My black lab has itching, flaky skin, and panting. What's wrong?

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I recommend giving the Benadryl as frequently as your veterinarian has instructed you can give it - typically every 6-8 hours. Coco's cough will likely not resolve for at least 3-5 days with the antibiotic medication, because this needs time to work and relieve the infection. I hope this is helpful!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I cannot give a dose for Benadryl because I have not seen Doobie but I don't think you are giving him enough and often enough to help. If he has a rash, Benadryl may not be strong enough and he may also have a secondary infection and need antibiotics. I recommend taking him to a vet to see his skin and get antibiotics and possible steroids for the inflammation. Good luck and kisses to Doobie!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. This still may be a skin allergy but Benadryl sometimes does not work. I would recommend using a shampoo such as Douxo PS Chlorhexidine combination shampoo and bathe twice weekly until resolve. I would also recommend using products such as welactin omega 3 fish oil, essential 6 spot on by dermoscent and malacetic conditioning spray. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. All of these product recommendations can be found online. If the problem becomes worse, I would recommend having your veterinarian examine Sofie.

Have Linus rechecked by your veterinarian. Given his age, heart disease should be ruled out as a cause for the coughing. Chest xrays and an echocardiogram can assess cardiac size, architecture and function. If the heart checks out, consider advanced diagnostics such as a trans tracheal wash to collect a sample for pathology and culture. This may be able to diagnose infection or inflammatory process. The culture and sensitivity may identify the responsible organism as well as the best antibiotic to use in treatment. He may also have allergies which can be difficult to diagnose given the multiple causes. Consider adding an essential fatty acid supplement (usually a fish oil) to his diet to promote healthy skin. EFAs may also decrease inflammation and itching. Search www.petco.com for fish oil supplements such as DermCaps or EicosaCaps. If allergies are confirmed, your task is to try to determine what he is allergic to and decrease or eliminate it. Discuss food elimination trials, hydrolyzed diets and allergy testing with your vet. Confirm the dose of Benadryl you are giving is appropriate based on body weight. There are other antihistamines you can try, prescription and OTC, if Benadryl is ineffective. Again, discuss options with your veterinarian.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could certainly be allergies. In reality, Benadryl probably would not help much in this case. Medications to decrease the itch that could help him include prednisone or a medication called Apoquel. The possible secondary infection would have to be treated as well. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

If they have both developed the same cough I would be concerned about viral causes and a potential kennel cough. I would discuss this with your veterinarian. The skin and ears can definitely be allergies. Benadryl is great for allergies and there are other antihistamines if this doesn't work. There are also other great options like cytopoint (an injectable medication for allergies) and apoquel (a daily pill for allergies). Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and I hope they both get better soon.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It’s hard to tell from the pictures but it looks like Baby might have a skin infection. The Benadryl should help if she’s itchy but she needs to see a vet to determine if it’s an infection and get her some oral antibiotics if needed. Good luck and kisses to Baby!