HELP PLEASE - ALLERGIC REACTION

[TheBlackMoth]

We dosed the two JRTs with Frontline yesterday and Mumble has come out in a terrible allergic reaction to it or to something else.

I took him to the vet this morning as one eye was all swollen and his nose was all bumby and they gave him an injecting.

I just got home after being out for a while and his whole body looks lumpy and the skin on his belly is all red and patchy as below.

I can't get hold of my vet at the moment - they don't seem to have turned on the emergency answerphone yet. If it gets any worse I will ring another vet but don't want to spend a fortune unnecessarily.

Does anyone have any experience of this and should I be panicking - he seems ok in himself apart from wanting to lie on his back all the time.

If he were human I wouldn't panic, I would just watch and see. His breathing doesn't seem to be laboured.

 

[WoopsiiD]

Could he be laying on his back as its sore?? Daft I know but maybe spraying cold water on it?? It could be 'burning' a bit like a nettle sting does to a person?
Good luck with a vet.
Fingers crossed for you both.
x

 

[CAYLA]

These are pretty typical symptoms of allergic reaction, you should be ok to wait till the emergency phone is switched over, the thing to watch for reactions is an swelling around the throat/mouth that could restrict breathing, the injection will be kicking in, so hopefully the symptoms will subside soon, if he is ok in himself you should be ok till u can get through to your vet, if unsure try another vet just for a chat/advice.

Was it def the frontline, could he have been stung by a bee or wasp?

 

[CAYLA]

Ps, if irritated and pacing, a cold shower can often calm the itching/burning and soothe a little.

 

[TheBlackMoth]

He could have been stung by a bee yesterday as he was in the horse field with the girls so was running around but he's a big wuss and would have yelped like anything. He had the injection at 11. He's now just been sick everwhere. Oh joy.

 

[CAYLA]

Bless him, I would bet it was a sting rather than the frontline, u should see the way staffs react when stung, they look like the elephant man

He may become a little listless, vo+ can also be common, as are the bumps and redness.
If you get worried or he begins to act perculiar jsut give your vets a tinkle, they prob won't need to see him again, but atleast you can put your mind at ease.

 

[Patches]

Awww the poor wee boy. He must be feeling really sorry for himself.

My cat had a reaction to Frontline too, but her skin scabbed up, firstly on the neck where it was administered before spreading to other areas as it was absorbed into her system.

Hope he feels better soon. Problem is that it's in their system isn't it? How long does it take for this to wear off? Gracie's skin (and hair loss) started to recover after three weeks, but she wasn't red and blothy like your dog (although being black skinned, I guess it's possible she could have been). She had no swelling of eyes.

I think the idea of a coolish bath is a good one. Might really soothe the skin.

 

[TheBlackMoth]

Thanks a lot Cala. I just worried because it looks like my vet has forgotten to put the emergency answer phone recording message and it just goes to voice mail.

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

Have you got any aloe gel? you could put that on his skin as it would help soothe it and reduce any irritation/itching - and it won't harm him if he licks it. In fact aloe juice is also very good for soothing and healing any kind of skin irritation.

 

[TheBlackMoth]

Thanks

I've managed to find out who the emergency vets are (have them in my phone book now) and we have a (very expensive) appointment at 4.30.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Agree with aloe gel too, very soothing for animals and humans alike, it really helped my boy when he had bad allergies.

 

[TheBlackMoth]

Thanks everyone for your help. The emergency vet thinks it might have been a horsefly as he was in the horse field last night. Poor thing had to have an injection in the muscle.

He's asleep at my feet now worn out I think.

 

[Thistle]

We don't have horseflies abouit yet, do you?

 

[TheBlackMoth]

No - actually we don't - the girls have just told me - I wasn't at the field.

So we don't know what it was. It could well be the Frontline after all.

 

[prosefullstop]

If ever you find yourself in the same situation again, dogs are fine to have Benadryl (anthistamines across the board, I'm not sure about, but Benadryl is fine). Stella weighs 16lbs and the time she was bitten by a spider, we gave her half a pill every four hours until the lumps went down.

Any chance it was an allergic reaction to Frontline? Manufacturers often change formulas without warning, which was the reason our vet gave when Stella had a massive reaction--hospitalised, actually--to her usual rabies vaccine.

 

[TheBlackMoth]

I do wonder about the Frontline. Not sure I will be happy to use it again just in case. Poor old Mumble is still a little uncomfortable but getting better.

Thank you everyone for you help and advice.