# Extremely itchy, loosing hair



## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

Hi,
My poor baby got in trouble again and unfortunately I don't have any money to take her to vet.
I don't want to go into details why just literally don't have any money at the moment.
I was procrastinating dealing with it because of that. 
Now it really torturing her and I can't just sit and watch her itch and lick every minute.
Here is what it looks like

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I think about trying few anti-fungal, anti-bacterial shampoos. I think it's either mites or yeast again. Something similar was happening few times before with small bumps and her loosing a bit of fur in spots. And vets never been able to say for sure what it is. Just taking a lot of money for exams and medicine that has close to no effect.
I'm just a bit afraid of doing self administered care as I'm not educated in this field. But in my limited budget situation it's either this or watch her suffer.
Seeking advice if that's okay to try and treat her with ear wash and shampoo and just see how it goes? try few different products maybe?
Right now I want to try:
1. VETNIQUE LABS Oticbliss Anti-Septic & Anti-Fungal Medicated Ear Flush for Dogs
and
2. Davis Benzoyl Peroxide Medicated Dog & Cat Shampoo, 12 oz. – Dermatitis and Demodectic Mange

As I read on forums it looks like you can use Benzoyl Peroxide shampoo even when dog doesn't have any issues so I assumed it would be safe to try it and see if it will help her.
Some people suggested giving coconut oil in food and treat spots with it to help remedy itchiness.

Thanks,
Tim and Kiki


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## A-arons Kodster (Sep 2, 2018)

chimuru said:


> Hi,
> My poor baby got in trouble again and unfortunately I don't have any money to take her to vet.
> I don't want to go into details why just literally don't have any money at the moment.
> I was procrastinating dealing with it because of that.
> ...


I did none of that* my Dog Kody was In very similar situation. I didn't wanna steroid him up or use anything the Doctor said we should try...so I did homeopathic vet stuff instead. There is a similar thread about this already. It was about sebaceous adenitis, My link of what I decided to do is in there and it worked out peachy. Here he is now*









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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

For any unknown widespread skin irritation/inflammation and the nice shampoos do nothing, I reach for a lime sulfer dip. It is indicated for "non specific dermatitis". Follow the directions exactly, keep away from face and do not let them lick it. Use a bucket outside and sponge their whole body so it is drenched. Leave on to air dry according to what the directions say. A head cone is good to use and almost necessary for the drying period. You will want to do all of this outside. Lime sulfer kills pretty much anything on the skin from bacteria, fungus, mites, fleas, you name it. It is very inexpensive, like $12.


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

Tim and Kiki , have you tried the lime sulfur or other treatment?


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

I haven't tried it yet. I actually was looking through the forums to see what other people used it and what were symptoms.
I treated red areas with coconut oil one night and Kiki had moderate relief but she is back to full itch next morning.


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

Instructions mention I need to wear gloves while applying it to her. I wonder if it's safe for her to come back home and go in contact with carpets and couch with dried lime sulfur on her?


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## A-arons Kodster (Sep 2, 2018)

chimuru said:


> I haven't tried it yet. I actually was looking through the forums to see what other people used it and what were symptoms.
> I treated red areas with coconut oil one night and Kiki had moderate relief but she is back to full itch next morning.


We used Almond oil for Kody*

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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

Once it’s dry it is fine. It is non toxic unless ingested when wet, but do your own research!


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

You can also look into Neem oil. I haven’t tried it myself but have used it on us humans for things.


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

Hi there, it might be demodectic mange which is demodex mites. most dogs have them but puppies sometimes suffer from them because they have weaker immune systems. my pup had bald spots too, and she was itchy too, though not this bad. my vet gave me a topical creme that was called demodex or something like that, it that wasn't expensive, and helped heal the bald spots. googling it it looks like lime sulfur is a treatment for that, as another poster mentioned.

she could also have a food allergy or yeast infection like you mentioned that's making her itchy in addition. my dog had mites, yeast probs, and food sensitivies. Diet can also fuel yeast infection, which my dog has struggled with too. I gave my dog Glacier Peak Gold supplement for the yeast and switched her food to Victor's. The glacier peak gold is also good for their immune system which might also help with the itchiness in general. What is your dog's food right now?


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

you could also put coconut oil on her would help soothe her raw skin


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

red106 said:


> you could also put coconut oil on her would help soothe her raw skin


edit: i see you already tried that sorry


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

I'm going to try treating her with lime sulfur dip today. How do you guys applied it on a muzzle and ears area to not get it into her eye? 
Or should I just stay away from her head with it?


