My dog's back legs are red, itchy, and dry for 3 weeks. What's wrong?

This may be from an allergic reaction from a bite or something in the environment. some part of her legs look like there may be a secondary infection in the skin. Due to the redness and swelling she should be seen by your vet for medication to treat the infection and underlying cause

Hello. With all legs looking quite red, I would best guess that Dotty is having an allergic reaction to something in her environment. You can bathe her in cool eater using an oatmeal based shampoo or one containing hydrocortisone or Pramoxine ( both available at most large pet retailers ). Try to soak her for about 10 minutes before rinsing thoroughly. You can bathe her twice weekly if necessary. If her skin does not improve you may need to see your veterinarian for more recommendations & medications. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Place an e-collar (cone) on him to prevent further licking. Consider an exam with your veterinarian to diagnose and treat the underlying cause. Possibilities include parasites (fleas, mites), infection (bacterial or fungal) and allergies (environmental, foodborne, etc). Discuss allergy testing, hydrolyzed diets, food elimination trials and antihistamine use with your veterinarian.

It looks like he could have a bacterial skin infection which could be related to allergies. You could bath him with a medicated dog shampoo and see if that helps. Otherwise, have him examined by a vet for treatment. He may need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, and/or a corticosteroid to help.

I agree with you that the area looks very irritated. It's a little difficult to tell from the pictures, but the area actually looks a little thickened or swollen, so I think it is worth having your veterinarian examine it and do some testing to see what might be going on in order to determine the best treatment for Atlas. Good luck! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This is probably caused by an allergic reaction. first of all make sure you de-flea Ellie regularly every month with a high quality spot on (ex. Advantage) as fleas are by far the most common reason for these reactions. If the fleas are not the problem, it could be an allergic reaction to food or an environmental factor. this is more complicated to treat and will sometimes require medications such as Steroids, anti histamines or Cytopoint in order to stop the allergy.

This sounds quite uncomfortable for Bruno! One of the most common causes of redness and itchiness of the back legs and hind end is irritation from flea bites. I understand that he is on a flea preventative, but make sure it is one of high quality (such as Nexgard, Bravecto or Advantix) because many other OTC preventatives are fairly ineffective. Many dogs are also allergic to flea bites, in that the saliva injected from one bite can cause significant irritation, even if a flea infestation is not present. In some cases, excessive itching can cause a skin infection to develop, which causes more itching, and creates a vicious cycle. You can try bathing him in a gentle oatmeal based dog shampoo to ease some discomfort, but also assure that he is on a good flea preventative (wait 2 days after bathing to apply a topical product like Advantix). If the redness and itchiness persist, Bruno should see a vet to determine if a skin infection is present, as this would require antibiotics for treatment. I hope that he's on the mend soon!