# Dog scratching his skin raw.



## Mochi (Jan 18, 2009)

Hello!~

I have a 2 year old male pit bull who seems to may have a dry skin problem. I bathe him once every week or once every other week. If I go longer than that he begins to smell. Given the seasonal change, he is currently shedding with minor dander. I bathe him with a dander control shampoo which seems to work well.

Lately though he has been scratching himself raw to the point where he will begin to bleed. Any ideas as to why this is happening? Am I bathing him too often to the point of drying out his skin? Is it because he is shedding right now and has dry skin? Is he creating these sores for attention? I have heard of all these factors, but I would like a second opinion from any dog owners who may have dealt with similar situations before.

Any input would be greatly appreciated, and thank you in advance for your time.


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## Linda C (Jan 1, 2008)

It could be anything from allergies to parasites skin infection. He needs to see a vet or better yet a dermatologist.


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## sw_df27 (Feb 22, 2008)

Alexis has very bad allergies to everything a few times a year she will chew her a bold spot on her back end and her ears get red and she'll chew on her paws she has to get a pred shot and gets sent home with pred pills to start 10 days later if the itchiness comes back. Take him to the vet they will know what he needs!


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## Angie's Bella (Dec 28, 2008)

I would bet it is some sort of allergy, but you need to take him to the vet. I use to have a boston terrier that would do the same thing. She would get to scratching and would be just bloody and she would also loose weight while she itching like that. Hers was caused from an allergy to fleas. All it took was one flea to bite her and thn the itching would start. I gave her benadryl 3-4 times a day and every few months my vet would give her an injection of Vetalog. 

The benadryl works pretty good with the itching so you may want to call your vet and see if it is ok to give your baby that until you can get him in to see the vet.


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## salask (Jul 31, 2007)

Seasonal allergies maybe... Take him to the vet and they will tell you what to give him. I took Bubba to the Vet 2 weeks ago - we are giving him 1/2 pill twice a day of Zyrtec and 1 capsule of Omega 3. It seems to be helping him - Good Luck!


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## Mochi (Jan 18, 2009)

Wow, thank you. I will definately look into the Bendryl. He isn't so severe to the point of losing weight. He's only done this maybe about 2-3 times within the last 2 weeks. I know he doesn't have fleas though cause I put Frontline on him 2 weeks ago. Thank you for your input. 

Thank you! I didn't know dogs could take Zyrtec. Interesting. I thought it was only for humans.

Aww the poor dear. I'm sorry your dog is going through such Hell. What are pred pills? Thank you for your input.


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## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

Make sure you are using a dog shampoo. Be aware that even some dog shampoos can be drying to the skin.

I'd look into food allergies as well. What are you feeding him?


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## rosemaryninja (Sep 28, 2007)

Definitely sounds like allergies to me. You can take him to the vet to do an allergy test. You should see your vet anyway, just to check the condition out and also speak with him/her before you start giving your dog prednisone, Benadryl or any other antihistamine.

What food is he on?


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## Angie's Bella (Dec 28, 2008)

Mochi said:


> I know he doesn't have fleas though cause I put Frontline on him 2 weeks ago. Thank you for your input.


It could still be an allergy to fleas. Frontline and most others only kill the fleas when they BITE your dog, they have no repeallant in them to keep the fleas from jumping on and taking a bite. I believe that K-9 Advantix is the only one that has a repeallant in it.


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## Linda C (Jan 1, 2008)

This is one of the best sites I've come across..very informative!

http://www.dogaware.com/dogfeeding.html


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## Mochi (Jan 18, 2009)

I do use a dog shampoo, and have been using it for about 3 months now. He just started scratching like this within the last 2 weeks. I'm feeding him Purina Pro Plan kibble, and he's been eating it for 3 months as well. I'm pretty sure it isn't his food though.


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## DJsMom (Jun 6, 2008)

I agree with all the others that you definitely need to come up with a course of action with the vet. You might also want to think about investing in some Eqyss Micro Tek shampoo, it's guaranteed to stop the itching. There's a thread about it some where on the forum, you may want to do a search & get some info.
The poor little guy  I sure hope he can get some relief soon, good luck!


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## agility collie mom (Jan 26, 2008)

DJsMom said:


> I agree with all the others that you definitely need to come up with a course of action with the vet. You might also want to think about investing in some Eqyss Micro Tek shampoo, it's guaranteed to stop the itching. There's a thread about it some where on the forum, you may want to do a search & get some info.
> The poor little guy  I sure hope he can get some relief soon, good luck!


Here's a link.

http://www.kvvet.com/KVVet/dept.asp...ners&mscssid=3293E8B6B78D4CC7AB5F242C82A6CBEA

What did your vet think? Ever tested for mites? Have a skin scraping done?


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## KCamden (Apr 16, 2009)

It seems like our dog does this every year, starting around March/April and it usually lasts through June-ish. She scratches like crazy. Our veterinarian seems to think its allergies and really hasn't ever solved the problem.

We typically just give our dog half of a benadryl pill and that really seems to help.


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