Animal And Company: Re: [boxer lovers] Okay -- strange hives

At this point its not vegetation. She started showing hives without being out OR eating.

Oy!

LisaW

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-----Original Message-----
From: "karon" <karon@karonadams.com>
Sender: boxerlovers@yahoogroups.com
Date: Fri, 28 Dec 2012 18:35:44
To: <boxerlovers@yahoogroups.com>
Reply-To: boxerlovers@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [boxer lovers] Okay -- strange hives

Lisa. Look at the fats. Seems she is reacting to fatty fowl. The duck
twigged me. Seems that green veggies aren't having as many problems. But,
the chicken and duck, that is what makes me wonder about fats. Looks like
lean meats, like venison and bison and rabbit are OK. Hmm. See what the vet
says about that. some fats are chemically different. Remember, fats are
acidic so look at the various acids in foods and look at the acids in plants
in your yard. I don't know if this is a key but it is something to
investigate.

Karon Adams

Accredited Jewelry Professional (GIA)

You can send a Rosary to a soldier!

www.facebook.com/MilitaryRosary

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From: boxerlovers@yahoogroups.com [mailto:boxerlovers@yahoogroups.com] On
Behalf Of Lisa Wiser
Sent: Friday, December 28, 2012 11:00 AM
To: boxerlovers@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [boxer lovers] Okay -- strange hives

Thanks, Yvonne, for your well thought out questions and suggestions.

No spraying -- at least AFAIK. This seemed to really hit when we started
getting truly cold temperatures. All through Oct and Nov and even some
into Dec we flirted with 50+ degree days getting cold at night. It was
once we started getting multiple cold days and nights that she started
actually having hives. I kept eliminating things ... but there's
something very strange here.

Nothing new as far as cleaning products. I buy from the Sam's Club and
it's just me and Meg so "stuff" lasts a long time. I haven't washed
blankets since long before this started. I take a large load of blankets
to the laudramat and use their GIANT machines. So, all blankets have
been washed at the same time using the same stuff.

As to food, I actually had Meg blood-tested for allergies ... a complete
panel. Chicken, turkey and eggs (poultry) were all on the "she's way
allergic NOW" list. Soy was borderline Duck wasn't but there's something
that doesn't agree with her tummy -- her meals come right back up. No
indication of problems with pork, venison, bison, rabbit. However,
except for pork (and that requires cooking or long term freezing ....
and I don't have the freezer space for that), as does the venison and
rabbit -- which are not readily available. I don't know about the
handling of the bison .. but I'm not sure where I'd find it and I'm not
sure whether that form of a bovine would be any different. So, we may be
in a world of stink if she's now allergic to beef! Her complete
"allergic" food list (and there were even more environmental -- but
looking at the list, there were only certain things I could control):
Chicken
Turkey
Green Peas
Peanuts
Eggs
Brewers Yeast
Alfalfa
Pumpkin

Looking at that list, I think you can see what lead me to going
completely off ANY commercial dog food ... it ain't easy finding a food
she can eat without at least one of those ingredients. And I had to
literally read the ingredients label EVERY time I bought ... because I
had things show up in a food I had been feeding. Buying a known item --
beef -- from a trusted source -- a real, honest to goodness butcher not
the grocery store -- seemed the sanest!

HOWEVER -- so far there's no real rhyme or reason to the hives showing
up. I thought it was something outdoors. But we had blizzard conditions
on the 26th and the Girly-Girl was having NOTHING with going out into
the wind and snow. Then on the 27th it wasn't until late in the evening
that she even ventured out to just past the back door. HOWEVER, even
before she ate anything the morning of the 27th? The hives started. She
hadn't done more than stuck her nose outside the back door and said "unh
uh ... put out the potty paper!"

We have an appointment Monday with the vet. I don't know that we'll try
the allergy test again then. It may be an attempt to stop whatever
allergen long enough to give her a chance to "strengthen up." Maybe a
steroid shot? That's worked in the past when she's had itchy attacks.
But, that will be up to her vet on Monday.

Thanks, everyone!

LisaW

Yvonne wrote:
>
> Maybe something enviromental, like something a neighbour is doing,
> spraying ? Or the city ? New hand lotion ? Air freshener ? It is also
> possible that she has developed an allergy or sensitivity to beef.
> Allergies to chicken and beef are the most common, apparently the
> vaccines have to be attached/grown on a type of protein and the most
> common types are chicken and beef which can then cause sensitivities
> to the same proteins. I would recommend a novel protein and see if it
> clears up. Turkey may be a good one to try next, if she has never had
> before ? Or buffalo ? Venison ? Ostrich? Salmon ? You could add lamb
> in later too, I usually recommend a wide variety of proteins as
> possible but if she has a sensitivity, I would try one out for week or
> two and if the results are great and then gradually add more one at a
> time, but stay away from chicken and beef. I put Billie on buffalo for
> a couple monthes a couple years ago when her head was bumpy, a rash
> maybe, as a puppy and it cleared up immediately and then I gradually
> introduced more, now she eats many different proteins in the week and
> is perfect. My best friend has a boxer, 3 yrs old bitch, with IBD and
> is feeding only turkey, for the last 9 monthes and it is a vast
> improvement, we thought we were going to lose her girl last spring.
> Yvonne and Billie Holiday.
>

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