Allergies

When I think of allergies, I think of horses. 

When the topic of allergy comes up during an appointment, I brace myself for the look of confusion on the clients face.  Very few people readily accept the idea that their cat has an allergy because many owners look at cats as a low maintenance pet that isn't supposed to have wierd problems.  The most difficult discussion I had regarding allergies occured on my dermatology rotation in veterinary school.  We had a horse with chronic skin disease that had seen several different vets and tried many different therpies before they came in for a referral to Texas A&M.  After doing what needed to be done, we were confidant in the diagnosis, yet the client argued incessantly as if eventually we would say "just kidding".

Unforunately, getting past that difficult conversation can seem easy relative to what may follow.  Here are some highlights...

• Everyone wants problems to go away permanently - with allergy one hopes for control rather than cure.
• Sometimes it can take many months before an effective regimine will be found - be patient.
• There are many tests that may need to be run first including culture, skin scrapes, blood analysis, and biopsy.  The cost of a dermatology workup CAN be significant.
• A cat with flea allergy many have absolutely no evidence of fleas because the cat has cleaned up the clues. 
• If  food is the culprit, that "lamb and rice" food likely isn't going to cut it.  True allergy foods use either extremely exotic proteins or something called hydrolyzed proteins.
• A cat with food allergy may not positively respond to all of the allergy diet options.  If the first one doesn't work after 30 days, try another.
• The "blood allergy testing" that Dr. Google likes doesn't work well at all.
• Some of the drugs used to control allergies MAY then lead to other problems down the road.  This is why that "allergy shot" needs to have a veterinarian's consent prior to administration.