My dog scratches a lot. Can vitamins or oils help with skin allergies?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to skin allergies mostly due to the fact that it started after moving. Adding fish oil can be considered regardless to help with the dry skin. You can use the commercial kind for dogs. 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!

It sounds like Mochu might have an environmental allergy. This based off the commend you make that the skin became a problem when the environment changed. Environmental allergies can be difficult to treat. I highly recommend applying flea prevention every 30 days. Also, you can use an over the counter anti histamine to help control itch. IF the skin is breaking and bleeding you can try an over the counter medicated shampoo. I am not sure about the supplement you mentioned. I have seen fish oils and omega three fatty acids help with skin control. Mochu might need to go see a vet for possible steroid or apoquel to help decrease itchy skin. However I would also recommend a basic blood screen because endocrine disease like hypothyroidism can also cause skin issues in older labs.

Allergies can be frustrating to diagnose and treat, for the pet, the pet owner, and the veterinarian! It is the most common cause for itching in dogs. Medications like Apoquel can eliminate the itch due to allergies, though it won't work if there is a secondary bacterial or yeast infection. Food allergies won't be treated simply by a better diet, they need to be strictly on a prescription hypoallergenic diet without other dog or human treats, and even then it can take 3-6 weeks to see positive effects. Until then, anti-itch medications, steroids, or shampoos/topical mousses can be used to minimize the itch and treat any present infection. I would recommend continuing to work with your vet to find the best solution to Toes's itch issue.

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! While apoquel is a great drug to stop scratching and to help atopic dermatitis it doesn't do anything in the face of a skin infection. Coco should be checked to see if she now has a yeast and or bacterial skin infection. There is also the option of doing an injection for scratching called cytopoint, which lasts 30-60 days (dog dependent). I would also consider adding Omega 3 fish oils and changing her diet to a non-chicken based novel protein diet (try venison, lamb, fish). Claritin, benadryl and zyrtec can be sued in dogs, see links below: https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/benadryl/ https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/zyrtec/ https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/claritin/ https://www.vrshealth.com/canine-products/omegadog/ https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=15235

I would not try a vegan diet with Toughy. It is not nutritionally appropriate for dogs. I would recommend talking to your veterinarian to see if you can get something called Apoquel or Cytopoint where you are. These are great allergy medications that helps tremendously. It most likely is environmental allergies. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Poor Scrappy Brown! It's definitely a constant battle when dealing with an allergy in a dog. Unfortunately there is no cure for these allergies and they require constant management. It would be worth talking with your veterinarian about a new medication called Cytopoint. Cytopoint is an injection that has very good success in treating skin allergies in dogs. This injection lasts for about 4 weeks and could be likely be used for long term treatment of Scrappy's allergies. Medicated bathing would be another option to treat Scrappy. This bathing is done two to three times weekly to help manage skin infections and yeast overgrowths. It would also be worth calling your veterinarian to see if they can prescribe a medicated shampoo like Douxo for Scrappy's skin. You can also consider a specialized diet for Scrappy as food allergies often cause skin itching. A prescription diet like Royal Canin Ultamino may be a good option for him. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and I hope the above options work to make Scrappy more comfortable!

The itching, scaling and dry skin is an indication that he likely requires long term, regular dose apoquel - these are all signs of allergic skin disease and if the symptoms have only reappeared as you have reduced the apoquel you should discuss returning to the previously prescribed dose with your vet. An omega fatty acid supplement such as viacutan is very helpful as a natural antiinflammatory and moisturiser for all dogs but especially those with allergic skin disease