My dog has hives and is itchy. Should I use her medicated shampoo?

From your question, it sounds like you recently bathed Chico in a shampoo that you are concerned has caused an allergic reaction. Since an oatmeal bath and Benadryl seemed to resolve the areas, it may indeed have been an allergic reaction. Unfortunately, sometimes when the body has started an allergic reaction, it will take a number of days of treatment to complete resolve, so I would repeat your treatment for a few days. If the areas are looking worse, Chico is not feeling well, not eating or seems to have any swelling involving the head and neck that could cause problems with his breathing, please seek veterinary care immediately. Please let me know if that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hello! A picture of the lesion would help us give more helpful input. However, if Shiloh's skin is flaky and itchy, it could be a number of things, including superficial pyoderma, demodicosis, sarcoptes, yeast dermatitis, and ringworm. It is difficult to narrow down the causes without doing an exam on her or at least seeing the lesions, but it is very likely some sort of infection (whether bacterial, yeast, or parasitic) so I do recommend bringing Shiloh to the vet. Your vet will be able to determine the cause, and Shiloh will likely need prescription medication (antibiotics, antifungals, or anti-parasite, along with possible medicated shampoo) to clear the issue. Depending on the severity of the issue on her skin, it very likely might not improve without prescription meds, so it is worth having her seen as soon as possible. Additionally, depending on her age, she may have some underlying condition that might be making her skin susceptible to infection, such as allergies or hypothyroidism. I hope this helps.

Hello, sorry to hear about Chico. It looks like he is having multiple areas of skin inflammation (dermatitis). This could be causes by a various things to include bacteria, yeast, or most commonly allergies. In that location, environmental allergies are the most common cause. These may include grasses, trees, pollen, carpet, dust mites, dander, etc. Signs associated with this could include licking, scratching, rubbing belly on the floor, and developing other areas of dermatitis. If he is otherwise comfortable with a good appetite and no itchiness, then you can bathe him with a skin sensitive shampoo to wash off any excessive allergens. You may wipe him with skin sensitive baby wipes as well to decrease any allergen exposure. If he does develop any itchiness, then he may need allergy medications which can be provided by your veterinarian. Hope this helps and best of luck.

If the bumps developed after you bathed Ivy, she certainly could be having an allergic reaction to the shampoo, but if the rash was already there, she might be having an allergic reaction to something else or may even have a skin infection. There are a number of reasons for skin problems in dogs. This article does an excellent job of describing them. You could be dealing with allergies (of various types), external parasites (such as fleas or mites), or secondary infections (bacterial or yeast). https://www.petcoach.co/article/why-is-my-dog-so-itchy/ This is also an excellent article on skin problems in dogs and the possible causes and treatments. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=2604 I would recommend having your veterinarian evaluate Ivy. There are some simple skin tests that can help determine if she has a skin infection that needs to be treated and you can discuss options if they think she is having an allergic reaction or has allergies. That might include something like an over the counter antihistamine, prescription medication or a medicated shampoo. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Poor guy. It sounds like he may be having a mild reaction to the vaccine. I would contact your vet to get him an antihistamine shot to help relieve the itch. He may also benefit from oral allergy medication for a few days until things subside. If you can't get him in right away, you can try an over the counter pet formulated aloe based or oatmeal based shampoo (one with Diphenhydramine is best if available) to help alleviate some of the irritation. Also as a general rule of thumb, giving pet formulated fish oils can help provide a natural anti-inflammatory effect on the skin in dogs. Best wishes moving foward with Brinks care.

It definitely seems like she's reacting and it may be worth taking her to a vet for medication if this doesn't go down soon. The best thing you can do at this time is wash your dog again with just cool water. The cool water will help give some relief and will help to remove the cause of the reaction. I recommend using a shower head for 15 minutes all over her body, so there is good pressure to remove the shampoo residue. If she happens to start vomiting, has trouble breathing, or starts breathing faster than normal, then these are signs of a severe allergic reaction and I recommend taking her to the emergency vet immediately for treatment. If you have further questions or need further clarification, then you may consider having an online consult with one of our vets on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This way, you can send unlimited pictures and have a text conversation with a vet. I hope that helps and she gets better soon.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Dollag looks like she has a skin infection. She could have microscopic mites, a bacterial, or a yeast infection. I recommend taking her to a vet for an exam and to test the skin for the above things. I would stop using human shampoo as dogs skin and ours have different pH levels and can make things much worse. The decreased appetite could be from the diet change or because her skin is so uncomfortable. At this point in time, there is nothing all natural you can do until the infection is cleared. After it is addressed you can talk to your vet about what caused the infection and ways to prevent them in the future. This may be medicated dog shampoos or other medications. Good luck and I hope Dollag gets relief soon!