I have 3 year old black lab. In the last 3 weeks, he has started to constantly scratch himself. We have him on beef and potatoes to elminate any allergies to grains. We are giving him Benadyl every 4-6 hours, it helps reduce his need to scratch, it helps, but only for a couple hours. We have used high dollar dog shampoo to reduce the itchying with no success. He is losing a lot of hair and he is covered with welts from scratching. Any suggestions, we are open to trying anything

You might want to switch from beef and potatoes to chicken & white or brown rice. Beef is known as a common allergen (though my dogs do very well with it). The other thing I'd do is check for potential allergens around the house... laundry detergents, fabric softeners or dryer sheets, traditional floor cleaners, air fresheners, carpet deoderizers. Also outdoors: fertilizer, lawn treatments (for weeds or insects). Is the dog shampoo specifically for allergies? Some of them (even expensive ones) can contain preservatives, colors or fragrances that can be irritating.

I'm so sorry he's suffering so, I hope you can find the culprit!

You might want to switch from beef and potatoes to chicken & white or brown rice. Beef is known as a common allergen (though my dogs do very well with it). The other thing I'd do is check for potential allergens around the house... laundry detergents, fabric softeners or dryer sheets, traditional floor cleaners, air fresheners, carpet deoderizers. Also outdoors: fertilizer, lawn treatments (for weeds or insects). Is the dog shampoo specifically for allergies? Some of them (even expensive ones) can contain preservatives, colors or fragrances that can be irritating.

I'm so sorry he's suffering so, I hope you can find the culprit!
Thank you for the suggestions and feedback. We are transitioning him to Nature's Balance-Duck and Potato. We do not use any pesticides or fertilizers. We use no chemicals in the house. We do not use dryer towels. The detergent we have been using for years. The dog shampoo is specifically for itching, the only ingredients are tea tree oil aloe vera and vitamin E.

Thank you for the suggestions and feedback. We are transitioning him to Nature's Balance-Duck and Potato. We do not use any pesticides or fertilizers. We use no chemicals in the house. We do not use dryer towels. The detergent we have been using for years. The dog shampoo is specifically for itching, the only ingredients are tea tree oil aloe vera and vitamin E.

Oh that's excellent. So glad to hear about another chemical free home!

We've had very good results with Natural Balance Duck & Potato, and when I first switched to it I noticed improvement within a week.

Fingers crossed you will too!

That's probably a good food to transition to. Like ZenCat said, beef is a common allergen...it ranks right up there with wheat. The NB has a pretty short list of ingredients and only one source of protein and carbs.

Is his fur getting very oily? Most of those pet shop shampoos for itching didn't work for us. I used pyoben and sulfoxydex shampoos and they did help Scooby's itching and red skin and prevented secondary staph infections which usually flare up from the licking/scratching.

Scooby has a really bad airborne allergy - 2nd worst case my vet has ever had in his 20+ yr career. Once the food sensitivities were eliminated, we also tried OTC people allergy meds like claritin and tavist. (it didn't work for Scooby, but it may work for yours - assuming it's not food related).

I think you need to try to switch his food, take him to the vety and see if he needs any medicines thats what i would do thanks

I think you need to try to switch his food, take him to the vety and see if he needs any medicines thats what i would do thanks

I think you need to try to switch his food, take him to the vety and see if he needs any medicines thats what i would do thanks

The dog shampoo is specifically for itching, the only ingredients are tea tree oil aloe vera and vitamin E

Strangely enough, tea tree oil is a very common skin irritant/allergen.

Sparky, one of my chocolate babies is allergic to just about everything food related and airborne. He's been tested and he has to take monthly allergy injections and also allergy pills everyday. He's on a raw diet which has helped him tremendously. I feed him mostly, turkey, salmon, rabbit and occasionally beef. Plus he gets a variety of veggies. He's deathly allergic to chicken. I also have him on cod liver oil and evening primrose oil, 1000 mg twice a day for his skin and coat. He also takes Echinacea for his immune system. 45 days on with one week off in between. I've got a shampoo called Relief. It's a combination of pramoxine HCI, colloidal oatmeal and omega-6 fatty acids. I also have a creme rinse that can be used as a leave-on conditioner or that you would rinse off after about 10 minutes. I got it from KV Vet supply. Here's the website addy: kvvetsupply.com. It's alot to do, but it's so worth it to help him. He was in such bad shape when we first adopted him. That's the main reason that his former people didn't want him anymore. They couldn't deal with his allergies anymore. The poor guy is 11 years old. Hope this helps a bit.

Susan

Has your pet ruled out mange mites? I went through this with Rocket last summer. My first vet wouldn't even consider mange because his hair didn't fall out in typical mange patterns. She kept selling me shampoos and antibiotics (the skin became infected) benedryl, etc and eventually shrugged her shoulders and said a dermatologist shows up in a few months for his annual visit to these parts. We could just wait and suffer till then I guess.

A friend recommended another vet who checked for mites but couldn't find any. By this time his skin had both bacterial and yeast infections and he needed medicated shampoos twice a week. However, after maybe the third visit there, his boss recommended treating him with Revolution because it has an ingredient that mites don't like (even though they still couldn't find evidence of mites). In 3 days he wasn't scratching as much, 2 weeks later I treated him again with Revolution and he stopped scratching, the antibiotics and yeast shampoo cleared up the infections and his hair began growing back.

Heck his hair even started growing back in his elbow calluses!

It's not an official treatment but it's worked for others as well (per searches on the internet).

Needless to say I kept my new vet.

Has your pet ruled out mange mites? I went through this with Rocket last summer. My first vet wouldn't even consider mange because his hair didn't fall out in typical mange patterns. She kept selling me shampoos and antibiotics (the skin became infected) benedryl, etc and eventually shrugged her shoulders and said a dermatologist shows up in a few months for his annual visit to these parts. We could just wait and suffer till then I guess.

A friend recommended another vet who checked for mites but couldn't find any. By this time his skin had both bacterial and yeast infections and he needed medicated shampoos twice a week. However, after maybe the third visit there, his boss recommended treating him with Revolution because it has an ingredient that mites don't like (even though they still couldn't find evidence of mites). In 3 days he wasn't scratching as much, 2 weeks later I treated him again with Revolution and he stopped scratching, the antibiotics and yeast shampoo cleared up the infections and his hair began growing back.

Heck his hair even started growing back in his elbow calluses!

It's not an official treatment but it's worked for others as well (per searches on the internet).

Needless to say I kept my new vet.

This is definitely something to consider. Sarcoptic mange mites are extremely itchy, extremely contagious, and do not usually show up on a skin scrape.

My dog is allergic to Texas (!), so if your vet strongly suspects environmental allergies (inhalant/contact allergies), try to get to a veterinary dermatologist if one is accessible and do the skin test. My regular vet did the blood test first, and it was less accurate. We spent 18 mos. chasing our tails with that serum before the dermatologist did the skin test and came up with a serum that actually works. My girl is doing so much better now. She was losing her hair and scratching herself bloody....

I have a golden with the same allergic behavior....Try Honest Kitchen Force food...it is real expensive but it has helped...

No table food also

I have 3 year old black lab. In the last 3 weeks, he has started to constantly scratch himself. We have him on beef and potatoes to elminate any allergies to grains. We are giving him Benadyl every 4-6 hours, it helps reduce his need to scratch, it helps, but only for a couple hours. We have used high dollar dog shampoo to reduce the itchying with no success. He is losing a lot of hair and he is covered with welts from scratching. Any suggestions, we are open to trying anything
This sounds just like Reagan! we have tried everything that you have....let me know what ends up working for you!
Thanks!