Patch Testing for Contact Allergies
Is your dog or cat experiencing persistent itching, redness or recurring skin irritation? Sometimes, something they regularly come into contact with may be contributing to the problem.
Just like people, pets can develop reactions to substances that touch their skin. This is known as contact dermatitis.
Contact allergy can be difficult to recognise because its symptoms can look very similar to other allergic skin conditions. It can also occur alongside other allergies, which is why we look at your pet's complete allergy picture rather than investigating each type of allergy in isolation.
What can cause contact dermatitis?
Pets come into contact with many different substances every day — in the garden, around the home and through products applied to their skin.
Potential contact allergens can include:
Grasses, plants and ground covers
Ingredients in shampoos and grooming products
Topical medications and treatments
Ingredients or preservatives in products applied to the skin
Household and environmental substances
Other materials that regularly come into contact with your pet's skin
In Perth, grasses and plants can be particularly relevant for some pets because of the amount of time they spend outdoors.
Exposure alone doesn't mean your pet is allergic. Your veterinary dermatologist will consider your pet's symptoms, history, environment and pattern of skin disease when determining whether contact allergy may be contributing.
What does contact allergy look like?
Contact dermatitis often affects areas of the body that have regular contact with the environment.
Signs can include:
Red, inflamed or irritated skin
Persistent itching
Licking, chewing or rubbing
Recurrent rashes
Hair loss from excessive licking or scratching
Thickened or discoloured skin with chronic inflammation
Secondary bacterial or yeast infections
In dogs, areas such as the paws, abdomen, groin, armpits and muzzle may be affected, particularly where the skin regularly contacts grass, plants or other surfaces.
However, these signs are not unique to contact allergy. Atopic dermatitis, food allergy, parasites, infections and other skin conditions can produce similar symptoms.
How do we investigate contact allergies?
At Animal Dermatology Clinic, contact allergy investigation forms part of our comprehensive Allergy Profiling rather than being offered as a separate test.
Your veterinary dermatologist will first assess your pet's clinical history, symptoms, environment and likely exposures. From there, they will determine which components of Allergy Profiling are appropriate for your individual pet.
When contact allergy is suspected, patch testing may be incorporated into your pet's Allergy Profiling. This allows us to assess the skin's response to selected substances that may be relevant to your pet's everyday environment.
You don't need to decide which allergy tests your pet should have. Our veterinary dermatologists select and interpret the appropriate investigations as part of the complete Allergy Profiling process.
This allows us to look at the bigger picture rather than relying on an individual test result.
Why is a complete allergy profile important?
Allergic skin disease isn't always caused by one thing.
Some pets may have environmental allergies as well as contact sensitivities, food-related disease or secondary bacterial and yeast infections. These different factors can contribute to the same pattern of itching and inflammation.
That's why our approach focuses on understanding your pet's overall allergic skin disease, rather than simply testing for individual allergens.
The results of Allergy Profiling are interpreted alongside your pet's clinical history and examination findings to help us develop an individual long-term management plan.
What happens if a contact allergy is identified?
If we identify a clinically relevant contact allergen, we'll help you understand where your pet may be encountering it and how exposure can be reduced where practical.
For some allergens, avoiding the trigger may be relatively straightforward. For others — particularly grasses and environmental substances — complete avoidance may not be realistic.
Management may therefore involve a combination of reducing exposure, caring for the skin after contact, controlling inflammation and itching, treating secondary infections and managing any other allergies occurring at the same time.
Our aim is to develop a plan that is effective, practical and realistic for both your pet and your household.
Have you noticed your pet experiencing allergy-like symptoms? Bring them in for a consultation. We treat your pet like one of our own. Call now on: +61 08 6277 9430 (Murdoch) and (Balcatta) or email: dermnurses@adcperth.com