What the Heck Happened to Chloe? Beware of Winter Allergies!
As they were coming back inside, I was startled to notice sweet Chloe's left eye was red and swollen shut (below photo on left).
First the left eye...then the nose and right eye...
What the heck? Within 15 minutes, the swelling spread across her nose and into her right eye, too. Talk about getting worried.
The other three Sibes were just fine. So, what happened to Chloe?
Chloe with her uber-swollen squishy face and muzzle.
With an antihistamine in her, we did a search of the yard, deck, her bed...no sign of anything out the norm. Her food, supplements, and treats all the same brands as usual.
Then her face got really squishy, and her muzzle really swelled. More antihistamine.
Then her original swollen eye got better, and her good eye was swollen shut! As well as her nose and mouth. The rest of behavior was normal, and she was still eating and drinking.
Now her good eye is swelled shut!
Then she started vomiting...and it was immediately off to the vet, where we received a confirmation of a severe allergic reaction to ... something!
Still swollen muzzle and cheeks.
An injection of both an antihistamine and a steroid, Chloe's puffy snout and eyes finally started to become less swollen. With a prescription in hand, Chloe thankfully came back home with us and is now resting. It is so important to be sure to act fast with allergies as you never know when or if it can turn into anaphylaxis, which is an absolute emergency.
Chloe in her favorite spot letting the medications
do their thing.
Even though it is winter here in the northeast, and some days are chilly (like today) hovering around 11 degrees in the morning and 25 during the day, it did tip the mercury at 42 degree yesterday. So do we have some kind of arctic bug or spider capable of taking down an almost 80 pound Husky with a mere bite? Or with this crazy weather Mother Nature has been exposing us to (thank you global warming), did a hibernating bee or insect in a dopey winter state become wake enough to sting our girl? No infection, she did not come in contact with any toxins that we know of, and no change to brands of food or treats...
After lots of prayers and a #pawcircle for healing on our social media pages, we are so appreciative for the kindness and support from everyone. We are so thankful to have our girl back home and hopefully on the mend. I still wish we knew the cause...
So, what the heck...?
Question:
Has your pet encountered a strange winter allergic reaction to something unknown?
I'll be taking tomorrow off to be with dear Chloe, so I am combining today's post with our Friday's Flashback Friday! But we will be back for their 11th Birthday celebration on Saturday! Hope you'll come back to join us!
Sweet Chloe: Flashback Photo Autumn 2015!
Join our blog hop by sharing photos of your pets from yesteryear or yesterday! Link open all week, so join in any time!
One of our collies, Winter, gets itchy this time of year from all the dry, hot air inside the house. But no other strange Winter allergies! I hope you girl is feeling better soon!
ReplyDeleteI am so happy she is on the mend, was really worried about her. Take care and sending her a big hug from Layla
ReplyDeleteHow scary for you all but I sure am glad she is okay.
ReplyDeleteSo pleased Chloe is getting better. It's an awful worry when they swell up like that.
ReplyDeleteKhumbu had this reaction during the winter once to what the vet thinks were Pine Processionary caterpillars. His whole head swelled up and he was struggling to breath, it was an emergency trip to the vets. Various injections, but thankfully he survived fine. Some dogs when they come into contact with these caterpillars can loose part of their tongue. Horrible things they are. Hugs to Chloe ^..^
Glad Chloe is better, that had to have been really scary for all of you. We will try to get back by Saturday but we stopped by today to wish Chloe, Wolf and Bandit a Happy Barkday.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, poor Chloe! Thank Dog she is doing better and recovering. That is super scary. We had an incident when we moved into a new house in Phoenix. Icy came inside after a night time potty break and her mouth was swollen and twitching. We discovered a scorpion bit her! Emergency call to the Vet told us to monitor her through the night and come in if it got worse. It was a gut wrenching night but thankfully she was better by morning. *Husky Hugs*
ReplyDeleteLove & Biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them
Poor Chloe! She looked like she was in so much pain. Thank goodness for modern medicine. I hope she is feeling so much better now. Take good care of her mom. We can't wait to see the birthday girl on Sunday!
ReplyDeleteYikes! So sorry for your sweet girl. Hope she is back to 100% now.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that Chloe is feeling better. I've never heard of a winter allergy, I wonder if was a spider bite or bee like you mentioned.
ReplyDeleteAwww poor Chloe. That is scary. Dex has been extra itchy this winter and it's because we have not had the best winter. It has been like fall and some leaves are around. I know the trees are confused, too.
ReplyDeleteGosh, that is so strange! My Lab mix used to have tons of random allergies but all the odd reactions like this happened in warmer months. Let's hope she does not have any more reactions!
ReplyDelete