# My Dog Keeps itching and scratching



## MaddieGirl (Oct 26, 2008)

I rescued a puppy the 5th of October. She is a Shepherd/Chow mix. She was 13 weeks. I took her to the vet the next day to have her looked over. She was scratching and itching like she had a bad case of fleas. Vet found no fleas, so started her on advantage. What she did have was a bad case of tape worms, round worms and a bladder infection. So, she has been on lots of meds this month. We changed her food, she was eating a cheap wal*mart puppy food. She has gained 7 lbs this month and is doing great. The Vet said she is lucky to have found me. My question is...She still is itching and scratching like she has fleas. She has not broken the skin, the vet said give her Benadryl at night if need be. Any other suggestions on what I should do next? I don't want to feed her drugs every night. Is there a good shampoo out there to prevent itchy skin?

Thanks for listening.
MaddieGirl


----------



## melgrj7 (Sep 21, 2007)

You can talk with your vet about doing allergy testing. Or try starting her on an elimination diet (where you go down to a very limited diet and start introducing new things one at a time). You can also ask your vet to do a skin scrape and check for a skin fungus or something.


----------



## MaddieGirl (Oct 26, 2008)

Thank you Melissa,
I will look into that. her skin looks clear and healthy. 

MaddieGirl


----------



## justinp (Oct 15, 2008)

you should look into Calm Coat. They are sponsors on this site so you can get discounts by clicking on their banners. I tried it & loved it. the best part is no more itching.


----------



## Client (Oct 27, 2008)

MaddieGirl said:


> I rescued a puppy the 5th of October. She is a Shepherd/Chow mix. She was 13 weeks. I took her to the vet the next day to have her looked over. She was scratching and itching like she had a bad case of fleas. Vet found no fleas, so started her on advantage. What she did have was a bad case of tape worms, round worms and a bladder infection. So, she has been on lots of meds this month. We changed her food, she was eating a cheap wal*mart puppy food. She has gained 7 lbs this month and is doing great. The Vet said she is lucky to have found me. My question is...She still is itching and scratching like she has fleas. She has not broken the skin, the vet said give her Benadryl at night if need be. Any other suggestions on what I should do next? I don't want to feed her drugs every night. Is there a good shampoo out there to prevent itchy skin?
> 
> Thanks for listening.
> MaddieGirl


MaddieGirl, I would recommend you to visit this place. Maybe you will find something there to help your dog to get rid of itches...


----------



## agility collie mom (Jan 26, 2008)

It takes two weeks for the Benadryl to have any affect. Your vet is trying to relieve your pup's itching for now without the use of steroids. Benadryl is one of the safest meds on the market. It does not have a lot of bad side effects. Dogs metabolize it different than people do, so a dose that would make you drowsy does not have the same effect on a dog.


----------



## Bearjing (Oct 24, 2008)

I had a Samoyed at one time with horrible allergies to just about everything - sounding a lot like what you describe. When she was living with her original owners, until she was about 4 years old, she was treated, vet's orders, with oral prednisone (steroids), daily. My vet thought we should try Benydryl instead, and it worked wonders, and it's far less damaging. (We gave it to her every day except in the winter, for *years*). Try the Benydryl long enough to give it a chance) before putting her on something more aggressive. Steroids may be necessary in the end, but give the other a chance first.... (some vets will start there when it should be a last resort. This makes me mad.)


Another pup of mine had a horrible flea allergy. (She was my ChowX. I don't know if it's more common in them). Even 1 bite would cause her terrible issues including biting all the hair off her hind quarters. You didn't have to see the fleas for them to be a problem for her - if one would get up their and bite her in the last moments of it's life she'd be a *mess*. For her, what worked best was a no fragrance type shampoo with Benzol Peroxide mixed into it. (In addition to good flea control, of course). Once a week, I'd wash her with this mixture, letting it set on her for about 10 minutes, and rinse really really well.


----------



## Renoman (Mar 20, 2007)

You mentioned that you changed her food, but you didn't say what you're feeding her now. There might be something in the new food that is causing the itching and scratching.

It's going to take at least 4 -6 weeks after changing her food to see any improvement in her if it's food related. 

Also, this time of year, dry itchy skin is quite common in dogs. The cold temperatures outside and the dry heat inside can cause itching just like in humans. Usually, fish oil capsules or salmon oil added to the food work wonders.


----------

