My dog keeps jumping up and scratching. Is it fleas after a bath?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It sounds as if Blitz is becoming re-infested with fleas even after applying appropriate flea preventative measures (i.e. Seresto collar). I would suspect that the environmental control has not yet been adequate to appropriate kill the fleas. I would recommend to my clients to hire a professional parasite control company to perform a treatment for the area (inside and outside). It can take as long as 3 months to adequately control all life stages of the flea life cycle. It is also possible that even though the fleas have been controlled (if you are no longer seeing live adult fleas), that Blitz suffers from a flea allergy. In these cases the itch can last long after the flea is gone. You can continue to bathe Blitz in a soothing shampoo, but if the itch does not resolve it is best to have him seen by his veterinarian to determine what additional anti-pruritic (anti-itch) medication may be needed. It is not uncommon for us to also see secondary bacterial infections (pyoderma) happen due to chronic itching, and a topical medicated shampoo may also be required from his veterinarian.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It’s hard to see the bug in your picture. It is likely fleas. I would start a flea medication. I like the oral ones like Nexgard, Simparica or Bravecto and I also like the Setesto collar which lasts 8 months. With these you can bathe him as well. With the topical medications you can’t bathe until 2 days after application. And personally I do not think they work as well. I hope this helps!

Hello. It is very possible that Jackson can itch after being treated for the fleas. Just think how long a mosquito bite itches us after a bite. It is a bit of a delayed reaction to the bite itself & the saliva injected into the skin to allow the insect to feed. Of course, he could be itching for other reasons & other allergies. I always recommend putting itching dogs, especially those with dry skin, on a good Omega 3 fish oil. One of my favorites is Nordic Naturals ( https://www.nordicnaturals .com>petRet>nnpet_prodO3_liq ). If he continues to scratch, he may need to be on an allergy medication such as Apoquel or Cytopoint, but give him a few days to see if this is a delayed reaction. Start the fish oil, but this can take a few weeks to kick in. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is likely due to allergies and until these are improved, he will continue to itch. 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!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yes, dogs will shed after a bath. They also shed a lot if they have skin problems like fleas or an infection. If you have bathed him daily for 4 days in a row then that could be causing excessive hair loss and could dry out his skin. If he has fleas I recommend using a long lasting flea preventative like Nexgard, Bravecto, Simparica, or the Seresto collar. Flea baths only last a day and are not good preventatives. Good luck!

I think washing him again with your normal soap and rinsing really well is a great plan! I would definitely do that as soon as possible. I have also has several patients over the years become infested with lice after using self wash stations so look very closely for any small bugs on the skin. Flea and tick topical therapies are usually only effective for 1 Month so I would read the instructions and see if it is time for another application. Also, this is the season we see a lot of allergic skin disease, so if the itching continues I would recommend that you have him evaluated by your veterinarian soon. Best of luck and I hope he improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I think the topicals sometimes cause tingling or burning. My dog didn’t like the advantix spot on. I really like the new oral flea/tick medications, monthly nexgard or simparica or every 3 month Bravecto. I hope this helps!