Itchy Corgi

Trying to figure out why Sunny is always scratching himself and gnawing on his arms and legs.

Shouldn't be fleas because I gave him frontline a week ago.

I was told that it might be allergies, so I bought an allergy supplement made by Vet's Best for him. He is still itching.

Wondering what else it could be.

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Permalink Reply by Whitney (Fawkes) on June 27, 2012 at 10:55pm

I'm wondering as well. My sweet Fawkes is constantly nibbling at his knees all the time! I've looked at his skin to see if he's irritated, but to no avail. No fleas either. Mosquito bites? Haha! Who knows!

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Permalink Reply by Miranda~ Moses | Maya | Maverick on June 28, 2012 at 12:32am

Murphy used to do this in the summer months when weird grasses came into season. I had an anti-itch spray that also deterred licking, but it didn't help in this case; he was very skiddish around sprays come to find out. We ended up with a good soothing cooling cream/ointment [which he liked because we rubbed it on gently, which gave attention to the irritation while treating it] and when we weren't around / constantly paying attention, we used a flexi neck cone. He slept in it sometimes but the licking stopped as the cream started to heal the redness, and we took walks on the road for a while rather than the field. We just got it at the pet store.. no vet visit for us. We were pretty sure it was a grass allergy, but only a vet can tell for sure. Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Ronny D on June 28, 2012 at 1:06am

thanks for the advice. Sunny is actually really hesitant to walk on grass, so I am guessing that could be it.

I bought a hot spray for him, but he started trying to lick it off and it made him a little sick.

Would you be able to recommend a cooling cream for me?

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Permalink Reply by Miranda~ Moses | Maya | Maverick on June 28, 2012 at 10:30am

http://www.sulfodene.com/3-wayoint.htm

This is the one that we went with. It has menthol as one of its ingredients to help soothe the pain. I'm no vet and can't tell you for sure this works, but it did for Murphy. As the label says, if it persists or gets worse, contact a vet, but I would give it a shot for a few days. I think we put it on generously twice a day, and used the cone for the first bit and then just when we weren't 100% focused, but I definitely recommend getting a cone as well. It's nice to have on reserve if you ever need it. But be ready to have your heart broken at how sad and precious they look in the cone. We actually made a slideshow and put that Sarah McLaughlin song in the background, that's how sad it looks (haha!). Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Jane on June 28, 2012 at 9:33am

Most likely it is allergies. You can try wiping him off with a baby wipe when he comes in from being outside. Dogs can have benadryl and claritin/zyrtec, but I would discuss with your vet the proper dosage for his weight.

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Permalink Reply by Brooke Busteed on July 10, 2012 at 2:30pm

My Billy is ALWAYS chewing at his legs and scratching his face, his vet claims that dogs don't develop food allergies at his age (11 weeks) but I don't know what else it could be? No fleas, nothing wrong with his skin....she wants me to put him on anti-histamines but I don't want my baby ALREADY on daily meds. On this note, anybody have a good vet recommendation in the Orange County, CA area??

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Permalink Reply by Beca and Mishka on July 10, 2012 at 7:48pm

Might not be an allergy - you don't have to have an allergic immune response to something to itch from it (mosquito bites, for example - itchy whether you're allergic or not). Could be sensitive to a household cleaner or laundry detergent, too. Could be reacting to other environmental stuff, like lawn chemicals. Could be something in the food (not necessarily a protein allergy - some dogs are sensitive to some of the additives in kibble). Could just be dry skin and clear up with a fish oil supplement.

But yes, it does usually take longer than 11 weeks for the immune system to decide to go nuts over something and develop an allergy.

No harm in seeing if the antihistamines help - benadryl is about the mildest med you could ever ask for. Nobody wants their dog to have to be on daily meds, but allergies take a long time to diagnose, so any relief from symptoms is good.

If switching his food doesn't change anything, I'd recommend seeing a dermatologist. Usually they can't run an allergy panel on a dog under a year old, but they can recommend what order to try things in (like go to all fragrance-free cleaners or try hypoallergenic Rx food, etc.).