Itchy dog... Trip to vet in order or not?

[Old Dominion Heather]

Our dog, Trooper, has been itchy for a few days now... scratching til his skin is red and looks very irritated.

 

It looks irritated, not flaky, like mange. In a few places the skin is raised, like a bite, but he is treated for fleas and his companion dog is fine, not irritation, no bites, no itching. It seems to be in various patches, though. Chest, belly and legs.

 

Does anyone have any ideas what this could be or how to treat it?

[livingnlearning]

You can give him a benadryl, depending on his size maybe two. See if that helps him-knowing that it will make him drowsy so see if the itching improves and he's not just too tired to itch!

 

I'd wash his beds and vacuum really well.

 

Has he been running in grass or sleeping in a different place? New carpet or rugs in the house? New dog bed? Sleeping on a different surface? dead grass or weeds can kick off an allergy/itch. Or straw in a doghouse can have mites that make them itch. Keep him on a clean swept floor and not running around outside and see if that helps.

 

I would also make him plain burger and rice food for a while and see if that helps. Food allergies can come on quickly and for no apparent reason. Have you switched foods lately or has he had a different treat that is unusual? Take him off his usual food and feed him only plain burger for a few meals, see if that makes a difference.

 

My aussie had an allergic reaction like you describe, itched her belly nonstop! We pulled the food and gradually reintroduced a different food and it cured her. Since dog food ingredients aren't controlled they can get a little too much of something and unbalance a dog's system pretty easily.

 

If you really want to know what is causing it do these things one at a time to eliminate the possibilities but if you just want it to stop, do all of them at once! :)

 

Good luck! That itching drives everyone crazy!

[Old Dominion Heather]

You can give him a benadryl, depending on his size maybe two. See if that helps him-knowing that it will make him drowsy so see if the itching improves and he's not just too tired to itch!

 

I'd wash his beds and vacuum really well.

 

Has he been running in grass or sleeping in a different place? New carpet or rugs in the house? New dog bed? Sleeping on a different surface? dead grass or weeds can kick off an allergy/itch. Or straw in a doghouse can have mites that make them itch. Keep him on a clean swept floor and not running around outside and see if that helps.

 

I would also make him plain burger and rice food for a while and see if that helps. Food allergies can come on quickly and for no apparent reason. Have you switched foods lately or has he had a different treat that is unusual? Take him off his usual food and feed him only plain burger for a few meals, see if that makes a difference.

 

My aussie had an allergic reaction like you describe, itched her belly nonstop! We pulled the food and gradually reintroduced a different food and it cured her. Since dog food ingredients aren't controlled they can get a little too much of something and unbalance a dog's system pretty easily.

 

If you really want to know what is causing it do these things one at a time to eliminate the possibilities but if you just want it to stop, do all of them at once! :)

 

Good luck! That itching drives everyone crazy!

 

 

Thanks! We'll try it. It is certainly driving us crazy, but I just feel so sorry for him, too.

[myfunnybunch]

Our dog has seasonal allergies and will react exactly the way you describe.

 

I give him Benadryl (1/2 tablet wrapped in cheese) and will sometimes spray the affected area with Benadryl spray if it's really irritated.

 

We also switched dog food, which seemed to help.

 

Cat

[Dayle in Guatemala]

You can give a dog benadryl????? THAT answers my prayers! Our black lab has had skin irritation now for quite some time and it's just hard to watch him be so miserable. I know it's an allergy because he had the same thing before and the vet said it was an allergy. How many mg can you give a dog of about 60 lbs? Anyone know?

[livingnlearning]

we always did a mg a lb twice a day, you can start at half a mg per pound and see how he does on it. You can go as high as 2 mgs per pound but if you don't see much improvement with it I would try other options or he will always be groggy. :) It also works as a good sedative for a cat if you give it to them while they're still calm. Doesn't work if the cat is already mad.

 

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Diphenhydramine+(Generic+Benadryl)-prod10834.html

[Kebo]

Skin infections (pyoderma) can also be very itchy. In that case, antihistamines won't help much, if at all (although allergic skin disease can open the door for infections to take hold). Antibiotics would be needed, possibly in conjunction with medicated shampoos. The bite-like lesions would fit with a pyoderma.

 

Here's a bit more information and a photo of typical lesions:

http://www.mypeted.com/dog-health-articles/skin-and-coat-care/pyoderma-dog-skin-infection.php

 

Early or mild cases would be much more subtle in appearance, but you get the general idea...

[mom2a&z]

we always did a mg a lb twice a day, you can start at half a mg per pound and see how he does on it. You can go as high as 2 mgs per pound but if you don't see much improvement with it I would try other options or he will always be groggy. :) It also works as a good sedative for a cat if you give it to them while they're still calm. Doesn't work if the cat is already mad.

