Dog Haves Won’t Go Away

My 3 yr old great dane all of the sudden has all these bumps on his back and legs. He was outside couple hours before the hives, but he has been in same spot in my yard his whole life. I took him to vet who gave him steroid shot and sent home on prednisone for a week.

It has been 12 hours since the shot and two doses of prednisone and hives still there. Don’t know what to do or where they came from. The vet also did blood work. Waiting on the results. There has been no change in food.



Veterinarian Response: Dog Haves Won’t Go Away



Hello there,

Hives usually develop as a result of an allergic reaction to something like an insect or spider bite, triggers absorbed through the skin (e.g., pollen), or a food ingredient, but it is often difficult to determine the cause unless the hives become a recurrent problem, which hopefully they won’t!

Give your dog a bath in cool water using a gentle soap, wash his bedding in a hypoallergenic laundry detergent, and remove anything else from his environment that you think might be responsible (e.g., air fresheners, perfumes, cleaning solutions, etc.), and continue with the treatment your veterinarian described.

If the hives don’t resolve over the next few days, be sure to contact your vet. He or she might want to add some diphenhydramine to your dog’s treatment regimen or see him again to make sure that time hasn't made the underlying problem more obvious.



Best of luck,

Jennifer Coates, DVM