Itchy Puppy

[Linda,Yankee & Finn]

My puppy Finn is just 4 months old and is scratching himself a lot. He has been going in the pool every day and I assumed dry skin. I have been rinsing him and putting a leave on conditioner. I have read all the posts about allergies and I have been to the vet twice.

On my first visit I was advised that allergies are rare in a pup this young. She said it was probably because of the pool and to keep him out of it. She also said I can try Benadryl if I want. Not very helpful at all.

On my 2nd visit, I saw a different vet but not the one I was hoping for. At least this one examined him and saw no fleas or skin irritation. I mentioned mites and she said she saw no lesions or scabs that would indicate mites. She also said I could try Benadryl.

I am not convinced that it is allergies but I want to give Finn some relief. He is chewing and scratching himself. There is no skin damage yet but I am finding tufts of fur on the floor. I am going out to get the evening primrose capsules today.

I am not sure what to do. Should I give him an antihistamine? I don't want a drowsy puppy.Should I give him Claritin instead of Benedryl but what dosage do I give? Finn is 28 lbs.

I would appreciate any advice. Thanks

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Ned scratches for no apparent reason - no fleas, ticks, mites, infections. He did scratch a "hot spot" under his chin once and it was pretty hard to clear up. He did get itchy when I washed him as opposed to the groomer - better rinsing by her!

[Tammy & Gracie]

I give Gracie a tavist, once daily (1 mg clemastine). I buy the generic Walgreen's Wal-hist. Make sure it is not tavist d. No sedation with this pill. Gracie is 30 lbs. It helps. I understand Clatitin is good too but I've never tried it. I do think I remember in a recent allergy post a dosage guide for this.

[Georgette Lynn]

I give all of out dog fish oil. 1000mg with natural omega -3. It's help's with the coat and should stop the scraching and itching. At his weight I would just give him one. It just help put back some of the oil that he is losseing.
You can also give him an allergy med. some thing like Benadryl. What ever you get you will do what it tell you for children 6 to 12. As he get older you will be able to give him the lowest does for adults. I have all ways used benadrly becasue the nice thing about that is if you do give to much it want hurt the dog. It will just make him very sleepy.
If you give him claritin which I have naver use on our dog you what to make sure that it is the one mead for kids. But I would check with you vet first to make sure that it is safe for him.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Jackdoodle has been on Claritin, which does not cause drowsiness like Benedryl does, but I would not be comfortable recommending a dosage for a 4-month old puppy. Dogs metabolize antihistamines much differently than humans do, and adult dogs need much larger doses than adult humans. At 80 lbs, Jack needs triple the adult human dose.
I really think you need to try to determine the cause of the itching. Mites are only visible microscopically, so it's odd that the vet didn't do a scraping. Mites are very common, especially in puppies. Even with adult dogs where allergies are suspected, they always do a scraping to rule out mites before giving any meds. Maybe you could ask them to do one to be sure.
Allergies would be exceedingly unusual in a four-month old. My guess is also dry skin from the pool, and the evening primrose oil will probably help. There are also cortisone sprays you can buy in the pet supply store, but again, I'm just not sure about using them on puppies.
I wish I could be of more help. I hope Finn gets some relief soon.

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

I seriously think the problem is the chlorine in the pool! I have dry skin and when I spend a lot of time in pools I itch, dry out and flake. Even pouring tons of lotion on only works for a while. Eventually it soaks in or gets rubbed off and I start itching again. Same thing happens with cold dry weather. I am from Southern California so it only presents itself when I go to the mountains or to the East Coast in the winter!! I really think our Doodles are the same way. Leaving in the conditioner is probably not doing much for his skin but certainly softening his hair. Like most of the posts that I have just read say, they think he is too young to have developed allergies. I would try no swimming in a pool for a few weeks. Do you have a lake or some place you can take him to swim? We don't have a pool so Gracie Doodle has never been in a pool. We take her to the ocean or fill up her wading pool with hose water. She is a little over 2 years old and I have never had a problem with her scratching. Maybe I am just lucky!!! Good luck with Finn. I would also get advice from your Vet on the antihistamine and dosage before resorting to that.

[Linda,Yankee & Finn]

I got the primrose oil. Do I give 500mg or 1000? I have been trying to keep him out of the pool to see if it helps but he snuck in today. (Up to the top of his legs) It would mean keeping him out of the backyard which is difficult to do. I may get a child's pool so he can get his water fix. DH won't like that.

I didn't get an antihistamine because I didn't know what to get. I may wait on that. The vet I wanted to see is on vacation so I might see her when she gets back and have her do a scraping. The other vet asked me what kind of mites I was talking about. I had no idea. I guess I assumed she would know.

No tavist here. I looked. Thanks for all the info.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I have to laugh at the vet asking you what kind of mites you're talking about, but it's really not funny. You were right that she should know. Wait for the other vet.
Give just one 500 mg EPO capsule a day, preferably with food. You'll have to put it down his throat, so do it just before she eats if possible.

[HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08]

Can you call your vet and ask for a dosage of Revolution...this covers mites, fleas, ticks, bed bugs that dogs can get....ear mites..it's a once a month application and your Finn can go swimming the next day, put it on him at night before bed, should be dry and soaked in by the next morning...if this does not work, I would think it would be allergies also.

[HANNAH 8/2/07 & HONEY 7/2/08]

Dogs can have allergies at 4 months of age and younger, but since Finn is 4 months old now, was born at the begining of the allergy season, and has not shown signs before of allergies I would think it's not. When Hannah started with the eye Entropion, they thought it was allergies and I thought the same till I seen a 3 month old Golden (12 wks) who Hannah went to obedience classes with having allergies causing red blotchy rashes on her skin and they didn't turn into hot spots. Here is an article you might want to read....

http://www.k9web.com/dog-faqs/medical/canine-allergies.html

[Staci & Simon]

We've given our labradoodle Benadryl on a couple of occasions. Our dood was just months old when we tried it too w/hopes it would relieve his itching. We gave Simon a VERY small amount at bedtime. Basically as small as our pill-cutter could get it. It was prob. about 1/5 tablet. It worked for us and Simon was not groggy the next day either. His itching completely stopped.
I've heard & read several things that say Benadryl is safe for dogs. I haven't heard/read anything regarding dogs & Claritin though.
Good Luck, hope Finn feels better soon!

[Staci & Simon]

http://www.diamondpaws.com/health/drugs.htm

Here's a great reference to have on hand!

[Linda,Yankee & Finn]

I started the Revolution today. We'll see how it goes.