How to effectively treat a dog with an overactive immune system?

Treating an autoimmune disease should be the priority over vaccinations. The dose of prednisone that you mentioned, should not suppress his immune system or prevent the vaccination from working, however I would discuss this with your vet. In some types of autoimmune disease, I will delay all vaccinations at is can cause flares in the disease process.

For lupus, the typical treatment involves suppressing the immune system with steroids or other immunosuppressant drugs in addition to vitamins, antibiotics and topical therapy. It would be best to discuss further options with the diagnosing veterinarian or seek a specialists advice with a veterinary dermatologist for further recommendations on treatment. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions / concerns and I would be happy to help!

The mainstay of therapy for discoid lupus is immunosuppressive therapies such as prednisone or cyclosporine. Topical therapies are also sometimes added. Vitamin E can be useful too but other than that there are no special foods/diets that are indicated.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Mollie! I wouldn’t do immunosuppressive doses of steroids without a biopsy. I would try a prescription hydrolzed diet like Royal Canin ultimino, put her on Bravecto, nexgard or simparica to cover for demodex and flea allergy dermatitis, omega 3 fish oil, allergy test her and try cytopoint. I think she has allergies. Most dogs with allergic skin disease need to be on multiple medications and special food. If that doesn’t work consider a boarded veterinary dermatologist. Then consider biopsy of the skin. I hope this helps and I wish Mollie the best!

Fighting secondary skin infections and allergies is tough. Drugs like prednisone and Apoquel are used to control inflammation. In some cases, we add a drug in an effort to taper prednisone if long term immunosuppression is needed. Ideally, long term immunosuppressives should be avoided but in some cases are needed. You should consider discussing referral to a veterinary dermatologist for intradermal skin testing.

I'm so sorry to hear that Tibby is having these problems. It sounds like you really need a vet to help look through Tibby's medical record and help you evaluate if she is a good candidate for more natural treatments. There are herbs that are good to support the immune system, but they can be the wrong choice for autoimmune conditions, so you really need a vet to help you make a good decision. I would consider ahvma.org to help you find a holistic vet, tcvm.com to help you find a Chinese herbal practitioner, or theahv.org for a homeopathic practitioner. I hope that helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

There is no proven medical way to boost the immune system. Make sure that Max is on a high-quality commercial dog food. You can add pet probiotics into his diet, and make sure he gets plenty of exercise. Supplements like fish oils are anti-inflammatory and support the immune system - I would try 100mg of combined DHA and EPA per kg of body weight. There are also alternative therapies like acupuncture, herbs, and food therapy that can be used to support the immune system and decrease inflammation. I would look for a certified veterinary acupuncturist in your area, or a vet that practices holistic medicine for guidance with herbal or even food therapy for inflammation.