Severe Flea Allergy In New Foster

[BellaBean]

Ok greytalkers I need some advice, my new foster that I just picked up today is just in awful shape. Poor guy has a sever flea allergy and has major bumps, hair loss, and scabs from scratching all over. The vet has prescribed him cephelaxin. I got him home and gave him a good bath, but he is still really itchy. My question is: Is there any good topical ointment I can put on him to help sooth him and make it more bearable?

[JJNg]

Did the vet recommend anything for the itching? In addition to treating the fleas and the secondary skin infection, dogs with flea allergies really need something to address the allergy itself. You can try Benedryl to see if that helps, but I find that most severe cases respond best to a short, low-dose course of prednisone.

 

For most greyhounds, I would just start with 50 mg of Benedryl (two regular 25 mg tablets) twice daily. Typical dose for Benedryl is 1 mg/lb every 8-12 hours, but I usually don't go over 50 mg per dose unless it's a giant breed dog. There are also various anti-itch shampoos, usually with either hydrocortisone or pramoxine as the active ingredient, which can help provide temporary relief.

[Guest dmt]

I would ask the vet about a medicated shampoo. Good luck.

[HopeForHounds]

Cathie, wmlcml6 has had a lot of success with Coconut Oil. One of the girls had severe flea dermatitis and she rubbed it on, plus put a bit in her food. It really helped with the itching and redness.

[BellaBean]

Thanks guys! The vet told us to have him take the antibiotic and if its not improving by the time we bring him in next week for his neuter then they will give him some steroids. I tried the coconut oil and it help out a lot! Poor guy is just ate up I hate to see it, but glad we got him before it was allowed to get much worse! I'm going to try the benedryl tonight.

[Guest FrankieWylie]

Cathie, wmlcml6 has had a lot of success with Coconut Oil. One of the girls had severe flea dermatitis and she rubbed it on, plus put a bit in her food. It really helped with the itching and redness.

 

I didn't know this about coconut oil! I use it to cook with, but I will for sure be rubbing some on Magic! We also use the Aveeno anti-itch stuff, and today, after their baths it seemed to help out a lot. I haven't noticed either boy itching or scratching!

[Guest grandmagrey]

When our Snowy had dermatitis, we tried cortisone and benadryl both oral and topical. Didn't seem to do much. I Had some bag balm here for another dogs hyperkeratosis. Checked w our vet who said "it won't hurt, but prob won't

do much". Well, bag balm strikes again! By day 2 the lesions from scratching were less red, the hot areas were cooling and the scabbed areas were softening. She seemed more comfortable. Bag balm seems to be a cure all for Snowy's skin sensitivities. She gets red spots alit for no apparant reason...i rub a little bag balm on, and the next day the spots are better.