Hello,

I searched and read all the previous discussions on itching and a scratching and was hoping to get some advice as to what is most likely causing it in my dog. He is a little over one year old GSD. I feed him a raw diet with Vitamin E and fish oil supplementation.

I’ll try to describe the symptoms as best I can: His itching is pretty much everywhere – paws, armpits, spine, etc -- but is most severe at the base of the tail. His gums seem a little more pail than in the past.

I’m not sure if this is related but he also has some discoloration on his nose/paws. The discoloration changed the color but not texture (dryness) of the nose.

Thanks for your time.

Jim, are you located in an area where he could be having a reaction to fleas? (ie warmer climate where fleas are still active?)

If he has a flea allergy, even 1 or 2 flea bites can cause intense itching...

 Quote: Lynne Barrows

Jim, are you located in an area where he could be having a reaction to fleas? (ie warmer climate where fleas are still active?)

If he has a flea allergy, even 1 or 2 flea bites can cause intense itching...

Yes, and the base of the tail is the classic spot.

 Quote: Jim Krane

His gums seem a little more pail than in the past. ...

You need the vet. I'd call today for pale gums.

Thanks for the replies.

We live in MI so I'm not sure about the warmer climate. We also have him on frontline for fleas -- maybe not as consistent as we ought to be. Flees always seemed like the likely reason to me because the way he just turns around and starts biting a spot as if something just bit him. However, I checked his skin and where he sleeps and can't see any dark flakes or anything.

I've scheduled a vet visit for this Saturday.

Does the fact that he is itchy everywhere (some places a lot more than others) mean anything?

Where the itch is can help point towards the cause (malassezia, thyroid, inhalant/environmental allergies, etc.), although there's a ton of overlap.

For example, the base of the tail is really classic for fleas. Also, along the spine, on the ribs, on the shins, etc.

I would not rely just on my own ability to see the fleas (with the white sheet method*) if my dog had what could be flea-bite anemia (I am thinking of the pale gums you mentioned). And regardless of the cause, of course, pale gums are something the vet needs to be involved with.

As Lynne mentioned, flea hypersensitivity can mean that just one bite of a flea can cause an allergic reaction.

You mentioned the paws, which can indicate other allergies, but so much of what you're saying (where and how he bites and scratches, clear ears, etc.) sounds so like flea problems -- and to tell you the truth, I would rather hear that my dog had flea problems than most other allergies, because careful flea control is much simpler than the diagnosis and treatment of environmental/inhalant or even food allergies.

Regardless, though, pale gums are a vet thing.

Post back. I have my fingers crossed for you, but if the vet doesn't find flea dermatitis and suspects something else, let us know. There is a lot of canine allergy knowledge on this board, and several findings of the GP vet would trigger many here to urge you to get a derm vet referral.


*Between now and Saturday, you can comb through the fur on the hindquarters and neck over a white sheet. Flea dirt looks like black pepper, and if you put them on a damp paper towel they turn dark red (blood).



All JMO, of course.

What does his skin look like? Is there a rash? Is there discolouration? Is there a smell?

There are other reasons than fleas to cause itching. Allergies come second to mind after fleas. Thyroid conditions are another fairly common cause, as with the imbalance, especially high thyroid (hyperthyroidism) there is often yeast infection that develops in the skin.

If you stand the dog on a white surface and brush him, or ruffle his coat to the skin; if he has fleas there will often be a reddish brown dusting that falls from the coat. This can be seen easiest on a white surface. The powder is from the flea feces which gets the coloring from the dog's blood.

Thanks for everyone's response.

 Quote: Joy van Veen

What does his skin look like? Is there a rash? Is there discolouration? Is there a smell?

The skin looks fine to me. No rash, maybe a bit on the dry side. There are a couple of scabs where he was picking at it.

The discoloration is on his nose and a tiny spot on the pads of his front paws. The discolored spots are not dry and there is no wired smell that I can tell. His ears look fine and there's no gunk in them.

I moved my vet appointment up to Thursday.

The weird thing is that he always had little itches in the same spots but nowhere as intense as now. By far his biggest bother is at the base of the tail.

Hi Jim,
I don't know if this will help you, but my pup gets itchy when we feed him certain things...and the itchiness is concentrated
on the following spots: base of tail (rump), behind elbows, spine area 3-5 inches behind the shoulder blades.

We're still going through the process of introducing items one by one to figure out what he can and can't have. We kept switching his basic food (for now, CA Naturals Lamb & Rice--it's limited ingredients) until we found one that he didn't get itchy on. Then we started testing single, real-meat or organ items one by one so we could have good treats/possible future foods nailed down.

Good luck with your dog, between these responses I'm sure you'll
discover the problem.

Hopefully the vet can figure it out. It could be allerges, but best if the vet checks it out. He could do some skin scrapings and/or blood tests, while all we can do on this forum is offer up guesses based on your descriptions.

Good luck!

 Quote: Jim Krane

I moved my vet appointment up to Thursday.

Good. Let us know what how it goes!