What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting thems

They get bathed once a week or so with flea %26amp; tick shampoo. Recently I switched to a shampoo designed specifically for allergies and it hasn't made any difference either. They are both white dogs and no fleas are visible anywhere on them. They both exhibit symptoms of ear mites and are being treated for that. They are scratching and biting their hair off in spots. I can't afford a high vet bill and am at a loss as to what to do for them. They seem miserable. Please help!

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

It sounds like skin allergies, likely caused by food. Check your dog food, to see if there is corn in it (most common allergy)

Many, if not most, white dogs don't tolerate corn.

Feed a high quality food with no corn, soy, food colorings, or wheat.

This supplement would also be of great help for any skin problem%26gt; http://springtimeinc.com/product/88/2

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

You may be bathing them too often. Over-bathing can cause dry skin that will lead to itching. Cut back to once a month and just brush them between baths. Regular grooming will stimulate oil production in their skin to keep it from drying out and will keep the coat healthy, too.

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

Im thinking you are bathing them too much. Once a week bath can make their skin dry and itchy. Get a once a month topical flea med like frontline, and stop the weekly baths. I wouldn't bath more than once monthly, and when you do, make sure its for sensitive skin, and moisturizing. They may have food allergies, look into a dog food that is for allergic dogs, like a fish and potato food, and try that for a month if the baths dont work. Good luck

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

It seems like they have some sort of an allergy. My cat's have the same problem even though I bath them weekly. What my vet said to do was start giving them Fish Oil, with OMega 3. Believe it or not, it's actually helping. Their skin isn't as dry and the itching has slowed down to a minium. It will take a few weeks or so to see any improvement. Be patient. Oh..one more thing..if you do decide to give your dogs Fish Oil, distribute it with some wet food according to their weight. Good luck!!

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

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What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

hi ,believe it is either areaction to flea bits or just a nervous thing my dog does it way too much and i spend hours looking for fleas n hothing good look if you find out somthing let us know by the way flea soap is bad try a oatmealmix

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

It can be caused by a number of things....like too frequent bathing. Allergies is another, bad hookworm infestation, ect. Make an appt with the vet, more than likely its the baths. My pooch is lucky to get one a month, if he's not as shiny as I would like I use the pup wipes....very similar to baby wipes LOL

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

if you don't change the shampoo every so often flea's become resistant to it. if you change the shampoo and treat them for symptons for things and that doesn't work you should take them to the vet. imagine being in their position it would be extremely frustrating and painful. to afford the bills you may have to buy cheaper dog foods and spend less on other things.

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

Could be allergies, yeast infection, parasites. It's really hard to diagnose these problems. Even the vet normally don't know what the cause.

To get them some relief, you can give them some benedryl (call vet and find out how much for their size and weight) It really helps with the itching and if you give them some at night, it will help them sleep better. Nothing worse than not being able to sleep because your too busy scratching.

You can also buy sprays and creams for hot spots and itching. The vet would probably want to give a cortisone shot. This would probably give some relief for a while, but it doesn't cure the problem.

If it's allergies, it is very difficult and costly to find out what they may be allergic to. And after all of the test and costs, they still may not know.

I would try several things. Try to solve the problems instead of masking it. You might want to try a hypo-allergenic food. They contain fewer ingredients than other foods and eliminates many of the food that may be allergens. Always use a Good brand of food. No grocery store food.

There are some things you can use for yeast infections. Check out the website below. It has a lot of info and suggestions for yeast. It also has a link that shows some of the better brand foods.

If it's environmental allergies, not much you can do. That's when you pretty much have to rely on the things above for releif. They may have an allergy pill for dogs now, I'm not sure. Talk to your vet. If this just started recently, I would say that's it. If it's been going on since before the season change, probably not.

You can get some things for parasites. They get under the skin. This will usually cause them to bite and chew on their feet and legs. (But watch that, they can also do that when they are in pain) I haven't had any experience with parasites so I'm not sure what all you can get. Do an online search and I'm sure you can find some good info about what to do.

