Itching, Scratching and Biting at her Legs

Got home a week ago and noticed an immediate improvement so we started cutting back on the meds. Now the last couple of days she has been biting and itching a little more. I have an appointment at my vet this coming week so I'll see if they have any ideas. Probably going to have to do some allergy testing.
 
We have now weaned Bree completely off the Temaril-P. She still has some mild itching which we are handling with Benedryl as needed. My vet here in South Dakota has been for very little help. She has had some thinning of her hair which I hope was caused by the prednisone in the Temaril-P. Not shedding much or losing clumps of hair, just a general overall thinning.

But as if this itching and biting issues wasn't enough she now has a couple of new problems. A little over a week ago she seemed to lose her appetite. Before she was a really good eater. Then she also started showing some lameness in both her front and back legs. We are suspecting the cause to be a tick bite. She is better and we are starting her on an antibiotic that should take care of the problem if it was a tick bite. I was a little late getting her on Frontline.

The other issue is that a week ago while at the vet they gave her a shot in her back. I could feel a small lump at the site of the injection. Well, it must have bothered her and it was in a place she could reach so last weekend she bit it open. I didn't think it was that bad but after a few days discovered it was infected and she now has a nice open wound on her back about 3/4 inch in diameter. The antibiotic she's on and Neosporin should heal it.

I just can't seem to catch a break with this pup. Seems like since last fall when Elle came down with cancer all I've been doing is treating dog problems. I was going to send her off to a trainer for a month this weekend but until I get on top of these other issues I'm keeping her here. I'm hoping we see continued improvement over the next month or two. If not, I'll be making a trip to he Vet school at the University of Minnesota.

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might want to put a soresto collar on her, we have abundant ticks down here in Georgia, they have worked well on my dogs
 
bobman said:
might want to put a soresto collar on her, we have abundant ticks down here in Georgia, they have worked well on my dogs
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I've always used Frontline and never had a tick problem. I think I just failed to apply it in time this spring.
 
George,

I certainly hope you catch a break with Bree! She looks good and I hope it is something she can grow out of as she ages. Keep yours and her chin up it will get better.
 
Bree

Geez she's only got five months before the season starts so she gotta be on the mend. The ticks are fierce this spring. I just gave my dog a three month dose of Bravecto. First time I used it so have no idea. I bet she will snap out of it. The eating habit change seems strange. I'm sure they did every blood, stool, and urine test they could think of. Is here energy level normal, or is she down in the dumps?
 
mgorvi said:
Geez she's only got five months before the season starts so she gotta be on the mend. The ticks are fierce this spring. I just gave my dog a three month dose of Bravecto. First time I used it so have no idea. I bet she will snap out of it. The eating habit change seems strange. I'm sure they did every blood, stool, and urine test they could think of. Is here energy level normal, or is she down in the dumps?
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Energy level is just fine. That's why I think it's more like a tick or spider bite. She is getting better with the antibiotic. Yep, got to get her ready for hunting season. Still going to send her to a trainer in Kansas for a month just to get her steady on birds, etc. Kind of like a training boot camp. Then I'll get her back to him for 2-3 months this coming winter for some serious work. I want to be able to start running her in NSTRA trials next spring.
 
crockett said:
We're 18 days out from the 6 week mark since we started her on the hypoallergenic food. We're got to take her off the Apoquel then and see how it goes. I'll update here once we do.
Cheers,
Dave
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Dave, how did your food trial go? What food were you feeding for this trial period? I'm still fighting this darn thing. More itching and biting. Biting to the extent that she doesn't have a lot of hair on her hind quarters. Had her into the vet yesterday. They did a complete blood workup and everything was normal. Did some skin scrapings for mites and that was negative. Since my dog is less that 12 months old they won't give Apoquel. So they gave her an injection of Cytopoint. It's a safe drug that is suppose to relieve itching for 4-8 weeks. There is a vet allergist that comes to Sioux Falls once a month so I plan to make an appointment with her and hopefully have her tested for allergies.
 
