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My German Shepherd is biting her hair out. What are the causes?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Female | unspayed

I have a female German Shepard and she’s biting out her hair in some spots. I’ve treated her for flees and dry skin

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on October 20th, 2017

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. What you are describing could be due to allergies, skin infection or stress related changes. I would recommend using a shampoo such as Douxo PS chlorhexidine combination shampoo and bathe twice weekly. I would also recommend using essential 6 spot on by dermoscent, which can be found online easily. Benadryl can be used in cases like this to help relieve itching and the most commonly used dose that most veterinarians will recommend is 1 mg per 1 pound of body weight every 12 hours. If the symptoms persist and worsen I would suggest having your veterinarian examined foxy so that additional testing can be performed and the most appropriate treatment can be recommended. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions or concerns. I'm also available via consultation if needed

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Alysia Van Scoy, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    Skin problems in dogs are usually related to allergies. Humans display allergies in our eyes and noses, but dogs do so in their skin. The top allergies are flea, food and inhalant. Flea allergies typically cause hair loss and itchiness on the back 1/3 of the dog especially around the tail. Food can cause ear problems and general skin issues. Inhalant tend to be on the legs, arm pits, the abdomen and sometimes ears. When a dog has allergies, the skin isn't as healthy so it can't fight off the normally occurring yeast and bacteria on the skin, so they tend to get secondary bacterial or yeast infections as it goes on. Inhalant allergies tend to start from 3-5 years of age and tend to get worse... I recommend taking Foxy to a veterinary and get a thorough exam. They will most likely do some diagnostics like a skin scrape (for mites) and a fungal culture. After they do that, they will discuss a treatment plan with you. Please have patience, there is not one plan that works for all allergy dogs. It is sometimes trial and error to find what works.... Kind of like it is for human allergies. :- ) Allergies can not be cured, only controlled. Communication is very important with your veterinarian to let them know what works and what doesn't. Good luck getting Foxy feeling better! Thanks for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

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