Why is my dog itching, licking paws, and has red, dry skin near eyes?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Male | neutered | 37 lbs
My GSD pup Maddy is itching around his eyes and licking his paw. His hair is looking very dry and rough. Skin around his eye has became red and blood is about to come out. How can I stop him itching ?
2 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on January 20th, 2017
It sounds like Maddy may have allergies. I would have him seen by a vet immediately, as he could have scratched his eyeball while rubbing at his eyes. Scratching his eyeball can lead to infection and ulcer formation. Maddy needs his eyes examined to make sure that he hasn't scratched his eyes, and can diagnose if he has allergies and give him medication for it.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
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Published on October 8th, 2017
She might be suffering from either an eye infection or an allergic reaction, you should take Sky to the vet ASAP in order to get the eyes checked, she will need eye drops to stop the itchiness ans to treat the potential infection.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
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Why is my dogs skin red around his body (eyes, mouth, ears, legs, paws, etc.)
This is probably caused by an allergic reaction. first of all make sure you de-flea Kaden regularly every month with a high quality spot on (ex. Advantage) as fleas are by far the most common reason for these reactions. If the fleas are not the problem, it could be an allergic reaction to food or an environmental factor. this is more complicated to treat and will sometimes require medications such as Steroids, anti histamines or Apoquel in order to stop the allergy.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
red mess biting paws itchy looking coat
It looks like he could have allergies and a secondary bacterial infection. Since it is so red, he really should be treated by a vet. He may need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, and a corticosteroid to help treat the problem. You could also bathe him with a medicated dog shampoo and see if that helps. You could also soak his paw in a warm dilute Epsom salt solution. Hope he feels better soon!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My newly adopted shelter pit /2yo female/ got very red pows, that also look a bit swollen. She licks them. The white on her eyes turns red after running on grass. She eats sience diet dry food. Her skin is flaky but shiny.no hair loss. Just got neosp
This sounds like an environment or food allergy. The red is due to yeast proliferation from moistness in the hair. I would recommend a novel protein elimination diet for 40 days. Benadryl is a good anti-histamine but may not work as it only improves a certain type of allergy. Neosporin can be damaging to the kidneys so I would avoid using it. It also only contains antibiotics and so would not be helpful. Fish oils can also be very helpful at lowering inflammation in the body and improving skin and joint health.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My dog has been licking her tummy excessively, as well as chewing on her paws, and hips. She has irritated spots on her tummy that are bright red. No blood, or open wounds, but the skin is very red. She has the same thing beneath her paws. I put 50%
This is probably 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). 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.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Training & Behavior
My dog shake his head scratch his ear and then lick his paw Second problem is red patches on coat And third is baldness jn some area small spots of skin is visible
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 aga
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My dog has a rash around his mouth, nose and red eyes it seems to be itchy and when he scratches it he crys theres also little balls of dirt it looks like that keep appearing in these areas do youve any idea what this is??
This sounds like a skin infection, which may be complicated by mites or allergies. Given the discomfort you describe you should have him checked by your vet as he may need antinflammatories and antibiotics; skin scrapes or mite treatment may also be recommended in order to rule this out also
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
Can't figure out why his coat is so splochy. He has patches that are bald and he chews himself on occasion. What could be the issue? Also, he seems to have mildly bloodshot eyes. Could that be allergies? Thank you!
He could have allergies, skin infection, mites, flea allergy dermatitis, ringworm, etc. Have your vet examine him to determine the exact cause. Your vet can do a skin scrape, cytology, and/or culture to help diagnose and then prescribe medications to treat. He may need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, corticosteroid, or other medications depending on the cause.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My dog on his back paw between his toes is red with some brown spots on it. He at times tries to lick the paw or bite the nails
It looks as if your dog has a skin infection, most commonly caused by an allergy, a skin mite (Demodex) or fleas. The allergy could be a due to a protein in your dog’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. Skin infections are typically characterized by large areas of redness, crusting, flaking, and pustules. A thorough skin examination by your veterinarian should be able to determine the cause of the itch so it can be treated appropriately. Your dog will most likely need antibiotics to help clear up the infection and possibly an allergy/anti-itch medication like Apoquel, Atopica, or Cytopoint to give some relief while the infection clears up. A medicated shampoo may be beneficial as well. I would also recommend he be on a good flea control routinely too. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Boop by Petco. Best of luck.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My lab/retriever mix (Ellie Mae)has recently shown redness around the eyes, paws and side lips. She scratches a lot. I have given her 50mg of benedryl every 12 hours and it helps, but the redness keeps returning. She eats grain free Merrick cans and
Hello and good morning. Thank you for your question and for using Boop by Petco. If the redness and itching is happening seasonally, it may be an environmental allergy. If however it appears to be occurring year round, it may be a food allergy. I am happy to hear the Benadryl is working. Sometimes allergies can appear or get worse over time just like in people. If Ellie Mae is continuing to have this problem and her eye and paws are not getting better, you may consider visiting your veterinarian for allergy testing and/or Rx medication for her allergies. If a food allergy is suspected, often times dogs are allergic to a specific protein in their food and not necessarily the grains. Chicken and Beef are common proteins dogs can become highly allergic to. Hope this has helped!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My labs have red spots on their paws like nickel size spots. Could this be from excessive licking and/or food allergies. We got up to feed them this morning and this is when we noticed the red spots. The girl lab has them on her back side also
This does look like it could be from licking. Common reasons they will lick are allergies to food or something in the environment, infection with yeast, bacteria, mites, fleas, or even pain. You could bathe them with a hypoallergenic shampoo and place a cone on them so they are unable to lick and cause more trauma to the areas. I would also encourage you to take them to your veterinarian where they will most likely recommend a skin scraping. If there is an infection or a parasite there, they will treat that with the appropriate medication. If they determine that it could be from allergies, they'll talk to you about how to best figure out what they are allergic to and how to manage their allergy symptoms.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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