Itch begone!

If you are a dog parent, you may have noticed your pup itching a bit this summer.

You may have tried baths, powders, flea treatments or sprays without result.  I am here to help!

My dog Cocoa started itching a little bit over a month ago.  I gave her the once over and noticed dry skin, but no fleas.  I thought "shower time"!  Cocoa hates the bathtub; water actually, so it was the hose for her!  After we both got soaked, she seemed quite content.  That lasted for a few days until..... scratch, scratch, scratch.  Ughhhhhhhhh......... now I had to do a little research!  I discovered that dogs are more prone to allergies than ever, thanks to rug powders, plants & pollen and more aggressively resistant fleas.  Oh, and dog food!  Yes, dog food.

You know how more and more people are getting sick from gluten these days?  Well, so do dogs.  And guess what a main filler is in most lower to middle end dog foods?  Yep! Gluten.

I had the "suspects", now I had to find the one allergen.  Cocoa began itching much worse by now, so I did another flea check.  Drat!  There they were.   While I waited for the flea treatment I ordered, I changed her food to one with no gluten.  A few days later, she itched less and less.  After a week, Cocoa was still itching but better and the flea treatment came in.   Well, it's been a week since she got the treatment and Cocoa is almost itch free!

What I discovered was, she was allergic to the gluten AND the fleas!  The new food has Omega 3 oils in it.  And that is key to treating the itch.  It helps control the allergies and moisturizes the skin.

Long story short; got an itchy dog?  Try a natural food for a week.  If puppy gets better, there it is!  If not, try Omega 3 to give him relief and get that flea treatment.  If these don't help, a good vet should suggest an allergy medicine.  Always check with the vet before giving a pet human medicines.

Hope this helps!