Allergies

Late spring Dexter began licking himself more often than normal. He's always been rather cat-like, enjoying a good bath in the evenings after dinner and late night before bed. But this was different; more vigorous and he spent more time at it. It didn't take long before his paws began showing wear and tear from all the licking. Conveniently, the dogs were scheduled to see the vet a few days after Dexter's paws became red and inflamed.

"Allergies," the vet said. "Contact allergies." Crap.

Thus began a frustrating and tiresome journey to discover how best to prevent bad flare-ups.

Today we're pretty used to our routine of baths and ointments and booties to minimize the damage. We know what doesn't work (Benadryl, prednisone) and what does (natural, oatmeal-based shampoos, anti-itch soaps and creams and sprays, preventing contact with grass). It's become a part of our lives (but hopefully only for the rest of summer).

Just as things began to get easier for Dexter and I a certain black and white spotty dog began itching, too. I assumed it was fleas despite the fact that the dogs never miss their date with Frontline Plus. After a flea bath, I hoped Fig would stop itching. But we had no such luck. Fig is developing the same red spots Dexter has, but in different areas.

It's beginning to look like both dogs have allergies.

Since my husband and I also have pretty nasty allergies, I guess we are destined to be a family of sniffling, sneezing, and itching.