Itching

[CoraBoxer]

I'm in a very similar boat. My Cora is almost 19 weeks and she's been scratching like crazy. Usually its ears, neck and biting on paws. Her ears are little bit bleeding from the scratching - you can see its irritated. 2 days ago we noticed (overnight) a red circle on her chest. It didn't look like a scratch it was more like a bug bite. The spot was rough. Anyways we made an appointment to see the vet. Next day the spot was black - her chest is white normally so its noticable (dried up blood?). Today after seeing the vet I was told it wasn't mange. He took a skin scrape and took some time with it but he already sorta had it ruled out before even doing it.

They told me to try vanectyl-p. Its middle of winter but said she might have environment allergies. Also recommended a special shampoo for this. I'm kinda of worried about the steroid bit at this age. Should I bother with this medicine/shampoo. Can this be something she'll grow out of. They told me it was a very low dose and that its only for like a week to see if it helps. But vanectyl-p is for itching so of course it'll help but might not fix her problem if there is one right? She's had her shots and advantage.

I'm not sure what to try.

Sorry to thread jack maybe we're having similar issues?
Moderator note: Posts moved to their own thread, as the problems are different and the OPs topic is no longer the subject of his thread.

 

[Caney Creek]

I'm in a very similar boat. My Cora is almost 19 weeks and she's been scratching like crazy. Usually its ears, neck and biting on paws. Her ears are little bit bleeding from the scratching - you can see its irritated. 2 days ago we noticed (overnight) a red circle on her chest. It didn't look like a scratch it was more like a bug bite. The spot was rough. Anyways we made an appointment to see the vet. Next day the spot was black - her chest is white normally so its noticable (dried up blood?). Today after seeing the vet I was told it wasn't mange. He took a skin scrape and took some time with it but he already sorta had it ruled out before even doing it.

How big is the spot? Could it be ringworm possibly? What else did the vet rule out with the skin scraping?

They told me to try vanectyl-p. Its middle of winter but said she might have environment allergies. Also recommended a special shampoo for this. I'm kinda of worried about the steroid bit at this age. Should I bother with this medicine/shampoo. Can this be something she'll grow out of. They told me it was a very low dose and that its only for like a week to see if it helps. But vanectyl-p is for itching so of course it'll help but might not fix her problem if there is one right?

Correct. Steroids will help (for the time being), but if you don't figure out what was causing her to itch in the first place and then fix the underlying problem, then her symptoms will come back again and again (and come back worse after each time steroids are used). Steroids are helpful in certain situations where nothing else seems to work, but really you want to save them for "emergencies" because they definitely take a toll on the immune system.

For Cora I'd start by trying to minimize any possible allergens/irritants in her environment. Wash her bedding often and use a very mild detergent, or just hot water with no detergent at all. No dryer sheets, no fabric softener. If you use products on your floors, carpets, upholstery, or anywhere else that she lays, stop using them for a while. Wipe her down with a damp cloth (esp. her feet) when she comes in from outside. Sweep/dust/vacuum more frequently, and be sure to keep her out of the room while you're doing it. Change the air filters in your home regularly.

A soap-free dog shampoo such as the EarthBath line of dog shampoos would help to wash allergens off of her skin/coat without irritating or overdrying.

Cora could even be having a negative reaction to the Advantage. Has she been bathed since it was applied last?

Consider trying a limited ingredient kibble for dogs with allergies, such as California Naturals or Natural Balance L.I.D. Also supplement daily with fish oil capsules and vitamin E -- the Omega 3 fatty acids in the fish oil will help condition the skin from the inside out, and also act as a natural anti-inflammatory.

Good luck to you both, Coraboxer and ZoesDad I know how frustrating it is trying to figure out skin issues when your poor pup is miserable! Just keep trying things!

 

[CoraBoxer]

I have to tell you getting a reply back help A TON (makes me feel better for sure). I'm kinda freaking out that the vet would even prescribe a puppy this young steroids in a pill and in a shampoo when nothing has been tested. I will take a picture of the spot (which has been scraped tonight) tomorrow she's sleeping for the night already. Her immune system isn't even developed yet why on earth would I destroy it with a steroid? I'm going to be going back there tomorrow. Her regular vet wasn't in and we really wanted to get it looked at.

I have to honestly say the I felt like the vet blew me off. When I asked if we could do a skin scrape he had already made up his mind it wasn't mange. Don't ask me how because i've heard it may have to be repeated a bunch of times even if negative. I made a mistake in my first post. She was on Revolution not Advantage. We even did it an extra time. I can't remember if she was washed after or before. But I will for sure make a note of what happens when we wash/apply. I thought Revolution was supposed to kill mange bugs too.

