Grass allergy or hotspots?

[FluffyFlowerFace]

I have an 18 month old very furry dog. In the past 3 months she's developed itchy spots on her tail legs and paws. We've treated them with bandages spray and a headcone. I've started an antihistamine too and we brush her to remove any grass seeds etc. Her breath smells of fish too she's had her glands expressed by the vet so it might be her food? She looks sad too help?

[Lonecatwithkitten]

It is not an either or situation hotspots often occur secondary to itching from allergy. Allergy to housedust mites and storage mites is actually much more common than grass allergy.
The decision you need to make is whether to control the symptoms or investigate the cause.

[FluffyFlowerFace]

I've booked her into the vets on Monday to discuss

[honeyroar]

Food was a major factor with our itchy dog - we changed to salmon and veg or turkey and veg James Wellbeloved on our vet's advice. The food allergy showed mostly in her ears.

As for the grass, ours has to have a piriton a day and stay of grass nearly all of the time (shame as we live in open countryside and have 20 acres ourselves!). We walk her on lanes and carry her if we can over grass. If we do go out on grass somewhere we use a barrier cream (udder cream from a horse shop seems to work best), then baby wipe her belly, legs and feet afterwards and put aloe and tea tree gel on for the car journey home. We also wash her with mild baby shampoo and add more gel when home. She had a piriton a day (small dog). Blankets are regularly washed (and old/pale colours - our vet said red fibres cause more allergies) and her bed hoovered. It takes a lot of work! We never did the full tests, the vet said to try avoiding the most common itches first.

[FluffyFlowerFace]

Thanks we're doing a process of elimination. The hotspots are infected so she's on antibiotics and seems so much happier. Going to keep her on piriton too x