If none of this helps, or they get no relief from the above things, I would probably let the vet give the cortisone shot. I'm not a big fan of giving chemicals, but they need something that will help.

I have one with skin allergies. When he gets to scratching, I give him the benedryl. It really helps.

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

Try some "cold water fish". Natural ingredients may help alot.

As mentioned, corn (in many forms) wheat, and such may be the problem.

A can of salmon each split over 3 days (day 1, 1/2 can each - then 1/4 can for each add'l day. Results should show in 2 days. Also add a broken egg (shells and all) twice a week. for a week - check results.

If it works, continue weekly, if not see a vet.

This time of year depending on where you live can dry out a coat naturally. Bathing so often is a no-no though. Once a month at most shouldbe more than enough. Frequent brushing is a plus thought to stimulate the skin and glands.

Hope this helps.

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

In my experience with the itchies, which lately has been extensive unfortunately it could be a couple things:

1) dry skin (obvious--over bathing as others said)

2) allergic to fleas/flea bites (get them a good flea med)

3) could be a parasite (there are flea meds that include this)

4) could be environmental (ouch! this is long haul stuff)

5) could just be hot spots (could try aloe vera gel)

6) #6 is BIG!!!! 9 times out of 10 its a food allergy-usually corn, wheat, soy, or grains in general! (try elimination diet-there are great foods that they love that have NO grain in them----or try raw diet----or make your own Salmon and brown rice is a good start)

The good thing is these are all manageable especially in young ones. You can give them Bendryl/antihistamine and usually it works very well!

I only have 1 question for you -----are they golden retrievers???

If so, do your best to get them to the vet, goldens have (as of lately) become as a breed very sensitive to the environment and especially if the spots they chew turn black----not to scare you but its serious. They do have meds for it but its for life and quite serious (we had a 2 year girl we had to put down it was that bad). Why? I don't know why its predominantly goldens.

Anyway I certainly wish you and your itchy babies relief (I know what your going through ----my 17 year old Chihuahua X I swear all she does all day is sleep, itch, pee, and eat...very sad she even itchs when she pees, eats, and in her sleep! But she has other troubles too that make it impossible to give her all the meds for the itchs---so we deal!

Good Luck! Hope I helped even a little

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

My Schnauzer started scratching about two weeks ago and so did my daughter's Chihuahua. I'm pretty sure it's allergies due to the change in weather...things are blooming now.

Bath your dog in oatmeal shampoo about every 3 weeks and put some flea prevention on them like Advantage or Frontline. And, I can't let my dog eat anything with wheat 'cause that really makes the itching bad. Good Luck.

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

I dont know where you live or if you have a garden but my dog is allergic to the plant commonly called moses in a basket. She gets a red rash all over, scratches till red raw and is very unhappy. I removed all the plants from my garden but recently visited a family member who has those plants in the garden and the poor dog had a bad rash the next day. She got a shot from the vet, a bath in oatmeal shampoo (leave for 10 minutes before rinsing) and some ointment from the vet. Apparently some dogs (and people) are allergic to any of the plants in the same family.Check this site for pictures of the plants http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/650/

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

Just a thought....the lawn companies are starting to spray people's lawns again and the chemicals could be irritating your dogs. Don't let your dogs go out if you or your neighbors have just had your lawns sprayed. I won't repeat what everyone else is saying but they have some good ideas. If your dogs do have allergies, do some research about giving them Benadryl instead of expensive meds from the vet...my vet actually recommended Benadryl before taking a prescription. May help your pups. Good luck!

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

you are overbathing first of all, and presumably with a low quality shampoo to boot..... second, could be food allergies,, but since both dogs are itching it could very well be mange...and fleas (fleas spend about 80 percent of their time OFF the dog)

What causes extreme itching in dogs? I have 2 young dogs that have begun scratching and biting themselves alot

Well you should not give a dog a bath once a week. Dogs have oils in their skin and if you give a dog a bath once a week it will dry their skin out. Try not giving your dog a bath every week and do it more like once a month or longer. Also, try to put a teaspoon of olive oil in their food its good for their coat. If they are miserable then take them to the vet.