Uh oh…
As most of you know, Sid’s severe allergies to mother earth make him the ultimate bubble-dog. We’ve tried elimination diets, Atopica, OTC medications (Benadryl, Zyrtec, etc.), (very expensive) skin allergy tests, (also very expensive) allergy shots, t-shirts, medicated shampoos, soothing sprays and lotions, and though all that the one thing that seems to work the best is prednisone (or prednisolone). I know that it’s not ideal to take a steroid long-term (remember CARL and his friends?!), but I also want Sid to have a comfortable life. When he’s been on the prednisone, the dose is very small and he only gets it every other day. It allows him to lead an itch-free existence and he can put the energy he would have expended on scratching to better use (e.g. pulling all his toys out and scattering them over the whole apartment).
First, the good news: Sid’s been off his low every-other-day prenisone routine for almost two months! He’s definitely been on the itchier side but it doesn’t seem to disrupt his normal pug activities (i.e. eating, sleeping, and staring at me until I give him treats).
The bad news: his allergies have started flaring up lately and he has scratched a few raw spots on his (adorable) face. It’s nothing major, I just don’t want him to scratch any more of the raw spots, which has led to the following…
PROGNOSIS: Cone head for the rest of the week. Sorry, little buddy!
