Dog scratching constantly

G

gps4

Active member
My 4 yr old lab has been struggling with incessant scratching. Earlier this summer, I took her in to the vet in June and the good doctor gave her a steroid shot and some oral meds for 14 days to address a skin bacteria infection. Scratching stopped almost immediately.

Two months later, it’s happened again. Took her in again and the other doc on duty suspects a food allergy and suggested changing foods to see how she responds. Vet say overmedicating with steroids may damage liver or other organs. She’s been eating purina dog chow green bag chicken flavor her whole life.

Has anyone experienced anything like this, and willing to recommend alternative dog food options that have been helpful with potential allergy problems?
 
Chicken is a fairly common food allergy for dogs. I’m not familiar with purina products but other dog food companies I know do offer alternative protein options.
 
I been through all this with an allergy dog. Changing foods in an attempt to find something that works is a real pain, It takes a few months on each food to know if it's going to work. You might have your dog tested to see what she seems to be most allergic to. Forget the steroid treatments like Prednisone. My dog has been getting a Cytopoint injection for 6 years and each injection has been controlling her itching for nearly 3 months. The injection costs about $80. I have seen no adverse side effects. Another option is Apoquel. It's an oral tablet given daily. It's not cheap as I think a 30 day supply will run about $90. I would visit with your vet about each of these two options. Good luck, I know how frustrating this issue can be.
 
Woollybob said:
Adding fish oil to the food helped my dogs with itching. Nothing miraculous but noticeable difference.
Click to expand...
I know a lot of cases where fish oil has helped. Also coconut oil. I tried both back when I dog was diagnosed with allergies and it didn't help. Found out later she is allergic to most fish. However, fish meal in her dog food doesn't seem to bother. Go figure!
 
gps4 said:
My 4 yr old lab has been struggling with incessant scratching. Earlier this summer, I took her in to the vet in June and the good doctor gave her a steroid shot and some oral meds for 14 days to address a skin bacteria infection. Scratching stopped almost immediately.

Two months later, it’s happened again. Took her in again and the other doc on duty suspects a food allergy and suggested changing foods to see how she responds. Vet say overmedicating with steroids may damage liver or other organs. She’s been eating purina dog chow green bag chicken flavor her whole life.

Has anyone experienced anything like this, and willing to recommend alternative dog food options that have been helpful with potential allergy problems?
Click to expand...

Yep just went through it with a lab. My cause was a bacon treat he was getting (as best as i can tell). My vet gave Prednisone which cleared it up immediately, then had me stop ALL food other than his regular dog food for 1 month. Then slowly introduce a treat or supplement one at a time watching for any reaction.

Luckily for me it wasnt a grain. My vet said the leading cause of food allergy is wheat or corn allergy which is in almost every dog food. He said if it is that, get ready for sticker shock on the special food. He also said chicken is getting to be an allergy cause as well, he told me if cutting all treats didn't stop it to switch from chicken and rice to the salmon variety PPP.

So i guess thats what i suggest? Food only for a month and see if it clears up, if not then switch to the salmon pro plan, and then if that doesn't work you are in for lengthy food trials with the special vet only foods at $125/bag apparently.
 
I am fostering half lab pups and the one pup broke out in a bad rash on his stomach and feet. Took him to the vet and along with some medication, I switched him off of PPP Chicken and Rice and over to PPP Lamb and Oatmeal. His rash cleared up in a couple weeks. My old lab had bad food allergies too and she was on a vet only Venison food most of her life. I would switch food.
 
My 67 lb Golden apparently has allergies this time of year. Was just at the vet for annual stuff and she said give 3 benedryl 3 times daily or a zrtec.
I used to play the dog food allergy game and got so tired of the next best thing.
I feed Diamond Naturals lamb or beef and stick with it. Give it a try
 
KEOutdoors said:
Yep just went through it with a lab. My cause was a bacon treat he was getting (as best as i can tell). My vet gave Prednisone which cleared it up immediately, then had me stop ALL food other than his regular dog food for 1 month. Then slowly introduce a treat or supplement one at a time watching for any reaction.

Luckily for me it wasnt a grain. My vet said the leading cause of food allergy is wheat or corn allergy which is in almost every dog food. He said if it is that, get ready for sticker shock on the special food. He also said chicken is getting to be an allergy cause as well, he told me if cutting all treats didn't stop it to switch from chicken and rice to the salmon variety PPP.

