My dog is severely itchy, is there an inexpensive holistic way to help her?

My dog has been scratching for weeks! The problem is not fleas, and her skin doesn't seem terribly dry, but she is chewing on herself to the point of bleeding! HELP! Any ideas?

My dog is severely itchy, is there an inexpensive holistic way to help her?
Itchy skin in dogs is most often related to allergies.


Check out this site:





http://www.homevet.com/petcare/allergy.h...
Reply:skin so soft lotion
Reply:benadryl...talk to your vet for the appropraite amount. how much depends on the weight of your dog.
Reply:otc benadryl cream. or you might want to try hot spot cream for dogs so she stops chewing.
Reply:yes they have dog shampoos, conditioners, and other products that have oatmeal in them. It helps with dry itchy skin. Also he could have fleas. You might want to take him to the groomers or give him a bath with some flea killing shampoo and put a flea colar on him or some other flea medicine that you can find at any pet store.
Reply:Go to your local pet store and see if they have a coolant shampoo that may help with the itching. If all else fails bite the bullet and take your pet to the vet to see if it is a more serious problem.
Reply:I know it seems like a good thing to use natural means of stopping things like this but it could be mites, allergies, fungus... any number of things so I would suggest talking to your vet to make sure it is not something like this and ask if there are any natural ways to treat it. I know you said inexpensive but as I am sure you know, part of taking responsibility of a pet is ensuring its well being at any cost.
Reply:Your dog is experiencing severe allergies, and because the chewing and scratching have persisted for weeks, most likely has secondary skin infection. Take her to the vet and determine what has caused the itch (food, airbornes, or unrelated skin disease) and treat it. Being holistic and cheap is a one way ticket to a false diagnosis and a miserable dog.
Reply:Oddly enough it may be allergies. Dogs can be allergic to grass and food amonug other things. I would take her to the vet to have that ruled out first.
Reply:Get your dog to a Vetinarrian immediately.
Reply:It may not be fleas but it could be some other parasitic infection like mange. Take her to the vet and have a skin scraping done and that will tell you what your next step is. Good luck
Reply:It depends on the breed, but some dogs have sensitive skin. It may not appear too dry but it's definitely bothering her. You may consider changing her diet or just use fish oil ( a few drops on her food). You can find that at Petsmart and it's really cheap. There is also this spray you can use for dry skin (just a few sprays). Another option would be using a dog shampoo for dry/sensitive skin.


That's what I used for my lab who had the same issue. The cause was the extremely dry air/water here in Colorado.


Good Luck!
Reply:Try a Fish and Potato type dog food (I use Blue Buffalo Fish and Sweet Potato), many dogs have allergies to primary foundation ingredients in the regular foods on the market and the fish and potato food is equivalent to the prescription diets a vet would try. Benadryl will help for immediate relief also, but you need to find out the right amount for the size of your dog, so you'll want to talk to a vet or look it up. It's human benadryl.
Reply:From experience, I know that this is often very difficult to control even with good veterinary help. First of all, make sure


that he is being given an excellent method of flea control, such


as Advantage (available at vet office). For a few dogs, even


one or two fleas can cause a severe allergic reaction. He may be allergic to summer weeds and pollens. This was what my itchy dog was diagnosed with. All the meds from the vet only seemed to help mildly and temporarily. Cortisone


shots do help to a degree but they must be done frequently and are expensive - and not every dog lover has the money-


as office visits are about as much as a humans. Also prednisone causes a huge upsurge in urination, which might be problematic if he stays indoors while you are out during the day. You could try giving him benadryl - vet said it was safe to do so- but I didn't find this really effective either. I tried putting flaxseed oil/ fish oil in his food and then seemed to have a more favorable effect that a lot of the meds. Good luck, I have to go through this with mine (to varying degrees) every summer and to all of those who are crying "cheap" at you, I spent a ton of money, with very poor results, and yes this can make you search for alternative methods.
Reply:i have been working with animals for 20 yrs.i have been a groomer for 17 yrs.and i can't tell you how important it is to get all the soap out of the dog after bathing.it causes dandruff,skin rashes,and leads to severe itching.and skin irritations.that lead into big vet bills.to help the itching you can give your dog a benadryl alergy pill.
Reply:Have you tried to change her food? She may be allergic to what is in the food you feed her.


Good luck
Reply:You can try fish oil pills or vitamins (they may only help now marginally) but will help prevent further problems. Also, a drop of olive oil on his food will help make his coat and skinner softer.
Reply:Go to Walmart and get SULFODENE in the pet care section. You can get it in shampoo, spray, and liquid form. You will see quick results and it will do wonders, I swear, for $4 bucks you'll wish you knew abou this weeks ago! It is a sulfor based medication that really works, I use it and it was recommended by my vet. It's the only thing for my dogs' sensitivities. Good LUCK!
Reply:Hi,





I'm not a vet, but I know that food allergies cause a lot of skin problems. She may be allergic to wheat, which a lot of dogs are.





I have a page on my website all about food allergies. It might help.





http://www.standardpoodlesusa.com/food-a...