MY ITCHY DASCHAUND

my wiennie dog is 8 years old and he has been on steriods most of his life. He is allergic to fleas, misquito bites, etc. he is constantly scratching his hair out and he has an enormous amount of hot spots. is there anykind of home remedy that can give him some relief? the prednisone doesn't seem to help much anymore.

[Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A]

I really don't think there is any home remedy that will completely do the trick.  Due to the severity of your dogs allergies you must use multiple modalities to help control the itching, and of course you must eliminate the allergen as much as possible.  I hope you are using K-9 Advantix topically on your dog once per month year round for the ectoparasite (fleas and mosquito's) allergy.  It is very possible that he also has allergies to numerous other things such as food and other environmental allergies.  He probably should be on a limited ingredient, novel protein diet (something he has not been exposed to before),  whether commercial (available from your vet) or home-made, and if you haven't done so before have him allergy tested and than desentized to the allergens.  A very good substitute for prednisone is Atopica. Atopica has much less side effects than prednisone.  It is really worth a try for your dog, although it is not cheap.  I do not suggest using over the counter treatments alone but I believe the following would be good adjuncts to the protocol:  The herb "Stinging Nettle" either in tincture or tablet form will help.  It is available at some heath food stores or on-line.  Use 1/4 the human dose at the same frequency.  The Chinese herb: San Ren Tang is very helpful for itching and it should also be used at 1/4 adult human dose and frequency.  San Ren Tang is available online.

[Lindalou1952]

My dog had hot spots for several years in the face of prednisone. I changed his food to Sweet potatoe and fish and it cleared up in 6 weeks.