The redness on the tail sounds like a possible contact allergy. Also at this time of year leaf mold allergies are common.

What you need to do is to go back to the Vet and get a short course of antibiotcs, and some Hydroxyzine (long lasting anti-histamine). They probably gave her a shot of dexamethasone previously which would relieve some of the inflammation, and allergic reaction, but not clear up the infection of the skin that follows intense scratching. Once cleared up, then subsequent dosing with Benedryl 1-2 mg/lb through the Fall season, or as needed.

Per raw diets...

First I've had good success with the ProPet line of dog food. My previous puppy of 11 years thrived on it, and my current two youngsters are also doing so. None of the 3 have ever rejected the food, or had allergic reactions to it. Neither have any health issues been linked to it. I'm sure there are other brands on the market that do as well.

Frequently as humans we try to tag or transfer our feelings about food onto our pets. Would we get tired of eating the same ol'e dry cereal for 3 meals a day, year after year? Yep. Does a dog get tired of the taste of a commercial food? Does it matter to them what the taste is when they consume their meals within 2 minutes of the bowls being placed on the floor? Actually my previous dog would consume hers within 20 seconds. Didn't get much of a chance to even taste it!

There is the idea that since a wolf is primarly a meat eater in the wild, and since dogs evolved from the wolf that raw meat (plus bones) is the natural diet for a dog. However the dog first diverged from the wolf about 100,000 years ago. So has its ability to eat raw contaminated meat, not to mention bones. Domestication comes at a cost. What a wolf can readily eat, and survive on will make a dog deathly ill.

On another forum there was a post where someone had a dog they were switching to raw. It had been given raw chicken and within 6-8 hours it cut loose with diarrhea, and continued to do so for the next few days. When I suggested that since raw chicken is a natural resevoir of Salmonella (75% of the chicken tested were positive for Salmonella) and that might well be the cause... well let's just say some of the replies were bordering past the fanatical.

I'll repeat what I said there: I do not feed any human prepared food to my dogs that I would not eat myself. I'm not sure either how a raw piece of chicken provides any better protein than one that has been cooked? If anything the denaturization of some of the protein back to possibly the amino acids during cooking would make it more easily digestible.

It is frequently stated that corn meal causes many allergic reactions in dogs. On the average 8-11% of dogs will have an adverse reaction to food sometime during their lives. Of that population of dogs, approximately 4% have a reaction against corn. The ingredients in order that cause the most allergic problems are: Beef, Wheat, Dairy, Lamb, Chicken, Egg, and Soy. It should also be noted that whether it be human or dog, the body doesn't care if that lysine amino acid came from corn meal, or animal protein. It's the same amino acid in either case.

All that aside if one insists on feeding raw for whatever beliefs then you should consider the following:

1. Especially if chicken, blanche the meat in boiling water for a couple of minutes. This will aid in getting rid of most of the surface bacteria, and the heat might help break down any bacterial toxin already on the surface of the meat. You still might have to deal with worms since their cysts are resistant to heat.

2. Avoid the big commercial producers such as Tyson, and if possible find a local packing plant where they take more care in sanitation during the food processing.

3. Avoid a raw meat diet for those dogs which are puppies, very old, or have an immuno-compromised system.

4. Avoid bones of any form. While wolves readily eat bones, they also eat the fur of their prey. It has been observed that when the bones are excreted, they are commonly wrapped in the fur. The theory being that the fur covering helps protect against sharpe edges of the bone as it passes through.

Most importantly read up on what a dog needs for a complete diet. This includes minerals and trace elements, not always found in meat alone.

Barf Diet Mythology