please help with itchy dog before i lose my mind... thanks

a reply to: CardiffGiant

I feel like an idiot. I just re-read your first post and saw that your dog has only been itching for a week. I thought it had been going on longer than that... It's probably the rinsing thing. I hope so! And if you every want to change to a better food, you can refer to this thread, LOL

I would break open a vitamin e capsule and rub the contents into his coat. Or feed him some fish oil capsules. 2-3 a day.

a reply to: CardiffGiant

Only your vet will be able to:
a) know or find out what is wrong with your dog,
b) what the source may be,
c) how to prevent it,
d) how to treat the reaction and the skin damage it has caused.

originally posted by: Benevolent Heretic
a reply to: CardiffGiant

I feel like an idiot. I just re-read your first post and saw that your dog has only been itching for a week. I thought it had been going on longer than that... It's probably the rinsing thing. I hope so!

And if you every want to change to a better food, you can refer to this thread, LOL

I would break open a vitamin e capsule and rub the contents into his coat. Or feed him some fish oil capsules. 2-3 a day.

thanks for trying to help. i just rinsed him off and my wife was brushing him as i was rinsing. she is brushing him right now too.
i really do appreciate it.

a reply to: skunkape23

a reply to: CardiffGiant

Get some nustock. U can get it off eBay for like 12$. Also dynobites can help too. Like others have said, it's probably food allergies. Get a good food without corn. Feeding raw is only for people who know what they r doing. Dogs digestion systems are not setup to process veggies, so u have to pulverize them. In the wild dogs eat the stomach/intestines to get the nutrients the need from veggies, because it's already broken down for them.

a reply to: CardiffGiant

He will itch until the soap is gone,period. If he has other issues going on,you need to get him to the ASPCA and stop playing with it. Does he have all his shots? Parvo can take him out quick. Distemper can kill or cripple him. Unless you are a professional in the animal care industry,DON'T PLAY WITH A SICK DOG. The cost to him can be his life,plus all the misery he had to suffer. The cost to you is a lost friend. Those in the industry know what symptoms to look for and when an animal crosses over the danger line. That is a thin line and even they can make mistakes. So here is your doom porn for the day, don't take chances. Take care of your dog like it was your child. The dog has no way of telling you how sick it is, its up to you as its owner to know when he needs care. Have a good relation with your vet,they can save your pets life. I have had to take in my dog with no money and my vet took care of my dog anyway and just charged me until I could pay him,he knew I would be good for the money.

a reply to: CardiffGiant

Here is a major issue with dog owners, and I know that all of us have at one time or another accidentally played into this, the dog acts upset and you say "whats wrong hun?" Or some such thing and pet the dog. After working with dog trainers I can tell you that is the wrong reaction.Let me give you a typical situation:

A storm is moving in, the dog starts pacing and getting upset,he sees that you may be getting upset since the weather guy is talking about chance of Tornadoes or whatever. The dog gets more upset and running around feeling that
1. A storm is moving in,he can feel the barometric pressure dropping.
2. His owner is slightly upset for some reason,therefore the pressure dropping must be a bad thing and he needs to protect said owner.
3.His owner keeps petting him,telling HIM that his behavior is what the owner wants,not thinking that he is telling the dog to do something like get upset over something we have no control over.

If you pet your dog when they are upset,you ARE telling the dog thats what you want out of it. We do it to comfort ourselves and others,in the canine world it only tells them that they are being good by being upset.STOP IT.

Yes I know,I have done it too. Its a normal reaction to a stressful situation. But it does the dog no good at all. Instead in a calm but firm voice tell the dog to go lay down. If he sleeps in a crate,put him in there. If he whines,tell him NO.If the dog gets upset over you leaving,set up the situation to correct it. Act like you are going to the store or whatever, then wait 5 minutes and come back quietly. If you hear him whining or tearing up things or being stressed in any way, walk in and tell him to go lay down. When he does praise him ,then leave again. Work on it with making the time longer and longer till it no longer is an issue.

Pets or no pets,there are times when you need to leave them and go do things. Whether its going to work or shopping or whatever. You want the dog to be calm and relaxed when you leave. Take a nap or just lay there looking around. Not be a basket case cause you walked out the door.

Boiled vegetables......it worked for Riley and he had it bad...its probably his food......no grains or corn....

