My dog won't stop scratching him self and we don't know why. It's not flee's or ticks as he has been treated by the vet two weeks ago. He's not done this before in all the years we have owned him which is eleven and half years and we haven't fed him on anything he isn't used too. He's has been scratching now for about 4 weeks. He was taken to the vet and they don't know why. Over 40 years ago we owned an Irish Setter and when she was a puppy we were advised to buy Stress which is a powder to mix in her food and and an oil of some sort to put in her food as well. It gave her a lovely shinning coat. But I can't remember what it was called. Has anyone else ever used this and if you did can you remember the name please.

Have you taken him back to the vet and said that he's still scratching ?
And what treatment did the vet use for the flea/tick treatment ?

Sa37 ? Is it possible.there has been spraying un tje areas you walk ?possible reaction to flea meds ?  The other problem is allergy can start at anytime  so it could be anything in the environment or something in food.has the vet suggested try antihistamines

I wonder if this is something to do with the time of year and high pollen counts or something...

Because one of mine is scratching a lot too.  I have, several times over the last few days, looked her over in great detail to see if I can spot any fleas - and can't see any.  Neither of my other two are scratching.  We had come to the conclusion it might be allergies or her harness might be rubbing under her armpits - I've just switched the harness for another one.

I think the product might be Super Solvitax, cod liver oil with added vitamin E. Originally a horse product, it used to be marketed by British Cod Liver Oils. I believe it is now a Bob Martin brand.

>

> I think the product might be Super Solvitax, cod liver oil with added vitamin E. Originally a horse product, it used to be marketed by British Cod Liver Oils. I believe it is now a Bob Martin brand.

No it wasn't called that and I don't think it was cod liver oil.

> Have you taken him back to the vet and said that he's still scratching ?<br />And what treatment did the vet use for the flea/tick treatment ?

No we haven't taken him back to the vet as they couldn't find a reason why he's scratching the last time. The treatment the vet gave us was Advantix.

> Sa37 ? Is it possible.there has been spraying un tje areas you walk ?possible reaction to flea meds ?  The other problem is allergy can start at anytime  so it could be anything in the environment or something in food.has the vet suggested try antihistamines

The vet didn't suggest anything. They just said some dogs do scratch a lot.

> I wonder if this is something to do with the time of year and high pollen counts or something... <br /><br />Because one of mine is scratching a lot too.  I have, several times over the last few days, looked her over in great detail to see if I can spot any fleas - and can't see any.  Neither of my other two are scratching.  We had come to the conclusion it might be allergies or her harness might be rubbing under her armpits - I've just switched the harness for another one.

Maybe its allergy then because he does scratch in different places.

Sorry I disagree some  may well scratch al lot but especially if ots just started  I would want to establish if it's habit unlikely of its new  or an underlying  problem particularly  as.you have jusy used flea treatment.  i have two dogs that have developed allergies .it's taken 4 years to track  down and manage. They are  now much happier and have  little scratching as long as we avoid certain things and keep up with the protocols. Having got a skin problem that results in itching amd burning I know how unpleasant  it is to live with

It is worth trying antihistamines they can help.some dogs amd yes it could.be the current number of tree and grass pollens.omega 3 rather than cofliver oil o's helpful too

Could be food allergies too and the scratching can just start, I had it happen with Raine.  If she's fed any of her allergens (and I haven't identified all of them) she starts scratching and it can get very bad.  At her worst, I only had to lightly touch or even blow on the hairs on her back and the skin on her whole back and sides would spasm.

My older retriever girl has been scratching like crazy the last couple of weeks. She  tends to suffer from seasonal atopic but this is the worst year ever. I even had her coat cut close so I could see where she was scratching and could treat her. No fleas /no ticks. It must be something specific to the environment this year because I'm suffering for the first time in my long life from Hayfever.

You can get allergy testing done - it tends to be a bit more reliable for environmental triggers than food (which is why Rai hasn't been tested).

With food it's doing an elimination  diet which is easier if u feed raw but can be done with kibble.u may need to use have a referral to a derm vet especially of your vet is saying some dogs do scratch  which I would accept if your ae worried enough to be questioning .you know if something is different  wit your dog

Nikita.sadly is right the lab test for food are less accurate.I've done bith and the elimination diet was more accurate but u feed raw so it's actually easier to do.if u are worried about a change in hour dog it may be worth getting a second opinuin for a derm vet who will help woth an elimination  diet

> Sorry I disagree some  may well scratch al lot but especially if ots just started  I would want to establish if it's habit unlikely of its new  or an underlying  problem particularly  as.you have jusy used flea treatment.

He was scratching 2 weeks before flea and tick treatment started. He was given this treatment to rule out flea's. What does ots mean?

