{"id":542,"date":"2013-05-08T07:00:55","date_gmt":"2013-05-08T07:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/?p=542"},"modified":"2013-05-08T07:00:55","modified_gmt":"2013-05-08T07:00:55","slug":"the-ins-and-outs-of-atopy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/the-ins-and-outs-of-atopy\/","title":{"rendered":"Pet Always Itchy? It May Be Atopy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/atopic_iStock_000019001636XSmall.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-544 alignright\" style=\"border: 2px solid black; margin: 15px;\" title=\"atopic_iStock_000019001636XSmall\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/atopic_iStock_000019001636XSmall.jpg\" alt=\"atopic, allergies\" width=\"293\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a>If your dog or cat has environmental allergies, chances are that you have heard the term \u201catopy.\u201d Atopy is one of the most common causes of chronic itching in pets, and refers to animals that have a genetic predisposition for developing reactions to allergens in the environment such as dust, pollen, and molds.<!--more--><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\"><!--more--><\/h3>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Symptoms<\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Certain breeds such as Golden Retrievers, terriers, and Bichon Frises seem to be at higher risk for being atopic, but any breed can be affected. Most pets with this problem will begin to show symptoms between 6 months and 3 years of age. These can include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Itching<\/li>\n<li>Scratching<\/li>\n<li>Biting<\/li>\n<li>Licking<\/li>\n<li>Head shaking<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Most commonly the ears, armpits, face, paws, and belly are affected. Symptoms may be seasonal or all year round depending on the offending allergen.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">If a pet is suspected to be atopic, there is not a single test that diagnoses the condition. Rather the veterinarian diagnoses the pet based on its history and the elimination of other possible causes for itchiness such as parasites, food allergy, infection, or flea allergies. Once a pet is determined to be atopic, allergy testing may be done in order to identify which allergens are responsible for the pet\u2019s symptoms.<\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Solutions<\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">There is no cure for atopy and most pets that are affected will have symptoms for their entire life. Atopic animals can be managed, however, in a few ways. If the allergens that bother the pet can be avoided, obviously this should be done. Topical therapies such as shampoos or sprays may also be utilized. Systemic therapies including antihistamines, fatty acids, or anti-inflammatories are needed by many pets. Anti-inflammatory medications can include oral or injectable steroids (cortisone), or cyclosporine (Atopica). Some pets also benefit from having antigen specific immunotherapy, or allergy shots.<\/p>\n<p>Atopy can be a very frustrating condition to deal with because there is no cure and all pets respond differently. Oakland Veterinary Referral Services has a team of veterinary dermatologists to help develop a personalized plan for your pet.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If your dog or cat has environmental allergies, chances are that you have heard the term \u201catopy.\u201d Atopy is one of the most common causes of chronic itching in pets, and refers to animals that have a genetic predisposition for developing reactions to allergens in the environment such as dust, pollen, and molds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[39,66,230,395,413,574,669],"class_list":["post-542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pet-health-wellness","tag-allergies","tag-atopic","tag-emergency-veterinary-services","tag-oakland-veterinary-referral-services","tag-ovrs","tag-pet-skin-care","tag-skin-problems"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Atopy &amp; Chronic Itchy Skin in Pets | OVRS Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/the-ins-and-outs-of-atopy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Atopy &amp; Chronic Itchy Skin in Pets | OVRS Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If your dog or cat has environmental allergies, chances are that you have heard the term \u201catopy.\u201d Atopy is one of the most common causes of chronic itching in pets, and refers to animals that have a genetic predisposition for developing reactions to allergens in the environment such as dust, pollen, and molds.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/the-ins-and-outs-of-atopy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Oakland Veterinary Referral Services\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ovrservices\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-05-08T07:00:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/atopic_iStock_000019001636XSmall.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"OVRS Staff\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"OVRS Staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/the-ins-and-outs-of-atopy\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/the-ins-and-outs-of-atopy\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"OVRS Staff\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ovrs.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/624f934086950c0c4fde65d49fc64823\"},\"headline\":\"Pet Always Itchy? 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