My Dog Dutchey cant quit scratching help

[Mandy49202]

Dutchey is a 9 year old German Shapherd and i need to know what kind of dog wash will help her with her scratching the vet said that she needed to has steroids and gave her a shot but that is not helping and she is not happy and nither am i. we have a oatmeal wash but that is not doing it for us so any help would be appreciated.


thank you for your time mandy

[Karen]

Washing too much will make the itching worse. How long ago was the steroid shot? It does take time to work. Did the vet say what is causing the itching?

[Mandy49202]

it was 2 weeks ago and all the vet said was she had a reaction to something!

[Karen]

Is it an ongoing problem? Or was this a one-yime deal? Has her food changed recently, or even has she been given a different kind or brand of treats?

Bathing frequently dies out the skin. Is she all-over itchy, or just in one spot? Have you called the vet for a follow-up?

[Mandy49202]

no we have not done any changing of the stuff around our house or her food or treats the only thing new is some baby stuff but she does not go in the room with the baby stuff. and no we have not gone back to to vet because this is what she did the last time she went to the vet they just tell us to go back to the old things we were using but nothing has changed this time. if bathing her a lot is not a good idea what can i give her to help with the itch?
yes she is all over itchy

[Karen]

I'd call the vet and ask if they think it is an allergic reaction to something, and whether something like Benadryl will help, or if there's a topical lotion you could apply to specific areas.

[Jessika]

My Charlie will go through spells where he will scratch so much he looses huge clumps of fur. The most recent one left him completely bald on his butt and above his tail (yeah, he chewed off ALL of his Aussie "butt fuzz". We called him baboon butt for the longest time, hehe).

What helps him is first off making sure he has no fleas. I give him two benedryl a day -- one with each meal (one morning, one night). In addition I have a bottle of bitter apple spray on hand to spray over areas that are still really itchy. He will chew and scratch till he bleeds and has huge scabs so I try to nip the problem in the bud as soon as I see him scratching so he doesn't get to that point.

In addition, bathing too often will dry out his skin and make it even more itchier, so bathe maybe once a month (unless your vet recommends otherwise).

Bottom line though take him to a vet... if he can't help you, take him to another vet until you start getting answers. I can't stand watching Charlie scratch that bad, you can tell how miserable he is.

His are seasonal though so that's how I know benedryl works, and boy does it work well for him most of the time. Now that the weather is ice cold again and he got his bath for the month he hasn't scratched or chewed at ALL. Once it starts warming up though he'll go crazy again as he always does... certainly doesn't help that Missouri can't decide what season it wants to be in, keeps bouncing between winter and spring it seems. :rolleyes:

[dukedogsmom]

Dasher has been itching right above his tail since the cold weather came. I thought after a bath he'd be better. He's still rubbing up against walls to scratch. Anyone know how to moisturize the skin there? He can't reach it with his mouth.

[Jessika]

Dasher has been itching right above his tail since the cold weather came. I thought after a bath he'd be better. He's still rubbing up against walls to scratch. Anyone know how to moisturize the skin there? He can't reach it with his mouth.
Fish oil pills might help with that. In the winter Charlie's skin can get dry (boy does he have some problems, eh?) So a fish oil pill with his meal every other day does the trick.

[DixieDad]

Lady Belle, our rescued Border Collie, itched so bad she scratched all the hair off both sides of her face. Also off the back of both front knees, under both legs and her chest. After several visits to the vet where steroids were prescibed without results, I read an article about some dogs having allergic reactions to the corn in her food. I changed her to a feed with rice instead. She has stopped scratching and her hair has grown back. I don't know if this is your dog's problem but I thought I'd pass ikt on.


Mack
Dixie Belle's & Lqady Belle's Dad

[Freedom]

Mandy -- be sure to call and check with your vet BEFORE you give her any Benadryl. The dose is set by the dog's weight so the vet has all the info to tell you how much to give.

[Catlady711]

I would call the vet and see if there are any other suggestions he has for you.

If you don't have confidence in your regular vet's ability to deal with this issue, then seek a second opinon.

Either way I'm thinking this is a problem that needs to be treated by a vet.

Good luck.

[dragondawg]

Dutchey is a 9 year old German Shapherd and i need to know what kind of dog wash will help her with her scratching the vet said that she needed to has steroids and gave her a shot but that is not helping and she is not happy and nither am i. we have a oatmeal wash but that is not doing it for us so any help would be appreciated.


thank you for your time mandy

A corticosteroid such as Dexamethasone usually takes 6-12 hours to start working, with its full effect at 24 hours. It may last 3-5 days. Therefore it's not surprising that two weeks later you are back to where you started. The only time a corticosteroid is going to work by itself is if the allergy or allergic event was due to a one time exposure.

You could safely give a German Shepard 25-50 mg of Benedryl (clear gel caps smeared with peanut butter) 2X daily. I use to give my 74 lb Lab mix the 50 mg dose only at night, as it does make them a little drowsy. However your dog may need something more potent such as Hydroxyzine from the Vet. If the skin appears irritated then antibiotics such as Cephalexin need to be precribed in addition to the antihistamine.

From the severity of the symptoms it sounds like the cause is still present. You need to work with the Vet to find the root cause. If the Vet's best try is to guess at possible allergens, or a repeat of previous advice then ask for a referral to a doggy dermatologist. It could be anything from seasonal leaf mold, to demodex mites (i.e. aging or impaired immune system), or a metabolic problem such as low thyroid.