What home remedies for allergies do you use?

How to Use Home Remedies to Treat a Dog's Allergies

• Answer:

  When a dog has allergies the symptoms often appear in the skin. It can cause them to lick their paws or bite at their feet, rub their face against furniture or carpeting or scratch at their mouth. Other dog allergy symptoms include a rash on the belly, ear infections and a runny nose or red eyes. Allergies mean that the immune system has been thrown off by something in the environment. The following methods can control the symptoms and help the immune system get back to normal. Difficulty: Easy Things You'll Need Echinacea Vitamin C and E Essentail fatty acids Eyebright Instructions Start with the diet. Feeding a natural diet to your dog cuts down on exposure to additives and preservatives, artificial flavors and colorings. These are things that can stir up the immune system. Pet supply stores carry commercially prepared dog foods with an all natural formula. Strengthen the immune system with Echinacea. This remedy works best before symptoms are present at a time before the irritant is in the air or grass. Add two to four drops of Echinacea extract to an ounce of spring water, then put a dropperful in your pet's mouth once a day. Fight skin inflammation with Vitamins C and E and essential fatty acids. Dogs under 15 pounds can have 250 mgs of Vitamin C per day during allergy season. Pets over 15 pounds need 500 to 1000 mgs a day. For Vitamin E, which is good for the skin, give 50 IU for dogs under 10 pounds. For dogs up to 40 pounds give 200 IU and for dogs over 40 pounds give 400 IU. There are omega supplements formulated specifically for dogs. Look for those containing omega-3 and omega-6 and follow the directions on the label. Use eyebright for weepy, itchy eyes. Boil a cup of distilled water, let it cool, then add two to four drops of eyebright. Use as an eye wash applied by the dropperful once a day. Vaccinate with care. Some veterinarians believe that a lot of vaccines can compromise the immune system, causing it to overreact to ordinary substances. It is worth discussing with your veterinarian since many vaccines can be put off for longer than a year.