 

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Diphenhydramine+(Generic+Benadryl)-prod10834.html

 

 

:iagree: We used benadryl with our shepherd mix and it worked like a charm!

[*Jen*]

My poor dog has seasonal allergies and if you don't stop the itch cycle she will create massive hot spots on her backside. What works for her is to give her Benadryl as soon as we notice her itching and then to wash her in a good tea tree oil shampoo, If the skin is already irritated then we spray those areas down twice a day with a tea tree oil spray until the redness goes away.

 

Poor thing had her initial reaction this year while we were at Disney earlier this month and the girl taking care of her didn't notice her chewing until it was too late. The poor dog has a naked rear end from all the hair she lost from the horrible hot spots she created.

[ktgrok]

Bendryl is approximately 1 mg per pound. So a 50lb dog gets 50 mg, etc. I know that sounds high, but they need that much.

[Dayle in Guatemala]

My poor dog has seasonal allergies and if you don't stop the itch cycle she will create massive hot spots on her backside. What works for her is to give her Benadryl as soon as we notice her itching and then to wash her in a good tea tree oil shampoo, If the skin is already irritated then we spray those areas down twice a day with a tea tree oil spray until the redness goes away.

 

Poor thing had her initial reaction this year while we were at Disney earlier this month and the girl taking care of her didn't notice her chewing until it was too late. The poor dog has a naked rear end from all the hair she lost from the horrible hot spots she created.

 

THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE NOW!!!! So do we treat with tea tree oil? I'm so thankful I saw this. My poor dog will finally get some relief!

[LaxMom]

You can give a dog benadryl????? THAT answers my prayers! Our black lab has had skin irritation now for quite some time and it's just hard to watch him be so miserable. I know it's an allergy because he had the same thing before and the vet said it was an allergy. How many mg can you give a dog of about 60 lbs? Anyone know?

 

Dog dosing is the same as people dosing 1-2 mg/kg of body weight. So a 60lb (27kg) dog would get one 25 mg pill. Or two.

[5kidsforME]

We have a chocolate lab and he has really bad skin allergies. He is about 80lbs and we give him 75 mg, twice a day per the Vet's recommendation.

[5kidsforME]

We have a chocolate lab and he has really bad skin allergies. He is about 80lbs and we give him 75 mg, twice a day per the Vet's recommendation.

 

She also recommends 1 tsp of olive oil mixed in with his food.

[SonshineLearner]

No grain; I suggest raw chicken or beef. If you're worried about the chicken... just feed other meats :) Keep him away from any grain. The good thing for my dog is that I was almost ready to put him to sleep it was so bad, (even with benadryl), and now he's fine. He does have some allergies right now, but not anything compared to before...

:)

[MariannNOVA]

No grain; I suggest raw chicken or beef. If you're worried about the chicken... just feed other meats :) Keep him away from any grain. The good thing for my dog is that I was almost ready to put him to sleep it was so bad, (even with benadryl), and now he's fine. He does have some allergies right now, but not anything compared to before...

:)

 

:iagree: no grain -- that has made a huge difference in our dog's life. Also, we do a pump of wild salmon oil in his food once a week (too much and he gets, errrr, runny) -- Hornblower told us about this a couple of years ago. His coat is like satin.

[*Jen*]

THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE NOW!!!! So do we treat with tea tree oil? I'm so thankful I saw this. My poor dog will finally get some relief!

 

I found the frequent washing (every other/every third day) to keep the pollen or whatever is bothering her out of her hair helped. The tea tree oil shampoo also really cut down on the inflammation in her skin.

 

Then I just mix about 6 drops of TTO to a couple ounces of water and spray it on her a couple of times a day.

 

Between the benadryl to knock out the itching and the TTO to clear up her skin it gets better quickly. Poor thing still has a naked rear and will most of the winter while her hair slowly grows back, but at least she isn't chewing herself raw.

[elegantlion]

My lab has seasonal allergies. She eats benadryl out of my hand.

 

I would also double check for fleas. Some dogs can get flea allergies and one flea can cause serious itching and biting.

 

You can take them in for a steroid shot and if the itching is bad enough they will prescribe prednisone. My dog gets totally hyper and drinks so much on pred that I try not to let it get to that point.

[In2why]

Another Benadryl user here. In fact we just started last week. She is 50 lbs and gets 2/25mg pills. It really helps. She had never had this before, I think this year is really bad for allergies. I bought the generics and finally the poor dog has some relief. We can finally sleep too since before she would actually wake us up she scratched and licked so much.