Why is my pet itchy?

Skin disease is a common problem in both dogs and cats.

The majority of cases of allergic skin disease will show up with your pet between the ages of 1-3 years.

In some cases, the cause of the itching may be easy to resolve. However, in other cases, lifelong treatment may be required.

There are many causes for your pet to be itchy, the main ones being:

-          Flea allergy dermatitis: your pet is not usually allergic to the actual flea, but to the proteins found in their saliva

-          Food allergy

-          Seasonal allergy (atopy): e.g. pollens (from grasses, plants, trees, weeds), dust mites, molds

-          Contact allergy

-          Skin infections: both bacterial and yeast skin infections

Symptoms often seen:

-          Itchy skin, scratching at ears, biting/licking at paws

-          Red inflamed skin

-          Runny nose/eyes, sneezing, wheezing

-          Vomiting, diarrhoea

Is the itching curable?

This will depend on what has caused your pet to be itchy in the first place.

If the underlying cause for the itching can be determined, and the correct treatment is implemented, then the itching may well be able to be resolved.

However, in some cases, life long treatment will be required.

Treatment options:

Medicated (topical) shampoo/conditioner bathing (dogs): Many medicated shampoos (contain antimicrobial and antifungal agents) are aimed at resolving the infection, soothing injured skin and calming inflammation.

Flea control: Strict flea control is important for pets with allergic skin disease.

Anti-inflammatory (anti-itch) medications: Treating your pet with anti-inflammatory medication (e.g. corticosteroids, antihistamines) can help block the allergic reaction you are seeing with your pet. There are also newer alternative medications available that help to block specific chemical signals associated with itch in dogs. These drugs include daily oral medications, such as oclacitinib (brand name: Apoquel®), and long-acting injections, such as Cytopoint®.

Antibiotics/antifungal medication: Antibiotics/antifungal medications are often required to treat secondary skin bacterial or yeast infections.

Hypoallergenic diets: Hydrolyzed protein diets are diets in which the protein source has been synthetically reduced to small fragments. The proteins in these foods should be small enough that the allergic dog’s immune system will not recognize the protein fragments and will not mount an immune response resulting in an allergy.

Desensitisation: Once the allergens for your dog have been identified through intradermal skin testing, immunotherapy specific for you dog is manufactured and treatment is commenced. This ‘vaccine’ is then administered to your dog on a monthly basis to help create immunotolerance.

 Created by Dr Tina Walder BSc. BVMS (Hamersley, Western Australia)