Cat with allergies- antihistamines &/or desensitization shots?

startover33928

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Let me know what your vet says about antihistamines,I know there are side effects.  I had mentioned that I closed up my house and turned on the air-that was five days ago.

The kitty seems to be doing better, when not exposed to the outside.  I moved his cat tree to a window in the spare bedroom so he hardly every goes out in the lanai now.

I am able to have the cone off most of the time.   He has a couple of sores that I am trying to get healed.  I have been spraying them with "hot Spot Spray" a couple of times a day which seems to work.

What is a depo shot?
 

startover33928

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Mona..Yes,  I do the monthly flea treatment.  At this point I would love to find a flea or mite.  As soon as Rufe is off the steroids I am going to try Chor Trimeton which I ordered online from Dr Foster/Smith.  From what I read about this product, you will know within days if it's helping.  I'm hopeful that having my house closed to the outside is the solution, so far it seems to be helping and its only been 4 days.  I'm both desperate and hopeful.

dee
 

larsan

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Depo is depo-medrol...a steroid shot.

Will have DH talk to Doc today about this
 
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burkey

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I knew it was just a matter of time.  A couple days after my last post, we noticed bumps on George, which is how things always start. This time around there's more on his thighs than his neck...which is the reverse of the last bout, but identical to the one before that. It makes me wonder if the reaction pattern is different, depending on which allergen is causing the flare-up. Or if it's merely coincidental.

We started him on Chlorpheniramine on Monday, we'll see how that goes over the next week or two. We also ordered some Allerderm Spot-on, and with any luck we'll have that before the weekend. There's been a lot of positive feedback from those using it in conjunction with antihistamines.

If the Chlorpheniramine doesn't do the trick, we'll try Zyrtec.  And it that doesn't do it, we're ready to commit to the desensitization shots.
 

goholistic

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I knew it was just a matter of time.  A couple days after my last post, we noticed bumps on George, which is how things always start. This time around there's more on his thighs than his neck...which is the reverse of the last bout, but identical to the one before that. It makes me wonder if the reaction pattern is different, depending on which allergen is causing the flare-up. Or if it's merely coincidental.

We started him on Chlorpheniramine on Monday, we'll see how that goes over the next week or two. We also ordered some Allerderm Spot-on, and with any luck we'll have that before the weekend. There's been a lot of positive feedback from those using it in conjunction with antihistamines.

If the Chlorpheniramine doesn't do the trick, we'll try Zyrtec.  And it that doesn't do it, we're ready to commit to the desensitization shots.
Ugh...so what does this mean? Perhaps the last steroid shot is just now clearing his system?

There are theories that EGC may be autoimmune in nature. Something to think about if George responds better to the steroid than the antihistamine. 


I was looking something up and found this: http://www.holisticanimalmedicines.com/store/rodent_mouth_ulcer.html. The title notes rodent ulcers, but if you read further down, it does address eosinophilic plagues that affect the skin of the abdomen, inner thigh, etc.

Have you consulted with a holistic, homeopathic, and/or Chinese medicine vet?
 

larsan

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When we first started this journey with Gizzy, we found no real results with desensitization. While he was on them, we were suplimenting with prednisone. He has never achieved relief except on the depo-medrol shots.

It would be so great if you can find a solution to all of this that does not require the shots, but I'm thankful that we have them.
 
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burkey

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Yes, it is the steroid clearing his system. His last depo injection was on April 2. We'd been holding our breath, because spontaneous remission is sometimes seen in young cats. George is just shy of 11 months, now.

That is a really interesting article. I've read many where the cause is thought to be either allergies or autoimmune in nature. But I've never seen it blanketed as strictly an autoimmune condition before.

We've definitely considered a holistic vet. Unfortunately we've been unable to locate one reasonably close to home. There is one a few towns away, but he's primarily an exotics vet (birds, reptiles, etc) and those that have brought their cats & dogs to see him do not have good things to say. 

This is the first time we're trying an antihistamine, it's been all steroid control up to this point.
 
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burkey

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When we first started this journey with Gizzy, we found no real results with desensitization. While he was on them, we were suplimenting with prednisone. He has never achieved relief except on the depo-medrol shots.

