Although allergies can affect pets year-round, lots of dogs and cats are particularly prone to a flare-up of their symptoms when the weather starts to warm up. This is because many pets with sensitivities have either environmental allergies triggered by certain pollens, or flea bite allergies which tend to be set off as parasites become more active in warmer temperatures.
While most of us are familiar with the “frequent flier” allergy symptoms – such as recurrent tummy upset, ear infections or skin irritation – there are other sensitivity signs to stay on the alert for in your pet this spring.
Here are some of the lesser-known symptoms that could indicate your pet has an allergic issue.
Conjunctivitis
Conjunctivitis involves inflammation of the tissues surrounding your pet’s eyeball, causing their eyes (and the pink tissue around them) to appear red and irritated. Your pet’s eyes may have watery or gooey discharge and will often be uncomfortable, causing them to blink more or rub at their eyes.
Ideally, pets with sore eyes should be examined promptly, as it’s important that we also assess them for potential eye ulcers, which can cause severe eye damage if left untreated.
Reverse Sneezing
Once you’ve seen a pet reverse sneeze, you’ll never forget it! Animals suffering a reverse sneezing episode will snort inwards violently through their nose, often on repeat for up to a minute. In most cases, the issue will settle without any intervention required.
Reverse sneezing is more common in dogs with narrow noses (such as greyhounds) and flat-faced dog breeds with elongated soft palates (such as bulldogs), and is believed to occur in response to some kind of irritation in the nasal passages or throat. As a result, pets with spring allergies can experience an increased frequency of reverse sneezing in response to certain triggering pollens.
If your pet experiences an uptick in reverse sneezing, particularly in combination with any other symptoms such as breathing difficulties or nasal discharge, it’s best for them to be assessed by our team to ensure that nothing else is going on (such as a grass seed in their nose!)
Wheezing
Certain breeds of cat, such as Siamese, are particularly prone to feline asthma, which can result in sudden episodes of wheezing, coughing or dangerous breathing difficulties.
Feline asthma can be triggered by inhaled allergens, such as pollens, dust mites, cigarette smoke, or moulds.
If you ever notice breathing difficulties in your cat, try to keep them calm and seek urgent veterinary assistance.
Bottom Scooting
As well as tummy worms or overly full anal glands, pets may also scoot their bottoms along the ground due to irritation secondary to environmental or food allergies.
If your pet is scooting and they’re up to date with worming, it’s a good idea to have our veterinary team check them over from head to, er, tail. We can assess their anal glands, check their general skin condition, and gain some clues from you as to whether their bottom troubles could have an allergic basis that needs to be managed.
When it comes to pet allergies, our team is both sensitive AND soothing!