Help with skin allergies.....

[Denise & Hunter!!!]

Hello! Hunter seems to have a little rash on the inside of her hind legs that she chews at sometimes. I took her to the groomer yesterday and I asked about it and she said it looked to be a slight skin allergy. It doesn't appear to be anything that would require going to the vet but I am wondering what kind of home remedy I might try to help it. Any ideas? THANK YOU!!!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Denise, if it's really an allergy, there aren't any home remedies that will help that. And even if there were, you'd need to know what is causing it first in order to treat it. Contact dermatitis is extremely rare in dogs, which means that if the rash is due to an allergy, it's something Hunter is breathing or eating that is causing the problem, and she's biting at it because it itches. The itching is caused internally. The area that Hunter is chewing at is one of the most common areas for allergy symptoms to show up. But it isn't necessarily an allergy; it can also be mites, (they aren't visible to the eye), yeast, or staph.
Hunter really does need to go to the vet; the biggest problem with dogs chewing at itchy areas on their skin is that they usually cause an infection. Topicals don't work very well on dogs for obvious reasons; your vet may do skin scrapings to determine the cause of the problem, and recommend antihistamines (there are better ones than benadryl), antibiotics if needed, fatty acids, or even cortisone.
It probably won't get better on it's own, and may get much worse. I'd take Hunter to the vet. I hope it's something minor and Hunter can get some relief.

[Denise & Hunter!!!]

Thanks for your response, hhmmmm more to think and actually can't see them until you actually get close and pull her fur away and look at her skin. The one thing that I did notice is the area more looks like it has (for lack of a better description) like black dust on it - not a lot and only when you look close but you can kind of rub it away from her skin with your finger. More so than a "rash" the areas - are more red with a little bit of a slight raised rash or maybe irritation is a better description since its not symetric at all. It looks better today after being at the groomers last night. She only bites at it occasionally and for just a few seconds like all of a sudden it bothered her then she stops. She is on Frontline Plus but I am wondering if this isn't something like a mite or bites..... I don't know a thing about mites or what would give that little black dusting ....... I tried to get a photo but the areas are so small that they didn't come out at all. Maybe I am just overreacting!! Any more thoughts?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That does sound like it could be mites. Frontline has no affect on mites at all. I'd take her in to the vet if possible. I know you want to relieve her discomfort as soon as possible, and it's probably better to get her in before the weekend.
Here's a very good, easy to understand article on sarcoptic mites.
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_sarcoptic_mange.html

[Hunter and Daisy's Doodle Mom]

I'm going to attach some pictures...I'm just wondering what Hunter's looks like. What's ironic, is my dog's name is Hunter as well and he's the one with it, not his sister, Daisy. This picture was taken the day they came home from thier "getting fixed" surgery, so they look a bit, well, sad; but, I circled the area that he has. He's had it since we got him home and it hasn't spread, it just grew bigger with him. That area has very sparce hair and looks like a rash, but the skin is rough. He also has this along the back inside of his rear leg. He doesn't mess with either. I've but Neosporin on it to see if it was dry skin and I've put cortison to see if it was something of an allergy and neither one did anything.

Now, before Hunter and Daisy, our first kids were litter mate shepherd mixes, Cody and Shadow. Cody had a condition called Acral Lick Dermatitis. This is a result of repeated licking and the end result is an ugly raised plaque and I attached a picture from her later years.

As with Cody's problem, if Hunter's is starting to look like a licking problem, according to the paperwork I still have from the vet's office, if it is a psychogenic issue (seperation anxiety, boredom, obsession) it can't go away obviously. They don't understand the terms of "don't lick that, it's gonna get worse". What ended up happening is, I think I probably purchased over the years about a barrel of Neosporin. I would put that on it when it was obvious she had been licking it, and wrap it with gauze wrap and a doggie medical ace bandage to let it heal for a couple of days. It would harden back up and the cycle would continue. This went on from about 2 years old until she passed at age 13. That was the only area she did it and I know now it was seperation anxiety, even though she had her sister, Shadow, there with her while we were at work. There's always the possibility of hot spots, but it would seem the groomer would know what a hot spot looks like. As I mentioned before, with my Hunter's rash looking thing, I've put both Neosporin and a Cortisone cream on to see if anything would happen and it still is there, not spreading and he doesn't lick or scratch at it. Monitor the behavior and make a call. My vet will talk to me first to try a home remedy before saying that he'll need to see my dogs. I hope the pictures might help for you to decide :-)

[Denise & Hunter!!!]

WOW Thank you for the photos, those really did help. Poor Cody, he had such a sweet little face and I feel bad about his licking :-( The spots that my Hunter has don't look like either - you actually can't see them until you actually get close and pull her fur away and look at her skin. The one thing that I did notice is the area more looks like it has (for lack of a better description) like black dust on it - not a lot and only when you look close but you can kind of rub it away from her skin with your finger. More so than a "rash" the areas - are more red with a little bit of a slight raised rash or maybe irritation is a better description since its not symetric at all. It looks better today after being at the groomers last night. She only bites at it occasionally and for just a few seconds like all of a sudden it bothered her then she stops. She is on Frontline Plus, I had another comment about mites..... I don't know a thing about those....... I tried to get a photo but the areas are so small that they didn't come out at all. Maybe I am just overreacting!!