It would be so great if you can find a solution to all of this that does not require the shots, but I'm thankful that we have them.
One thing George's vet mentioned to us, is that should we start the desensitization shots, we would want to avoid steroids and other things that suppress the immune system (Atopica, etc) as much as possible.  They'd be used if necessary, but sparingly. You need the immune system to be awake enough to notice the tiny bit of allergen that's been injected, so it can re-learn (so to speak) how to respond to it.
 

goholistic

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That is a really interesting article. I've read many where the cause is thought to be either allergies or autoimmune in nature. But I've never seen it blanketed as strictly an autoimmune condition before.
And part of the reason for my providing that link is because it is a holistic company that sells homeopathic/herbal blends for certain conditions. That was their EGC page and they sell a "set" of formulas to address EGC. It's not cheap, and you'd have to pay for shipping all the way from Australia. I believe you can call them for help and to ask questions. Always keep your regular vet in the loop.
We've definitely considered a holistic vet. Unfortunately we've been unable to locate one reasonably close to home. There is one a few towns away, but he's primarily an exotics vet (birds, reptiles, etc) and those that have brought their cats & dogs to see him do not have good things to say. 
What about a long distance vet that does phone consults? There are a few of those around. They won't prescribe medication and oftentimes require that you provide records and prove that you are actively working with a local vet.
 

cocheezie

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@Burkey  You mentioned HEPA which is helping you. What about a dehumidifier to help keep the moisture in your house down. Mold thrives on moisture.
 

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We had to give him the prednisone in order to relieve the allergy skin liesions or they would get infected and then need antibiotics to get them under control. We gave the shots for a year without results. Our vet and the dermatologist both agreed to end the shots.
 
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burkey

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Another update on George...

We've tried both Chlorpheniramine and Zyrtec (not at the same time, separate rounds). We've also been giving him a daily EFA supplement, and using Allerderm spot-on.  Unfortunately, there's been zero positive impact, and in the last few days things have progressed to scratching himself raw again.

So we've started George on oral prednisolone to calm his skin back down, and have a veterinary dermatologist appointment scheduled for June 16th. We are ready to go forward with the desensitization shots. But before we do, we're going to have the dermatologist make sure we haven't overlooked anything, confirm that the testing he's already had provides strong enough data to create a desensitization protocol with the best possible odds of working, find out what we can/cannot do to keep his skin as happy as possible while we get going on it, etc.

To look on the bright side, we've had a few good things come out of this so far.... first, George is now extremely easy to pill (knock on wood). It was never horribly difficult, but these days he knows when it's time and jumps up on the table to wait for his pill. Hopefully this is something that will stay with him for a lifetime! And second, our diehard kibble addict is now a reformed kibble addict! He despised the food trial so much, that he happily eats 8-9 ounces of canned food per day. As a result, he's starting to put on weight at a more appropriate rate. So, yay George!
 

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I'm so happy to read the positives for George. I pray t he shots go well and you have really good, positive results with them. Has your dermatologist said yet how long you will have to administer the shots? For us, if it worked, it was going to be a lifetime commitment.

Please keep us posted.
 
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burkey

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There's no way to know how long we'll be giving the shots, it'll depend on whether or not he responds favorably, and to what extent, etc.

This is the first time we're meeting the dermatologist, so we'll have a much clearer picture after the appointment on the 16th. But the way George's regular vet has explained things, it sounds like the average time before seeing any noticeable response is roughly 6 months. Barring any problems, we'll go a full year before stating definitively whether or not there has been any benefit.

George's allergy testing revealed a dozen or so possible culprits. Given that everything started in the dead of winter, the dust & molds are the most likely skin triggers. But they will put as many of the potential allergens into his formulation as they can. IF it hits the skin trigger(s) on the head, then we could potentially be done in a few years.  But it is also quite possible that we may need to retest & reformulate every few years to compensate for multiple &/or new allergens, etc...which would definitely extend the finish line into the unknown.

Did you administer your cat's shots? Our vet has said it is quite simple, and they're happy to teach us if we are interested. My husband and I are very interested, but also extremely nervous. It sure would make things so much easier if we can manage to do it. George's regular vet is a 20 minute drive each way, and the dermatologist is almost an hour each way. And I know at least in the beginning, the shots are quite frequent...every few days, I believe.  What was your cat's protocol like....did you go longer between shots as time went by, etc.?
 

larsan

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Yes, that all sounds very familiar. We were to go for one year, upping the dosage and re formulating as needed. With gizmo, it was terribly evident within about 6 months that this was not working. In fact, he was getting no better and sometimes it seemed he was worse.

