# Advice needed very itchy dog



## Rustler (Sep 22, 2011)

Stevie is 18 months old now and we have never had a problem with her scratching, until now. The past two weeks she has been scratching like mad especially near her shoulders. Her hair is actually coming out like she is moulting which had never happened before, and she has a raw patch by her nose 
She is up to date with Advocate. 
Took her to the vets this morning and they have said it could be mites, a fungal infection or allergies. Have taken some hair and scrape samples and a swab and we have to wait for the results.
I just wondered if anyone else has had this problem, the vet was vague about allergies but I thought I remembered other members having dogs with these.
Any advice would be welcome, in the meantime have steroid cream, anti fung shampoo and Puritan tablets for Stevie to try and help.


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## Cat 53 (Aug 26, 2012)

What do you feed. My mini schnauzer had very scaly itchy skin which has improved dramatically when I changed her to Burns kibble


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

Wait for the skin scape results to come back - we had a rescue dog who came with mange - no hair left on his feet and legs - even though he had been treated. He was a very itchy boy and had special cream as well as various pills - sorry to be vague 14 years ago, but on the plus side once we had him sorted out he had a lovely glossy coat and no itch at all.
Hope Stevie's itch is sorted out quickly.


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## wellerfeller (Jul 12, 2011)

Yes I agree, wait for the scape results etc but just a thought....could she have developed an allergy to Advoacte? It's just that you say her shoulders are particularly itchy and annoying? Advoacte is quite strong chemically and your girl may have become reactive to it.


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## Rustler (Sep 22, 2011)

wellerfeller said:


> Yes I agree, wait for the scape results etc but just a thought....could she have developed an allergy to Advoacte? It's just that you say her shoulders are particularly itchy and annoying? Advoacte is quite strong chemically and your girl may have become reactive to it.


Thanks I didn't think of that , I'll mention it to the vets tomorrow . Re food she is on Barking heads ( chicken) which she has been on for the past 8 months unless any of the ingredients have changed.


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## JoJo (Mar 2, 2011)

Sorry to read Stevie has become itchy .. Colin knows all about itching (oh that sounds wrong), what I mean is he has experienced his dog Betty itching and can share his experience with you  .. 

I would alway thing about shampoo, food first and them observe when the itching happens, tell your vet all of this stuff .. hope you get to the bottom of it soon xxx


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## kendal (Jul 16, 2009)

It could be a grass allergy or the councils will have started spraying weed killer on the pathes so it coukd be that. i know a couple of dogs who were affected by the weed killer they needed steroids to sort it.


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## wilfiboy (Sep 18, 2010)

See what your vet says but this is worth a read.....

http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/the-health-benefits-of-coconut-oil/


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## wellerfeller (Jul 12, 2011)

wilfiboy said:


> See what your vet says but this is worth a read.....
> 
> http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/the-health-benefits-of-coconut-oil/


 One of my day carers is on this, it's worked a treat!


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## colpa110 (Jul 5, 2011)

I give my two Cocnut oils twice a week but can't say it has made any difference.


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## Rustler (Sep 22, 2011)

colpa110 said:


> I give my two Cocnut oils twice a week but can't say it has made any difference.


Thanks, it may be worth a try. Hair sample and scrape have come back clear for mites, but apparently that doesn't mean she doesn't have them!
Have to wait to see if there is any fungal infection and if not they will do a blood test to look at allergies . Sounds like it's a bit of a case of trial and error to find out what the cause is, we may be making our first claim on the insurance .


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## Jon Buoy (Sep 3, 2011)

Our dog suffered like this too. His entire skin was salmon pink and he was scratching his fur off, making himself bleed. His ears, face, shoulders and belly were all bare of fur and covered in scratches. On the vet's recommendation we had allergy tests, both blood and skin biopsies. To cut a very long story short, after *repeated* suggestions to the vet about scarcoptic mange, we changed his flea treatment from Advocate to Stronghold and the problem has stopped.

The canine sarcoptic mite is microscopic and cannot be seen by the eye and only a handful of mites can cause the problem, so may not be present on the skin scrape. I'm told that it can be caught from foxes and squirrels, both of which we've seen in our garden.

Try changing her flea treatment, and upping the frequency, it's worth trying in my opinion. It worked for us.


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## Jedicrazy (Apr 26, 2011)

Good post about the Mange. I think It is easy to overlook and it should be checked before going down the allergy route. There are two types of Mange too, I've had to treat Obi for Demodectic mange when his immune system was really low when on the steroids. His skin wasn't sore or bleeding but he was scratching continuously but once he was treated for mange it stopped.


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## Rustler (Sep 22, 2011)

Thank- you, I'll mention it to the vet when she phones later. She did mention that she could still have mites they may have burrowed deeper than the skin scrape( that was when I stopped listening, I thought head lice on kids were bad enough ) Vet also mentioned using Advocate every 3 weeks, but I'll ask about the other treatment. 
I would just like to sort out what is as she is being very quiet, and feels sorry for herself


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## wilfiboy (Sep 18, 2010)

This Facebook page maybe worth a visit, herbal products for all pet ailments.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/herbalpetsupplies/

In the files at the top there's a list of products, there is a wash for mange and mites also flea, tick , parasite products. Advocate every three weeks seems a little harsh. Obviously wait for your diagnosis but the non chemical route is certainly worth a read. Claire will answer any questions you've got re products x


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## Bellabo (Aug 16, 2013)

My Bella is also itchy she is losing Lil balls of hair and she is 1 yr old 
My carpet is poka dot with Lil hair nots and she is ITCHY girl she also lost a patch of hair by her left leg the size of a half dollar and the skin is kinda dry my neighbor is a vet just waiting tomorrow to see her if any one has any thoughts they are welcome. It is time for her flea medicine again maybe frontline ?


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