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## gunnr (Aug 14, 2009)

I'm a little late but here, but here are two more "gentle" solutions.
Rain Rot Relief is a product used on horses. It is specifically for fungal and bacterial skin disorders caused by any number of conditions. Mites, fleas, chiggers, bot fly larvae, plant irritants in pastures, and of course "rain rot, which is a condition brought about by excess moisture and humidity, that causes very painful small lesions on horses. 
There are also "silver gels" which works well and Equishield which is a healing balm. I have used all of these prodcuts on my Vizslas and me, through the years. No special precaution needed.
There is a shampoo for dogs called Mycodex, but I haven't used it in years. Rain Rot Relief works just as well
Another product to not dismiss is good 'ol Johnson's Baby Shampoo and Balmex.


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

good luck with the lime sulfur. i haven't done it but yes I'd say be extremely careful around her eyes and not put it on her head. someone else mentioned putting a cone on her. if she has that one spot on her ear treat that with coconut oil or something. 

this is what I used for ear rinse, if she has that brown gunk yeast build-up thats making her scratch her ear (she could be scratching the outside but it actually itches on the inside!)

you squirt a bunch in and massage their ear canal, then push some cotton balls in there, massage again, and soak it all up. dont put water in their ear during the treatment time and you have to do both ears every day for a week. 
i followed this vid: 



you dont need the tweezers its easy to just push the cotton balls in and pull it back out.








ZYMOX Otic Dog & Cat Ear Infection Treatment with Hydrocortisone, 1.25-oz bottle - Chewy.com


Buy Zymox Otic Dog & Cat Ear Infection Treatment with Hydrocortisone, 1.25-oz bottle at Chewy.com. FREE shipping and the BEST customer service!




www.chewy.com


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

Correct keep it away from the head , one it’s dry it’s safe .


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

another option for ear cleaning


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

It's finally arrived and I applied it on Kiki. Smell is close to unbearable even when it's dry. Maybe I applied too much. Also on the bottle they suggested dosage 4oz and 1 gallon of water. But it is a lot. And I think I barely used third to cover her whole body with it.
I did stayed away from her head as it was really hard to apply it. Especially at first it was just dripping down from her hair not even making it wet. I had to rub it in a bit.
She seems to itch a bit less but not completely stopped.

One thing that I forgot to ask is how often I need to apply it? Direction on a bottle say that it could be every day but in general you should follow advice of the vet.


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

Yep it is smelly with the sulfur based compounds. I do hope it helps! I would say every 3 days for another few treatments to see if it works. If it is not working then most likely the problem is something other than a parasite, fungus, bacteria, or other general skin pathogens. It will be a good tool to rule those out in that case.


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

if that doesn’t help my guess is yeast infection. it will take time and multiple approaches to fight it. my dog is struggling with one too. 

what food is she on? you can also google apple cider vinegar baths, gentler option then sulfur probably


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

I was giving her Costco's Nature Doman grain free dry food since we got her. That was what breeder recommended.
We tried few different ones but she seemed to have allergy to chicken. It was "kind of" found by vet. They were unable to tell anything specific but asked to try exclude chicken from her diet.
It was really weird to hear as she is supposed to be bird dog. Also she really really loved chicken. But excluding it from diet seemed to help with her bumps so we switched to salmon and sweet potato.
I think she didn't liked lamb that much.
Right now I'm trying limited ingredient version of salmon food of a different brand. But it turned out to be almost twice more expensive than costco brand. Not sure if it will be viable for me long term. I mean if I will have no other options I probably will have to go for it but tight budget is a thing for me now.
A lot of people recommended rabbit meat but I wasn't able to find dry food with rabbit.
I wonder if duck is close to chicken and possible can cause her allergy to come back

As a progress report:
Redness and swelling seems to be reduced today. She is also limited with cone from licking herself so maybe it's better because she is simply unable to chew and lick herself whole day. But same time her eyes got infection I think. It started before treatment with sulfur so I don't think I spilled it in her eye. I also didn't touched head at all so it's highly unlikely.
The only thing I remember about treating conjunctivitis is washing it out regularly with a warm black tea. I think we had some drops from vet previously but I don't remember what it was.

My ex got appointment for her to the vet in a week so hopefully she will have her examined.
Seems like her immune system compromised or something like that as it looks like she started to have all sorts of infections.


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

Once a skin irritation sets in and they begin scratching, it creates prime conditions for secondary infections. Even if you find the cause of what initially caused it, the chain reaction may already being underway now with opportunistic bacteria taking advantage of the skin's compromised condition. From my experience a systemic treatment course of an antibiotic such as Simplicef works wonders to reset everything if absolutely needed.

I've dealt with skin issues like this and my experience with vets has been lackluster. They always seem to want to push expensive pills like Apoquel that blockade the itch response instead of trying to figure out what is causing the itch in the first place. Let's see what your vet says.

