Hey all..

I have four dogs. Recently we have noticed the dogs seem itchy. They are scratching and chewing, mainly it is scratching their ribs/armpits and chewing the base of their tails. I didn't think much of it until one night my youngest (12 mo) woke me up several times in the night scratching in his crate.

Now, I have dealt with fleas before. I do not use flea preventative, I do not like applying or using chemicals unless I know for sure there is a problem. I foster dogs and I do get dogs with fleas and I know how to spot them and treat them.

This has me puzzled. I do not have any new dogs, but we do walk them sometimes in grassy ares where other dogs have been and the problem certainly could be fleas but... I have tried everything I can think of to find fleas including -

• Visually examining the dogs by parting their fur
  
• Examining their bedding looking for eggs and flea dirt
  
• Comb all 4 dogs carefully with a flea comb, looking for either adult fleas, eggs or dirt
  
• Combing them on a white floor
  
• Rubbing a damp paper towel on them right down to the skin to find flea dirt
  

I can not find ANY evidence of fleas whatsoever.

Could it still be fleas? What else can cause dogs to be itchy suddenly? Mosquitoes maybe?

Oh one thing else - I feed Canidae and this bag of kibble has a noticeably different appearance than the previous bags. The kibble is larger, lighter in colour, and has changed the colour and consistency of the dogs' poops. I didn't read the ingredient list because I didn't think it could be related until just now.

What do you guys think? Should I just treat for fleas anyway?

All four dogs?

This would point to something other than allergies, of course, with all the dogs affected.

There are other parasites that would cause the same symptoms, including various mites and lice.

I probably would treat w/Frontline and observe. The base of the tail is such a classic parasite (flea) itch-spot.

No hair loss or broken skin, right?

 Quote: angela burrell

Oh one thing else - I feed Canidae and this bag of kibble has a noticeably different appearance than the previous bags. The kibble is larger, lighter in colour, and has changed the colour and consistency of the dogs' poops. I didn't read the ingredient list because I didn't think it could be related until just now.

Canidae has changed its formula.

Regardless of whether we think that it's "improved" or of poorer quality now, I can't really see all the dogs being affected by it with skin pruritis.

My dog also has a very similar problem. He nibbles a lot at the base of the tail. He has a small bald spot on that area, due to constant nibbling. At one point, he even broke the skin. His skin color on that area is darker than normal. Every time we go to the backyard, he drops to the ground and begins to scratch his back against the ground. I've checked for fleas, and no signs of fleas. I've used Advantage flea drops, and he stills nibbles at the base of the tail. He's on a raw diet and this has been happening just recently.

 Quote: Julio Martinez

My dog also has a very similar problem. He nibbles a lot at the base of the tail. He has a small bald spot on that area, due to constant nibbling. At one point, he even broke the skin. His skin color on that area is darker than normal. Every time we go to the backyard, he drops to the ground and begins to scratch his back against the ground. I've checked for fleas, and no signs of fleas. I've used Advantage flea drops, and he stills nibbles at the base of the tail.

With one dog, I might be thinking in broader terms, because then allergies are more probable than with four dogs stricken at the same time.

BUT the base of the tail is such a classic flea spot that I'd check this dog very carefully for flea dirt.

The skin that's darker than normal -- is is thickened and kind of elephant-skin looking, too?

Has the vet seen it?

Yes! It does look like elephant skin. No, the vet hasn't seen it, yet. I was giving the Advantage flea drops some time to work, but it looks like it's not fixing the problem.

The dermotology vet we have been seeing for our dog with allergies, said that almost always the itching/biting around the tail area is due to fleas. She said dogs can be so sensitive to the saliva and feces of a flea, that only one flea can drive them to chew and lick - which can quickly cause a cycle of itching/biting due to the dog making it worse. The fur changes color due to a lot of licking and the skin gets broken and then can get infected easily - which also causes them to bite more! She said it's amazing how much damage a single flea bite can cause. Even if you don't 'see' flea evidence, your dog can get bit by one flea and then suffer for days!

We don't like to use flea products either, but the dermo vet says it's crucial for a dog that reacts so badly to a flea bite. By the way, she said her and her colleagues have found that Frontline Plus far exceeds the effectiveness of any of the other flea products on the market, if you have to use one.

Great post - I'm going to give Frontline a try. Advantage is not doing a darn thing. I recall using Advantage two years ago, and I wasn't happy with the results. Initially, I thought that maybe it was a fake product (purchased it on ebay) and recently decided to give it a second try from 1800 pet meds. Same poor results.

Here at my house in east TX, we've been having a really bad season with no-see-ums.

I've noticed all the dogs scratching, but I can't find any fleas, just like you. I went walking out in the woods the other day, though, and got covered up in no-see-ums. Some people say their bite doesn't hurt, but they hurt me just as bad if not worse than a flea.

For those that don't know what a no-see-um is :

http://creatures.ifas.ufl.edu/aquatic/biting_midges.htm

http://news.ucanr.org/newsstorymain.cfm?story=1105

Thanks for the replies.

Though the dogs did occaisionally bite their rump area, I would say they spend a lot more time scratching at their necks and armpits. The itching is NOT severe, they sit, scratch, then go on with what they were doing. And it's not constant, but enough that we have noticed (and it woke me up).

So yesterday I spent the whole day flea-treating the dogs. Meaning I used flea shampoo on all 4, (it works the same as preventative and kills adults fleas and eggs for 4 weeks). Also controls ticks. Normally when a dog has fleas I see dead fleas in the shampoo lather. I didn't see any this time.

I also washed their beds and rugs in hot water with some bleach and vacuumed everything.

The itching is still there (an occasional scratch at the jaw or ear/neck); Maybe it is my imagination but I don't think they are itching as much now as they were. Scratching is less frequent.

Connie - I agree with you that the food is an unlikely suspect, but thought I'd bring up anything that it could possibly be.

Anyone know the range of these "no-see-ums"?