• Another post prompted my curiosity... exactly how would you know if your Basenji was allergic to something? Food? Environment? etc... What kind of behavior or other indications would alert you (as the owner) to a potential medical issue?


  • While the blood tests for allergies is far from perfect, it's a good place to start.

    Itching, gooey ears, dogs vary. I had a Rottweiler and a chow with horrible allergies. My Rottie's fave thing was peanuts -- allergic strongest one. We put her on an elimination diet and after 2 years of suffering with black goo ears that nothing helps, presto. Ears good, no itching, no chewing her feet.


  • It doesn't seem to matter what my b is fed, so I believe his allergies are environmental. It is worse from March to September, but it never really goes away unless we leave town (another huge clue). He gets itchy red spots that (if allowed) he will lick or scratch bloody, a red blotchy tummy, black knuckles on the tops of his toes, infected toenail beds and black between the pads of his feet. After a very in depth consultation with a vet about allergies, we manage with foot baths everytime we return from a walk or the dog park, and weekly baths (sometimes an Rx shampoo but usually a gentle shampoo). After a towel dry, he gets hydrogen peroxide squirted on his paws (and underneath if it's bad). Sometimes, put an inch of warm water with peroxide in a dish pab and let him soak in that while he eats his breakfast (he's used to eating while standing in the sink). If the nail beds get infected, I use Mal A Ket wipes (antibacterial and antifungal) and a makeup brush to massage the Rx shampoo or hydrogen peroxide into the nail beds. Lucky for me, my b does not like Bitter Apple, so I keep a tiny bottle nearby to apply a couple of drops to new spots before he breaks the skin. I also found an equine skin ointment that smells like camphor - it helps heal and discourages licking. I only use Benedryl as a last resort. Knock on wood, we've got it under control.

    If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open.

    My first basenji broke out in hives while we painted our kitchen.
    My second basenji would get explosive diarrhea if he was exposed to a change in routine or a new situation (may not qualify as an allergy, but it was very serious).


  • I found out many years ago that my Basenji is allergic to turkey. She broke out in big welts and hive all over her body . I brought her to the vet because she had a slight temperature and she scratched herself until she bled. Vet gave her an antihistamine. Needless to say, I do NOT feed her turkey.
    Last summer she was stung by a bee in the face. Her face blew up and was swollen. I gave her Benadryl and watched her carefully - swelling went down.


  • Is anyone's B on Apoquel? Emu is on HA rx food. Vegetable and apoquel once a day. She still often scratches ears with no gunk. And still scratches her face.


  • You would not know how much a holistic vet can help your dog with allergies till you try one, hopefully a good one.
    I was dealing with a skin limphoma, my regular vet gave up on us after the 1 st surgery he had no ideas that those skin bumps can be healed without removing them. They can it’s like magic, just sprinkling some Chinese herbs on them made them shrink.


  • Thank you (all)! I don't suspect that 'doodle' has any allergies (right now). I didn't really know what to look for... now I do. 🙂


  • Your dog can be allergic to anything that it is exposed to, wether it is environmental, or ingested. It only needs to happen once for the body to have a histamine (h2) response to it. That h2 response known, as the allergic reaction, can happen in various degrees and stages. The problem arises when the dog has a fast immediate reaction and the airway begins to close, this being worse case, many owners keep Benadryl (diphenhydramine hcl) on hand for this very reason. Most allergic reactions start with itching as the body realeses histamine, generally it will begin in the more tender areas, ears, between pads of their feet, belly, and groin area. They can start off small, but with continued exposure, can begin to look like welts. In worst cases, the face will swell as will the throat, and eventual airway will close if immediate intervention is not given. Basenjis often have food allergies, mostly to grains. I recently bought new salmon treats and about 30 minutes after giving it to our male, he became very restless, then he started licking his feet, then he started chewing between the pads of his feet. I gave him some Benadryl and kept an eye on him the rest of the night, but 45 minutes later he was sleeping just fine, but no more salmon anything for him. Once the dog is exposed to an allergen, every time they are exposed, you risk more histamine being released into the blood stream which could result in a bigger allergic reaction than the first time. It's best to check with your vet for the correct dosage you should give your basenji in that 'just in case' moment, and how often. Hope this helps.


  • couple times he has gotten red spots, once he broke out in hives..It was around 7-8 month ago. I am using homeopathy ( under control of my homeopath doctor) and balancing his raw pray model diet..


  • @emu12 My vet tech friend says it's often either a miracle or not useful. I know several using Apoquel that swears by it.


  • @tuts said in Allergic Reactions:

    I am using homeopathy

    What type of homeopathy, tuts?


  • our B has a sore on her inner back leg. It actually looks like an eye white outside circle and dark inside.
    We started noticing she was shedding a lot and gave her a bath and now found this. Any thoughts. I wish I could post picture, but says error when I try.


  • @chellmulcahy said in Allergic Reactions:

    I wish I could post picture, but says error when I try.

    Please try again... we really do need to "see" this before we can give you an idea of what it might be.

    • If the picture is online (dropbox, opendrive, goodle drive, etc), you can link to it.
      Type in: ![image name](url or location)

    • If the picture is on your desktop or laptop use the upload icon... the very last icon when you are typing your question. It will open the file browser on your computer. You may have to look for it before you can select the correct file to open.

    • If the picture is on your phone.
      * You can upload it to the cloud and then link to it, or
      * You can go online (via your phone's browser) and try to upload it from there.
      * If those don't work, (use the USB charging cable to) transfer the picture from your phone to your computer and try to link or upload the picture again.


  • Wow, my B guy, now almost 12 has always had allergies, but I would welcome ANY info on quarter size cysts that have been appearing all over his little body. My vet says the are nothing to worry about and not needing to remove them if you can wrap your fingers all around them, they are not attached. He did an extraction from one and told me they are just benign.
    Has anyone ever seen these on there B's? I think they are environmental...???
    Does anyone know of a Holistic method to get rid of these? I have him on a VERY clean diet and he doing great other than this. Thank you!


  • @branch - Typically these are fatty lipomas. These happen in all older dogs, not just a Basenji. As your vet recommended they do not need to be removed since showing benign. If they are really unsightly for you, if you need to have something else done that he would need to be put under, you can have them removed then. Other than that, I would not worry about them. Just keep an eye on them. You can always have your Vet check by doing a needle extraction


  • Thank you for advice...that is exactly what I am doing....


  • @debradownsouth it's called her itching down quite a bit.


  • @elbrant my homeopath doctor precribes.. I do not recommend do it on your own


  • @tuts said in Allergic Reactions:

    my homeopath doctor precribes

    Yes, but what is it?


  • @elbrant it does not matter what was prescribed for my dog, because all have diffrent symptoms and every remedy schoud be selected individully.

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