Why do my 5-week-old puppies have dry, itchy skin and what helps?

Baby shampoos do tend to be fairly gentle for puppies, but any dog can be sensitive to any shampoo and it’s possible that it caused irritation or dried his skin out more. You may want to see if your vet carries a dog specific shampoo like Dermallay or HyLyt. It is common for young puppies to have dryer skin and act itchy, and most outgrow it within a few months. If he has developed skin wounds I’d recommend rechecking with your vet to make sure he doesn’t have a skin infection or parasites that weren’t obvious on his previous exam.

Hello. Scratching in such a young dog is probably related to skin parasites like fleas & mange mites. Chronic itching & underlying skin infections can cause a puppy to become unthrifty & certainly lose weight. You really need to know what is the underlying cause of the itching, but until you can have the puppies seen by a veterinarian, you will need to bathe them in a good flea & tick shampoo labeled for puppies. If you can find or order a lime sulfur shampoo, this can be very useful in multiple skin issues in dogs. Make sure you follow the label directions when used. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I would give him fish oil in the diet to improve the coat. I recommend an aloe and oatmeal moisturizing shampoo, and make sure you are using a flea control product as having fleas causing excessive itching will irritate the skin. Also as he’s a puppy please make sure he’s been treated for internal parasites which can cause a poor hair coat. To control the itching you can use Benadryl. There is a recommended dosing schedule elsewhere on this website. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Arjun.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. Given her young age, I would suspect that if that is the case it could be due to flea allergies. Another possibility is something like mange. This is something your veterinarian would check with a physical examination and basic diagnostics like a skin scrape and cytology. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her 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!

I would try the following to help Roscoe with his dry skin Limit bathing as you mentioned it does dry skin Treat fleas with topical medication Skin supplement oils -fish oils Healthy skin dog food options Here is a very helpful link with more tips; https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-ways-to-improve-your-dog-s-skin-coat/

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach. Regular lotion is not the best idea because of added chemicals and other products that can harm the skin or dry it out. I recommend using a shampoo such as Douxo PS calm shampoo to help strengthen the skin and prevent dandruff. I also recommend using essential 6 spot on by dermoscent and welactin omega 3 fish oil capsules. I would bathe with the shampoo twice weekly. All of these can be found online quite easily. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

The flakes are most likely the dry skin coming off. You can give him an omega3 fatty acid supplement for sure. You need to use a product made for dogs. I found this one: https://www.amazon.in/Petvita-Ultra-Refined-Omega-3-Supplement/dp/B01IY1E28W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1517925023&sr=8-2&keywords=dog+omega+3+fish+oil My favorite product is made by Missing Link: https://www.amazon.in/Missing-Link-Ultimate-Small-8-Ounce/dp/B0002W0S4Y/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1517925070&sr=1-1&keywords=missing+link+dog Either of those would be fine. Don't bathe him too much unless you have a soap-free shampoo. You may be drying out his coat by bathing too frequently. With soap-free shampoo you can bathe often without fear of drying his skin. I like this one: https://www.amazon.in/Nap-India-Virbac-Episoothe-Shampoo/dp/B06XHQMR14/ref=sr_1_11?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1517925172&sr=1-11&keywords=dog+shampoo+soap+free Hope this helps. Best wishes.