If fleas and other parasites have been ruled out I would be looking at allergies and not be fobbed off with the vets comments. It could be a seasonal problem but if it's bad enough to concern u  and him I would want to try at least antihistamines as well as bathing n a suitable shampoo.vet will probably prescribe malesab which suits mine but not all dogs . There are other non vet ones around. Rinsing feet when he has been out and other areas that could be itchy is also.helpful.otherwise given it sounds like your vet isn't a skin specialist  I would have a referral to a derm vet .

Yes we are going to bath him in a shampoo for dogs with allergies. We haven't chosen which one yet. Any recommendations?

> Nikita.sadly is right the lab test for food are less accurate.I've done bith and the elimination diet was more accurate but u feed raw so it's actually easier to do.if u are worried about a change in hour dog it may be worth getting a second opinuin for a derm vet who will help woth an elimination  diet

I'm not worried about Rai, I've got her just about sorted - the only symptom she shows now is that her anal glands fill faster than her body can clear them, so I have to do them every couple of weeks.  But no itching, no ear infection as was her other major symptom, and she's happy.  I'll probably never identify all of the allergens as most are very low-grade (so even less likely to stand out on a test), but I have a list of some suspects and she has a food without them in.  It'll do.

We have just decided we are going to take him back to the vet. Because when I bath him if he is allergic to something on his walk then its going to come back. I will let you know what he says.

The vet will probably recommend malaseb if they think it is an allergy and it does help a bit but you cant do it too often or it will dry the skin and start again.  There is Dermacton soap/shampoo bar is what a lot of westie owners have success with as our dogs are notorious for skin allergies and I know some rescue centres use it with great success too - I guess it all depends on the type of allergy, and the type of coat as to how successful or desirable it is to other breeds.

If it came on out of the blue recently it could be an allergy has developed and you may have some success if you try some piriton (not the 1 a day piriteze).

Our family dogs took cosequin which had a positive side-affect on the coat making it super soft and shiny for some reason - and one of my dogs I put on Aktivait which is for aging dogs but that had a great side effect as it improved the coat and had a great effect on his pigment too

Hope your visit to the vets was okay and that nothing was found that cant be easily fixed.

we haven't fed him on anything he isn't used too.

Had similar problems with 2 dogs in the past,
1st one developed an intolerance to food he had been on for at least 8 years and kept scratching,
2nd dog always had about 2 tablespoons of wet food on his kibble, by mistake I picked up a pack of 'in gravy' not 'in jelly' after a couple of days he was going frantic itching. Up vets who gave him some tablets, 'sort of' worked in as much as he wasn't scratching so much - for a few days. he had steroid jabs, tried all sorts, I ended up bathing him with oatmeal shampoo at about 11/12pm one night as he was so bad. daughter suddenly twigged what the difference was in the food Back to 'in jelly' and it all disappeared.

Nikita out of interest have you ever looked into Jean Dodds' food sensitivities test? I've only known one person who has used this before, but I have a lot of respect for JD so always interested to hear what others say about the test. Think it's called Nutriscan or similar.

As far as this dog... Not sure I can add much useful to what's been said, other than mine got quite itchy when they were all chucking coat this year. I added yumega oil to their food.

I did have a cursory look in case I didn't get anywhere, but that's as far as it got I'm afraid!

We did the NutriScan with Jean Dodds last year. It cost $280. The postage was about £10. Sadly this identified leaky bowel syndrome and our little bitch did not survive (she was over13 ).
  I wish we had tested her years ago when she first started showing intolerances  (I'm not sure when the test became available). Maybe we would have been able to limit the damage to her gut that ultimately was insurmountable.

That is very interesting, Garbo.  I'll relate that to some friends of mine.  They've got a cocker who's had colitis pretty much her whole life, and now at 9yrs old she is getting increasing snappy with both the owners and the other dog because she's sore.  The vets have never identified the root cause so this might be useful.

That's really interesting that you had the diagnosis through the Nutriscan test, Garbo. Thanks for sharing, even though it must have been a difficult time.
And no worries Nikita, just always curious to hear opinions on it.

Facebook Replies:

Moira Martin says: Yes I used Stress for my boxers when they were pups don't know if you still get it that was about 20 yrs ago. Amazon sell it.

Maj Maj Evill says: You could try coconut oil, has she been tested for food allergy?

Stephanie Presdee says: grass mites or lice, Frontline or Advocate or Advantage sort it . Found this with several dogs recently.

Just to let you all know after being to the vet our dog has scabies

well at least that's usually easily  treated. I assume the vet meant sarcoptic manage ? I am pleased you have found the answer and thank you for updating us
Just a thought don't use any chemical treatments on him or vaccinations while you are treating him . His immune system needs every bit of help it can to deal with this so chemicals just add stress. it also may be worth adding some omega 3 to his diet to help the skin recover . I use either nutramega from the vet or efamarine from boots I was advised to do this by my derm vet

How is your dog now Tricolours?

> How is your dog now Tricolours?

A lot better thanks for asking.