Itching

[jenniwilliams13]

I have a dutch shepherd and for the last 5 months she has had these open sores on her ears. They are now getting worse they are all over her head and spreading down her body. She itches all the time, that is all she wants to do. She also bites herself if she is not itchign herself. We have taken her to the vet at least once a month, she has been put on steriods, been given antibotics due to she keeps getting skin infection. At first we where told she had food allegeries and we put her on special food for 2 months, her itching and other symptoms just got worse. One vet told us she had mites and we treated for that. But all of her symptoms are still there. I have pictures of the open sores.

[Margot49]

Just throwing this out there, can be hard to diagnose but maybe Dermatomyocitis.

[Misfits4Me]

PLease keep us updated.....Glad to hear about the new Vet.....I'll be thinking about you both & will be curious as to the outcome.....I've got my fingers crossed!  ;)  Karla

[jenniwilliams13]

The vet called and said that she does not have mites at all. She doesn't have lupus which is also a plus. He said it could be either two things either a fungus infection which they are running more tests to find out if that is what it is.  Or she has a staph infection. If it is a staph infection we have to do a cultural on the sores to have the bacteria grow and then find an antibiotic that will kill it since it is resistant to drugs. This is the 3rd vet that we have gone to, and actually feel like we are getting somewhere. I just wish we had answers now. Just need to wait a few more days.

[Misfits4Me]

Jenni, I still believe this is Mange.....With the severity of the itching, Sarcoptic Mange would be my guess....It wasn't treated correctly or long enough.....

Dips work best for Sarcoptic Mange because it kills the Mites immediately.....Repeat dips are recommended....I believe it's every 2 weeks for 3 times....The Ivomec takes much longer & normally is used for Demodectic Mange....Again, it takes at least a month to see any difference....

NOTE::: Some individual dogs are sensitive to ivermectin and can die if subjected to a typical therapeutic dose for demodicosis.

THIS MEDICATION CANNOT BE ASSUMED SAFE FOR USE
IN COLLIES, SHETLAND SHEEPDOGS, AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERDS,
OLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOGS AND,SOME WOULD SAY, ANY HERDING BREED!

Steroids should NEVER be used with Mange! They weaken the immune system and cause the mange to get worse! Mange is already a result of a weak immune system.....Steroids just add to the problem.....

Your foods look good, (Except the terrible Prescription One), so I do not suspect a food allergy....You Do need to incorporate wet foods into her diet......Canned food would be best. First, for better absorbed nutrition, Second, for the moisture content.....All dogs need extra moisture in their diet...Especially, skin disease dogs....

I personally would get a second opinion with another Vet......I'm still leaning towards untreated Mange........Let us know what you find out tomorrow......Good luck, Karla

P.S. I would check to see what Nylabones  are made of....They may contain a chemical that is toxic...I don't have time at the moment to do it myself, but you might check.....

[jenniwilliams13]

She was on the meds once a week for 4 weeks. I thought we started to notice it get better, but the sores on her head just got worse. The vet said she had sarcoptes mites. This all started right around the time when she turned a year old. So has been going on since June. She was on Solid Gold Wolf club puppy. We switched to the adult Solid Gold wolf club but they were on backorder so we switched to a different food, don't remember what it was. After that the vet put her on Hill's Prescription Diet z/d canine ultra allergen-free dog food she was on that food for 8-9 weeks but didn't notice any difference, her itching got worse. She currently is on Taste of the Wild bison formula. We have never noticed her getting better on any food she has been on. We do give her treatsm have since we got her. We give her nylabone treats, ice cubes and fill her kong with peanut butter a couple times a week. The shampoo she is on is for a bacteria infection.

[Misfits4Me]

I assume it was liquid Ivermectin (Ivomec) for the mange...Do you remember how long she took it & what kind of mange they were treating?  Normal length is anywhere from 2-4 mos.....Yes, it does work....Did she get any better on the medication? You wouldn't have seen a difference until after a month of use.....Mange HAS an distinct odor and it can cause exactly what your seeing once it goes on too long...It usually starts on the head or face or ears....It's fairly common in Young dogs with weak immune systems......

Again though, what did she eat before all this and what was the "special food"? She got worse on the SP, correct?

What are you feeding now? Is there any change (Skinwise)  on whatever food it is? Do you feed treats? Names please......

Is the shampoo for yeast or bacteria?   Let me know.....Karla

[jenniwilliams13]

She just turned a year old in June. She has had several skin scrapings done. The last one they told me that they didn't see the mites but they where 95% certain that she had them. So we treated her for them. They gave her the medication that they used to use for heartworm. I don't remember what it is called. She does have an odor, she smells like a wet dog to me. We have a special shampoo the vet gave us to bath her twice a week. That helps but only with the smell and the oily feeling on her hair. The two rounds of steroids that she was on really didn't help, she may have slowed down on her itching but it has never stopped. She is currently on antibiotics right now because she has another bacterial infection. When she is on the antibiotics, we don't notice a difference in her itching or biting. Her sores are getting worse and are spreading down her body. She is also starting to loose fur on her sides. We got a boipsy of her sores on Friday and are waiting for the results. If they come back normal we have to take her to see a specialist. Just wondering if anyone has ever come across this. We are getting frustated because we are throwing all this money to fix the problem and we are not getting down to the root of the problem.

[Misfits4Me]

Hi Jenni & welcome.....Wow, this is awful!!!
How old is this girl?
Was a skin scraping ever done (By any vet) to determine if this is Fungal, Bacterial, or Mites? Or did everyone just guess?
What food was she eating when it started? What special food was it that made it worse?
How were the Mites treated? Exact description, please.....
Does she have any odor? What does it smell like?
Did the steroids work for her?
Did she get any better while on ANtibiotics?  Let us know.....Karla