Something Fishy

While we were away at Seven Oaks Ranch last weekend, after a couple days there, I noticed that Cabana was scratching herself a LOT. She began chewing her paws frantically, stopping mid-step to scratch her belly with her back paws, and thumping the floor loudly while trying to scratch her front legs with her back legs. I had never seen Cabana scratch herself this much and with such vigor and intensity.

I immediately thought the water in the pond was the culprit. I had hosed Cabana off after she had been in the water, but I hadn't given her a full-blown bath. Thankfully, I brought doggy shampoo with me, so I gave her a thorough bath. But still the itching continued.

The second day there, I took Cabana to a dog park in the area. It was a very nice park, fully fenced, well maintained, with friendly dogs and people. But Cabana would not play.

In fact, at one point, every dog in the park came up to her, almost surrounding her, and she barked at them! It was like they were asking her what her problem was, and she was telling them to go away and leave her alone. Cabana has gotten more selective about who she wants to play with, preferring familiar dogs that she's known for a while. But I still felt that her behavior was quite unusual.

Finally, it occurred to me what was causing her itching and her anti-social behavior. The new treats that I had been giving her so generously!! They have mussels in them, an ingredient Cabana hasn't had before. I should have clued in much quicker, since last month, I had stopped giving her salmon kibble, due to itchy paws. Maybe Cabana is allergic to seafood in general. I still think Ziwi Peak is a high quality brand, but we'll avoid the fishy varieties.

I bought Cabana some Benadryl and have been giving it to her for the past 3 days. The itching has subsided somewhat, but the effects of the allergy are still lingering. I'm amazed at how long it's taking the mussels to leave her system. Hopefully, she won't be uncomfortable for too much longer.