Rash/Bites/Poison Ivy? on Gavin

[BG and Gavin]

Need some advice on a skin issue with Gavin.  He has had it for about a week and I was thinking it was poison ivy.  He is in it all the time on the trails as I was under the mistaken thought that dogs could not get it.  It seemed to behave as poison ivy.  A small rash that kinda blistered and discharged a small bit of clear liquid, then dried up and scabbed over.  It has been itchy too; some licking going on.  It is on the tops of 3 out of 4 paws just above the ankle and he also has a spot inside one hip.  Some of the scabs have been shed and are caught in the fur.  Some spots are only one or two scabs, others have a few more.  Treatment so far is cleaning with a disinfecting shampoo from the vet and benedryl.  Two benadryl do not seem to touch the itching too much and it makes him super sleepy so I stopped with that.  He is also pretty good about stopping when told, but he does sneak off and hide to lick sometimes.  Does anyone have any idea what it may be?  My pictures not great, but the best I could do.  They show the worst spot on his body.  Thanks in advance.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I hope he continues to improve and it just goes away, never to return.

[Camilla and Darwin]

No idea, but I hope it clears up quick! Poor Gavin

[Bonnie and Kona]

Just seeing this. Our doodles have gotten poison oak. I hope that Gavin is feeling much, much better. 

[BG and Gavin]

Well Christine - looks like you were right!  Gavin was groomed on Thursday and his belly shaved down low and on Sunday I spotted a flea on him!  How does this happen?  I spend $40 a month in preventatives, groom him regularly  and I am a pretty fastidious house keeper.  At any rate, it is what it is.  I gave him his preventative a bit early (for the second month) followed by a topical flea spray treatment.  I vacuumed, washed and flea sprayed my entire house and contents and have been instructed not to vacuum now for two weeks.  I guess I will do the same at the cottage this weekend, although not much broadloom there.  I have found about half a dozen dead fleas in the house.  He is still scratching a bit here and there but I am hoping it is just residual itch.  No more rash is evident so perhaps the flea I saw on Sunday just took up residence from what was left in the house :(

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'm sorry to hear this but it may be another mystery solved. Hoping for a speedy recovery for Gavin.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I am really sorry to hear this, and really hope they haven't gotten a foothold in your home or the cottage.

I'm surprised that you were told not to vacuum for 2 weeks; I had to vacuum daily following a flea treatment. I hope you've seen the last of them!

At least you know now what was causing Gavin's problem and can stop wondering about that. :-)

[BG and Gavin]

They said to vacuum first to get rid of what you can and bring anything else to the surface.  They are on a two week cycle from egg to larva to pupa to adult.  The spray will kill the egg, larva and adult but the pupa is watertight so won't die until it hatches.  You don't want to vaccum up the treatment until every last one has hatched and had a taste of the poison.  I may have my life stages mixed up a wee bit, because  I was going through the stages of grief at the time (shock, denial,....etc).  But now I am in the acceptance stage and the final (lesser known) stage which is WARRIOR!  (I borrowed that from Cheryl).

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That's interesting. I was told that they remain dormant for as long as a year, and vibrations (movement) plus carbon dioxide (what we exhale) causes them to emerge from the larval stage; so you were to vacuum right after a treatment to bring them out. After vacuuming, I'd walk around in white socks and white scrubs, checking for them. I'd always get a few jumping on my feet, shudder. It was truly a nightmare. I'm sure you don't have the kind of infestation I had, and be thankful!

[Sue & Lily Grace]

Fleas and tick infestation are the wort things in the world. It is so hard to break the cycle. When I lived in CT with a cocker spaniel it was an expensive and totally tiring. Everything has to be treated and cleaned. I hope the process is easier now. Good luck!

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

We have never had a flea problem, but I had a friend in Seattle that did and she bombed her house regularly, plus used a flea control.  I hope you get through all this soon and Gavin is itch free soon.

[BG and Gavin]

Final Update - well everything cleared up and my house bombing was effective, thankfully.  We went to the vet last week for Gavin's annual check-up and I told the Dr. about the infestation.  He took all the details and said that this is only the third case he has ever had in his practice that a dog has gotten fleas while on Revolution.  Today I got a call from the office and Phfizer is giving me 6 months of Revolution for free.  That is about $180 worth of medication for free!  Good customer service I would say! 

[F, Calla & Luca]

If only it worked : ) JK