Dog care?

My dog has small wounds in his body like scratches.Doctor prescribed a skin ointment(neomycin sulphate and bactracin zinc ointment).Even after applying, the wounds haven't gone completely.He takes bath once in  8 days.He often shakes his head and itches his ears .We use wokazole lotion in his ears for this. Is it fair to give pyrantel pamoate (oral suspension) every month for him?After sleep,nowadays,he is having some thick pale white secretion from his eyes that reside in the sides of the eyes.How can it be stopped?Is hair fall normal for dogs?

[Kimberly Coyner, D.V.M., DACVD]

Pyrantel pamoate is a very safe deworming medication for roundworms and hookworms, and in areas where intestinal parasites are common, monthly deworming is prudent.
The most common reasons for itchy skin in dogs include skin infections, microscopic skin parasites such as scabies mites, food allergy, or pollen/dust allergies. Allergies also commonly cause itchy ears/secondary ear infections and can sometimes cause weepy eyes. Since scabies mites are difficult to find, I trial treat dogs for scabies with appropriate medication such as Revolution every 2 weeks for 3 treatments (I am not sure if this is available in India, but you can ask your veterinarian). If skin infection is present (scabs, pimples, hairloss), it is treated with oral antibiotics for 3-4 weeks and mild antibacterial shampoos. The itch can be treated symptomatically with weekly mild oatmeal shampoos, fatty acids, antihistamines or a short course of oral steroids/prednisone, but steroids are not a good choice for long term treatment due to their many side effects. If your dog's itch persists or recurs despite Revolution and symptomatic medications, then I would suggest talking to your veterinarian about a hypoallergenic diet. There is no accurate skin or blood test for food allergy; the test and the treatment are the strict hypoallergenic diet trial for 6-8 weeks with no other treats or foods. Lastly, if your dogs' symptoms persist despite all of the above, then talk to your veterinarian about possible allergy testing and desensitization injections for pollen/dust allergies to identify and treat the underlying cause of the itch. Hope that helps!
Kimberly Coyner, DVM
Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Dermatology
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