Itchy dog issues?

[dangerbunny]

For the past two weeks my girl has been super, super itchy. I have gone over her several times with a flea comb and found nothing, no change in food except she was getting a lot of people food (stopped right away) and she is halfway down a bag of the same dog food we always get her.

It seems to be worse when she is a little stressed like people coming home or leaving or lots of noise in the house. She does have dry flaky skin on her hindquarters and three bumps that have scabbed over that look like scratched at mosquito bites. Sometimes she will scratch until you yell at her.

and the cat isn’t at all affected.

should I be worried about fleas? is she just being neurotic? food issues? I am stumped.

[Simkie]

Food allergies can show up out of the blue as the critter is sensitized to the allergen, which is why some people have to switch to a new novel protein source with some regularity. What are you feeding?

[dangerbunny]

hmmm I didn’t know that. We have been feeding Canidae, she has done really well on it. In the winter she gets a lot of raw food(venison).

[Simkie]

Canidae isn’t a bad food, but it does have a ton of various protein sources that can be rough on a dog with any sort of allergy issue. Might be worth trying something with a single protein source instead.

[HydroPHILE]

We have a dog notorious for her allergies. I was FINALLY able to pinpoint them down to a specific species of grass growing in our fields. The only way I did so was when she would go outside, her skin would be standard pale/light pink in color. After rolling around in the grass and running around in the grass, she would come in with what looked like hives and dark red skin (and the itching would begin.)

For your dog, I would try adding some of the Grizzly Salmon Oil or virgin, unrefined coconut oil into her food (SMALL amount at first!) and see if wiping her down with an antibacterial baby wipe after going outside helps.

Generally dried skin and scabs on her hindquarters would indicate flea dermatitis or intestinal worms.

[Nezzy]

take her to the vet and have her allergy tested. my dog is allergic to flea saliva, Cat dander, House dust mites and storage mites. Along with food allergies to chicken and beef and grain.

To determine a food allergy you have to stop all treats and switch over for a few months to a food without the allergen to know if it is helping. it takes a long time.

[dangerbunny]

Thanks for the ideas, I appreciate it.

Could having a large amount of grains and people food trigger a reaction that is ongoing despite the allergen being removed?

She has been dewormed recently.

[vacation1]

It might just be that she’s developed a new allergy, or an existing mild allergy has strengthened. This happened to my dog as she got older, say from 5 to 9. You can apparently develop allergies out of the blue all through your life - joy.

It sounds like your girl is heading toward a hot spot, which is what those itchy bumps turn into if the itching continues without remedy - a bloody raw patch that goes infected in a second. If it’s been intense for two weeks, I’d take her to the vet; they can see if it’s gotten infected yet, and will probably put her on steroids to ease the itching.

Right now, no matter what the core reason is, the itching is probably out of control and extremely unpleasant for her. Steroids like prednisone are not great as a long-term solution, but they’re very good for short-term relief while you try, a different diet, medicated shampoos, allergy medications, etc. I strongly recomend a vet visit, because unrelieved itching is probably making making her miserable.

[LauraKY]

I do wish steroids were not such a go to drug for humans and animals. We always try hydroxyine first. Steroids can have such a down side and should be reserved for when they are really necessary.

[vacation1]

I don’t like steroids either, but if the dog’s been super-itchy for 2 weeks, per the OP, I’d argue that this is a time when it is necessary. They’ll stop the itching fast, and then when things have gotten calmed down the owner can try milder preventatives. Hydroxyzine (which my dog is on, and I do prefer that to prednisone, which has scary drawbacks when used long-term) is good to stop things from starting, less good at halting a problem that’s already started to build.

I have allergies myself, and if I miss even a day of Zyrtek-D, I start itching all over. It’s horrible - first the itching drives you crazy, then the scratches and welts hurt like hell. And I’m a human who can distract myself with books, slather myself with cortisone cream, and just plain tell myself “If you keep scratching, you’ll hurt yourself.” A dog is much worse off.

[4Martini]

I have had good luck with avoderm food. It reaaly helps our dog’s skin. Unfirtunately her belly doesn’t love it so we use half meat based food. We also give salmon oil. She still gets itchy in the spring and fall and our vet told us to just give her generic claradin. Works great to knock down the itching before it becomes a problem. She just came off two days of it and is sleeping like a baby rather than up itching. I would go to your vet and ask.

[SquishTheBunny]

Id also be one to try steroids (low dose) for a tapering 2-3 week peroid. Often “environmental factors” can be ruled out if once off the steroid the allergies dont come back.

Food allergies doesnt often present as itchy skin…but it absolutley could be a trigger/contributer. More dogs are allergic to chicken than they are to grains.

You could do a few or all of the following (it would require a vet visit).

• Tapering low dose steroids (such as Vanectyl P or straight prednisone)
• Medicated bath
• Skin scraping for ectoparasites
• Allergy testing (last step)
• Skin biopsy (last step)

It could also be less “allergy” related. Autoimmune disroder, idiopathic puritis, fungal infection, cutaneous neoplasia etc.

[2tempe]

One of my dogs developed allergies (non-food)the first summer after moving to Florida; it required a steriod shot, multi week dose of antibiotics and finally a serious haircut (he’s chow/retriever) before we got him under control.
This summer, got the haircut, twice, AND gave him 1 benedryl per day, may thru october; no problems, no itching, perfect.

