Another Itchy GSD Thread
 

I didn't want to hijack anyone else's thread so thought I would start my own. We have a 2-1/2 year old female GSD who has been itchy for at least the last year. We've tried several things. She is just now concluding a hypoallergenic food (Royal Canin Hydrolyzed Protein), with no relief at all.

We live in WI so things have been in a deep freeze for a while, and she has had no relief with the weather. No noticeable change between seasons at all.

Vet has offered to have a blood sample tested... should we do it?

Should we go to a dermatologist?

I have heard that it's a trip down the rabbit hole once we start dealing with the dermatologist and allergy testing. Not sure what else to try.

If it were food allergy the hypoallergenic would have yielded relief, correct?
If it were seasonal allergies such as pollen then we would have seen relief in the winter, correct?

So this leads me to think that maybe she's allergic to something else, such as dust, dander, people... who knows.

We have tried Benadryl (diphenhydramine) and Claritin (loratadine) with no results.

I have seen people say try a catfish diet, venison, etc, etc. Oh, and to top things off she is a picky eater. Oy!

Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks so much!

I'd make sure I fed a food w/o corn, wheat or soy, that had most of its protein from animal sources (so a high quality food = $$), or raw. To that I would add high quality fish oil for a daily dose of 1000 mg of omega 3 fats. For the Sealogix brand I use (pharmaceutical grade supplement = $$), that's 1/2 tsp a day (total), which I divide into two 1/4 tspn doses since I feed morning and evening. In your place, I would also add 2 tspns of high quality olive oil (I use Napoleon Extra Virgin) per meal, ASSUMING 2x day feedings.

Sometimes just adding some good fats kills the itching, assuming it's not flea allergy (less likely in your cold clime, unless your house has them). If you notice the stools getting too soft, back off the olive oil a bit - too much fat will cause that. Assuming the itching stops, you could try backing out the olive oil (assuming you wanted to), but I'd not reduce or stop the fish oil since it's so good for them (and you).

I'd also stop bathing the dog to allow a neutral pH to do its work, and I'd groom daily with a shorter-toothed rake to remove old hair and to move skin oils up onto the coat. My dogs (one is a GSD w/hx of itching) look and feel great. Best of luck working it out.

Thank you for the advice. I will start her on the fish oils and olive oil for a few weeks and track to see if there is any difference. Prior to the Hypoallergenic test we were feeding high quality food, and tried a few different ones with no results. I tried getting her to eat sardines, for the Omegas, but she really didn't care for them and would mostly take a lick and then let them sit. I do not bath her very often, especially in the winter, specifically for the reasons you mentioned about the PH. Still no improvement. I will brush her more often to tried distributing the oils better, as I know that I tend to get a bit lazy in that area.

Thanks again.

You're welcome. I'm reminded that the air in your area is pretty dry right now, and forced air electric heat will dry it further (assuming you have that), exacerbating any otherwise minor dietary or allergy issue.

Don't forget any treats/biscuits should be free of wheat, corn or soy just in case those are allergens.

Hello,

I am new to this website. I was just wondering if you have found a solution to your GSD's itching? Mine is itchy & biting herself so bad she is starting to loose fur in those spots. We have taken her to the vet to rule out fleas/ mites - she has none. We thought maybe it was a food allergy so we switched her over to Acana fished based food & add fish oil to her food once a day - hasn't helped. We have tried giving her benadryl / claratin - hasn't helped either. We got rid of all her treats and give her blueberries & carrots or her food as treats. We live in Ontario and have had the heat in the house on all winter, when I noticed the itching I turned the heat down but that hasn't helped either. We even tried giving her an aveeno oatmeal bath to soothe the itching and that hasn't helped either. Any advice you can give to that might help is greatly appreciated!