Dog-itching

My dog won't stop scratching!! It's driving me nuts so I can only imagine how he feels!

He has scratched away the hair under what I would call his armpits (under his front legs) in the crease where it meets his torso.

He has been to the vet for this before. Vet says it's "allergies" and to give him Benadryl. Benadryl seems to work a bit, but I seems so habitual for him to scratch.

He doesn't have fleas. We have checked and checked and checked. Had the vet check. Had the groomer check. Clear as can be.

Why is he scratching to MUCH??

What else can I do for him?

TIA!

Re: Dog-itching

He probably needs a shot from the vet for allergies. It would help tremendously.

Re: Dog-itching

Does he have or been tested for a bacterial skin/yeast infection. Benadryl wouldn't work for that. Does he have a smell to him?

Dog-itching

He was given a cortisone shot about 1-2 months ago and it didn't help him. All it did was make him thirsty and pee on the floor!

He did have a yeast infection on his back over the summer and he needed medicine for that. It never seemed to bother him when he had that it the spots looked different.

He doesn't have a smell to him.

Dog-itching

He was given a cortisone shot about 1-2 months ago and it didn't help him. All it did was make him thirsty and pee on the floor!

He did have a yeast infection on his back over the summer and he needed medicine for that. It never seemed to bother him when he had that it the spots looked different.

He doesn't have a smell to him.

ETA: Thanks for the suggestions and replies!

Message edited 1/3/2014 9:39:08 PM.

Dog-itching

My dog was diagnosed with a lot of allergies--he was allergic to mold, grass, trees, pollen, even CATS... the poor thing had hot spots for most of his life, we even put him on OCD meds for a while but they were affecting his liver. We had to do shots... vet sent away to a lab in CA and we did the shots every other day at first, and then gradually it was once every 3 weeks. It helped a little but we couldn't keep him away from trees and grass! he also had an allergy to oats, wheat, and some other grains. We had to give him special food made from potatoes.. prescription diet z/d.

Re: Dog-itching

def a vet trip... in the meantime, .. you could try an oatmeal bath shampoo & conditioner.
Also a touch of extra virgin olive oil in his food.
teaspoon up to 25+ lbs
table spook for larger dogs

hope your furbaby gets well soon.

Message edited 1/4/2014 5:57:33 PM.

Re: Dog-itching

It could be his food.

We switched our dog from chicken based food to duck and salmon based and she is way less itchy.

Re: Dog-itching

It sounds like my dog who was diagnosed with dermatitis this summer. It's an allergy they are born with that manifests as they get older. It's more common in shaggy breed dogs- golden retrievers and the like. While it might not be dermatitis, I'm sure my steps would help you, too. We give our pup benadryl, well actually we switched to Claritin which is so helpful since it's a once a day pill. Plus, our dog doesn't seem nearly as groggy now that he's on claritin rather than benadryl. We also switched to grain free food and started giving him oatmeal baths regularly. He hates to be bathed, but I saw the most improvement after taking him to the groomer for a medicated bath. We follow up with oatmeal baths every few weeks. He's not so bad now since it's winter and his allergies aren't acting up, but he's a habitual scratcher, too. My vet suggested maybe he's bored, so we bought him some more toys and let him run in the yard more to get his energy out, but that doesn't seem to stop him. Usually, if I see him scratching, I tell him no. I started by actually stopping him from scratching himself and rubbing him where ever he was itching. Now all I have to do is give him a look and his foot stops in midair. I hope your pup is feeling better soon- my baby was a hot mess with all the rashes and ear infections and eye infections. It took us all summer to get him under control, but he's fine now.