Scratching face

[Lindsey & Rowdy]

I just got home from the vet with Rowdy and am more confused than ever. Rowdy is almost 9 months old and we’ve been having a terrible time with him scratching his face. Since around September/ October he has had reoccurring problems with this. He keeps scratching at his face which causes it to bleed and then scab up. Then he scratches at the scab which causes it to open up and bleed again. The only area that he is scratching is the right side of his face. We’ve been to the vet off and on and have tried lots of different things. He’s been on prednisone which stops the scratching and then his face will heal. It only lasts a couple weeks after we stop the medicine though and he’s back to scratching. In November the vet gave him a series of shots to rule out scabies, even though he didn’t think that was the problem since Rowdy was only scratching his face. He had stopped scratching for a couple weeks and then started up again. Today he gave us an antibiotic to help with the open wound and more prednisone. He also said to use an e-collar until he stops scratching and to start giving him Benadryl. We’re supposed to check in with the vet in a week and see how it’s going. He mentioned that the next step would be to do a food trial for a few months to rule out a food allergy. From what I’m read on this site it doesn’t sound like anything would come up on the food trial since food allergies are so uncommon. If that doesn’t help then he said we would contact a dermatologist for skin testing. The vet thinks that it’s probably some kind of allergy; he’s just not sure what.

Does anyone have any advice? I feel so bad for Rowdy because he’s obviously uncomfortable with the itching. What can I do to help him stop scratching? Has anyone else had a similar experience?

- Lindsey and Rowdy

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Lindsey, there are a couple of other doodles here on DK who have a similar problem, and it's recurrent staph infections. Neither has had skin testing for inhalant allergies, so we don't know if that's the problem. In atopic dermatitis, the itching is rarely localized to just one area, especially the face, but it does sound like some kind of allergy. I can tell you with 99% certainty that it's not a food allergy...not just because food allergies are relatively rare, but also because the itching is so localized. (What is Rowdy currently eating?) You can try giving him a 500 mg. evening primrose oil capsule once a day; it won't hurt and may help.
In the case of the two dogs I know who have this same problem, it helps to keep their faces cut very short, and keep them dry. Using stainless steel food & water dishes and washing them daily with soap & hot water helps too. But you are going to have to find out what's causing it, so I think seeing a veterinary dermatologist is your best bet. I'd do that first before you spend a few months on food trials. A specialist may recognize the problem and skin testing may not even be necessary.
Good luck, I hope you can find an answer. I know how terrible it is to have a doodle who's miserable from itching.

[Lindsey & Rowdy]

Thanks for replying. We recently changed Rowdy’s food about 2 weeks ago. He had been on Iams puppy and we switched to Nature’s Recipe Puppy Lamb and Rice. I’ll try to find the evening primrose oil capsules. Where can you get them? We aren’t using stainless steel bowls, but I’ll try that too. I’ll have to do some research to find a veterinary dermatologist here. When we were at the vet today, he said that his friend is a veterinary dermatologist and that he would get in touch with him to see if he has any suggestions. He pretty much said that we’ll probably end up there soon. It doesn’t make much sense to me to do the food trial so I think that we’ll definitely be skipping that step. Thanks for the suggestions!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You need stainless bowls to make sure that Rowdy isn't getting reinfected; plastic bowls can retain bacteria from the sores. I would make that a priority. The evening primrose oil capsules are sold anywhere human vitamins & supplements are sold...grocery store, CVS, etc.
Lindsey, please get Rowdy off the Nature's Recipe food; it's good that he's off Iams, too. Both are lousy foods which could possibly be contributing to Rowdy's problems. Join us in the Food Group to find out more; in the meantime, try one of the following brands:
Fromm- Orijen- Acana- EVO- Innova- Solid Gold- Nature's Variety- California Naturals- Wellness- Evangers- Natural Balance
These are not sold at grocery stores, Walmart, etc., and usually aren't sold at the big chain stores like Petsmart. It will definitely help to get Rowdy on a healthier diet.

[Lindsey & Rowdy]

Thanks for the food suggestions. I didn't know that it was a bad food, it's so hard to tell. They don't make it easy for you! I did a search and found a store by us that carries quite a few you mentioned.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Of course you didn't know; neither did any of us before we started researching this stuff! You get Rowdy taken care of, and then come join us in the Food Group!

[Hunter and Daisy's Doodle Mom]

I was JUST going to see if Karen & Jack have responded and she has!! :-) I was going to say the same thing with a food allergy...it wouldn't be just in one spot if it was a food allergy. I think seeing a specialist is the best bet. We had to do that with our previous dog who had the itchy-scratchies in a few spots and we let our vet (at the time) try a couple of different things before we decided to look for a specialist. We were a step away from taking her to Michigan State University if the vet who ended up helping her, could not. It may seem costly, but like Karen said, you could go through months of food trials and all these different remedies before Rowdy gets his relief.
Good luck and I hope Rowdy feels better soon! :-)

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Ned started scratching his face when he was 10 months old. We had recently changed foods and I assumed that was the problem (Sorry Karen) I was ignorant. BUT IT WASN'T FOOD. He kept scratching periodically but..... we tried various at-home changes. A few months later Ned scratched a sore on his chin. We took him to the Saturday vet who told us to use metal dishes.The vet gave Ned a shot and a topical ointment.We thought we were done! However, Immediately after that appt. we took all three dogs to be groomed. The groomer (not the vet!) called us and told us that they all had canine lice! She gave them a flea bath and we used Frontline Plus as prescribed on the website for lice. Again we thought we were done! However, Ned has continued to scratch his cheek or chin. Periodically he scratches a lot and then it eases off and then begins again. It is worse after grooming or lots of detangling product use. Ned hasn't scratched another sore though. I think he might be sensitive to outdoor allergens. A few weeks ago we started Evening Primrose Oil. Our Springer had almost immediate impact - his coat which had been dry and his skin scaly - became sleek and shiny. Ned continued to scratch. He is not scratching as much so I am hoping it is due to the EPO, but it also could just be one of his less itchy times. We will see.

[Tammy & Gracie]

Just a thought. Gracie takes 1 500mg EPO daily. However, the last time we spoke with the vet he said if she was in a "scratchy state" to give her 2 pills daily for about 10 days. (Gracie is a 30 lb. mini.)

[Lindsey & Rowdy]

Thanks for the suggestion. Rowdy's just under 30 pounds now so it might help him to double up when he's having a lot of trouble.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Start with one capsule a day and re-evaluate after 2 weeks. Rowdy's young, and if you're going to get him on a better food, he'll get more Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids in his diet from that, too. You can always increase the dosage of the EPO a little later on if needed.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thanks for that suggestion, Tammy. Because Ned is small, we never thought of giving him more than one capsule as a "jump start" or if he is itchier.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh, for Ned you can give more EPO. Are you giving it to him every day? It does have a cumulative effect over time. Then for itchier times, you can increase it to 2 capsules a day. Jack can get three if he's having a bad period.
Nance, I'm also thinking the grooming products may be causing a contact dermatitis if you're noticing a connection. Maybe an antibacterial wash for just that area could be used when he's having a flare-up of scratching.