*snicker* I know all about the miss nick. slippery little devils too!

Just and FYI
frontline stopped working for me last year, Poor Nico kept itching like crazy and I was in a frenzy trying to figure it out, and then I found some fleas in Yotes white hair.

So I switched to advantage and she cleared right up.
I talked to the vet about just this about a month ago and they were taking a break from advantage and frontline and using vector 3D and comfortis.
I wasn't impressed with the Vector 3D at all so I bought advantage elsewhere.

Jennifer,

Frontline didn't work for me either. I can't remember all the others but I finally used Promeris that worked a little better.

This year my vet said they would be carring Comfortis, so I will wait on that.

We don't have fleas here yet. And our hearworm deal is July thru September, so I put her on HG from June thru October and probably do the same this year.

Another thought.

I have been reading all these other posts from people with dogs with allergies and the ear infections they have.

The vet didn't mention her ears and I don't specifically remember him looking in them, but I do remember him pretty much looking at everything.

She doesn't scratch at her ears, it is the rear back mostly, except for occasional general scratching.

Should I be worried about ears, too, if it's allergies? I look in them and I don't see any kind of gunk.

Always a good idea to check the ears regularly so if anything does start you can catch it early. My dog has had one allergy-related ear infection so I look and smell frequently and clean weekly as a preventative. With all his skin issues, his ears have been great except for that one time.

 Quote: Sarah Morris

Always a good idea to check the ears regularly

Ditto! Look and sniff.

And don't introduce water or any liquid (or anything) to a clear, healthy ear.

You are looking for redness or debris.

Will do.

Also, and I hope I am just doing my over-thinking, knee-jerk over-reacting her, but I have been re-reading Ed's articles and
Q&A on allergies, etc. An underlying theme always seems to be vaccinations. I will need to go back to research when she had her rabies vax. I remember that I put it off as long as I could but I can't remember what started first in the flea/flea allergy/itching/scratching last summer.

Any comments or suggestions are more than welcome.

She has had another good day, but I am afraid that when the cortisone shot wears off that she will be back to scratching. I also get occasional cortisone shots and when they wear off, I am back to the same ailment. I use only as absolutely necessary but I'm sure I'm probably getting holes in my bones or something.

So, naturally, I don't want my dog to need to use steroids.

http://leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=134&Number=195999&Searchpage=4&Main=19525&Words=Nora+Ferrell&topic=0&Search=true#Post195999

Back again. If I did this correctly, there is a url above to where I posted when my dog got her rabies vax. That would have been May of last year.

Also, from reading my post, I was having the flea problem already. But, apparently her coat looked OK as I reported that the vet commented on it.

So, it looks like she was having the flea problem, but hadn't reached the problem that it got to and no damage to the fur.

I will keep researching to see if I can find out when the really bad scratching/hair loss started.

I really, really, really hope this has nothing to do with the vax.

Nora, I have re-read your post.

I don't know how long your girl has been on raw. I switched Hambone to raw a few months ago. His history is itching, flea allergy, flaky skin, etc.

Okay. Now, through the years, I found he is reactive to chemicals and additives and grains and certain meat, so I am very careful what I give him. One oddity with him is he cannot have gizzard. Whether it is an organ that picks up the chemicals or additives from digesting grains, antibiotics, etc. or some quirk of his, giving him even a small piece of gizzard will set him off itching, chewing, and have swollen feet. It's a thought.

Another thought. Yogurt sets him off chewing and itching. I think its the milk protein. I am looking for pro-biotics that are not milk based or soy based, but haven't found any.

He also had a thyroid condition everyone missed because he didn't present as a thyroidic dog. By taking pictures of him from every angle, I finally saw him as he really is and not what my memory told me. I took pictures and dog to vet and demanded a complete thyroid test and found out his thyroid was burned out.
(He is 11 years old now, so burn out shouldn't be a problem for your girl).

