Giving a bulldog the proper care is essential to ensure your bulldog has a long and healthy life. That includes being aware of, and treating their allergies, and some bulldogs come with a long list of allergies. Don’t worry, they are all preventable, and treatable. Quick hint, its a lot easier to prevent allergic reactions than treat them, so pay close attention.
What are bulldogs allergic to? Many allergens are found in food and their environment. Some allergens can be linked to their genes, meaning their allergies were inherited. Here are the most common bulldog allergens.
- Pork
- Beef
- Chicken
- Dairy
- Fish
- Wheat
- Corn
- Soy
- Mold
- Dust mites
- Wood in bedding
If you are curious about what you can feed you bulldog, check out our article on what bulldogs can and can’t eat. The “can’t” list might surprise you!
Types of Allergies common to Bulldogs
All allergies are obviously not the same. There are various types of allergic reactions your bulldog can suffer or may be suffering from.
- Food
- Environmental
- Contact
Food Allergies in Bulldogs
What are bulldogs allergic to? Common food-related in bulldogs are:
- Pork
- Food Dyes
- Beef
- Chicken
- Dairy
- Eggs
- Fish
- Artificial seasonings
- Wheat
- Corn
- Soy
- Artificial preservatives
Look for food that uses lamb or bison as protein. Bulldogs will need to eat food that has been specifically formulated for bulldogs. This is not all about the diet in particular but the quality of the diet and the source of the diet. Low-grade food that contains ingredients that are unlabeled is often dangerous to the health of your bulldog. Hence, most times, simply giving your pet the right diet is enough to handle every allergic reaction they have. Once you discover that your bully is reacting to any of these foods, simply remove the ingredient from their diet in order to help your pet stay healthy.
Contact Allergies in Bulldogs
Contact allergies are often the most difficult to spot. This is because they occur as a result of your bulldog coming into contact with an allergic item. The common source of contact allergy includes:
- Grass
- wood in the bedding
- flea collars
- certain plants
- dog shampoo
It is, however, important to note that you should not assume that your bulldog is having a contact allergy. Before you draw conclusions, ensure that your dog is not reacting to any food allergen or fleas and other parasites. Once every food and parasitic allergens are eliminated, you can go ahead to detect the particular item your pet is reacting to.
Skin Allergies
“Atopic dermatitis” is the term used to describe skin allergies that are suffered by bulldogs. Bulldogs’ skill allergies are often as a result of hypersensitivity to some substances. Common substances that cause skill allergies for Bulldogs are:
- Dust mites
- Molds
- Flea bite
Signs my Bulldog is Having an Allergic Reaction
There are various symptoms of allergies such as diarrhea and coughing. However, the most common symptom that shows that your bulldog has an allergy is scratching. However, this is not just some mere scratching, it is often incessant and consistent. Once you notice this, you are dealing with a bulldog allergic reaction.
When your bulldog is reacting to these allergens, common symptoms to look out for includes:
- Licking and biting at paws
- rubbing the face on the carpet
- coughing, diarrhea
- flatulence
- sneezing
- seizures
- gagging
- itchy skin
- scratching at ears
- ear inflammation
Once you observe these ominous signs, something is fishy with your bully.
How do I detect the cause of Allergy in my Bulldog?
Identifying an allergy is not equivalent to being able to determine the cause of the allergy. Knowing that your bulldog has an allergy is not enough, you need to be able to know the source of the allergy in order for you to be able to help your pet. Below are some simple methods to detect the source of the allergic reactions suffered by your bulldogs.
Elimination
This method involves the elimination of allergens in the diet of your bulldog diet. How this is done is by removing some specific ingredients from the diet and replacing it with another until the bulldog stops having the allergy. The first thing you need to do in order to make this method a success is to check the label of the diet for the ingredients.
This will help you have a good knowledge of the ingredients in the diet and ultimately the potential source of allergy. Identify a particular ingredient and switch to another diet that does not contain that ingredient. Notice the changes in your bulldog due to the change in diet. If you notice that the allergy stops occurring, it means that the new diet is safer for your dog unlike the previous one.
