Why is my dog scratching and chewing his tail even after flea treatment?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Male | neutered | 1 year and 9 months old | 55 lbs
He scratches and chews alot. He mostly chews at the top of his tail. I have tried multiple shampoos and used flea treatment. I just bought oatmeal shampoo for sensitive skin for him. I will be calling the vet next week for an appointment since nothing is helping. What could this be? I'm worried about him.
4 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on September 1st, 2017
It looks as if your dog has a skin infection, most commonly caused by an allergy or fleas. The allergy could be a due to a protein in Rocky's food or an environmental allergy like to dust, pollens, grasses, etc. The allergy causes your dog to itch and chew at the skin which breaks down the skin barrier. This then leads to infection. Rocky will need antibiotics to help clear up the infection and possibly an anti-itch medication like Apoquel, Atopica, or Cytopoint to give some relief while the infection clears up. Since Rocky seems to continually have this problem he may need to be on an allergy medication long term. A medicated shampoo may be beneficial as well. I would also recommend he be on a good flea control too. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
-
Published on May 5th, 2017
I can see two areas with hair loss and what appear to be red bumps (possibly papules or pustules) in the photos. Some of the most common causes of hair loss with these red lesions are related to either underlying allergies (to fleas, food or the environment), ringworm or mange. I'm assuming that Rocky is also itchy based upon the appearance of these lesions, and excessive scratching can lead to the development of skin infections. Irritation from itchiness can cause a loss of appetite due to discomfort. Make sure that Rocky is receiving a high quality flea preventative (such as Nexgard, Bravecto or Advantix) regularly. Rocky should also be examined by his vet, as he may need a skin scrape (to rule out the mites causing mange) and/or fungal culture (to rule out ringworm). Both ringworm and sarcoptic mange can be transmitted to other animals and people, so it is important to rule out these issues. If a skin infection is diagnosed, oral antibiotics will be needed. Until you can take Rocky to his vet, you can try bathing him in a gentle oatmeal based dog shampoo and using an e-collar (cone) to prevent him from scratching and causing further irritation to the skin. I hope that he's on the mend soon!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
-
Published on December 1st, 2017
Aw poor Rocky! It's likely he may have a food allergy or atopy as these can cause itching year round. It also looks like he may now have a bacterial skin infection secondary to the itching and allergy. It would be best to have Rocky examined by a veterinarian. He can be checked for other causes of itching and medication can be prescribed. There are many new medications for allergies available including Apoquel and Cytopoint. He may need antibiotics or a medicated shampoo if infection is present. I'd also recommend Rocky be on a quality flea and tick preventative like Advantix, Revolution, or Bravecto. You can also try using an oatmeal based shampoo to soothe Rocky's skin until he can get in to see the veterinarian. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I hope Rocky is feeling better soon!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
-
Published on November 7th, 2018
Thank you for submitting your question regarding Rocky. Yes, he needs to see his veterinarian regarding his hair loss and itching as it is not normal. He may need skin testing to rule out mites or ringworm. Allergies will likely be discussed as well. This could be an environmental allergy or to something in his diet. In this case, antibiotics are used to treat any secondary infection and a medication can be prescribed to stop the itching. This will allow the hair to regrow and make him more comfortable. If allergies are suspected, then options can be discussed for long term management. I hope this information helps!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
I have recently taken on an American Bulldog and Pit Bull mix and since I've gotten him I have noticed he has a few spots where he has been chewing/scratching at, most of the spots are close to his tail in the middle of his pelvis bones. I have used
Hi I have a 8 month old male French bulldog. He gets his flee and worm treatment once a month but is constantly itching himself. Is there anything I can do to help him with the itching problem? Thanks
Oakley has been itching and scratching. Took her to the vet. He found fleas and gave her an oral flea treatment. She wasn't chewing and now she is. I recently switched her food . Also I'm wondering if it's dry skin. What would be good to put on her?
My dog has been itching himself like crazy since August and at first, I thought he just had an allergy to ragweed. However, it’s now December and he’s still itching. I just noticed that he has now developed a small rash on his groin area with pimple
My rescuer keeps scratching and we bought flea and tick medication you put down the middle of her back. But it seems like it's getting worse. She's also timid and hard to walk , any suggestions
Lucky recently started scratching himself around his backside and tail area. He has allergies, but usually he doesn’t scratch himself on his backside it’s normally around his eyes. Is this scratching allergy related? Or is this an indication of flea
our dog keep on scratching him self we use flea and tick spray but still doing it
Hi,so my dog has been scratching for about a week now mostly and after a lot of questions and reading it may be fleas i used a flea comb, this is what came out. What could this be? He has a 1 inch diameter, 1/8" high bump on his inner thigh could thi
Just got my dog work out by our vet when noticing his signs of worms...he condition got better and now noticing his itching and scratching biting feet signs are coming back just after 3 weeks what possible actions to take as he already got wormed ou
Why does BoDuke scratch and chew on himself all the time
Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.
