Well, I may well be guilty of switching the treatment regimens around too quickly. I did stick with the Din O Vite stuff for 3 months and saw no difference at all. Checking to see if the teaching hospitals in my area -Auburn, Tuskegee or UGA-has a derm vet on staff-surely one of them does.
Your regular vet should be able to send off a blood test for allergies. This happened to my golden retriever and the test showed she was allergic to chicken, mold, grass, ragweed etc. We eliminated chicken from her diet and she had to have allergy shots but her coat grew back in and she was much happier. The test was only about $100.
^ Great info. Wish my vet would have mentioned it to me?
Your vet may not have mentioned it to you because blood testing for allergies in dogs is notoriously unreliable. Intradermal skin testing, as performed by a veterinary dermatologist, is the way to go.
Prednisone (every single day) and Benadryl is the only thing that worked for my lab/dane mix. She stayed on them almost all 12 years of her life, without them she was a itchy, bloody mess. She was allergic to- wait for it, GRASS…. We tried so many different medications, shots, creams, etc. The low does prednisone was the only thing that would heal her and make her not itch.
I know prednisone is frowned upon for long term use, but there was no alternative. My 130lb girl was put down at 12 years of age due to osteosarcoma. Could have been due to prednisone use, but without it she would have had a miserable existence.
I share your sentiment datdog - our white Bull Terrier has pink skin that has been a nightmare all his life. He is on prednisone, too, and is comfortable…better a shorter life and a happy one than one that drives him mad. He is about 13 or 14 now.
Prednison - has to be given every day or if you run out you have to go back to square one with the loading dose. Mine, as said above, can go two one day, one the next and so on, so it is as low as I can make it.
I’ve used Mal-a-Ket shampoo and spray from Entirely pets to shampoo him and it does deal with his yeasty skin and the doggy odour is almost gone.
Thousands was spent with allergists, demotologists…they kept advocating for more tests, etc., and seemed like a money grab, nothing got decided.
I’ve heard Selsun Blue, Microtek, etc. are good too.
Regarding diet - we feed minimal ingredient food - but you have to be on it at least six weeks to know if it is helping. I’ve been guilty of switching too often.
I can virtually guarantee that your money will be better spent by going to a veterinary dermatologist and getting a diagnosis and specific treatment plan than by shotgunning treatments. 
And every time you switch diets, you are exposing the dog to proteins that will then have to be excluded if food allergies are suspected…which narrows the list of what the dermatologist can try for a novel protein diet.
I couldn’t find out about Tuskeegee on a quick search, but Auburn and UGA have Dermatology departments. There may also be someone private that is closer (the link was above)…
http://www.vetmed.auburn.edu/home/teaching-hospital/companion-animals/dermatology#.VE_QmJPF-lg
http://www.vet.uga.edu/hospital/services/dermatology
Good luck - skin issues can be SO frustrating!
[QUOTE=animaldoc;7828234]
I can virtually guarantee that your money will be better spent by going to a veterinary dermatologist and getting a diagnosis and specific treatment plan than by shotgunning treatments.
And every time you switch diets, you are exposing the dog to proteins that will then have to be excluded if food allergies are suspected…which narrows the list of what the dermatologist can try for a novel protein diet.
I couldn’t find out about Tuskeegee on a quick search, but Auburn and UGA have Dermatology departments. There may also be someone private that is closer (the link was above)…
http://www.vetmed.auburn.edu/home/teaching-hospital/companion-animals/dermatology#.VE_QmJPF-lg
http://www.vet.uga.edu/hospital/services/dermatology
Good luck - skin issues can be SO frustrating![/QUOTE]
Animaldoc thank you for taking the time to research that. Going to call now and see if we can get in or if we need a referral or what. Other than Selsun Blue baths I think you’re right- leave everything the way it is until he’s been seen.
Acupuncture?
I had a collie with skin issues (major). He was on vit E and later Omega flaxseed oil capsules. Worked well. Good luck.
I will be interested in the dermatology departments’ help…we took ours to a private clinic and it became far too costly for us. Please let us know what you come up with.
www.acvd.org
Find a dermatologist. Go. Now.
Blood tests for food allergies are not worth the paper they are written on.
Blood tests for inhalant/environmental allergies not much better.
All the food changes and vitamins and allergy shots will not make a any difference if the pet has a concurrent bacterial or Malssezia infection that are not being addressed.
Lisa
Agreed with seeing a dermatologist. There is also a new drug that is currently back ordered but expected to be available in 4/2015 called Apoquel that has shown a lot of promise for severe allergic dermatitis. Once it’s back on the market it’s worth looking into.
In The Gate, some dermatologists can magically still get Apoquel through their special pipeline. 
My understanding is right even the dermatologists aren’t getting enough to start any new patients. Our dermatology clients that started the drug before the shortage are only getting it for about one month of every two before we run out again. So frustrating for them to see their dogs better and worse constantly as we can’t get enough of the drug.
[QUOTE=TBROCKS;7828296]
Animaldoc thank you for taking the time to research that. Going to call now and see if we can get in or if we need a referral or what. Other than Selsun Blue baths I think you’re right- leave everything the way it is until he’s been seen.[/QUOTE]
You might also try posting on a breed forum for more husbandry ideas :yes:
THANK YOU everyone for the suggestions. I really appreciate it. We’re going to go the route of dermatologist, as many have said, so at least we can hopefully figure out what it is.
Alto thank you, that’s an interesting article, pretty sure that’s not his issue, since his skin and hair aren’t oily at all, more on the dry side with no flaking, but that’s an interesting read.
Does anyone have suggestions for good Shih Tzu breed forum? I’d appreciate it.
My mothers Golden Retriever has horrible skin allergies. Just about everything irritates her skin. And the dog is allergic to the sulfur used in most meds/treatments so it has been a battle to find anything that helps.
Right now she has the dog on Iams Grain Free line. Keeps her flea free and doesn’t bathe her as often.
I also got her to stop cleaning the dogs ears daily, and thankfully she hasn’t had another ear infection. Sometimes owners do too much and make it all worse.
[QUOTE=TBROCKS;7829401]
pretty sure that’s not his issue, since his skin and hair aren’t oily at all, more on the dry side with no flaking, but that’s an interesting read. [/QUOTE]
Look for that then, dry skin also gets a good amount of discussion with Shih Tzus
You do want to be careful with bathing & types of products, as many are drying/irritating (despite claims to the contrary )
eg
Selenium sulfide - These shampoos are degreasing and remove epidermal scale on the skin surface. They can be drying and irritating to the skin. An example in this category is Selsun Blue® (Ross).
Does anyone have suggestions for good Shih Tzu breed forum? I’d appreciate it.
If you have any local breeders, they may have some ideas.
I did find more/less active forums while I was looking for the SA.
My Shih-Tzu has skin issues as well, although they are not as bad as your poor pup’s. My guy scratches and licks himself constantly and will occasionally erupt in itchy, oozing sores. Totally gross and miserable for him. Our vet suggested a novel protein diet, so he is currently on Zignature Duck Grain Free food and a fish oil supplement. He loves the food, it’s not terribly expensive, and he has not had a bad outbreak of bumps since switching a few months ago. He also gets Zyrtec twice a day when he seems itchy. We use Sentinel for flea and heartworm control. Good luck!
