@DebraDownSouth:
Urtica has been used for centuries, no actual scientific research showing it works, but it can cause reactions and it can in fact cause menstrual cycle irregularities in humans. Generally safe. I would post links but got chastised before. But yes, the idea is to help build immunity by providing small doses. Keep in mind that there is research that continued small exposures often, in fact, create an allergic reaction to many substances. As with many actual medicines, home made cures, homeopathy etcโ often we take stuff to feel like we are doing SOMETHING when in fact it would clear up on it's own anyway. (And yes, I do the same thing. )
I have to disagree about the dog/husband. The husbands are often WORSE because not only do you SEE them suffer, they go on and on and on. If only they were as stoic as our dogs!
Hope Kipawa is better. I am confused about though because chicken protein is a major allergen. Of course if he wasn't getting chicken in any form before it might make sense, but chicken fat or parts are in many treats and foods.
Hi Debra, I agree that when we or our dogs are not well, it can be easy to take something (actual drug or homeopathic agent) to try and fix things. But I should have taken a pic of what was going on with Kipawa. I HAD to get fast relief for him. After getting the prednisone shot, I stopped by my sister's place on the way home. Both of us noticed in the outside light that the hives were starting to show up on his face. So perhaps the allergen was moving from being one affecting the main site, to one starting to move through his whole system. My husband goes into anaphlaxic shock from bee/wasp stings. Years ago it only affected the area where he was stung. After he was stung a couple of more times, it became life threatening. He now has to carry an Epipen. Would be curious to know if anyone uses those on dogs. Speaking of husbands, mine is actually quite quiet when ill. He must have been a dog in a previous life because a cuddle and a few rubs on the head and he tells me he feels better.
Today or tomorrow I plan on going to the dikes and gathering up some of what I am pretty sure are the culprit grasses. Of course I won't bring Kipawa to the dikes. I'll bring the grasses into my regular vet and talk to her about them. When I go to see her, I will bring in Kipawa as well. I just want to make sure that the treatment the vet we went to yesterday (hard to find someone open on Sunday) is along the lines of what she would recommend.
Hmmmmโฆ. just thought of something! Kipawa did eat some relatively fresh horse poop Saturday. I saw some other dogs eating it as well. It hadn't yet decomposed down to being hay-like again. Still, I think this was not the problem, unless the standard pattern of hive generation starts on the back and sides of the basenji. What do you think? I pinpointed the situation down to some prickly things stuck in the felt of the coat he had on, but could it have been something (the poop) ingested?
As for chicken, we have fed organic chicken, both boiled and baked, to Kipawa before (though not all that often), with no problems. We buy it for us, but he does get a little mixed with his Taste of The Wild Bison kibble. The chicken he gets has no spice/butter/oil/seasoning on it. We only buy breasts that are de-boned and have absolutely no skin on them. He does get Zuke's 3 calorie chicken treats and has since we got him. I don't think the amount we give him has changed. I'm going to re-read the ingredients really carefully.
When it comes to Kipawa, I am open to all possibilities and ways to keep him healthy. No egos involved when it comes to my animals. If I am doing something wrong, I want to know about it. I thank you for your comments because they keep me thinking.