My dog has itchy scabs all over his body. What can I do to help?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Small (up to 22lb) | Male | neutered | 20 lbs
My dog has these itchy scabs all over his body. The ones on his stomach are flaky and dark while the ones on his back are small. I want to know what I can do to help him
4 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on July 28th, 2017
This may be the start of a staph infection in the skin. Often these are secondary to allergies. You can start with a medicated shampoo to bathe him in regularly and trim the mats out of his fur from the scratching. Your vet can prescribe an antibiotic and medication to control the itching or underlying allergy to help him further
6Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
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Published on June 22nd, 2017
She could have a bacterial skin infection so she should be examined by a vet. She may need an oral antibiotic to help treat. You could also bathe her with a medicated dog shampoo and see if that helps, too.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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Published on October 3rd, 2018
This looks like dry scaley skin from his scratching or rubbing the area due to allergies. The most common cause of itching in this area is from flea bite allergic dermatitis. Some dogs can have only a few flea bites but they can itch and irritate the skin for much longer. I recommend using monthly oral flea prevention and bathing your dog weekly with an anti seborrhea shampoo. If he’s scooting his anal sacs could be full of fluid and that can cause itching in that specific area also. Your veterinarian can manually empty them and make sure that area is not infected. To get this skin to heal may take several weeks and he may need veterinary treatment to help control the scratching so the skin can get better. They may prescribe antibiotics and an anti inflammatory medication. When dogs scratch excessively the skin can develop more pigmentation which changes normal skin to dark or black. That process is normal and often happens as dogs age also. Again I would try to get to the cause of this itching, then once that’s taken care of the skin should improve and the hair will fill in. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Cowboy.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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Published on February 1st, 2017
It sounds like he could have a bacterial skin infection. You could bathe him with a medicated dog shampoo and see if that helps. Otherwise, have him examined by your vet for treatment. He may need an antibiotic and a corticosteroid to help treat his problem. You could also add Free Form Snip Tips to his diet to help keep his skin and coat healthy.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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