Dog with itchy skin!!

[debilorrah]

This is gonna sound weirtd, but bath him with Selsun Blue. It is not just for dandruff, but for flaky scalp and is very gentle. I used it on my old, and now passed, cat that had HORRID dry skin. That poor animal scratched so hard they became sores. The shampoo worked.

Tea tree oil rubbed into the skin after bathing too is very soothing, as someone else said.

 

[luvarabhorses]

I am pretty sure Selsun Blue has among other things, Sulfur, which is good for the skin.

 

[Tala]

Quote:
The Happy Jacks stuff has like 30% sulfur - awesome stuff.
However, it's very messy.
I have a shampoo from Happy Jack I think it's for puppies and it says "Itch No More" puppy shampoo. It also has sulfur and pine tar oil, but it's not messy like the cream.

 

[English Chick]

Coal Tar doggie shampoo works a treat... I use it on my Yorkie ... plus keeping up with her flea programme...

 

[annanicole18]

I agree with alot of people. Selsun blue is awesome it helped my parents dog to quit itching while she was getting treated for mange. Corn or veggie oil on their food can help too. If you can afford it go with a dog food like Science Diet my lab mix has sensitive skin and when our free years supply was up we wanted to try and cut our cost a little because for a big dog its expensive anyways she started flaking really really bad a week after switching. We have gone through alot of brands of food to try and find one that is economical and that works for her skin. The only foods that have worked are Science Diet and Sportsmix Premium.

 

[chickensioux]

I give my dogs Brewers yeast. For 2 years now I haven't had a single flea problem. I have 4 dogs and so far so good. I have one little dog that is allergic to everything (food, grass, etc) so we switched her to a venison/rice dog food and she has almost completely stopped scratching. She still chews her feet alittle because of the grass.

 

[sewchick]

I took a shoot of my aloe plant and put it on my dog. Healed it. I did this a couple of times a day with the sap from the piece i cut off. Aloe is a powerful plant. It's good for a lot of things. Hope your dog is better.

 

[NRacine]

Oh, my. So many dogs with skin problems.

I have been lucky enough to be able to take my dog to the university vet clinic to see the dermatologist (and unlucky enough to have to pay the bills).

Dogs have different reactions to allergens than people do. People get the rashes, itchy eyes, snot, etc. Dogs become susceptible to microorganisms via the skin. Thus, they get itchy from a secondary infection, typically yeast. They can get bacterial infections as well, but that's not usually as itchy.

So the first thing to do is figure out what the dog is allergic to:

Food: Can be genetically linked to certain breeds and even the color of certain breeds. Start a food trial by eliminating all treats, people food, vitamins, etc. Start with foods that have one protein (meat) source and one carbohydrate (grain) source. You have to feed it for a month for any old allergens to wash out. If no improvement, move on to another one. Keep a list of ingredients and what seem to not work. BTW, Science Diet is not a good food. Some to try are California Natural, Wellness, Innova, Canidae. You may also need to try grain-free.

Fleas: Some dogs are allergic to flea waste. An easy way to prevent this is use a flea and tick preventative! Depends where you live, but if it is above freezing, you need to be using it. The dermatologist told me that Advantix is the best for dogs with sensitive skin, but the regular vet said he has seen cases where it did not prevent heartworm as it states, so use Heartguard too.

Environment: My dog has seasonal environmental allergies. Basically, he is allergic to the outside. We decided to skip the allergy testing since he is only a wreck for half the year, we can manage his symptoms during that time. Benadryl does nothing, He could eat 6 benadryl a day with no relief. The derm said he can have Zyrtec, and it does the trick. Baths every 2-3 days helps to get the pollen off, and quick wipe-downs after being outside is also helpful during the worst time of year.

Treat the microorganisms: All of the previous things can result in bacteria and yeast infections, separately and together. Skin tapes and scrapes at the vet can tell you which, and pills can be used to treat. In the meantime, there are other ways to stop the licking and scratching. Baths: Malaseb is an antifungal and antibacterial soap. Nizoral is a people shampoo for dandruff, has an ketaconazole which is an antifungal agent. They are both about $15. Spray: If they dog has really bad hot spots (raw spots on feet) you may need topical steroids to help it recover. Over the counter corticosteroids may not be strong enough.

Finally, take your dog to the vet or at least call before doing anything, even some of the over the counter or home-remedy things. You certainly don't want to make your dog worse or create new problems.

Whew! As you can see, allergy dogs do not have an easy fix, but they are not lost causes either. Everyone with an itchy dog needs to do some research and be prepared to ask your vet questions. If they don't know what to do, go to another vet. Not all vets are very familiar with allergies, the younger ones seem to have gotten more of it in vet school. Ask about this if looking for a new vet. It can be a lot of maintenance, but having a happy, healthy, non-itchy dog is worth all the hassle!

 

[babalubird]

Rule out all possibilities of fleas and the dermatitis they can cause.

If that doesn't work, look at diet and a supplement. I learned the hard way to only feed the best of dog foods, not the usual cheaply made stuff in grocery stores. We only feed Science Diet now. When my dobie developed such serious itching, she was chewing up three of her four feet, and I had been to four different vets to no avail, someone suggested I try Missing Link, a supplement available for different types of animals.

I was really trying to come to grips to put her to sleep but begrungingly tried it. It took a total of 3 months to turn her around, but at 14, she developed beautiful muscle again, stopped chewing and her three feet, though badly scarred, did heal, and her arthritis was about 85-90% better.

I found her dead, stretched out in the sun like she was sleeping, three years later at age 17. Not bad for a dobie.

I can't say enough about good quality dog food but especially about Missing Link. Love the stuff.

Connie

 

[()relics]

I had this with 2 of my GSP's a couple of years ago...It turned out to be the food...The producer of the food "changed the protein source" without saying anything and without changing the bag label...I have since switched to a dependable dog food..... BUT while I was dealing with the itchy problems tried just about everything to help the dogs stop with the itchys....An egg on the coat and an egg in the food once a day worked somewhat...I also used mayonaise on the coat...but being the eggs are plentiful preffered to use them...The itching didn't completely stop but did get dramatically better and they had VERY nice coats...