I have a dog, healthy, active, cheerful, fed well, eats well, gets treated with heartworm and flea medicine. But he scratches. And scratches. Not obsessively on one spot, not for ten minutes at a time in any one spot. But he’ll scratch here, lick there, rub here, nibble there. I am going to get him to the vet, but was hoping to maybe have some bites (no pun intended, for sure) as to what might be going on. I so sick of the jingle of his tags!
He is a Teddy Bear, so he has hair rather than fur. He is clean and well tended, no mats and no obvious visual skin problems. At his trimming three weeks ago, his groomer observed nothing.
One other thing - he has a few, maybe half a dozen, small, fairly hard bumps, noticeable only to feel. They aren’t any larger than, hmmm, one of those smilies to the right of where I am typing, for lack of a better example. But he doesn’t concentrate his scratching there.
I have a lhasa/shitzu mix and I’ve had that. I went with a sensitive skin food and it helped a lot. She’s healthy and happy. Has a few bumps that weren’t anything and went down with that kind of food.
She’s kinda half hairy and half furry and brushing her more has helped.
She’s an indoor dog and when I see her getting very bitey with herself, I try to distract her, and it usually works.
Interesting. Rascal can be distracted too. Unfortunately I just bought a 40-pound bag of “healthy weight” dog food.
Did you have to take your dog to a vet first? I am curious what the bumps would be.
I was TOLD Rascal is a Teddy, which is a lahsa/shih tzu mix, but he is 34 pounds, which is weird. Any input on that also is welcome. Both lahsas and shih tzus are typically 10-15 pounds.
So I guess I am looking for anyone with knowledge on doggy skin conditions AND odd breed mixes.
What are the ingredients in the food? My first guess is allergy - maybe environmental but probably the food. My second guess is that it’s a habit, maybe a nervous one.
Also, if the jingling of the tags is bugging you, imagine how much it’s probably bugging HIM - they’re so close to his ears. Try going to this page: http://www.itzadog.com/quietspot.cfm - that’s where we got a little case for our dog’s tags - it velcroes on and keeps them quiet. It has really helped our dog settle down, and we dont’ have to listen to the jingling.
Lumps and bumps could be any number of things, many benign, some malignant. Without feeling them, poking them, and knowing more of the history, you may not know more about it. The vet will.
Dogs that have allergies scratch. They may scratch more frequently/different places depending on their allergies, but they will scratch. Fleas, food, irritating things they touch, seasonal allergies… all those could cause or aggravate the itching. Dogs that are bored could also scratch.
If you want a heads up on what kind of protein causes the more allergy… usually is chicken, as that is the #1 protein ingredient in many dog diets. But if all your doggie has been getting is lamb and rice (or beef and potatoes, or whatever other combo), then it may be allergic to that instead of chicken.
I would guess allergies or a low-level staph infection (a common cause of skin problems in dogs). Not generally something to worry about, but definitely have your vet run some tests.
It could be any number of things, but most likely allergies. The easiest way to de-tox a food allergic dog is to switch to an anti-inflammatory, anti-allergy food formula with limited ingredients and NO corn or wheat. You don’t have to get this from your vet. There is a very good anti-allergy formula made by Dick Van Patten made with fish and sweet potato. They also make a similar formula with potato and duck.
Some dogs are also prone to dry skin, and benefit from adding fish oils to their diet. I add three 1000 mg fish oil capsules squirted into my dog’s food per day. Others just feed low salt sardines, salmon or mackerel once or twice a week. The omega fatty acids are also good for the heart and immune system, and are anti-inflammatory as well.
Some dogs are just allergic to fleas and even one or two fleas that bite them (even dogs who are treated with anti-flea meds still get a few bites) can set them into a frenzy of scratching. During those times, benadryl may help. Discuss dosage with your vet.
Good luck, and I feel your pain. My chow has had similar problems, but this has helped her.
I want to point out something that usually gets ignored when talking about food allergies… Those diets are mostly more expensive than run of the mill dog food bags.
If you want the best value for that which you have purchased, and if you want to see if the food will help… DO NOT GIVE CHEWABLE TREATS!!! Seriously, no beef jerky, no doggy biscuits, nothing other than that diet to see if it is something food-related.
This may also mean an alternative way of giving medications, including heartworm prevention (they’re beef flavored). Talk to your vet about that.
My first guess would be allergies, either inhalant or flea bite dermatitis. Dogs can have seasonal allergies just like we can, but instead of sneezing and sniffling and feeling like they’re drowning in snot, their skin itches. They can also have flea bite dermatitis even when on flea control, if they’re sufficiently sensitive. Some are sensitive enough that one bite every 6 weeks is enough to keep them itchy, and sometimes as it gets close to reapplication time, it takes longer for the preventive to be deadly and the flea has time to bite before it dies.
