# Hives!



## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Poor poor Miles. He has been battling severe hives all week. 

Sunday morning my husband took him swimming at the beach and he said the tide was going out from the channel. Miles played for about 2 hrs in the water. He came home and broke out in severe hives. 

We have been controlling them with Benadryl. He has to have it every 6-8hrs or else he swells up again. If on a regular dose, he looks normal. This morning he spit out his pills and I didn't realize it, and by the end of our run he was having a reaction again. 

At this point I think he needs to go to the vet  My poor baby. Has anyone else experienced this?


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## SeqViz (Feb 24, 2014)

Yes, my boy has broken out in hives twice now; he's almost 4 years old. Even worse, we have no idea what caused it either time. I keep Benadryl on hand at all times now. Scary.


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## MeandMy3 (Feb 27, 2013)

Not with any of my dogs, but my cat has broken out in hives before. It turns out she was allergic to plastic and I was feeding her out of plastic dishes. I shared only because I thought the plastic allergy was strange.


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## Vizsla Baby (Nov 4, 2011)

Sadie gets them in the Spring when the grass starts to green up - we use benadryl for them. 

She also gets them sometimes when she plays outside in the sun for an hour or two on a warm or hot day - not a symptom of overheating because we never let that happen to our dogs, just sun exposure when it's warm outside. Her head & face will have raised welts all over the place. Those go away after about 2-3 hours inside.


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Thanks for the feedback.

The vet would like to give him a cortisone shot. I'm conflicted about it, but I want to do what is best for Miles.


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## hotmischief (Mar 11, 2012)

I am sorry to hear about Miles allergy. It is horrible to see your pup itching with hives. My wire-haired was diagnosed with environmental allergies last July - mainly pollens and grasses. If you are having to use Benadryl on a regular basis I think you should take him to the vets and get him tested. It may be something that you can just avoid or remove from diet or environment. 

I would be interested to know what the problem is if you get him tested. That is really interesting about MeandMy3 cat.


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

We think it is pollen/ grass as well. The ocean swimming spot backs up right to the lagoon so perhaps because of the season there was more pollen in the water. 

We plan to only let him swim in open water ocean now vs the swimming channel. We may allergy test him, will think about it after we calm down this bad reaction. He's already on grain free food, but I suppose he could be allergic to something in it and may need a limited ingredient food.


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## mlwindc (Feb 8, 2013)

Poor Miles! Wilson got hives once when he was 6 months -- bee sting. We gave him one dose of Benadryl and it went away. It didn't seem to bother him at all, but I do keep Benadryl on hand now. I hope the hives go away soon. Is Miles bothered by them?!


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

yes he is bothered by them. He tried to rub his head on me and scratch them, and tucks his tail and hides behind furniture or his cave bed


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## mlwindc (Feb 8, 2013)

oh, sorry to hear. =( Wilson didn't seem to notice his bumps at all. Poor Miles!


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## CatK (May 29, 2013)

Vizsla said:


> She also gets them sometimes when she plays outside in the sun for an hour or two on a warm or hot day - .... Those go away after about 2-3 hours inside.


I get this!! It's not over heating in a duration sense, it's just some days the sun really gets to me and I get bumps on all exposed areas! A cool room always brings them back down in an hour or two... It's so annoying, I feel Sadie's pain. 

Poor Miles though.


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## LEVIsMom (Jun 11, 2013)

This happened to my Levi 2 weeks ago! We knew it was something environmental but couldn't pinpoint anything specific because we had been to so many different places within a couple of weeks. Funny you should mention the beach though because we had been at the beach two days before Levi broke out. Two things I immediately thought of that were different, 1) I didn't rinse him when we got home (I only brushed), 2) He went on the edge of dunes and got some sort of spiky thorn type thing stuck on the inside of his lower leg (which I removed). I also treated with Benedryl but he began vomiting and stayed up most of night and wouldn't drink. It was very scary. Due to the worry of dehydration I took him to vet 1st thing in am and got treatment (3 injections). Per vets instructions I continued with Benedryl and Pepcid (to help stomach) until hives completely cleared (about 3 days). I took him back to beach this past Sunday and made sure to rinse him completely and no reaction! I've attached pics of my pitiful Levi. Your Miles looked just as bad!


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

That's what Miles looked like! He is going to the vet today.


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## LEVIsMom (Jun 11, 2013)

Best wishes on a speedy recovery for Miles!


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## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

I've heard vinegar can help relieve the itching, but have no experience with it. Its 1 part vinegar to 3 parts warm water. Apply it with a washcloth. Worth a try anyway. 
Did you get the cortisone shot today?


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## SteelCityDozer (Aug 25, 2011)

Penny gets a couple in the heat like Sadie, above. Dozer only got them from bee stings.


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## VictoriaW (Mar 16, 2011)

MM, Gracie had terrible hives like that several months back. She had an initial Benadryl shot at the vet and then Benadryl by mouth around the clock for over a week before it finally settled down. We never figured out what caused it. We had started a new food 12 days prior...vet thought perhaps spider bite...who knows! We did manage to avoid steroids & knock on wood she has been doing great on a NEW new food.

The worst photo:


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Poor thing!

Miles had a steroid shot today. The vet said it should last 10 days and if the hives come back he needs more testing. He's optimistic this will take care of it though!


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## VictoriaW (Mar 16, 2011)

Hope the shot does the trick & that you are left with one more Vizsla mystery!


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## mlg1900 (Jun 12, 2013)

Those pictures....O...M...G!!!!!


I can't believe my eyes!

I am so overprotective of my puppy, I would just be freaking out if she had those lumps all over! 

Did miles get a good bath after his swim? I wonder if even a couple more baths would be helpful? Can you use aveeno on dogs? 

Oh my word....I am in shock! 

Keep us posted!


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Miles had a bath after the beach. He also gets wiped down after the trails. 

The shot is helping. No hives!! The vet hopes it will take care of it, but if he breaks out again he will have more testing.


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## tknafox2 (Apr 2, 2013)

Oh Your poor pups!! Wow, I'v never seen the like of hives like that!!
I was remembering this sort of problem has been discussed on occasion, and remembered a post from Reeka The Vizsla a long time age... Maybe it will be of some value?? Depends on if the bumps are similar or not??

http://www.vizslaforums.com/index.php/topic,9288.msg73080.html#msg73080


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