While hayfever for humans means a runny nose, watery eyes and sneezing, a dog or cat will  mostly show his reaction in his coat or skin, so you may not recognise the signs of seasonal allergy in your pet. An exception is if your cat has feline asthma as this can make him react to pollen with the respiratory symptoms of hayfever.

Dogs in particular are just as as susceptible to hay fever as humans and they can inhale pollen granules in exactly the same way as we do. Direct contact with the skin can also trigger these responses so frolicking in grassy meadows this summer could leave your pet with a persistent itch.

Hayfever symptoms in dogs

In animals, because the histamine released by the body in response to pollen are mostly released in the skin, if your dog has hayfever he is likely to scratch and bite his body, possibly to the extent that he will pull some of his coat out. He my also lick his paws excessively, shake his head and rub his face on the floor or furniture. He is more likely to be more sensitive to being touched and seem generally miserable.

In more severe cases the skin may appear pink, red or inflamed, and if they have scratched so much that they have broken the surface of the skin, the scratch may well become infected with bacteria.

Soothing your pet's skin

In order to prevent these irritating symptoms it is worth ensuring that your dog's natural skin defences are working as well as they possibly can. Adding a supplement of the essential fatty acids in Omega 6 and 3 oils to your dog's diet will improve skin health, help calm sensitivity and irritation  and make it more difficult for the pollen to penetrate, reducing the scratching.

Itch-Eeze Capsules are excellent for dogs with hayfever or indeed any allergy that shows as excessive itching and scratching. Each capsules can easiiy be opened up and sprinkled onto your pet's dinner. 

Wiping your pet's coat with PetalCleanse lotion will denature pollen in his fur and is a wonderful natural conditioner for his skin. It's also helpful to spray your pet's bedding with HomeCleanse once a week in the hayfever season. to encapsulate and denature pollen and dustmite allergen.