The New York Times’ weekly “Well” blog often includes a piece on animals, and an entry awhile ago disputed “the myth of the allergy-free dog. Reportedly, the quantities of dog allergens where hypoallergenic breeds live are no different from those in homes where dogs considered non -hypoallergenic live. He cites a specialist who says variations in allergen levels can occur from dog to dog depending on variables like behavior and genetics, but breed as such is not a predictor. It begins to look as if human wishful thinking has created the idea that some dog breeds are hypoallergenic. Does that same wishful thinking help them believe once they have a so-called hypoallergenic dog, they suffer less from allergic reactions?

Stephen White, a professor of dermatology at the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, answers this week’s questions about food allergies. Cats need to be monitored to be sure they are eating the diet because cats that refuse a new diet for several days can become seriously ill. Usage of a commercially prepared diet will give an approximately 90 percent chance of determining a food allergy; however, none of these diets will work for all animals, and failure of an animal to improve on such a diet may warrant trying another one, or a home-cooked diet in another trial. If some itchiness persists at 12 weeks into the diet trial, this may indicate the need for continuing the diet, but that may also indicate the presence of concurrent hypersensitivities. Upon resolution of clinical signs with the feeding of an elimination diet, the animal should be challenged with its regular diet to confirm the diagnosis of a food allergy. He held faculty positions at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine and Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, before joining the School of Veterinary Medicine at University of California at Davis as a full Professor in 1998.

Stephen White, a professor of dermatology at the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, answers this week’s questions about food allergies. Cats need to be monitored to be sure they are eating the diet because cats that refuse a new diet for several days can become seriously ill. Usage of a commercially prepared diet will give an approximately 90 percent chance of determining a food allergy; however, none of these diets will work for all animals, and failure of an animal to improve on such a diet may warrant trying another one, or a home-cooked diet in another trial. Upon resolution of clinical signs with the feeding of an elimination diet, the animal should be challenged with its regular diet to confirm the diagnosis of a food allergy. He held faculty positions at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine and Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, before joining the School of Veterinary Medicine at University of California at Davis as a full Professor in 1998.

GRAND RAPIDS — Although the man who first bred a labradoodle said he wished he never had, local owners and breeders don’t have enough good things to say about the pups. The inventor lamented doodles have become mixed with too many other breeds , straying away from the original purpose, which was to create a guide dog that was smart, friendly and hypoallergeni. He said the labradoodle was an invitation for roodles (rottweiller/poodle), groodles (golden retriever/poodle) and even schnoodles (schnauzer/poodle), something Wally Conron, the man who initially bred the labradoodle, classifies as sloppy breeding in some cases. But Mlive readers were less concerned with the many mixed breeds and more concerned with pets abandoned in animal shelters while “designer dogs” were being bred as apparent status symbols. It just breaks my heart society is so enamored with purchasing these “designer breeds” only to show off the animal as a prize or a trophy as a status symbol regardless if you have allergies or not. Personally, I go with the rescue dogs but then, I am not allergic and I don’t mind the shedding (good thing since I have a German Shepherd which is a double coated breed).