Why is my dog scratching and losing hair from Seresto collar?

This is not likely to be due to the collar. If the collar were to cause irritation, it would only be around where the collar is placed and would not cause severe itching. Severe itching is often due to one of the following things: 1) Allergies - this can happen suddenly and is usually due to an environmental (i.e pollen) cause. 2) External parasites - fleas, lice and mites can all cause intense itching. It's good to check him for fleas and get other treatment if needed. 3) Over-bathing, or using the wrong product for bathing - Bathing too often can cause the skin to get dry and irritated. Dogs should normally be bathed no more than once a month with a shampoo that is labeled for dogs. If you bathe more than that, or use a shampoo or soap that is meant for people, then you could be damaging the normal protective barrier of the skin. Seven months is a long time for a dog to be itching this much and it must be miserable for her. In order to find the cause of this and give her some relief, I highly recommend you schedule an exam by a veterinarian. We can usually discover the cause quickly and provide the most effective treatment. I hope that helps and she gets better soon.

Yes it would be ideal to remove the collar and use another type of flea treatment, waiting at least a couple of weeks (you can use comfortis tablets). It is very likely that both the scab and the hair loss is due to the collar which is causing skin reaction/allergy.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Macy. Not sure how long the Seresto flea collar has been on but it could be some local irritation from the collar. Other possibilities include a bacterial skin infection, trauma from scratching, fungal infection, mites, an internal organ problem, among many other things. If the condition worsens, persists, spreads, or is really itchy I would advise letting your vet take a look at Macy. They can get a detailed history, do a thorough exam, and then advise some tests if needed. Skin tests include skin scrape, woods lamp exam, fungal culture, skin cytology, etc. If they felt like this problem was due to an internal organ problem, they may advise some tests which could include fecal/blood/urine tests and maybe even some x-rays. Your vet can decide whether the Seresto collar is involved or not. If it is, I would report this to Bayer Animal Health or have your vet report it. Good luck with Macy.

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.

Hello, & thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Yes, you can absolutely place a Seresto Collar on Nala today, if you wish. But please consider that here may be other reasons besides fleas that are causing her to itch. Dogs can suffer from many allergies, just like we can, & sometimes fall can be the worse time of year for this. You will probably need to speak with your veterinarian to see if Nala does have allergies, & not fleas, & what medications will work best for her. Take care.

Treat the environment, both inside and out for fleas. then you can do a seresto collar that will last about 6 months to help repell the fleas from getting on him and give a bravecto tablet that will last for 3 months and kill an fleas that get on him. It is proven that good flea control must be utilized for at least 3 months straight to break the life cycle of the eggs to eliminate the problem. His skin does seem inflamed and infected so your vet may need to see him to give him antibiotics and possibily steriods to contorl the itching and clear the infection until the fleas get under control.

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. You should try a different spot-on product. Local skin irritation and hair loss is the most common side effect of the spot-on medications but if you use a different one, it will hopefully not upset the skin. The other is a collar, for example Seresto.