Itching and no fleas

[Heather & Brinkley]

Hey!

Brinkley has been itching a lot lately. I think I can pinpoint it to the warmer weather change as we live in a hot area... But I don't really know.

I'm also wondering if he could have a food allergy but he is on Orijen. He actually itched a lot before I made the food switch and it really cut down once he began eating Orijen so until now I thought it may have been a grain allergy.

I KNOW for a fact it isn't something scary as mange because my friend's very young Doodle had been itching a lot, to the point that he lost his fur. The puppy tested negative for the scary version of mange and they treated him for the other type of mange that doesn't show up on a scrape test. Since Brinkley had played with him I had Brinkley tested, and we also treated Brinkley for the lesser of the two evils as a precaution. Plus, my friend finally narrowed it down to a chicken allergy.

Brinkley isn't his losing fur and he doesn't have any raw spots, except one tiny spot on the bottom base of his tail... But I don't think he ate it raw. Instead, the itching wound some of his fur pretty tight last night so I think it is pulling... So I will cut the mats he created so he gets some relief.

But if he doesn't have fleas what else could it be? I'm leaning towards dry skin. Awhile back my vet said I could put a little bit of some kind of oil in his food but I can't remember what kind or how much!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

GLA is also not found in grains in any significant amounts.

Some further info on this topic: http://www.oocities.org/mybrielle/fattyacids.htm

[Heather & Brinkley]

Well, he was given two Claritin pills an hour ago and he hasn't itched once for the last 30 minutes! Yay!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That's a fast result. The EPO will enhance it, too, so that the antihistamine effects will last longer. It usually takes up to 2 weeks to get the full benefits.

[Heather & Brinkley]

Yes, It was fast, but it has definitely slowed down. An itch here and itch there but the constant nagging itch has certainy calmed down. I'm so glad because he seemed miserable!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That's the worst part of it, they're so miserable and you just want to do something to make them feel better. Glad Brinkley is getting some relief.

[Heather & Brinkley]

How many times a day should I give him Claratin? And how about he EPO when I getbmynhands on it?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Only give the Claritin once every 24 hours, both tablets at the same time.

You can give the EPO any time, start with one a day and if he tolerates it well, which he should, you can try two a day. It should not be hard to find.

[Roy Henderson]

We just went throiugh the same thing with one of our doodles, we tried a couple of different over the counter canine allergy meds with no luck and were afraid it was a food allergy...non ceral food is very expensive! We finially gave in and took her to the vet and she got a steroid shot and some anti-biotics because she had been scratching so much she had caused minor infection from scratching...the vet said it can be caused by a lot of different reasons just like with humans but the bottom line is after the steroid shot and the 10 days of anti-biotics it was gone...the scratching stoppoed the day she got the steroid shot...good luck and I hope you find the cure as easy as we did.

[Kimmy & Chewie]

Glad to hear that Brinkley is feeling better with the Claritin.
However, my understanding is tha tClaritin doesn't actually cure the underlying cause of the itch, but just eleviate the symptoms. So you'll still need to find out what is causing the itch.

When Chewie was a puppy, he found that he had dry/flakey skin on his tail which itchs. I started giving him salmon oil which worked within a few days. He now gets 2 squirts of oil with his meal each day.

Another cause is residue shampoo. Was Brinkley bathe recently? Which part of his body itches? Is it under his body where some shampoo was not washed off properly?

Good luck!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You are correct, Kimmie. Neither Claritin nor fatty acids nor steroids nor antibiotics can "cure" allergies, if that's what's causing the itching. True allergies are a disease of the immune system and can only be managed, not cured, like most immune-mediated diseases. Treatment works to try to reduce or eliminate flare-ups and symptoms, and manage them when they occur. The closest thing to a "cure" is immunology shots, which require testing under anesthetic to determine the allegens. Mild cases of inhalant allergies can often be well-managed with some life-style changes along with anithistamines and fatty acids, with occasional courses of steroids  for flares, but atopy often gets worse as a dog gets older, and prolonged steroid use carries its own risks.

Atopic Dermatitis (the technical name for seasonal, inhalant, or environmental allergies) is genetic, and runs in Labrador and Golden retrievers.

[Heather & Brinkley]

You know, my friend bathed him after Brinkey played with her dog. I always use oatmeal shampoo but I don't know what she used. He was groomed three weeks go so he doesn't have a lot fur to trap shampoo at the moment but I will give him a pn oatmeal bath tonight.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It isn't the fur that you want in contact with the shampoo, it's the skin. (This is the same as when we wash our own hair...we aren't really supposed to be washing the hair, we're washing the scalp. The hair gets clean in the process.) You want the lather to remain on the skin for at least 10 minutes.