Itchy Shasta

[paulag1955]

I'll apologize in advance, as this may be long. And rambling.

As some of you may know, Shasta has had recurring bouts of staph since she was quite a small puppy. First we'd notice that she was scratching and biting more, then she'd start having excessive eye discharge and the inside of her ears would be quite red, and finally spots would show up on her tummy.

Anyway, when the spots would appear, we'd take her in to the vet, the vet would diagnose the staph and prescribe an antibiotic. Once started on the antibiotic, the spots would disappear, the scratching and biting would lessen or go away completely, her eyes would clear up, her ears would return to a healthy pink color inside and we'd call it good.

We've assumed that there's an underlying allergy and associated itching and biting causing the staph but now I'm beginning to wonder if the itching and biting could have been caused all along by a staph infection that's never really been cleared up. I had a light bulb moment when it finally dawned on me that for one or two weeks after she goes off an antibiotic, the itching/biting is gone, other that random scratching that I think could be considered normal - no matter what she's eating.

She's on an elimination diet now, and an antibiotic, so all her symptoms are clearing up but, of course, there's no way to know if that's from the drug alone or a combination of the two.

So for those of you who have more doggy experience than I do, does this seem plausible? Have any of you experienced these kinds of problems and had that be the case, or do you know of anyone?

Also related:

As I said, Shasta's symptoms are clearing up, but she is still having some itching and biting. I've noticed that when my husband is at work, there's almost no itching and biting. FYI, she's a much calmer dog in general when he's not here. She finds him very exciting - not in a bad way, she just loves him a lot and he plays exciting games.

So the second question is, have her ever seen a dog channel their excitement with itching/biting? Honestly it starts within minutes of him arriving home and goes on until he settles down in the man cave (basement) and she settles down upstairs with me.

Thank you if you've managed to read all the way through to the end of this; I appreciate your time.

[onyx'girl]

She is on flea preventative? Are you supplementing with omega oils, vitamin E and C?
My dogs had been scratching since late August. I feed raw, supplement, run a humidifier, and there was no relief. I was so frustrated!!!

Three weeks ago a flea jumped on me! I've never ever had flea problems since we moved off the lake almost 20 yrs ago. Karlo must have picked some up at training way back when. I was warned by my private trainer that a dog had come in infested and she sent him out of her building immediately...but several weeks previous the owner was unaware of it, so the damage was done(no frost/freeze either)

Because I do feed a good diet and supplement I think the outbreak was minimal. So I ended up putting my dogs and cats on a spot on, Revolution. As of today, 3 weeks later, they are not constantly scratching.

One or two fleas can cause more damage than we think. I've still only seen two fleas this whole time, even when bathing, looking for evidence.

[paulag1955]

Jane, on our vet's advice, she's not on flea preventive. The vet recommends advantage, but only during "flea season." We've never found a flea on her or any evidence that she has fleas. I know that doesn't mean there's never been a flea on her, but I honestly don't think that's the issue. Plus there's the thing of her scratching more when my husband first gets home from work. Could it be an OCD thing?

I'm not giving any supplements right now because of the elimination diet, but I had giving omegas, E and C.

She's on an extra-long course of antibiotics this time so I'm really anxious (and maybe a little bit hopeful) to see what happens when she goes off.

[onyx'girl]

I put Onyx on pred when I thought her paw chewing/ abdomen licking could be caused by her anxious personality. When the pred was out of her system, she went right back to it, so I knew then it was allergies/ testing proved environmental. This was before her ears started flaring up. We now deal with chronic ear issues, and I did the serum injections with no results. I discontinued the shots in July and really should start again.

Are you giving probiotics mid day(or when you aren't dosing the anti's?) If she is getting prednisone, then of course that would just be masking symptoms. What is the elimination diet?

[paulag1955]

No probiotics on the elimination diet either, so thankfully the antibiotics aren't giving her the runs. No prednisone...again, she's not constantly scratching and biting like some of the poor dogs I read about here and there's no licking at all. She hasn't had any problems with flaky skin or hot spots. And the antibiotics do nearly stop it...but it comes back.

Her only ear infection happened on a fish-based food. Switched her off that and the ears cleared right up.

For the elimination diet we're using Natural Balance Venison and Sweet Potato (kibble, canned and biscuits) and that is ALL that she gets to eat. Venison is a protein source she'd never had before and it's a limited ingredient formula.

Are the probiotics beneficial for the skin, too? Although, like I said, I'm beginning to think this isn't a typical "skin" issue as much as a chronic infection issue.

[onyx'girl]

Does your husband work around chemicals?

Probi's are to help the gut get the flora back after the anti's have killed them. Natural vitamin C is a great addition, it supports the immune system, antiinflammatory, antihistamine and supports joint health.
As soon as you are cleared with the diet to add in other ingredients, C would be the first, but do it slowly...500mg to start then up over a week to 2000mg split between meals EsterC is my choice if the dog is over 10months.
After a few weeks, then coconut oil would be my next addition...heaping spoonful to start, then one at each meal. Then add in an E every few days. I also give d and a b complex. Tumeric for Kacie as she has some sebeceous cysts, but other than that, the only thing I'd add is some fresh(frozen)green tripe, see how she does with that.
If you want to rotate coconut oil(omega3) with salmon or fish thenI would do that after the coconut oil container empties, or switch them every couple weeks.

[paulag1955]

My husband is a diesel mechanic, so, yes, but the scratching starts within minutes of him arriving home. Do you think it could affect her that quickly, and regardless of whether or not he's touched her? It's worth paying closer attention to, I think.

Thanks for the detailed advice on the supplements. I hadn't considered coconut oil, but considering the problem she had with the fish-based food, that would probably be a good choice for her. We have at least another 5 weeks on the elimination diet. So glad Shasta isn't a picky eater!