DOES MY PET Have Allergies?

Dogs and cats react differently than people do to environmental, food and pest irritants. Here are the signs of allergy problems - and ways to treat them.

-  LIZZ SCHUMER

FLEAS

The most common allergy in dogs and cats is to fleabites, says veterinary dermatologist Fiona Lee, V.M.D., D.A.C.V.D., medical director at the Pet Dermatology Center

Signs and Symptoms

Typically pets with flea allergies will have itchy, irritated skin with hair loss around the tail and hind end, neck or belly. Cats will often have a braille-like rash called miliary dermatitis on their back and around their tail, and dogs can develop hot spots, severely irritated moist areas that are very itchy. Having a pet with a flea allergy doesn't mean your home is infested, Lee points out. "I compare it to having a beesting allergy. If you're allergic, you only need one bee to sting, not a whole hive, to have a problem," she explains. "The same is true for a single flea if the pet is allergic."

Treatment

Lots of drugs to combat allergies exist on the market, but Lee recommends working with your vet to determine the best option for your pet's lifestyle. It can take two to three months to control the flea life cycle. Prevention is easier than mitigation, so Lee recommends using flea-preventive products year-round throughout a pet's life to keep flea allergies out of the equation.

FOOD

While food sensitivities are less common in pets than the explosion of specialized pet diet products in the grocery store aisle may lead us to believe, some dogs and cats do develop them. They're most common in animals who are young (under 6 months) and old (over 6 years), ages when their guts are most susceptible to infection and inflammation, Lee says.

Signs and Symptoms