The unhealthy condition of a dog’s skin and coat typically reveals an underlying allergy. Itching is a symptom medically known as pruritus, indicating inflammation in the skin. The inflammation results from atopic dermatitis an IgE mediated reaction meaning the dog’s body is hypersensitive to a particular element. Food allergies are the result of elements in the diet (grains, peanuts, milk etc.) or external allergies that are the result of elements found in the environment (pollen, dander, chemicals, etc) a third typical element is external parasites (flees, tics, mites etc.).
It is common for dog’s to be effected by more the one allergy concurrently, prompting confusion about the primary element responsible for the dog’s itching. The various allergens trigger identical responses by the dog’s body, specifically the immune system. The element or allergen is treated as an antigen and the dog’s immune system produces a particular type of white blood cell known as basophils and mast cells. Located in connective tissues the cells release histamine, this causes the permeability of the white blood cells to intensify optimizing its structure to engage the elements seen as pathogens in the infected tissue. The reason allergies are problematic for dogs is they are a hyper response or over reaction known as autoimmune disease. The excessive amounts of histamine cause high levels of inflammation or heat in the tissue, because dog’s primarily release histamine into their skin, allergies cause unhealthy conditions in the dog’s skin. Even if the dog’s allergy is food related their immune system will release histamine into their skin.
There has been a large increase in the incidence of allergies in both humans and companion animals over the past few decades. According to a study released in 2013 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, food and skin allergies rose significantly between 1997 and 2011. The impact of allergies on a dog’s quality of life can be fairly dramatic, therefor dog owners are anxiously seeking remedies for their dog’s misery. Conventional solutions provided by the veterinarian industry involve steroids and other drugs that suppress the dog’s immune system, limiting the histamines in the dog’s skin.