Her spot is about the size of a pop bottle cap. Fairly big. We're in the middle of winter here in Ontario but we always wipe her when coming in even from just stepping out to the backyard. We have only washed her once with a special shampoo from the vet (not soap we use or anything like that). Her crate in downstairs (tiles+hardwood) and she doesn't go upstairs. It could be the floor cleaner or maybe her pillow? We don't use softner and run it through the rinse cycle twice when its washed. We feed her Royal-Canin Medical "development" again from the vet.

Thanks a bunch from me and my Cora.

 

[TysonJuno]

I would be careful about the application of Revolution or Advantage. You said you did it an extra time and from what I have read and discussed with my vet things like advantage are only suppose to be used once a month. If you gave her 2 doses within a one month period that could actually be very bad for the dog.

 

[CoraBoxer]

Yep it was spread out in time. We were told twice I think it was (month apart) and told it was ok to do a third since she was still itchy but it was over a month later. Think told us as long as its not all at once it was ok to do another time (they actually said something like 10 applications or something to overdose because we were worried about that too).

Anyways heres a pic. Its been scraped. It wasn't really a 'ring' it was a circle and kinda of rough texture in the middle... best word to describe i think is rough. It turned black before scrape (a day after it appeared) maybe blood dried? Her hair never fell out. I hope its just something she'll get over - self inflicted. Dry air from the heating or something. Mange scares me as do allergies just because of the medicine they've recommended. She is still a puppy building up immunity. Just want the best for her

http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2009/356/b/a/Skin_mark_by_pachris.jpg
http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2009/356/7/8/Skin_mark_2_by_pachris.jpg

 

[lmorey]

My Cora is almost 19 weeks and she's been scratching like crazy. Usually its ears, neck and biting on paws.

Just a thought, could it be food allergies? I had to take Cash to the vet a couple of weeks ago for an ear infection that then spread to itchy bumps in his ears by the next week. After reading some posts on here, I thought it might be food allergies to peanut butter since I had just recently started making him a Kong stuffed with PB for during the day in his crate. The vet explained that if it were a food allergy, that the bumps would typically be on his ears, paws, and anus area. Good luck!

 

[Caney Creek]

Yep it was spread out in time. We were told twice I think it was (month apart) and told it was ok to do a third since she was still itchy but it was over a month later. Think told us as long as its not all at once it was ok to do another time (they actually said something like 10 applications or something to overdose because we were worried about that too).

Anyways heres a pic. Its been scraped. It wasn't really a 'ring' it was a circle and kinda of rough texture in the middle... best word to describe i think is rough. It turned black before scrape (a day after it appeared) maybe blood dried? Her hair never fell out. I hope its just something she'll get over - self inflicted. Dry air from the heating or something. Mange scares me as do allergies just because of the medicine they've recommended. She is still a puppy building up immunity. Just want the best for her

http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2009/356/b/a/Skin_mark_by_pachris.jpg
http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2009/356/7/8/Skin_mark_2_by_pachris.jpg

Not a clue what that is :confused:

I have to second the above advice though, do NOT re-apply topical flea ointment more often than is indicated on the box (usually once a month). If she is still itching AFTER a recent application, then either 1) something other than fleas that is causing her to itch, OR 2) she is allergic to the actual flea BITES -- not simply itching from an infestation -- in which case NO amount of topical insecticide alone would completely stop her itching. Frontline, Revolution, Advantage, and other topical flea treatments kill fleas when they bite a dog that has been treated; they do NOT prevent flea bites. So, for a dog with flea allergy dermatitis (which my girl Caney has), these products are not sufficient by themselves.

Caney has been on Frontline in the past but she is SO allergic to flea bites that she reacts to one, tiny little flea. I know immediately when she has a flea on her just by the course, dry feel of her coat, sometimes accompanied by a rash on her belly, and of course, LOTS of itching and scratching. When I see her doing this I get out the flea comb and sure enough find ONE flea! :mad: I don't have her on any prescription flea treatment anymore because there is simply no point; her environment is not so infested that she ever gets more than one flea at a time, and when she does get one it would have to bite her anyways in order to be affected by the stuff. Instead I use an all natural spray with tea-tree oil on her coat before she goes outside, and that prevents fleas from jumping on her in the first place. Sounds simple but works GREAT. I use it in the warmer months when there are fleas out, and I flea-comb her every so often just as an extra precaution. She hasn't had a bad reaction since I started using this spray.