We did give the shots ourselves. It's not difficult if you have a cooperative cat. Giz doesn't mind at all...he's been getting shits regularly now for 6 years. Once he shows you how to pull up the skin and get under it, it doesn't cause any discomfort to kitty. If we could do it, you'll be able to!

And yes, in the beginning the shots are every few days and over time that does lengthen. We had a chart we had to fill out with how many cc's we gave and when. Then appts to determine what to do next. We were given packages of needles and a supply of the allergins to administer. We had a choice of having the new supply sent to us or going to pick it up. We also had to visit the dermatologist I think once a month to check progress and make any changes necessary.

We were told when we started that we had to understand this could be a life long commitment and that was fine with us as we wanted relief for Gizmo. I wish it had worked. Right now we are in Wisconsin and we're hoping that the things he's most allergic to are found only in Texas where we live in the winter. That would be such a blessing....even if we could stretch out the time between his depo shots.

I hope you get great results from all of this. But we have to try everything we can for these precious babies.
 
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burkey

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Thanks for the reassurance! I'm a bit of a needle-phobe, so I plan to be the cat holder, while my husband administers.


I hope that your change of location helps Gizmo! It is hard to see them so uncomfortable.
 

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Thanks for the reassurance! I'm a bit of a needle-phobe, so I plan to be the cat holder, while my husband administers. :D

I hope that your change of location helps Gizmo! It is hard to see them so uncomfortable.
Good luck & keep us posted. I am also the holder!! We'll know in June if we gain anything or not.
 
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burkey

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Another update on George...

He saw the dermatologist on Monday, it was a really good appointment. She went over everything we'd done up to this point, and agreed the next step was the desensitization shots. They taught us how to administer them, and they prepared his specific serum right there in their lab. (If we had done it via George's primary vet, it would have been done halfway across the country at the allergy testing lab).

We administered the first shot this morning, and it went pretty well. No one is worse for wear, and with practice I think it'll quickly become routine. He's on an every other day schedule for the first 27 days (to slowly build him to full dosage). Then we'll go to once a week, indefinitely....some cats can have the shots even further spaced out, and some stay at one week...time will tell for George.  If he's not showing improvement in 6 months, we'll do intradermal (skin) testing to try to further pinpoint his allergens, and reformulate the serum. By a year, we'll have a pretty good idea if this is going to work for George or not. The dermatologist said she has a 75% success rate in her practice, which is on par with the statistics I've found online, give or take 5%. So fingers & paws crossed.

At the appointment we were also given a schedule to very slowly reduce his prednisolone over a the next couple months. And we have the green-light to feed him whatever we'd like. He's very happily eating 100% canned now (a very huge deal!), so we're just going to stick with what we're giving him for a while longer (Dave's 95% & Ziwipeak). Later this summer we'll broaden things a bit, as I'd like to have him eating a wider variety of proteins. Right now it's just chicken, beef, and venison. If we can get him off steroids for a good length of time, I'd really like to try him on raw...between rounds of steroids in the past, he's had raw chicken as a treat, and it was the Best.Thing.Ever according to George & our other cat Dory!

I hope the all the other allergy kitties in this thread are doing well. If you happen across this topic again, I'd love to hear an update from you guys!
 

larsan

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One thing George's vet mentioned to us, is that should we start the desensitization shots, we would want to avoid steroids and other things that suppress the immune system (Atopica, etc) as much as possible.  They'd be used if necessary, but sparingly. You need the immune system to be awake enough to notice the tiny bit of allergen that's been injected, so it can re-learn (so to speak) how to respond to it.
Yes, that's totally correct. That's how we knew the desensitization shots weren't working, because the poor guy was just breaking out so bad, getting infected, and i told our vet it was completely unacceptable. He agreed upon seeing that particular outbreak.

We have never really pinpointed the cause for Gizmo. We are now going grain free and I will see if that makes any difference or not.

This time the break out changed up again and it was his ear. I would just like to see him at least go longer between outbreaks but I haven't found the magic answer yet.
 
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