This is a recurring theme that ends up on this website about dog allergies but one that most people with the most itchy scratchy dogs ignore.

Step one with your dog allergy is work out if its parasite (flea), internal issues, food allergy or environment allergy.  Since you can see parasites and internal organ issue is rarely a skin allergy issue with otherwise healthy dogs, and we mostly rule out food allergies as per the previous articles because you will usually notice fairly quickly that they have this rare form of dog allergy.

You will notice even faster with dog food intolerance.

So why is it that people regularly ignore … the most immediate and cheap solution?

Why dog owners DON’T use omega 3 for skin allergies

I have told this story many times before but if you didn’t read those articles its the most single important thing that most people with dog allergies don’t understand or get advised or give up on.

Truth be told, I was one of those people. Surely omega three is one of those naturopath stories with very little substance. No science behind it etc but the reality is the exact opposite is true.

If you doubt it just go and do some research yourself, find a science paper about dogs, skin allergy and omega three and get the evidence and the doses.

The reason that people dont use it is that they think its a fad. Or that a vet only halfheartedly tells them about it but doesn’t really drill it home, because if you use it, and it works they dont get your repeat business.

The number one reason I didn’t use it was that I tried for a few months and nothing seemed to happen. When you are in the middle of a dog skin allergy attack and your dog is licking the hell out of its feet or other parts, this becomes a habit that they will continue long after thei initial itch has subsided.  We only knew he had a skin allergy when his feet went brown and he kept licking the area.  he was manic with the licking.  That is how we knew he was uncomfortable.

BUT here is the biggest thing you should know – IT WONT WORK FOR THE FIRST THREE TO FIVE MONTHS.

The reason it doesn’t work is that the dog has a skin allergy, they have been washed a lot and pretty much their body is completely out of omega 3.   Omega 3 happens to be an ESSENTIAL OIL that they need but they cant manufacture within their body.

And so when you have a massive deficient of any mineral or substance essential to the health of your dog, it takes a while for you to fill up the reservoir.  the dog needs omega 3 in many parts of its body from brain to eyes (just like humans do) so it goes to work in those internal areas first, THEN when they are saturate, it is allowed to move to the skin.

The skin is the last place to get Omega 3 and it just takes a few months until it satisfies the rest of the dog and then protects the skin layer, soothing and calming the inflammation down.

The future blogs will look at why fish oil has to be used (from a science point of view) and the doses required for skin allergy dogs.