GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Many people are having allergies this time of year, and your pets might be right there with you.
Veterinarians say your pet actually may be suffering from the same allergies that you are, and the constant scratching is keeping many pet owners awake at night.
John Drobish, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at Great Lakes Hospital for Animals says this summer has been one of the worst for dog and cat allergies.
“Just in the last month, month and a half we've had about 20 percent increase in the animals we see,” he said.
He says environmental allergies prompted by grass, trees and weeds affect your pet seasonally. But, there are some allergies that your pets may experience year round.
“Molds, mildew and really one of the big dogs in this whole thing is dust mites,” Dr. Dobish said.
Giving your dog or cat regular baths, cleaning their paws and keeping them out of freshly cut grass helps along with other things we do to treat our own allergies, like keeping the windows closed and the air conditioning on.
“We use drugs like Zyrtec, Claritin, Benadryl gets used quite often,” he said.
Of course, consult your veterinarian for proper dosage to help get rid of that scratching that’s keeping you up at night and leaving your cuddliest family member much happier and healthy.
