My dog had flakey skin and is constantly itching. How do I treat that?

Has your dog also put on some weight but seems to be eating normal amounts of food? How old is your dog, what brand are you feeding and what breed is your dog? The answer to your question can only be answered with more information from you.





Most of the time it is the dog food being fed. Changing to a high quality food will sometimes stop this. I feel a hypoallergenic diet of Pinnacle trout and sweet potatoes. Their is NO corn, or wheat, and it is not cheap, but your dog and you will be happier in the long run..AND your dog will actually require less food with a high quality diet. So it will last longer.





I have a ****** who is always itching, so I finally broke down and bought this dog food from my local feed store, my dogs have been on it for about 2 weeks and I have already seen a HUGE difference.. I wont go back to anything else.. I tried just about all of them.. Holistic is the way to go in my opinion.. And I feed 9 dogs and it lasted me longer than the proplan I had them on..





Contact me if you like


PS it's not mange.. sheesh I don't understand people.. Mange is very different and they lose TONS of hair.. Try food first and then if it doesn't get better, have your vet check her for thyroid problems..Its a simple blood test.

My dog had flakey skin and is constantly itching. How do I treat that?
Mange most likely. Or a reaction to a shampoo maybe or fleas can cause the skin reaction also.





Get to vet to get treatment Mange will get out of hand quickly and can spread to other pets.
Reply:What do you bathe your dog in? Your dog could be allergic to the shampoo or even her food. You should take her to the vet.
Reply:First stop. Vet, make sure it isn't a medical condition such as a staph infection or allergies.





If everything checks out fine there, then look at diet and overbathing. Dogs should be bathed no more than once every six months, unless obviously dirty or directed to do so by the vet.





Try changing to a high quality food. That will also help.





Nothing you find at a grocery store is going to be a good food. High quality foods can be found at large pet store chains, or online. A couple of foods I like are Nutro Natural, Innova, and Cannidae.





There are other high quality dog foods. Here's how to spot them:





A high quality food will have little or no fillers such as corn, wheat or soy. These aren't very digestable for dogs, and are common food related allergens. Since you were seeing corn meal in the first few ingredients, those are not high quality foods. Foods list ingredients by content, with the ingredient it contains most of at the top.





A high quality food will not contain BHT, BHA or Ethoxyquin, these are all chemical preservatives that have been linked to cancer.





A high quality food will not contain by-products of any kind. Meat meals are ok as long as the source of the meat is listed, such as Chicken Meal.





A high quality diet should have meat as at least the first ingredient., and be made from human grade ingredients. Foods that don't use human grade ingredients often get their ingredients from less than desirable sources, such as meat from animals that were diseased, or euthanized.





There is another diet option other than dog food. Some people choose to feed a raw diet. This involves feeding the dog raw meaty bones and organ meat. However it is not as simple as throwing a couple chicken bones in a bowl everyday. If you wish to feed this type of diet, do lots and lots of research first. Switching to this diet without knowing what your doing can lead to nutritional problems for your dog. I'll give you some links as a starting point in research if you are interested in this type of diet.





http://www.willowglen.com/barf.htm.........





http://www.bestfrisbeedogs.com/diets.htm...





http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html.....





http://www.rawfed.com/myths/index.html.....





http://www.rawdogranch.com





http://community.livejournal.com/rawdogs...
Reply:I would take it to the vet and have it looked at. It could be fleas or just dry skin or allergic to something in it's food. You never know what it could be.
Reply:Flaky skin can be caused by any number of things. Your best bet is to visit your vet to determine the cause so that you can begin treating properly rather than taking a shot in the dark. You don't mention any redness or inflammation, but constant itching usually result in these two conditions. Flaky skin usually equates to dry skin which can be brought about by over-bathing. Flea bite dermatitis usually is more localized to an area that becomes itchy and inflamed resulting in staph infection. Allergies to food, whether its to corn, wheat, chicken, beef or any other ingredient, can also cause itching but this again should create red, inflamed skin. Contact allergy to grass and other plant/ground covering could be a culprit. But, your veterinarian is the only one who can really tell you how to treat the problem and then, only after he has examined your dog and determined what the actual cause is.





Lamb and rice is a good quality dog food formulated to promote healthy skin and coats in dogs. When selecting the brand to feed your dog, look to see that real lamb is the number one ingredient. I used to breed Miniature Schnauzers and still have a large number of animals. I have found this formula to be the best for promoting healthy skin and coats overall.





Good luck with your dog.
Reply:Many times dry,itchy,and flaky skin is caused by the dog not receiving the proper amounts of omega fatty acids in the food you feed.As stated above,a premium food such as Innova or Canidae can help with skin problems.Another thing to try is supplementing your dogs meals with omega rich foods.Canned salmon is a good source of omegas,that alot of people feed their dogs.


Increasing the omegas helps with the skin,and it also makes the coat soft and shiny.In many cases it will even reduce the amount your dog sheds.


I started giving my 80 pound lab 1/2 cup of canned salmon with her morning feeding about 1 year ago.It has mad a big difference in her skin,coat,and shedding.
Reply:Ask the vet for a shampoo with oatmeal
Reply:Beat olive oil and 1 raw egg, let him lick it up. Do it 4 days a week