So i guess thats what i suggest? Food only for a month and see if it clears up, if not then switch to the salmon pro plan, and then if that doesn't work you are in for lengthy food trials with the special vet only foods at $125/bag apparently.
Click to expand...
Grain-free foods are not that pricey. Taste of the Wild (high quality) is ~$50/bag. My first dog was crapping liquid frequently for his first 6 months. We switched him to that and it cleared up. Have both dogs on it now.
 
Woollybob said:
Grain-free foods are not that pricey. Taste of the Wild (high quality) is ~$50/bag. My first dog was crapping liquid frequently for his first 6 months. We switched him to that and it cleared up. Have both dogs on it now.
Click to expand...
Be careful with grain free when not needed. Its been big talk in training clubs the last few years that more and more trainers that end up with dogs having DCM when feeding grain free. My vet said absolutely no grain free food when getting puppy shots and talking food choices with this last dog.

Its $60 for 28lb on chewy. That comes out to $107 a bag (50lb). And thats not allergy food, just grain free.
 
One of my dogs suffers from allergies . She does better on beef or salmon and rice or the marine formula from Innukshuk. This summer months for her are worse I don’t know if it’s seasonal because of allergens in the air or from dryer skin and shedding out.
 
KEOutdoors said:
Be careful with grain free when not needed. Its been big talk in training clubs the last few years that more and more trainers that end up with dogs having DCM when feeding grain free. My vet said absolutely no grain free food when getting puppy shots and talking food choices with this last dog.

Its $60 for 28lb on chewy. That comes out to $107 a bag (50lb). And thats not allergy food, just grain free.
Click to expand...
Maybe we have different definitions of pricey. It is on-par with PP and cheaper to buy local than on Chewy. If someone is feeding their dog Ol' Roy quality / price food maybe that would be a place to start.

I'm aware of the DCM 'link' that has been buzzing in recent years. Grain free has been around for years and the spike in cases did not occur until 2018. And by 'spike' I mean a few hundred cases reported in a country of tens of millions of dogs. And the association is more correlated to peas and lentils than grain-free. At any rate, correlation does not equal causation.

Changing the food was at the advice of my vet, who we selected based on their sport dog expertise. In this case, the switch was needed - he was blowing mud out the side of his crate onto the wall when we left the house. 14 years (and counting) later the old dog is still crapping bricks. The other dog is on it just because I don't want to manage 2 foods in the pantry.
 
Woollybob said:
Maybe we have different definitions of pricey. It is on-par with PP and cheaper to buy local than on Chewy. If someone is feeding their dog Ol' Roy quality / price food maybe that would be a place to start.

I'm aware of the DCM 'link' that has been buzzing in recent years. Grain free has been around for years and the spike in cases did not occur until 2018. And by 'spike' I mean a few hundred cases reported in a country of tens of millions of dogs. And the association is more correlated to peas and lentils than grain-free. At any rate, correlation does not equal causation.

Changing the food was at the advice of my vet, who we selected based on their sport dog expertise. In this case, the switch was needed - he was blowing mud out the side of his crate onto the wall when we left the house. 14 years (and counting) later the old dog is still crapping bricks. The other dog is on it just because I don't want to manage 2 foods in the pantry.
Click to expand...

We dont have two definitions of pricy, we are talking about two different foods. Although $2/lb+ is pricy imo, but all food is going up these days. I referenced vet only prescription allergy food that is grain free, you mentioned a standard off the shelf grain free food. Just two different things is all.

As for DCM compared to dog population, theres only a drop in the bucket tested and reported. Most dog owners i know wont even visit a vet anymore beyond shots and heartworm, unless its an emergency. It cost me $150-200 each allergy check (10 days) for 2 months when i went through this allergy stuff. Slowly having your dog lose energy and low on oxygen is just chalked up to being old. I just noticed one of my friends dog had a blue tongue when it was playing about a month ago, i mentioned thats low oxygen and he should get it checked. He said he wasnt going to worry about it, just a house dog. Very few dogs get taken in to get an echocardiogram... My house dog gets a blue tongue and the vet said its heart and lungs that are weak, i did not go any further with it. She was on grain free for the first 5 years, no clue if its dcm or if that grain played a part, im not paying to find out
 
Have a labradoodle that I give a steroid shot a couple of times a year. Takes care of the itching pretty well. Side effect is he drinks a lot of water. I also switched him to Fromm dog food and it seemed to help some as well.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top