Interesting with my girl we think she is allergic to duck and turkey from past gastric problems when using treats with these animal proteins. She is 100% ok with chicken. Apparently the different poultry types can contain allergens that some dogs just don't tolerate well. Its a matter of finding one that works well which is easier said than done.

Once the lime sulfer is dry, there technically is no need for the cone of shame. After it is dried, the hazardous when ingested components have evaporated off. I would refer to the directions on the bottle for the best information.


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

Here's an affordable homeopathic option to try: Amazon.com : HomeoPet Skin & Itch Relief, 15 ml : Pet Itch Remedies : Pet Supplies

there may also be a general immune support supplement which sounds like it would help too.

I have my dog on Victor's food after switching around a bunch - recommended by my trainer. my dog has had chronic UTI's and yeast issues and this is what I keep her on. It's affordable as far as good food goes and pretty widely available. not sure if they have a no chicken option but here they are: Dry Dog Food for Adult Dogs: Dry Adult Dog Food (Free Shipping) | Chewy

i highly recommend reading up on yeast infections and keeping her diet strictly limited, finding supplements that fight yeast. 

good luck with your pup!!


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

Initially I thought reaction to sulfur treatment is positive. But now I'm starting to suspect that it was mostly because of the cone. I would put a cone on her during treatment and would leave it on for a day or day and a half just to make sure she is not licking sulfur solution. Her skin was showing improvement and was looking normal color after treatment but immediately after I would remove cone she would start her licking, biting and scratching and that would make her all covered in red swelled spots. 

I'm going to try benzoyl shampoo as well but I have to wait now as she has appointment to see vet this Saturday. I just don't want vet to see her after treatment that might make her look better than she actually looks like everyday. Just to make sure it easier for them do diagnose problem. I have very low expectation and faith in them being able to find something but she have to go in anyway for other reasons so I hope they will find something this time.

Will post later our progress and if we find something that helps her. I saw a lot of posts on forum with similar problems. Hopefully this might help other people too if they have similar issues.


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

If the like sulfur isn’t doing it most likely it is not a parasite or fungus(yeast). It could be an allergy or autoimmune disorder. In many cases the vet will recommend to try antihistamines, or an anti itch medication like cytopoint or apoquell. Keep us posted and best of luck!


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

i strongly recommend changing her food as soon as possible. the vet will recommend on prescription food but i recommend putting that money toward a high protein high veggie diet, no carb, no sugar no starch, a grain free diet


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

Do you have any recommendations? Last one I was giving her was Nature Balance limited ingredients salmon and before that she was on Costcos grainfree food.


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## Dan_A (Jan 19, 2021)

I would be cautious as many “grain free” foods use legume proteins especially peas. A link between foods with legumes as some of the primary ingredients and a heart disorder has been found. It is still being investigated but probably best to use this info in your decision process. Some peas listed in ingredients far down the list are not the concern keep in mind.

Opinion time! I don’t buy the whole dogs shouldn’t eat grains. As with anything, certain grains and food items cause trouble with a dog, even animal proteins. Dogs evolved eating human food scraps for 30,000 or so years. If a specific grain causes a problem remove it, and of course a high quality food where most protein is derived from animals with is in order.


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

i gave my recommendation a couple posts up (victor) but i think it has chicken. and is not grain free. i agree that grain free isn’t necessary unless there’s an allergy or another issue caused by it. agree about avoiding peas/other fillers. glacier peak has an allergy test i think but it’s not cheap. id search through forums for people’s recommendations for this kind of skin issue. victor dog food was recommended to me by a holistic service dog trainer and is affordable. i put the link above


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## red106 (Oct 30, 2020)

this is the allergy test i mentioned








Pet Wellness Life Stress Scan


Unlike traditional dog allergy testing, the Pet Wellness Life Stress Scan uses Biofeedback Technology with hair and saliva samples to identify imbalances based on over 300 food and environmental factors. This allows you to create a custom road map to your dogs wellness.




glacierpeakholistics.com


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## chimuru (Dec 6, 2017)

Sorry guys, I'm terrible at doing timely updates.
So @Dan_A was right. They made antiitch injection and prescribed medication diet. Royal Canine was recommended by a vet. 
They also did not found anything on a skin but found two different rare yeasts in ears. I assumed each ear had different kind as I wasn't there and my ex had zero info on that.
So I will be trying limited ingredients on that prescription diet and also will be flushing her ears with apple cider vinegar probably. She is itching less after injection but she is still licking her paws pretty regularly and I think as soon as injection wears out she will be back on track on destroying herself.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Soak her feet with the Apple cider vinegar mixture too. For feet it is 1/3 vinegar, and 2/3 water. Otherwise she will get yeasty feet.


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