DYNOVITE it works when vets don't Id try it it took care of my friends lab he was losing hair in clumps.dynovite with his food and a noticeable change by 60
 
nickmqt said:
DYNOVITE it works when vets don't Id try it it took care of my friends lab he was losing hair in clumps.dynovite with his food and a noticeable change by 60
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I've looked at Dynovite. Right now per my breeders recommendation I've started her on NuVet Plus Wafers https://www.nuvetlabs.com/order_new2/nuvet-plus-wafers.asp and Grizzly Wild Salmon Oil http://www.grizzlypetproducts.com/grizzly-salmon-oil/

If these don't help I'll consider the Dynovite. The problem is it normally takes 30-60 days for all this stuff to make a difference. She was getting NutriSource Super Performance and I switched her to a NutriSource Grain Free formula about 2 1/2 months ago. Doesn't seem to have made any difference. Thinking about switching foods again. Might go to the ProPlan Focus for Sensitive Skin.

These skin issues can be a real pain in the a$$. Since she's a house dog I've even bought scent free Tide and fabric softner in case it's something in the scents in the regular products. This problem has followed us from Arizona to South Dakota so we're thinking it's possibly something in our houses.
 
The past 2-3 weeks she has really lost a considerable amount of hair on the rear half of her body. My vet here in SD did do some skin scrapings for mites and they were negative which is not uncommon. The little buggers are hard to find. We also did a complete blood workup, checked for Lyme disease and everything else. All normal. My vet suggested seeing a vet dermatologist as allergies were still a possibility. I was actually not very happy with my vet so Thursday I took her to a different vet. This vet is quite certain that it's not allergies. They did some skin scrapings also and they were negative. But this vet is very confident that what we are dealing with is Demodectic Mange. They took a couple of biopsies to see if the Demodectic mites are present. It will be about 5 days before I have the results. I know that Demodectic mites are present in all dogs and only cause a problem when the dog has a weakened immune system. It is easily treatable but also something that the we may have to deal with for the life of the dog. There is a chance she could grow out of it. If it is Demodectic Mange the treatment will be Bravecto, which is use to prevent fleas and ticks. In reading about Bravecto it has been tested and proven effective in killing Demodectic mites.

I'm just curious if anyone else has dealt with Demodectic mites?
 
Bravecto

I haven't dealt with mites, but I used Bravecto this spring for ticks and fleas. I was pulling ticks off every day and since treating her not a one. Must be good stuff. A dose lasts three months so it makes it easier. Sounds like you are getting to the bottom of this finally. Let me know if we need to set up a "go fund me" website for Bree. Ha A healthy dog costs money to raise, I don't even want to know what you've spent. Different vet was a good call.
 
mgorvi said:
I haven't dealt with mites, but I used Bravecto this spring for ticks and fleas. I was pulling ticks off every day and since treating her not a one. Must be good stuff. A dose lasts three months so it makes it easier. Sounds like you are getting to the bottom of this finally. Let me know if we need to set up a "go fund me" website for Bree. Ha A healthy dog costs money to raise, I don't even want to know what you've spent. Different vet was a good call.
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Bravecto sure seems to be a good deal. One chewable tab every 3 months cost about $44-48. But that's not much more than 3 doses of Frontline. And if they also take care of mites that's a bonus. I have read on the internet that Bravecto not only kills Demodecti mites but also Sarcoptic mites. Sarcoptic mites are very contagious and can easily spread from one dog to another.
 
bobman said:
ivermectin 1 percent hog wormer from tractor supply

1/10 cc per 10 lbs body weight orally

research it
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I have researched Ivermectin and am quite aware of it's uses. What are you implying to use it for? It can be used to kill Sarcoptic mites but won't work on Demodectic mites.
 
well ok then maybe it won't help your dog ...I was just relating what i did hoping it would help

they have some kind of drenches with ivermectin also but I am not a vet so run anything like that past your vet

don't they do a skin scrape to determine the mite type and numbers? Its been a long time since I had that coon hound almost 30 years ago.
 
bobman said:
don't they do a skin scrape to determine the mite type and numbers?
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They have done skin scrapings two different times and didn't find anything. That's why they too a couple of biopsies. Skin scrapings don't always show mites as those microscopic little guys are hard to find. Anxious to get the results from the biopsies. If it is Demodectic mange than we know what the course of treatment is. If it's not Demodectic than I don't know where we go. These skin issues can be a real bitch to deal with. I had a friend a few years ago that had a Small Munsterlander that developed skin issues and it took him a year to figure it out.
 
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