Itchy Skin Relief for Dogs

Common Causes

• Dogs that have itchy skin are fairly easy to spot due to their constant scratching. Other symptoms include dry flaking skin, fur loss, hives and open or scabbed-over sores on various parts of the dog's body. Watching the dog closely to determine exactly where the itchy skin is can help in diagnosing the cause. Common causes of itchy skin are fleas and mites, food allergies, dry skin and airborne allergens such as pollen.

Flea and Mite Relief

• Fleas like to congregate around the base of the tail, in the groin and thigh area and above the hips, whereas mites tend to cause itching around the ears and the back of the head and neck. Although these ectoparasites favor these areas they can sometimes be found all over the body. Medications such as Frontline, Advantage, K9 Advantix and BioSpot are specifically designed to kill fleas and help prevent further outbreaks. These medications are applied topically and are available from most veterinarians. Program and Capstar are also designed to combat fleas but these are oral pills and tend not to be as effective at long term control.
  Medications for mites can vary depending on the type of mite that is infesting the canine. A veterinarian will have to do a skin scraping and analyze it under a microscope to determine what type of mite needs to be dealt with. Treatments such as Lime sulphur dips, doses of ivermectin and certain shampoos can help relieve the dog of its itchiness.

Airborne Allergy Relief

• If a dog has allergies, watching where it scratches can tell you a lot about what type of allergen is causing the itch. Dogs with allergic reactions to airborne particle such as pollen, dust or dander and pollutants tend to be itchy in localized areas of their body. Itchy feet, ears, belly and around the face are indicators of airborne allergies. These can often be treated with regular antihistamines such as Benadryl (diphenhydramine), Atarax (hydoxyzine), Tavist (clemastine furmarate) and Chlor-Trimeton (chlorpheniramine).

Food Allergies

• Food allergies can cause a number of symptoms depending on the severity of the allergic reaction. Some foods can cause vomiting, diarrhea and inflammatory bowel disease while others can cause hives which can itch incredibly. Dogs with mild food allergies often break out in hives all over the body and scratch everywhere. The best course of treatment to relieve this is avoidance. Working with a veterinarian to eliminate certain foods from a dog's diet to determine the cause of the allergy can take a long time. This method is basically trial and error and it may take numerous changes of food to find one that the dog is not allergic to. Allergy tests can speed up the allergen identification process but these tend to be very expensive and don't always yield definitive results.

Dry Skin

• Some dogs have skin that is just too dry, which can flake, causing dandruff and itchiness. Often you can combat this with regular over-the-counter supplements. Supplements of omega-3 fatty acids may improve coat shine and quality and can help to keep the skin from drying out so much. It can also reduce the amount and effect of histamine in the body. Unfortunately you usually have to give omega-3 fatty acids for a long period of time (several weeks to months) before you see any results, and in some cases it has no effect at all.
  Biotin is another supplement you can use to greatly improve a dog's skin condition. Biotin is one of the B vitamins and you can give it on its own or in combination with fatty acids. No known side effects or toxic reactions are related to biotin, which makes it an extremely safe supplement to try on dogs.