As for the bumps, I would guess staph collarets. As they scratch and chew, they can create tiny breaks in the skin, or the inflammatory response can create a warmer, moister environment than normal and you can have overgrowth of the normal bacteria on the skin.
Depending on exam findings (food allergies tend to look a little different from atopy or flea allergies), your vet will most likely give antibiotics for staph overgrowth and antihistamines, maybe recommend that you change flea control or apply it a little more often.
Many times dogs have multiple allergy sources–they’re somewhat allergic to pollen/dust/whatever’s in the air, a little allergic to fleas, and a little allergic to their food–and there’s an aggregate effect of symptoms. That’s a pain in the ass in that there’s no one fast easy answer, but it’s also great because if you can control one or two of the sources, you can frequently make the other allergy asymptomatic.
In other words, for a lot of dogs, if you change flea control and give them a $10/month pill, you don’t have to switch them over to the ass-expensive allergy food. And even better yet, some of the antihistamines vets prescribe are even cheaper at the drugstore, so that $10 for pills may last you multiple months.
If it does happen to be food allergies, I would suggest instead of going for an expensive prescription diet, cook for the dog. You can control exactly what the dog gets and it may end up being cheaper than regular dog food.
My parent’s dog is sensitive to beef and lamb as well as corn (which shouldn’t be in a dog’s diet, but anyway). They feed her a mix of brown rice, chicken, chicken parts (yummy liver and organs), green beans and carrots. The rice is the only ingredient that is cooked, the rest is raw. Google BARF (Bones and Raw Food or Biologically Accurate Raw Food) diet for more info on how to do it if you are so inclined.
The dog is so much more healthy. No more skin or ear problems, her weight is great as well.
Her “brother” dog was put on the diet at the same time rather than go through feeding two dogs separate diets. He was about 9 when they put him on it. It really gave him a lot more energy, etc. He was diagnosed in Sept 07 at 14 with bladder cancer. It was inoperable and all they could do was give him a low-dose chemo. The vet told my parents he would live another 6-8 weeks on average with this diagnosis until it spread to his kidneys. I do believe that being on the diet helped him. He lived 9 months past the diagnosis. My parents had him euthed when the tumor got too large, but they really didn’t expect him to live as well as he did as long as he did.
You know, this is the best route. Sophie’s vet is a huge proponent of the BARF diet, but I have had little luck getting her to eat raw meat. We go middle of the road with fresh foods mixed in with her kibbles, and although not ideal, he’s fine with that. She’ll go to town on a meaty raw bone, though. Frustrating.
I don’t know of anyone who has managed to switch their pets over to raw that haven’t had great things to say about the overall effect on their pet’s skin, coat, and health.
I am very intrigued by the raw food diet. I found barfworld.com. I see it’s way more than I can read at work, but is it possible to throw the rice and veggies together myself, rather than buy the special food? I was hoping to stop on the way home from work and pick stuff up (chicken hind quarters are .69/lb. at the store I go to). If it is something I can make at home, what proportions would I use? This option makes so much sense until I get an appointment at the vet.
Remember what I said above? Chicken IS found to be one of the more potent allergens. It may not be the best protein to include in a BARF diet of a dog that may be allergic to it.
Also remember the part about the snacks, if you’re opting to test yourself if the animal has some sort of food allergy.
Other thing that will help you (BARF diet or not)… Keep a journal… what he eats, how much, how is his itchiness doing, whatever you changed, if it improved or not, etc.
60-70% meaty bones with 30% being bones
20-30% veggies (best to pulverize in blender), no onions
10% fruit, no grapes or raisins
15% fat
15% organ meat
Each meal does not have to be balanced every day, but balanced over a week’s time.
We have pretty good luck finding lamb shanks at Publix for cheap, that’s a good way to start with meaty bones.
There are two models (although there are probably more) that I know about. My mom uses the 80/20 model. 80% meat (including bones) and 20% veggies & rice. She uses chicken wings for the bulk of the meat with a little bit of organ meats thrown in. Her veggies vary, but usually she uses carrots and green beans. You can use eggs and yogurt as well, but she doesn’t. Some BARF purists would get on her for using rice, but others use it with success. If you use chicken, your bones are built in, but if you go with other meats, you need to give uncooked bones. Go see a butcher and let him/her know what you are looking for. You don’t need expensive cuts.
The other model is meat only. I don’t know much about this, but I think it is a set ratio of meat/bones/organs.
There are commercially available BARF diets, but you can probably DIY for much less money.
Anyone who uses BARF always sings it praises, I have recommended to many people whose dogs had allergy issues.
