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Insane Itching
2 Months ago my dog started itching uncontrollably, i took him to our groomer and they said he had a bad case of dry skin. After that i made sure to follow what they told me to do, but he wasnt getting any better.
He has chewed off all the lower fur on his back legs, has itched off his stomach fur, and front leg fur to the point where it is bleeding and or scabbed over, and just tonight he chewed all of the fur off from over his butt and had a huge gaping gash. I dont know what to do, i know i need to take him to the vet tomorrow and i plan on doing that, but i just dont understand how dry skin could be doing this?!
Also i need to know if vets will accept payment plans, i dont get paid till next friday, and im afraid they'll turn my dog away. Please help im scared for my dog
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try using gold bond powder on him it really helped my boxer with itching, rashes, etc. :) goodluck.
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If it's dry skin then consider picking up some vitamin E gel capsules to give him each day. It shouldn't hurt him at all to take one or two capsules and they can easily be hidden within the dog food itself (or break it open and smear it on the food if you need). You may also want to flavor his water a little bit if he isn't ingesting enough. Dehydration causes dry skin, which comes from lack of enough water intake. Try switching to another water like the gallon containers from the supermarket as well...sometimes animals can taste our chemicals in our tap water and they try to avoid it.
If you'd like, you can also break open the vitamin E gels and apply directly to his skin for some more immediate relief.
Fish oil would be a great place to start that will help with the skin problem as well as many other things that you don't even realize may be going on with the dog. It's completely harmless unless for some freakish reason your dog has a fish allergic (HIGHLY doubtful). Try to find the liquid version of this (not the gel capsules) so that it's easier to digest for the little guy. You can add this to his food and his water (may help him to keep better hydration) each day. I think the liquid can even be found at Wal-Mart and various pharmacies now.
If you'd like, you can apply this oil directly to the dog's skin for more immediate relief; however, be warned that it DOES typically smell fishy.
Oatmeal baths! Oatmeal has been used for ages in help us relieve our itchy skin and it can be used for dogs too. Pick up a nice large bag and give the dog an oatmeal bath every few days to help cut down on that itchiness! :)
I've also heard of people picking up some tea tree oil (can find at your local Wal-Mart now or pharmacy) because of it killing off bacteria which may be causing the itchiness within the skin now that it's been broken open. It can be brushed into teh fur or sprayed on the dog with no dangerous side-effects. It will need to be applied every day to help soothe the pain and itch and cause the bacteria to die off. It also can clear up some allergens, which the dog may just be allergic to, that may have made it into the fur coating. On days you choose to oatmeal bathe I would spray/brush-in with tea tree oil AFTER, by the way.
Also consider de-worming at this point. Since the skin has been broken open with the mouth then some nasty parasites could have crawled into there, causing more itchy feelings. Purchase a bottel of GSE ( [Link](Mouse over link to see full location) & it does last a LONG time) and give the little guy 10 drops a day in his food or water. It will help to clear our his system of the nasties within a couple of weeks and it won't hurt him at all, unlike some medications! :)
Lastly, you absolutely must add in a dog vitamin! Commercialized dog food (wet or dry) is not very good for a dog's health, believe it or not. Since very few of us can stand to do a completely raw diet for our furry friends we have to supplement as much as possible. With the addition of the vitamin in conjunction with the fish oil your friend should have improved health and should start feeling a little better. His fur will also be able to grow back a little faster and his wounds may heal up better than they would have without. Most pet stores carry dog vitamins as well as places like Wal-mart so there's no excuse to not help the little guy out with something like this. :)
Animals get stressed out too. Sometimes the animal will actually self-injure or mutilate itself when in a lot of stress. It doesn't happen too often but a big sign of this is eating the first down to the flesh--and then some. Take into account what your dog does during the day. Does he get to romp around and play fetch or play with somebody a few hours each day? He needs to even if you don't want to do it.
Is another animal beating up on him frequently? Has he been being scolded a lot lately? Is there a new person/baby/pet in the household now? Did a new person/baby/pet leave the household fairly recently? Is anyone pregnant? Any new friends coming over or friends that have recently become pregnant that come over frequently?
Have you changed his food at all? Has the arrangement of the furniture in the house changed? Has a member of the family's schedule changed (ie: use to go to school & now doesn't, now goes to school & didn't use to, works nights now, works days opposed to nights now, etc.)?
If he's been going potty in the house it might be another sign that he needs some more loving or that he's under a lot of stress. Think of all possibilities and try to go from there, reducing the stress by extra activities to keep his mind off of the "problem."
The reak problem is that once a dog starts this behavior it can be very, vary hard to break them of it. If he does stop, he may have "flare-ups" in which he overly grooms himself to fur chewing at the slightest problem (slight anxiety/depression or even minor skin irritations). It's kind of like people. Once we learn a way to make something stop (or get our minds off of it) then we tend to resort back to it when we're scared it's going to start up again.
Personally, I wouldn't rush the dog to the vet before trying some more natural remedies but that's really just my personal opinion on the matter. It's also much cheaper to try to self-heal this dog rather than putting a good chunk of cash into prescription doggie pills. Like I said, it's just my own beliefs here so take that as you will.
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My dog has experienced the same problem in the past, Try using flea shampoo three times a week. There is also a cream you can buy at the pet store that is for dry skin. It works great, My dog since has bit very little. If you DO have a case of fleas in the house you could try frontline. If your dog is a long haired a haircut would be recommended.
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I'm guessing that it could be more then dry skin. It could be fleas as well..what a sin the poor thing i hope he gets better :(. My dog had fleas he caught it from another dog and he was scabbed over on his stomach.. ask the vet for some flea shampoo and do it ever so often..your dog could have alos caught it from you playing with another dog or something.. i hope everything turns out to be okay.
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