My dog has itchy skin. Is a warm salt water bath a good home remedy?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

• 

  Answered By Kevin Sanada, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on March 15th, 2018

  Itchy skin is often due to the following things: 1) Allergies - this can happen suddenly and is usually due to an environmental (i.e pollen) cause. https://www.petcoach.co/article/how-to-tell-if-your-pet-has-allergies/ 2) External parasites - fleas, lice and mites can all cause intense itching. It's good to check him for fleas again and get treatment if needed. Below is a link to a good article about fleas. https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-tips-to-get-rid-of-fleas 3) Over-bathing, or using the wrong product for bathing - Bathing too often can cause the skin to get dry and irritated. Dogs should normally be bathed no more than once a month with a shampoo that is labeled for dogs. If you bathe more than that, or use a shampoo or soap that is meant for people, then you could be damaging the normal protective barrier of the skin. One thing you can do for itchy skin, is give a bath with cool water using an oatmeal or aloe shampoo. You can get these shampoos at the pet store. https://www.petcoach.co/article/4-great-strategies-for-relieving-your-dog-s-allergies/ I hope this helps you to identify the problem. If not, then it would be worth taking him to the vet. We can usually discover the cause quickly and provide the most effective treatment.

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

• 

  Answered By Dr. Massimo Orioles, DVM, Cert AVP, MRCVS

  Veterinarian

  Published on October 27th, 2018

  Although a picture of it would help to give you more specific advice and suggest a list of differentials. Generally speaking this is could be due to an allergy, an infection or mites. The underlying cause needs to be determined first to give appropriate treatment. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

  

  3Pet Parents found this answer helpful

• 

  Answered By Rodrigo Roca, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on October 26th, 2017

  Hello, sorry to hear about Kato. It looks like he could be having some allergies. This could be allergies associated with the shampoo used at PetSmart or it could be allergies associated with the new environment he was exposed to. You could rinse him off at home with luke warm water and dry him off completely after the rinsing. This may have wash off any detergent or allergen on his coat. If this does not help, then he may need to see a veterinarian to have allergy medications prescribed to him. Hope this helps and best of luck.

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful