Itching

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

I have noticed within the last week or so that Phin has been rather itchy. Some days I dont notice it at all, and others (like tonight) he has been crazy itchy. He has been on the same food (even same flavor) for months (wellness turkey and potato). Yeti and Phin get Spot Farms treats. They finished their last pack of turkey meatball and I got them a bag of chicken nuggets. Besides those two things, they hardly get any table scraps, and when they do its usually fruit, meat, or peanut butter. Phin is on an antibiotic currently for a staph infection. He gets a pepcid with a pea sized amount of PB and then I either mixed in a very small amount (tablespoon or less) of PB with his meal or a hard boiled egg. Besides that, his surroundings have not changed much. We did get new carpeting a week or two ago. I, for the life of me, cant figure out why he would be itchy.  I am curious if your dogs have every been itchy, and if so what was going on!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

We have a LOT of doodles here on DK who have allergies and/or are itchy; I'm surprised you haven't seen any of the many discussions we're always having here about it. It rarely has anything to do with food, and it probably has nothing to do with carpetting either. 
Itching can be due to many things: bug bites, mites, fleas, allergies (most commonly Atopic Dermatitis but occasionally food), and various skin conditions/diseases.

It's possible that iching could be a side effect of the medication Phin is taking. You might ask the vet about that.
Here's some information on allergies in dogs: 
https://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/some-basic-facts-about?gr...;
And some info on food allergies:
https://www.doodlekisses.com/forum/topics/facts-about-food-allergie...;

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

So Sorry. Poor Phin. Clancy has been chewing his feet, but he is having some other issues, so we are only wiping his feet off rather than giving him an antihistamine for now.

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

Thank you both! I’m going to try to give him a benedryl as the spot he his scratching at is starting to open up. We are out of town until Tuesday and won’t be able to make it to until next week.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

As mentioned in the links above, Benadryl is not your best choice of antihistamine. The second generation antihistamines that do not cause drowsiness, like Claritin or Zyrtec, are better for treating this; but the dosages may be different. 
You can also buy an OTC anti-itch spray at most pet supply stores, to help control the itching. 
But honestly, coupled with the staph infection, it is sounding more and more like you're going to need to see a veterinary dermatologist, because it does sound like Phin has allergies.

[Dolly Dykhouse]

Hi Haley,

My Henry started the whole itchy/scratchy bit a few months ago and moved to licking and chewing his paws last month. After allergy testing we discovered he is allergic to all grasses grown in CA, especially Bermuda grass the most common. Itching/scratching is like Karen says more likely the result of an inhalant allergy than a food one. Unfortunately, doodles seem to have a predisposition to Atopic Dermatitis. If his scratching started after you had your carpet installed that could be the culprit as there are many chemicals used to treat the fibers in carpet especially if it has a stain preventative on it. If the itching and scratching continue I would have a chat with your vet about it (again, Karen's thought that this could be a reaction to his current meds might be the issue too) before it becomes serious enough to cause issues; Henry's constant paw licking created a yeast infection that has required treatment on top of starting his immunotherapy shots. 

Best of luck in finding out what the issues are and let us know!

Dolly and Henry

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Doodles are predisposed to Atopy because both Labs and Goldens are; Poodles have this too, but to a lesser extent. And Atopy is genetic. 

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

Thank you all so much. I talked with Phins vet and they would like us to try an antihistamine first, but i havent noticed his itching getting any better. I am going to make an appointment to get him in as soon as i can!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It does take some time for the antihistamine to take effect. And giving Omega 3 fatty acids from fish oil, or evening primrose oil, will enhance the effects of the antihistamine; each works better in combination with the other than they do when given alone. 

[Haley, Yeti, and Phin]

Thank you so much! I had no idea about fish oil. Do you believe one works better than the other? Are there special pills for dogs or do you give them human ones?

[Stacy]

I just want to throw out there that fish oil can be tricky. I know your boys have some GI stuff. Fish oil was the one thing Ava couldn't handle. It gave her diarrhea. Too much fat, I think. She did fine with the evening primrose oil though.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

JD didn't tolerate fish oil well, either. That's when his derm vet recommended the EPO, and that worked great for him. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Haley, you can use human softgels. I used Nature Made Omega 3 minis: http://www.naturemade.com/fish-oil-and-omegas/fish-oil-and-omega-3/...

There are also products made for dogs, including pump type fish oils that you just add to their food. As Stacy mentioned, gp easy with it at first.