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My dog has red, itchy skin from biting. What OTC meds can help?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Female | unspayed

Hello, My dog is experiencing a skin problem. Photos are attached. The red splotches are not blood. She is vigorously biting the skin as it itches her. I try to stop her when she bites, but I don't know what sort of ointment or medication to use? Can I buy something OTC? I'm not exactly sure how to bandage the area either since it's on her back. Any advice would be appreciated.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Lauren M. Jones, VMD

Veterinarian

Published on August 3rd, 2017

Oh dear, poor Midnight! Her skin lesions look quite uncomfortable. Excessive biting and scratching may be related to underlying allergies, ringworm, or mange, any of which can then lead to the onset of a bacterial skin infection. As a starting point, make sure that Midnight is receiving a high quality flea and tick preventative regularly, such as Nexgard, Bravecto, or K9 Advantix II because a few flea bites could be amplifying the situation. You can also try bathing her with a medicated antimicrobial/anti-itch shampoo ( http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=27980 ). Since she is chewing on herself excessively, also consider using an e-collar (cone) for at least the next few days to prevent further skin damage, as this will only make matters worse. If her skin issues continue or worsen despite these measures, Midnight will need to go to her vet for further evaluation. I hope that all goes well!

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Other Answers

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

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 11th, 2019

    Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. 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). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). The following products can be found online and can be tried as a first line approach: Douxo PS Calm shampoo, Essential 6 spot on by dermoscent, Krillex Krill oil chews. 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. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

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