequent baths can help remove allergens from your dog’s coat and soothe their skin. Allergic dogs may benefit from bathing as frequently as twice weekly using a mild shampoo or even a daily rinse. Just make sure you use pet-friendly shampoos! 

CONSIDER AN ANTIHISTAMINE

Ask your vet if you should incorporate an antihistamine into your pet’s daily regimen to help mitigate their allergy symptoms. With your vet’s approval, this simple step can go a long way in easing your pup’s itchiness.

LIMIT TIME OUTSIDE

This one will be your dog’s least favorite solution. (Okay, okay, the baths might be their least favorite solution). If you suspect your pet has a pollen allergy, on high-pollen days, keeping your pup inside might help keep their symptoms at bay.

LEARN HOW TO RECOGNIZE SKIN INFECTIONS 

Skin infections are itchy, too, but none of the treatments for allergy will be effective for infections – and infections frequently follow allergy flare-ups. If your pet has recurrent problems, your vet can teach you how to recognize infections early, and send home an antimicrobial shampoo for you to use at the first signs of infection. 

Of course, at Instinct, we don’t sell pet shampoo or antihistamines: but we do have the raw pet food you need to help your pup. To learn more about the link between skin allergies and raw pet food, find the full study here.  

*Allergies are often accompanied by skin infections – and none of these treatments will help that. Your vet can help you determine whether your dog’s skin is red and itchy from allergies, infections, or other conditions and help you decide on the appropriate treatment.