[Hunter and Daisy's Doodle Mom]

Yep, that is EXACTLY the description that in on my Hunter's. The only reason you can see it a bit better on his picture from after his surgery is that his hair was all messy - he didn't get brushed that day :-) But, yes, it is like there's something there, I assumed it's part of the dead skin flaking off. It's not raised though. The last 100 times my puppies have been to the vet is because of digestive problems and that was getting taken care of first and foremost. I am keeping an eye on it. Like I said before, he's not licking it, biting it, scratching at it, so I haven't addressed it to the vet. At his next visit I'll point it out to him. The thing is, is that his sister Daisy does not have it, so I ruled out mites because they are by each other ALL the time and when they had ear mites, they both had it and was scratching at their ears constantly...oh, I could go into a novel on the first 3 months with Hunter and Daisy. To stay on subject of the allergies, I am keeping an eye on Hunter's, I brush him every day and he and his sister get a "home exam" while grooming for any abnormalities :-)

[Aleta Hahn]

denise, my cockapoo developed the same thing and in time it got to be something that need to be seen by the vet. It turned out that my poo had an allergy to his food and he is now on a soy based formula from the vet and is doing fine...no more rashes ( or ear infections, that was another way his allergy showed up also ).

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Please check the Food Group for info on Eukanuba and on Food Allergies. Food allergies are fairly rare in these cases, (only 10-15%) but when they do occur, Eukanuba is not your best choice. The foods most likely to cause allergic reactions in dogs are corn, wheat, beef and chicken. Most Eukanuba formulas contain all of those, and they were heavily involved in the Food Recalls of 2007, in which thousands of dogs died. Eukanuba also contains menadione, a synthetic form of vitamin K proven to cause liver disease and AIHA in pets. We do NOT recommend it, even for healthy dogs.
The only way to determine food allergies is to do a controlled food trial, eliminating one protein at a time. Yogurt is a good probiotic but it can't kill mites. Mites live in the skin. Perhaps it was an intestinal bug that the yogurt helped to clear up?
It is very common for people to believe that most allergic reactions are caused by food, but in 85-90% of cases, it is airborn allergens such as dust mites and pollens. And again, Hunter's problem may not be allergies. In order to effectively stop her discomfort and treat her problem, it has to be reliably diagnosed.

[Denise & Hunter!!!]

Does anyone know if the only way to treat mites by going to the vet? I did put a little hydrocortisone on the areas and she actually hasn't tried licking it off yet. When I was messing with it she didn't even seem to flinch either. I did switch her food about 2 1/2 months ago from Eagle to Canidae - I wonder if there is a relation.......

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

What Eukanuba formula is it? There are dozens of different ones.
If you read through our many discussions here in the Food Group, you'll see that veterinarians do not know much about dog food, and what they do know is provided by the Big Dog Food Companies who fund the vets nutrition education, provide textbooks, write textbooks, and pay commissions for prescribing their foods. The vets aren't lying to you, they just don't know any better in many cases. Are you using a Banfield vet? Banfield is owned by Mars, Inc, which makes many of the crappy dog foods.
Of course the bag says the food is good for them; who would buy a food that says it's not good for them, lol. The problem with Eukanuba and all foods made by big corporations is that they purchase theie ingredients through brokers who import most of it from China. Most of the time, the company who's making it has no idea what's in it.
If you can tell me what food you're using, I can suggest some alternatives. I will tell you, though, that Eukanuba is not really considered one of the more expensive foods. The foods we recommend will most likely be more, and usually aren't available at Petsmart.
My dog, who has had all the testing done and has severe skin problems, eats Orijen with fresh food added.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Join the Food Group - no offense to other groups (love you all!), but it is my lifesavor and fave group on DK! And don't panic about what you are feeding yet. You can make a gradual switch to something recommended. I will say that not all of the best foods are considerably more expensive. Some are much more, some are just slightly more. But if it helps your pups nutrition, it is worth the extra cost (probably in longterm vet fees just in my opinion). The foods I serve my dogs are from locally owned pet stores. Can't find the stuff in Petsmart.
I used to feed Nutro (thought it was wonderful at the time) and some treats from China a few years ago. My chihuahua suffered during the huge pet food scare/recall that year. I have paid thousands for treatments since. Much more than the better food would have cost me!!!

Shoot I just realized this doesn't really go with your discussion, Denise...Karen got off on a related, but different subject. Sorry. Will leave here just as food for though LOL

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Blame me- I try never to start tangents, but I'm the first to follow one wherever it leads. Sorry, D!