Shih Tzu Achoo

          You heard it here first: Dogs can be allergic to themselves.

          Yes, I frowned just as you are doing when I heard this.  I was standing at the front desk of my veterinary office last week, attempting to listen with a straight face. I was explaining that the miracle/fabulous/amazing pill which had cured our dog’s itching had suddenly stopped working.

           The kind woman sitting there said it’s possible the allergen count in the air—pollens, molds, etc.—could be up. “Or,” she said, “she could be allergic to herself.”

          Here is where I wasn’t sure if I should just run from this burning building or stay there and hear the explanation. I stayed, because I needed a refill of the old steroid we had used on our dog a year ago.  And that’s when the woman explained that dogs can have dog allergies and be allergic to their own dander.

          Now, riddle me this: How can you get away from yourself?  Seriously, in what universe can you run and hide from your own body? And if dogs can have dog allergies, can humans have people allergies? Could this be the reason you never really liked Mr. Webb in the 9^th grade? And the reason snakes shed their skins?

          We could be onto the biggest scientific breakthrough known to mankind—the cause of wars, famines, pestilence, even jealousy and a distaste for the way your Uncle Dreemus breathes through that hairy nose. Maybe we’re all allergic to one another.

          I’m telling you, pharmaceutical companies are sitting on a gold mine.  They should be packaging allergy control medications that counteract other drivers, difficult relatives, noisy neighbors—why, the list is endless.  And let’s not forget oneself.

Meanwhile, until the right medication comes along, distract yourself from the itching by reading one of my riveting books, available here.