Does my dog need a blood test to continue Apoquel long-term?

I am sorry to hear about your pup! Allergies can be so frustrating for dogs, owners, and their vets! We do have many dogs on long term apoquel who do wonderful, but there are other things that can be tried in dogs with allergies. You can ask your vet if they can refer you to a veterinary dermatologist if they do not do allergy testing at their hospital. Allergy testing can be done either by collecting a blood sample or by doing a skin test as they do in humans. Based on the testing they can develop allergy shots that can be given to desensitize your dog to the allergen, but this can take a good deal of time to help so often we need a combination approach. If food allergies are suspected then a trial on a hypoallergenic diet provided by your vet (a prescription diet is recommended not an over the counter diet) may also be recommended. These things may help decrease the need for drugs like apoquel.

Hi, thanks for using Boop by Petco! Apoquel will not work if the dog has a skin infection. I recommend anytime that the apoquel has stopped working that the dog be taken to the Vet for an exam to check for a bacterial or yeast infection. Most dogs with allergies need to be on a special diet, apoquel or cytopoint, an antihistamine and an Omega 3 supplement to keep the dog comfortable, but flare ups are bound to happen, we just hope less frequently. As for the bloody diarrhea, it is likely unrelated to her skin and the apoquel but it is fine that you stopped it. Especially if it wasn't working. The blood indicated inflammation in the colon. Common causes of diarrhea are: intestinal parasites, viral or bacterial infections, dietary indiscretion, pancreatitis, food allergy/intolerance, reaction to a new food/treat/table food. If the diarrhea is bad I would fast her for 12-24 hours to rest her GI tract then start feeding a bland diet of boiled chicken or hamburger with rice. Feed 1 cup p

Hi there and thank you for using Boop by Petco to address your concern. I have several patients that have been on it for a little over a year now and seem to be doing quite well on it. The one thing we routinely monitor is a complete blood count to make sure the immune system is not being suppressed, which Apoquel has been known to do in some patients. Other than that, I really do not see any other side effects of using Apoquel. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Great question! Yes, I would recommend having the blood test done on Blazer. Even though you are aware of the side effects, there could still be effects on her organs from the medication that are not seen symptomatically. It's very important to have her organ function checked to make sure there hasn't been any damage done to her organs from the medication.

Thanks for using Boop by Petco! Apoquel can result in a higher propensity of developing infections and the other concerning possible side effect is the higher chance of development of cancer that we think may happen with this drug. For this reason, usually I recommend using it on as needed basis and stopping it when the itch resolves. In theory, if the main cause of the itch is being addressed, such as treating allergies for example, you may not need to use Apoquel long term. Good luck and have a great day!

Thanks for using Boop by Petco! The main thing with allergies is that the allergic component needs to be addressed or medications like Apoquel are only going to help just to some extent. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be

Changing her food is not likely to help as food allergies are much more rare than most people believe. if she does not suffer from soft stools or other gastrointestinal problems, food allergy is very low on the list of possible causes. If she is on Apoquel and still suffering from severe allergies i would recommend doing an allergy test, i see this as kind of a last resort as it is not always accurate but at this point i feel there is very little to lose.

Apoquel is a very safe drug. I would not stop giving it to Rupert without speaking to his vet first. He's likely stopped licking his paws because the medication is working, and usually in these cases, the symptoms come right back when the medication is stopped.

Based on the redness, crustiness and loss of pigment on the nose and eyelids, I would worry about him possibly having an auto-immune disease such as lupus or pemphigus. These diseases commonly affect the eyelids and nose in this way. Only a skin biopsy can definitively diagnose these conditions. It is also possible that there is a secondary infection. I would recommend having a skin cytology and a culture and sensitivity done. This means that the vet will take a superficial sample of those areas and look for bacteria. It will then be cultured to see what kind of bacteria is it and the sensitivity shows you what kind of antibiotic it is sensitive to. If there is an infection, it is best to clear that up prior to doing a biopsy as infection can make it hard to see the primary cause. Even though he doesn't seem to be responding to Apoquel, it could still be allergies. Most dogs I have treated with Apoquel have done very well, but there have been some dogs who don't improve in their allerg

Thanks for using Boop by Petco! Yes, it appears to be. We have to keep allergic dogs on it longterm as it improves their quality of life so much. You can always use it on an as needed basis as there will be times of the year perhaps winter when his allergies will not be as significant. Good luck and have a great day!