Health Forum

Okay so my girlfriend's dog keeps scratching himself raw. She has already put on his flea/tick medication and he continues to do it despite putting on soothing lotions and sprays and yada yada. The areas he scratch become hairless and the skin goes from a raw pink to a darker blue-black scheme after a while. Her local vet is incompetent and we have tried steroids to boost his immune system and all that jazz. Does anyone know what this could be or how to treat/cure it? Thank you in advance.

This is a very difficult thing to diagnose. There are so many different causes, that nearly anything you try will be a stab in the dark.

I came accross this writeup of a treatment protocol that starts by throwing the whole veterinary book at the problem until the itching stops, and then one by one removing the treatments until it starts again, and voila, you have your cause. There are a couple of things you could try on your own, like the baths every two days with different shampoos.

Have a look at the link below and discuss it with your vet. It sounds like a pretty pricy process, but I am considering it for my itchy Yorkie.

haha we have the same name...
go to a better vet...

mange? ya go to a better vet

Why doesn't your GF take the dog to see a canine internal medicine vet? Her regular vet can refer her to one.

Your vet gave you steroids because they are an anti-inflammatory. Can treat the symptoms but not the cause.

Soothing lotions are hurting not helping. Dogs should not have lotions or salves applied to hot spots.

There are effective hot spot topical medications sold OTC at good pet supply stores - these also help the symptoms but not the cause.

The most common cause of hot spots is allergy - either food allergy or environmental allergy (most commonly something the dog is inhaling).

One of my pups had a hot spot.

1) we got the topical solution (a liquid, not a lotion or salve) to treat the symptoms. You dab it on the hot spot.

2) we switched foods - which ended up being the cause

3) Fortunately #2 worked and we didn't even need to go to a vet

ADD: worse in the summer better in the winter? BOOM - seasonal environmental allergy.

I don't think your vet was neccessarily incompetent by giving you anti-inflammatories.

It's hard enough isolating the allergen when it's a food allergy - much harder when it's an environmental allergy. Your dog is literally inhaling and otherwise coming in contact with thousands of potential allergens every day.

I used to have a dog that was just like that, but she'd only do that in the summer and spring time, and only on 1 inch of her lower back, by her tail. I suggest you change his food, put a cone on him, then put itch medicine where it is, that should really help, and the hair should come back, and it should be cleared up, it worked for my dog.

try different foods because her dog could be allergic to the food it is eating.

This sounds like dermatitis. A type of eczema skin condition but the problem is finding out what is causing it. The darker-blue-black you mentioned sounds like bruising to the skin. As your dog is biting and scratching his fur so much that he is losing his hair you really need to get this under control asap. My dog had a similar thing and it's never ending until you get it under control. Treat this as a food allergy. Stop ALL the food your dog is currently eating, do not give him any tit bits or table scraps or any treats at all UNTIL you know what he is reacting too. A lot of dogs are allergic to wheat, colourants and beef. Remove all of these ingredients from the diet. As wheat is practically in everything, you need to change food. Follow the above instructions.

Don't use flea products or worming products from pet stores as these never work and only aggravate allergies.

WHAT YOU NEED TO BUY

Start your dog on hills prescription d/d food. This is hypoallergenic and you should notice a difference in your dog within a month.

IF money is a problem, you can purchase Wainwrights dog food but make sure is it wheat free. You can get this from a lot of pet stores. Better than Wainwrights, is NatureDiet which you can also obtain from a lot of pet stores. If you cannot locate either of these foods, do a search on google and you can purchase the food directly from the retailer. Alternatively; call around your pet stores and ask do they stock this food or can they get it in.

HOME TREATMENT

My Vet recommended that I give my dog half a Piroton/Piriteze tablet once a day when he is scratching like crazy or chewing his feet etc. Only use a steroid injection in a emergency when nothing else is working.

Purchase Oilatum bath lotion or oil from your Pharmacist or local supermarket, and bathe your dog in this twice a week or more often is required. It doesn't lather very good but it will help soothe his skin.

Also I would recommend that you purchase Sudocrem Cream and apply this to your Dogs dry skin and any areas where he has pulled out his fur or is scratching. Apply this a few times a day as required until the dryness or inflamation of the skin has disappeared, then only use it when necessary.

Another option may be to buy a collar from your Vet to stop your dog from biting his skin and pulling out his fur. Not all dogs like this but it may help give his skin a rest.

VET

As your current Vet isn't any good, change practices and have your dog tested for allergies. This can be done by a blood test and will help you to understand what you're dealing with.

I hope all of the above helps you.