SO IF its allergy generic benedryl at Target is like $3.99 for 100 of the 12 hour variety, a cheap solution to the problem. Edited to add: there are several brands of people allergy meds that are fine for dogs, but not all, so check w/ vet…

[Bicoastal]

My allergy-boy has been well-controlled for a mannnnny months now. Last month up popped scratching. Vet guessed it must be a Fall foliage blooming.

Years ago, his itchiness did come out of the blue. Seems to start overnight.

[rmh_rider]

I was watching Dr. Pol and there was a REALLY sick dog who had consumed deer. They put dog on antibiotics and tummy stuff. He said something to the effect that dogs should NOT eat deer. Perhaps too many bugs in it? Never know where a deer has been.

I have an itchy dog too. She gets hydrozine. Your dog should go on predinose, and then some hydrozine.

May be the food, may be the dog bones, may be your house and dander and dust. Ya just do not know.

I feed only blue buffalo. My dog is not 100% non-itchy, but she is in the 20% range. I keep dog beds clean, i wash her in non-soy shampoos, I keep the house vaccumed and dusted (I try), I use only unscented everything with regards to laundry.

Dogs develop allergies starting around 2-3 years old. You do not say how old the dog is. Also you should do an elimination of things so you can figure it out. I have YET figured out what makes my dog itch. Probably something outside. I do keep her rinsed off. She is not allergic to fleas. She did get itchy on venison dog food btw. No more chew bones. She gets hydrozine as needed, but most of the summer she was on it. Prednizone helps calm the itchy. Take drugs if it helps it will make your dog feel better. Also if the rashes are bad they can get infected so your dog may need some antibiotics.

good luck.

[Foxtrot_s]

Our white bull terrier has dreadful skin.

What seems to be helping is daily fatty acids in pill form, twice weekly bath with DernaPet medicated shampoo for dogs - Acetic acid 2%, ketoconazole 1%, Chlorhexidene Gluconate 2% - which I let sit for ten minutes, and a spray from the same Company. He is also on half a prednizone
pill most days, as warranted. But his skin is a lot cooler and the shampoo is supposed to kill the brown yeast in his tummy and back legs. He is getting pinker. His callouses are a lot softer too.

It 's been a lifelong battle, and hopefully this regime will last. I reduce the program and when needed bump it up again - constant readjustment as I hate giving him the prednizone, bur prednizone has to be adjusted very slowly.

www.dermapet.com

[dangerbunny]

Thanks for all the suggestions, we seem to have knocked the issue out. Removing people food, putting her on more raw food and supplementing with a probiotic and fish oil helped a lot. I used a medicated shampoo and lots of brushing as well. The best change was getting rid of our roommates who have been causing everyone stress for the past four months, I’m sure that helped as well.

[cute_lil_fancy_pants]

The most common allergies in dogs are flea allergies (scratching at hindquarters) then environmental allergies (atopic dermatitis), and then food allergies. You need to rule out flea allergies first! And this means a good flea control like Capstar orally every day. Give this 8 weeks and see if the dog gets better. You also need to get rid of fleas still in the environment. Advantage, or Frontline are not good enough flea preventatives for a flea allergic dog. You don’t even need to see the fleas on the dog, just one bite can cause a reaction and extreme itching for up to 2 weeks after.
Then you can try a food trial. You should go with something like Royal Canin Rabbit and Potato or Iam’s kangaroo and oat. The most common food allergies in dogs are beef, chicken, wheat and dairy. Don’t feed over the counter brands like Blue Buffalo, Taste of the Wild or Dick Van Patton’s even if they say Rabbit on the label, their plants process other meats, like chicken and beef on the same machines. Royal Canin limited ingredient diets do not. Diets like venison cross react with beef, and duck cross reacts with chicken, so don’t use those diets. When doing a food trial you need to do it for 8 weeks. You need to not give any other treats, no medications that are flavored (like heartguard, rimadyl, comfortis etc…), no flavored toys, no rawhides, no people food. Even minced rabbit may have been processed on the same machines as beef or chicken, so don’t give any people food. You need to do this for 8 weeks and see if there is an improvement. Unfortunately, there is no cure, but all itchy dogs can be managed with great success if you stick to it!
So you have been strict on flea control, and strict on the food diet, and your dog is still itching? Then most likely it is an environmental allergen (atopic dermatitis) that can be caused by pollen, mold spores, dust mites etc…5 ways of treating this 1) allergy testing and immunotherapy via injections 2) Atopica 3) Steroids 4) over the counter antihistamines 5) fatty acids…

[caryledee]

My dog used to have horrible skin problems… he would chew until he was raw on his back and legs. I put both my dogs on Brewer’s Yeast and after a couple of months, all that went away. I don’t have flea issues anymore either, so it may have been caused by flea allergies. But it is a simple, cheap solution and has really worked for me!

[cute_lil_fancy_pants]

[QUOTE=caryledee;5956162]
My dog used to have horrible skin problems… he would chew until he was raw on his back and legs. I put both my dogs on Brewer’s Yeast and after a couple of months, all that went away. I don’t have flea issues anymore either, so it may have been caused by flea allergies. But it is a simple, cheap solution and has really worked for me![/QUOTE]

What is the proposed mechanism of brewer’s yeast in the treatment of pruritus?