Back a few years ago I had a German Shepard That suddenly one day had an itching problem. I took her to my vet and he said it was a flea allergy and put her on methyl pred. The steroid had no effect what so ever. I went over the dog with a flea comb and found no fleas. I didn't really expect to find any as we were treating her with a flea treatment.

This went on for several months. She scratched herself raw and had lost almost all her fur. I was at my wits end and my vet was no help at all. Then one day I was sitting in a waiting room getting my car repaired when a gentleman sat down next to me and we struck up a conversation. Turned out he was a newly graduated vet from Cornell university. I told him about my dog and he told me that he knew what the problem was. He said that he had been involved in a study designed to cure my dogs very problem. He asked what I was feeding her and when I told him (it was purina) he said that the real problem was not enough protein.

He recommended that I switch her to a food called Hi-pro (also made by Purina). I bought a bag on the way home and switched her immediately.He told me that there may be no effect for up to 6 weeks. Oddly the effect was almost immediate. The scratching went away the first week. In a month her fur had almost all grown back. She never had the problem again. She was 2 when this happened and except for the first 6 months on puppy chow she had eaten the purina her whole two years, until that day when she started scratching, she had never had a problem.

I don't know if hi-pro is even available any more. I can't find it in my area any more.

originally posted by: Kali74
a reply to: Bovah

Decongestants are deadly to dogs so I wouldn't recommend it casually... talk to the vet 1st.

I did. Multiple vets have told me that is perfectly fine to give a dog half a Benadryl every morning and night.

a reply to: CardiffGiant I had the same problem, my dog was literally ripping his skin off. I figured out it was the food, Walmart has this no grain dry dog food(Their brand) good price. No table scraps and walk him.

My dog has been suffering from itching and allergies for a while now so I have a whole regime of things I have to do. First off do you feed you dog table scraps? Anything with sugar or any food that his body can process into sugar? He "could" be starting to get a yeast infection. You can try feeding him one tablespoon of plain yogurt with his morning meal to help keep his stomach bacteria level. If your vet agrees try benedryl. I've had to use a cortizone shot as his just gets unbearable. Look up vinegar rinses also. There's some great tips out there.
Is he shedding more than normal or have any balding or sores? That can help a lot also in identifying what could be going on.
I use a povidone iodine 5% shampoo that does wonders.
There's plenty of info if you do a search on homemade remedies on itching. Included any other symptoms as well.
Good luck with your doggie

Hi there, I would like to make a few easy suggestions if I may. Dont feed your dogs food in a bowl. buy 2 to 3 Kongs and fill them with his food and plug it with peanut butter. Lay an old sheet down when leaving the house just lay them around. All dogs like to use their brain to get at their food. It will interest the dog for at least 30 mins rather than the 3 mins it takes to eat out of a bowl. During the day give your dog jobs to do like sit, stay, leave and go find. Seems like training to us but it is brain gym to them. Use coconut oil, it helps their skin and fur and I use it melted in warm water to clean ears and eyes. My dog loves it. Beagles like to hunt, so again instead of feeding his food in a bowl, hide it around your home. If you have stairs sit the dog at the top and get him to drop the ball so it bounces down the stairs for you to catch and throw back up for him. Again a 15 min activity to keep him occupied. Get chairs and put them around the room and get your dog to jump up and sit or crawl under them using treats. All this costs nothing and can be done indoors, builds friendship, training and keeps your dog entertained. Will help him to be distracted from scratching too. Put a ball in a sock and drag it around for him to catch, place dried food under plastic containers, watch how he will push them around the house to get at it. See many things can be done for free but is entertaining and is fun for your dog to do. Happy days ahead I hope. xxx

a reply to: Arduous

no table scraps. the only human type food he gets is a finger lickin of peanut butter every so often

How's he doing? Any better?

Holy smokes 3 pages, this is one itchy dog!

originally posted by: Benevolent Heretic
How's he doing? Any better?

he is actually. he seemed to be better right away after i rinsed him off.
he is still doing it a little bit but nothing like he was before i rinsed him off,

i was thinking of doing it again but i didnt want to make it worse....

thanks for your tips.

btw, i am going to switch his food. i have not decided on the brand yet but it is happening

a reply to: CardiffGiant


Switching his food is a good idea. I have 2 German Shepherds and cheap food can sett them off scratching. I now buy BETA food and add meat and chicken and even some boiled rice. Even cheap Mince from the Supermarket Freezer is better than some dog food out there.

Some cheap dog food is made with road kill and animals that have been put down all crunched up and mixed with chemicals. Nasty Stuff!