In order to confirm that the new diet is indeed responsible for the change that has been observed in your bully, you can give your bulldog the former diet again. If the allergy occurs again, this means that it was indeed the diet that was responsible for the allergy observed previously.
Diagnostic Test
Another method of detecting the cause of allergy is to take advantage of a diagnostic test known as “Nutriscan”. This diagnostic test is quite new and it was developed to detect sensitivity to certain substances in dogs. The saliva of the dog is analyzed to determine the potential ingredients that the dog will react to. This method is less stressful and more effective than the elimination method.
Preventive measures
It is better to prevent your dog from having allergic reactions rather than treating the allergy after it had occurred already. Below are the methods you can employ in order to ensure that your bulldog stays allergy-free.
Clean your home regularly
You will have a good chance to keep your dog healthy when you clean your home regularly. Dust is a potential source of allergies. Besides, a dirty home will breed parasitic infections that endangers the health of your dog. You and your kids are also at risk when you don’t have the habit of cleaning your home regularly. Also use high quality air filters to filter out pollen, dust mites, and other allergens.
Pay more attention
Taking care of your dog must be done with commitment. Failure to pay the proper attention needed to groom your dog will expose it to allergies. Hence, be more alert to the well-being of your dog. This can be done by providing wet towels that can be used to clean off dirt from the dog whenever the dog comes home after going outside for example.
You can also provide hypoallergenic dog shampoos in order to ensure that your dog has a good bath that will prevent rashes.
Immunization
You can also prevent your dog from having allergies through the administration of immunotherapy. This will help your dog to cope effectively in case of seasonal allergies.
How to treat Bulldog Allergies
The different allergies that have been discussed so far all have methods that can be used to treat them. However, it is important to note that prevention is always the best treatment for any allergy. Each of the methods that are used to treat these allergies is discussed below.
Treatment of Food Allergies
The best method of treating food allergies is the elimination principle that has been earlier discussed. The allergy will stop occurring once the allergen has been identified and removed from the diet of your dog. Your vet might also give you steroids, antibiotics, or antihistamines which will ensure that the symptoms of the allergy are catered for.
Another method that can also be utilized to good effect is the Hypoallergenic Diet Trial. The Hypoallergenic Diet Trial involves giving your dog a better nutrient source in replacement of the ingredient causing the allergy. For example, if you observe that protein is the source of the allergy, hydrolyzed protein can be used.
Treatment of Skin Allergies
Skin allergies can be treated by first administering an Anti-itch Therapy, then an Anti-yeast & Antibacterial Therapy, before finally including supplements in the diet of your dog. Anti-itch Therapy is needed because it is not possible to stop skin issues without first stopping the itching. Hence, Anti-itch Therapy is needed to first stop the itching. Lotions, hypoallergenic shampoos, and gels can be used to handle this.
The Anti-yeast & Antibacterial Therapy is needed especially when the rashes have led to a yeast or bacterial infection. This therapy will cure the infection and bring back the regular production of skin sebum. Antiseptic lotions and shampoos will do a good job in this regard. Creams that are specially formulated to regulate the activities of bacteria and yeast on the skin will also come in handy for such situations.
Then, supplements such as omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids should be added to your dog’s diet. There are several health supplements that have these nutrients. The skin of your dog will get better and healthier with these nutrients from the supplements. The skin of your bully will also become more resistant to skin infections through the aid of these nutrients.
Conclusion
While bulldogs have many allergies, it is fairly easy to prevent allergic outbreaks. Always be sure to feed your bulldog high quality food that has been formulated for bulldogs. Keep your house clean and dust frequently. Those are the two main steps to keeping your bulldog allergy free and healthy. They will love you for it and you’ll be saving yourself from a lot of headache and heartache later. Treating skin conditions isn’t exactly easy, so stay ahead of the game by keeping those allergens away.
