Dog with major hives - help!

[SOTB]

Our dog came down with hives all over her head and her head is very itchy. The vet had us wash her head with oatmeal shampoo and she has now been on benadryl for 6 days..... the hives are still all over her head and now she has itched the hair off part of the side of her face. Anyone deal with something like this? Any suggestions on how to make her more comfortable and to get these stupid hives to go away? I think it's very odd that they are only on her head, but they sure don't seem to want to go away. :confused:

[Equibrit]

Go see a competent vet.

[Drummerboy]

The benadryl should have stopped it, time for a vet visit, allergic reation could be to food, which if she is still getting the same brand, might be why it hasn't gone away. Or laundry detergent, floor cleaner, think of anything you may have used or changed.

[MunchkinsMom]

Yes, I have made several trips to the e-vet for that very problem. Ended up needing prednisone, as the benedryl was not working. Turns out my poor dog is allergic now (she wasn't when she was younger) to those rawhide chew bones.

I also had it happen to another dog right after she had received her vacinations, she was allergic to something in one of the shots.

[CarolinaGirl]

I would def go see the vet again, maybe a different vet if the current one keeps telling you to do the same thing... have you called the vet back to say the benadryl was not working? I would have been calling back after day 2 explaining that the benadryl was not working. They should be able to give you a topical spray as well. We used Allerspray and Dermacool at the office I was at. I would maybe also recommend a collar if she keeps up the scratching... you hate to not let them itch, but you also don't want them to rip themselves to pieces until you figure out what is causing the reaction.

[Pancakes]

If it's hives, and the benadryl isn't working, then you need to go back to the vet for steroids. That should help, and if it isn't, then it's not hives.

[Guin]

I think you will need a prescription for oral prednisone from your vet.

[dalpal]

Agree with others......also, a great shampoo for skin issues is Virbac's Cortisoothe....it is pretty darn expensive....39.00 for 16 oz, but does work well.

[marta]

my english bull terrier suffers from terrible inhalant allergies. for 2 years i tried to fight them w/o the use of steroids. found one product that worked well - cyclosporine, but it is so expensive that i couldn't continue the treatment long term. this year i finally broke down and went with the steroids and for the first time in 3 years my dog is not scratching herself all the time. and while i gave it to her daily for the first week or two, after that i started doing every other day and now we only do it when her allergies act up.

also, not sure how your dog is feeling on benadryl but my dog became a total vegetable on benadryl. i only gave it to her for a few days and had to stop b/c it was unbearable to watch her.

good luck!

oh, one more thing, i found that rinsing the dog after a romp in the fields/woods, makes a big difference. i think when you leave all those allergens sitting on their body it makes matters worse.

[Bluey]

You can use a small wet and wringed towel to clean your dog every time it has been outside.
That is what I do, for MY allergies, so I don't react to whatever comes in on my dog's coat.

That wiping the dog down often only works if your dog has contact allergies.

[Mav226]

Find a better vet. Benadryl is usually only used short term. 6 days, I feel, is way too long for a dog to have hives of that nature. My rottie, the allergy queen, has a laundry list of meds that work way better for hives/allergies. We figured out really quickly that Benadryl was most certainly not the answer to her problems.

[SOTB]

Ok, took her back to the vet office this morning (same office, different vet). The vet said what many of you have said - if the benadryl didn't work in 5 days, we need a new plan. He thinks it's actually some sort of infection, rather than hives alone. He gave her a steroid shot which he hopes gives her some immediate relief. She will start antibiotics and he gave us some special shampoo that will hopefully help clear up the issues on her head. I sure hope this helps and we are on the right track now!