I didn't see in your post that your girl has had a Complete thyroid test and I would urge you to get that. If Hambone had had it young, (Northern breeds are notorious for having thyroid burn out), we may have avoided some issues with immune system.

Plus side, reactive as he is, he hasn't had a reaction to a rabie vax but he gets it every three years and only when he wasn't itching. (He is on heartguard pills that have no artifical flavoring or coloring. Just a plain white pill.)

Just my input on a couple of little things you can do until you get to a derm vet. Granted, it is a long shot, but hey, quirky dogs are a big part of this forum. One never knows.

 Quote: jo harker

Nora, I have re-read your post.

I don't know how long your girl has been on raw. I switched Hambone to raw a few months ago. His history is itching, flea allergy, flaky skin, etc.

Okay. Now, through the years, I found he is reactive to chemicals and additives and grains and certain meat, so I am very careful what I give him. One oddity with him is he cannot have gizzard. Whether it is an organ that picks up the chemicals or additives from digesting grains, antibiotics, etc. or some quirk of his, giving him even a small piece of gizzard will set him off itching, chewing, and have swollen feet. It's a thought.

Another thought. Yogurt sets him off chewing and itching. I think its the milk protein. I am looking for pro-biotics that are not milk based or soy based, but haven't found any.

He also had a thyroid condition everyone missed because he didn't present as a thyroidic dog. By taking pictures of him from every angle, I finally saw him as he really is and not what my memory told me. I took pictures and dog to vet and demanded a complete thyroid test and found out his thyroid was burned out.
(He is 11 years old now, so burn out shouldn't be a problem for your girl).

I didn't see in your post that your girl has had a Complete thyroid test and I would urge you to get that. If Hambone had had it young, (Northern breeds are notorious for having thyroid burn out), we may have avoided some issues with immune system.

Plus side, reactive as he is, he hasn't had a reaction to a rabie vax but he gets it every three years and only when he wasn't itching. (He is on heartguard pills that have no artifical flavoring or coloring. Just a plain white pill.)

Just my input on a couple of little things you can do until you get to a derm vet. Granted, it is a long shot, but hey, quirky dogs are a big part of this forum. One never knows.

Jo, thanks so much for reading all this. My posts tend to be long, but I am trying to get all the info on here.

I put her on raw about a year ago (from my post, then, it looks like about April, 2008.

She would have been about 8 months old at the time.

I haven't noticed any additional or 'quirky' itching from the gizzards or yogurt, but for now, I think it would probably be a safe thing to remove them from her diet until I know.

It looks like her rabies vax was given in May, 2008. Apparently I was battling fleas at the time. I remember having a real problem trying to make sure it had been a reasonable amount of time between the flea meds, rabies vax and the spay surgery, so I will have to look further to find out when she was fixed. At that time, I do remember the scratching was really bad because the vet gave her antibiotics for a week afterwards. The neutering appeared uneventful to me.

The heart guard they gave me last year was a little brown cube, I will ask if there is anything without additives this year.

Cindy, also mentioned the thyroid. The vet didn't mention it this week, but I am thinking that he thinks it is allergies due to the pattern of scratching/hair loss and skin scraping.

Hopefully, after this three weeks of clavamox, she will be fine and I will continue to vinegar rinse/oatmeal bath/ketomozole bath her.

If this doesn't work, then I think the thyroid would be the next logical step. As far as a derm vet, the closest I found one on the internet is in Louisville, KY, which will be about three hours one way for me. It was also a franchise clinic. Perhaps my vet can refer me to one, I haven't asked, yet.

I plan to not ever have another rabies vax and am hoping that by the time her three years are up that I can have titre tests and avoid the vax.

I am trying to arm myself with all the knowledge I can now concerning this itching in case the above treatment doesn't work so I can be as proactive as possible.

I am still pissed at the thought that my dog has had a skin infection for possibly months and I allowed the other vet to so easily blow off my concerns.

Thanks, again, Jo and any other "quirky" things you think of are appreciated.