All pets scratch, lick, bite, and rub. However, it should never interrupt activities such as playing or eating, cause hair loss, skin damage or be often enough that it causes discomfort for your pet and for you. Frequent or constant scratching, licking, biting, scooting, and/or rubbing are most often signs of an allergic skin disease. If your pet shows signs of allergy it is important to seek treatment as soon as possible. If left untreated it can become more serious and lead to complications, such as skin and ear infections, thickened, red and/or darkened skin, hair loss, odour and even intestinal problems, like vomiting and diarrhoea. It’s important to talk to your vet about getting effective, lasting treatment.

1 out of 5 pets are allergic and itching is the number one reason for veterinary visits, yet many pets continue to suffer because symptoms can be associated with common behavior and pet owners unfortunately are not aware of severity of the problem.

Does your pet show any of these signs? It could be allergy!

Not all itchy skin, scratching or ear problems are due to allergies. There are other diseases that can cause similar signs. For that reason your vet will start by excluding all other potential causes, such as fleas, scabies, infections, etc. If the allergy symptoms remain after excluding or treating other causes, the next step is to exclude the possibility of food allergy and identify which allergens may be causing the allergy, through a simple and quick blood test.

This is a fundamental step, without knowing which allergens are causing the problem it is not possible to avoid them where you can and treat your pet.

Unfortunately, there is no magic cure for allergy. Often, the goal is not to cure the disease, but to manage the symptoms so that the quality of life for your pet is not impacted to such a degree that they suffer. This can be best achieved through a multi-modal treatment approach which involves combining different treatment options. Managing allergy can be achieved through:

• Regular flea treatment

• Itch blocking medication

• Topical shampoos, sprays, foams & spot-on's that restore skin barrier function and soothe itch

• Medicated shampoos, wipes, foams, sprays & spot-on's that help prevent skin issues

• Ear cleaners that promote long-term aural hygiene

• A low allergen diet

• Anti-dust environmental sprays

If your pet has a skin-related allergy, the only long-term treatment that can address the root cause of your pet’s allergy is Immunotherapy (also called allergen-specific immunotherapy). Immunotherapy is a custom-made, safe and an effective treatment for your pet that will stop its symptoms from affecting its health, comfort and quality of life.