# Itchy dog; anyone have any great ideas? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 12, 2017, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277 "2017-12-12T13:09:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Backwater_Under_Duck)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2017, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/21 "2017-12-13T02:31:39Z")
My little pup has been miserable over the years with skin allergies. When it was bad enough, they would shoot her up with steroids and give me a bottle of prednisone. Except they don’t like to do that and I don’t either. Enter: Cytopoint. Look it up yourself, I’m not selling anything. It’s fairly new and is not a steroid product and has no side effects. At least at this point. And, the vet is comfortable giving it to her regularly. It works on my pooch. Maybe not all. The girl at the vet said it didn’t help her dog, but he was bad with hot spots and probably needed more aggressive treatment. For six months now, Zoe has been puppy happy. ---
**Author:** ![purplehearingaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@purplehearingaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehearingaid)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2017, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/22 "2017-12-13T02:44:23Z")
Have your dog been tested for worms , dogs will scoot around on their butts if they have worms . Maybe you should try to change her food slowly ,what are you feeding your dog ? Some pets foods companies are buying ingredients from China, you should check and see where the ingredients are from in your pet food. I had to stop using a food dog b/c they started using ingredients from China . ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2017, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/23 "2017-12-13T12:11:47Z")
> [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](#): > > Enter: Cytopoint. Look it up yourself, Yes, I’ve heard good things. One negative was price, though. And in my area it can only be obtained via a Dermatologist. The oral form (apoquel) is popular. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2017, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/24 "2017-12-13T14:10:43Z")
Thanks for all the suggestions. As the itchiness seems to be around her ears & butt, I’m not sure the bath stuff will work, but I’ll think about it. She’s very bath-adverse, so I hesitate to put her through such an ordeal unless I’ve run out of all other options. Mometamax: we’ve used this in the past in her ears, in fact I think I have some lying around. Once again, barring lack of a real infection (vet definitely checked her ears) I’m a little hesitant. Food: she’s been on the same food (Wellness canned) for years now. That said, I’m keeping an eye on it to see if there’s a particular type that she seems to be more itchy after eating. So far, not seeing any patterns. She woke me up this am wanting to get off the bed to rub her butt. Tried taking her outside, she did nothing. She just wanted to scoot like a mad dog for about 10 minutes. I’ve got a call in to the vet to see if there’s anything else they can tell me. This really is driving me (and her) nuts! ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2017, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/25 "2017-12-13T15:51:10Z")
I think doing the “limited ingredient” diet is definitely worth a try. It worked for my cat who, at age 14, began scratching his face and neck until they bled; discovered he had become allergic to chicken and corn. Here’s a link to one brand of limited ingredient foods – there are others. [https://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dog-formulas/special-category-limited-ingredient-diets](https://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/dog-formulas/special-category-limited-ingredient-diets) Find one your dog will eat and if the condition clears up,just add one ingredient at a time from the list on her current food until you discover the culprit(s). ---
**Author:** ![Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ba8739/32.png) [@Backwater\_Under\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Backwater_Under_Duck)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/26 "2017-12-14T02:08:26Z")
I’ll go in with this. We also determined, through very precise empirical evidence, that she can’t eat wheat. We cook for her now. Cleared up a lot of her coat problems and raw skin issues. Not all. The Cytopoint does the rest. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/27 "2017-12-14T03:33:23Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > I’ve got a call in to the vet to see if there’s anything else they can tell me. This really is driving me (and her) nuts! What did she say? Did you ask about yeast infection? You can google for yeast infections in dogs. They often occur as skin, ear or urinary infections, sometimes with corresponding bladder infection. Your dog being female and having just been on antibiotics for a bladder infection makes me think that perhaps she’s having a yeast outbreak. Here’s a couple of articles that mention ear infections, and also urinary tract fungal infections. > **[Yeast Infections in Dogs](https://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/skin/yeast-infections-dogs)** > > Yeast infections in dogs is a common condition that can cause discomfort—and if not treated—sickness. In this article, Dr. Brittany Kleszynski advises pet parents on causes, symptoms, and treatment of yeast infections in dogs. > **[Fungal Infection of the Lower Urinary Tract in Dogs](https://www.petmd.com/dog/conditions/urinary/c_dg_lower_urinary_tract_infection_fungal)** > > Fungal infections are uncommon in dogs. Fungi are usually found on the skin of dogs and are also prevalent in the environment. Because of the widespread existence of fungi in the environment, these organisms are harmless most of the time, or the body... The good news is that if it is fungal, it should be easier to track down than a food allergy. Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2017, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277/28 "2017-12-14T15:42:17Z")
Update: Talked with the vet yesterday and ended up bringing her in (bringing the total cost of “itchy dog with bladder infection” up to \> $300 in the past 3 weeks, but that’s a different story). She gave her a cortisone injection, and some enzymatic eardrops to put in her ears once a day. She also cleaned out her left ear (again). Something is causing a ton of wax to build up on a weekly basis, but still no sign of infection. She seems a lot better today, crossing my fingers hoping we’ve got this one covered. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/itchy-dog-anyone-have-any-great-ideas/804277.md?page=1)