Itchy puppy!!!

[AJ]

So hank is almost 5 months old and he has been doing great. The last two days he has been itching constantly. I have not changed anything regarding his diet or environment. I even gave him a bath with an oatmeal shampoo, yet he is still itching constantly. What can I do to give him some relief?

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

If the itching is new, then I would check for mites, fleas, or ticks.

[AJ]

He is on frontline for all of those

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

When did you apply the frontline?  My dogs seem itchy from the Frontline itself.  PS Frontline kills the fleas and ticks AFTER they bite, it doesn't prevent them getting on the dog.

[AJ]

This will be his 2nd treatment of frontline. I put it on him last month and he didn't have a problem. I did double check for fleas and there is nothing there.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Just a question:  Did you wait the entire 30 days to reapply Frontline?

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

Where is he itching? About the head, ears? or everywhere?

[AJ]

Pretty much everywhere. He bites his paws, itches his arm pits, I mean everywhere. I have tired the coconut oil but I can't get it into his skin, it just ends up on his fur making it an oily mess.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Applying any type of oil topically will have little effect, and may even make matters worse, because it attracts dust and other possible allergens to his coat; the cause of the itching is usually internal,(a histamine response), unless there are parasites. What you're describing sounds like inhalant allergies except that it's the wrong time of year and 5 months is exceedingly young for any type of allergy. 

Try giving him fish oil capsules, human soft gels. I like Nature Made Omega 3 Minis. Give as a pill, don't puncture. 

You might also try changing your furnace filter, washing his bedding, keeping the areas where he spends the most time as dust-free as possible, store his kibble in an air tight container and toss the bags. Wash his food and water bowls daily. Never use leave in cream rinses or conditioners after bathing him, and don't use a hot dryer on him. The best shampoo I have found for itchy dogs is Douxo Calm, which you can order on-line. You must leave the lather on for 10 minutes before rinsing. You can use an anti-itch spray on his feet, or any other area away from his face,for temporary relief; these are available in pet supply stores.

You can might also consider giving him an antihistamine, and NOT Benadryl. Zyrtec, Claritin, Allegra, Chlor-Trimeton, etc. are better choices. There is dosage information in the Health Group. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh, and check the Omega 6:3 ratio on his kibble. You want it under 5:1, and the closer to 2:1 it gets, the better.