DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Since yesterday Sage has been scratching and biting at herself like crazy. I examined her several times, I found no evidence of bugs, no flea 'dirt', etc. Thinking she may have dry skin or a reaction of some sort, I gave her some benadryl with no results. Today we were laying on the bed and I happened to notice a single bug on her stomach. It was not a flea (didn't look like one and it did not 'hop'), and it is NOT a tick. This bug was small, black, more long and skinny and motored right along through her fur. I got it and squashed it, and got her in the tub for a soapy bath. I gave her a good scrub and let the soap sit on her for a while before rinsing. She's now back to scratching and biting random areas of her body. Again, I cant find any bugs or evidence otherwise. I've looked online and haven't found any info or pictures on what it could be. Ideas on what it could be or what I can do for her? Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mbfilby Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Canine lice? Lice Link Fleas don't hop when on an animal, they creepy crawl through the fur. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KF_in_Georgia Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Try rinsing her again, on the chance that some shampoo was left from her bath. Rinse really well, towel dry, and let her air dry--no heated dryer. (I know, the weather isn't ideal for this. Is there somewhere sunny she could lie while she dries?) Check her over for dry, flaky skin, too; that can cause itching. If you find flaky skin, try adding fish oil to her food. If the rinse doesn't do it and dry skin doesn't seem to be the problem, I'd recommend a vet visit for a skin scraping, especially if she's scratching in one area more than another (so that the vet will know where to scrape). The critter you pulled off might be a coincidence--and not the problem at all. My Silver came here in July after being picked up as a stray. A previous skin scraping showed nothing, but she had irritation on her front left leg. After months of antibiotics, sprays, antihistamines, etc., we finally did another skin scraping (the first scraping was done by another vet, and we don't know what they scraped or what they looked for). My vet found what looked like half of a scabies mange mite in a scraping from her foot. Silver got her first treatment Tuesday, and she's itching, scratching, and biting much less. (I'm no longer having to muzzle her 24 hours a day.) We're hoping we finally have a handle on the problem. But, like Sage, Silver's biting/itching wasn't just in one place. Only one leg developed an irritation, but she'd bite at itches all over. Quote Kathy and Q (CRT Qadeer from Fuzzy's Cannon and CRT Bonnie) and Jane (WW's Aunt Jane from Trent Lee and Aunt M); photos to come. Missing Silver (5.19.2005-10.27.2016), Tigger (4.5.2007-3.18.2016), darling Sam (5.10.2000-8.8.2013), Jacey-Kasey (5.19.2003-8.22.2011), and Oreo (1997-3.30.2006) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuff Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Motoring through the fur sounds like a flea. You sure it wasn't? Lice don't really move much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 Canine lice? Lice Link Fleas don't hop when on an animal, they creepy crawl through the fur. Nope, not lice. Didn't look like that, and it said canine lice tend to be motionless where as this guy was movin! I'm still not convinced it was a flea. It didn't look anything like one. It was flat against the skin and the legs weren't the same. *puzzled* Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 Just dragged her in the kitchen to inspect her again under the good light. I combed through her fuzzy butt and everything. I see nothing! Grr. Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyKarma Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Have you changed anything in her diet recently..new food, treats etc. Also new things around the house...knew a lab that was very allergic to carpet freshners. Quote CAROL & Molleigh (Queen Molly)My Angel Girl (Slippy's Molly) ~ Thank you for sending me your namesake ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 Have you changed anything in her diet recently..new food, treats etc. Also new things around the house...knew a lab that was very allergic to carpet freshners. No. Not a thing. Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greytluv Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Doni Rae was biting a lot and I put flea stuff on her and she stopped. I never did see a flea on her Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaryJane Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Could it be bed bugs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PhillyPups Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Did it look like this?? There is also a page on how to get rid of them on pets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mbfilby Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Could it be bed bugs? oh.. I just felt the creep factor climb.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 Did it look like this?? There is also a page on how to get rid of them on pets. Ewwwwwwwwwww! No, thank God that is NOT what it looked like! Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatterseaBrindl Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Today we were laying on the bed and I happened to notice a single bug on her stomach. It was not a flea (didn't look like one and it did not 'hop'), and it is NOT a tick. This bug was small, black, more long and skinny and motored right along through her fur. I got it and squashed it, and got her in the tub for a soapy bath. I gave her a good scrub and let the soap sit on her for a while before rinsing. Are you SURE it wasn't a tick? Ticks are small and black and move pretty darn fast. They are also hard to kill. Quote Nancy...Mom to Sid (Peteles Tiger), Kibo (112 Carlota Galgos) and Joshi. Missing Casey, Gomer, Mona, Penelope, BillieJean, Bandit, Nixon (Starz Sammie), Ruby (Watch Me Dash) Nigel (Nigel), and especially little Mario, waiting at the Bridge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 Nope. Not a tick. And it was pretty easy to kill with my fingers. And it wasn't roundish in shape. I've continued to do research and I can not find any bug that resembles what I saw. Maybe it was random and unrelated to the itching.. Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PhillyPups Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 (edited) Maybe you are rreally lucky, (even though we are all now creeped out by the thoughts of all these bugs) and it was a pices of sweater fuzz or something which happened to coincide with her urge to scratch (wishful thinking). Edited January 16, 2012 by PhillyPups Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest snakes Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 I am still fighting fleas on UPS, i have seen some that move very quickly through the fur and seem to dissapear as fast as they come, sometimes i only see one at a time and can't find more, other days there are 3-4 of them! I think it must be different life stages, when i catch them i stick/sandwich them in scotch tape and once i do that they look much more flea like! Whatever it is, i hope you get rid of it soon and we can all stop imagining bugs all creepy crawley everywhere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Flea larvae are about the length of a flea, I believe, shaped long & thin with legs going out in a more caterpillar or centipede like style. They can be darker colored though I don't think really black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Flea. Are you using some flea protection? Quote Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in IllinoisWe miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Sounds exactly like a flea to me, and even if she had just ONE flea, if she's allergic to them, it could make her go nuts. However, the Benadryl typically would have worked. Suggest you give her a bath with a lovely oatmeal (dog) shampoo and hope it was just one. Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DevilDog Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 The bath I gave her yesterday was with oatmeal shampoo. Ok, so maybe I'm dealing with a flea/s. She is on k9advantix so..? Either way, I used a brush and went through her fur again.. did not find another bug, flea, and still no flea dirt. She is itching a lot less this morning. The other dog in the house has not itched at all. Hopefully we're dealing with a single flea. Quote Lisa with Finnegan (Nina's Fire Fly) and Sage (Gil's Selma). Always missing Roscoewww.popdogdesigns.net pop art prints, custom portraits and collars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest snakes Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 The bath I gave her yesterday was with oatmeal shampoo. Ok, so maybe I'm dealing with a flea/s. She is on k9advantix so..? Either way, I used a brush and went through her fur again.. did not find another bug, flea, and still no flea dirt. She is itching a lot less this morning. The other dog in the house has not itched at all. Hopefully we're dealing with a single flea. If you figure out a solution let me know Only one dog here with them as well! (I figured FedX's herbs and medications made him less tasty....). I've done the usual bathing, laundering, frontline, capstar ect. I think there must just be some eggs being left behind somewhere and they keep hatching....yuck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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