My dog has black, thick skin & chews raw. Could it be allergies?

Without seeing it in person, it is difficult to say for sure but it looks like a skin infection with yeast and possibly bacteria. This is usually secondary to allergies. It could be something in your house or environment, but it is usually really hard to narrow down the cause. I would certainly have your vet take a look at it. Your vet make want to put her on antifungal meds and antibiotics plus something for allergies. You could try Benadryl twice a day but it may not be strong enough. I hope this helps and she starts to feel better soon. https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/benadryl/

She could have a skin infection, mites, fleas, ringworm, allergic dermatitis, etc. Your vet can do a skin scrape, cytology, or culture to help diagnose and then prescribe medications to treat the problem. She may need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, corticosteroid, or other medications depending on the cause. Make sure to treat her with a monthly flea medication like NexGard, Frontline, Advantage, or Revolution to prevent fleas.

Poor girl. This looks highly suspicious for a mite issue (Demodexx). This could also just be a really bad allergy. I would highly recommend taking Beretta to your vet to have her skin tested. The vet needs to do a skin scrape to confirm if this is a mite problem first. If so, then you do have some reasonable options for treatment. Treatment for mites nowadays can come in the form of a flea preventative such as Simparica, Nexgard, or Bravecto. These all treat for demodexx mites given once every 30 days. These are prescriptoin only medications. It also looks like Beretta has a secondary bacterial infection on her skin. You will need to have your vet put her on a short course of antibiotics to clear this up. Until you can get her seen, it is best to get her started on a good topical shampoo. My top pick here for something that doesn't require a prescription is Duoxo calm shampoo available online. Also daily pet fish oils are best for pets with skin allergies since they are a natural anti-inflammatory. Visit your local pet store to see what options you have since all of them are equally effective in pets. I hope that Beretta's skin improves soon! Best of luck moving forward. Take care.

This is probably due to a severe allergy, although it could also be fleas or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat him with a high quality flea treatment (e.g. advocate or advantage), then get him to the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might revile an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try discovering the cause of the allergy. Some medications can be given by the vet in order to stop the chewing and repair the skin lesions (steroids and antibiotics). simultaneously you should start him on a prescription hypoallergenic diet for at least 2 months. Hopefully you will see some results after all this, if not you and your vet should consider putting him on a long term allergy treatment (Atopica or Apoquel).

All of the symptoms you describe are common in cases of allergies. Ongoing medications are recommended for dogs which have recurrent symptoms to prevent skin thickening, secondary infections and scarring.

The black coloring is a pigment that the skin produces when it is chronically inflamed. Most often the skin gets like this when there is an untreated bacterial or yeast infection of the skin. I suggest you try wiping the area 2-3 times per day with these medicated pads. If no improvement after a week or so, then get her back to the vet as they may have to do some testing of the skin. ( https://www.allivet.com/p-8167-vetraseb-ck-antiseptic-wipes-ps-for-dogs-and-cats-60-wipes.aspx ) If she is licking the area you will need to get her a cone collar to stop that. No matter what you do to treat the area it will not get better if she continues to lick it. ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/category/dog/dog-health-and-wellness/dog-ecollars?ddkey=https%3ASearchDisplay ) Hope this helps. Best wishes.

I hate to hear this is happening to Halo. In general, those spots on Halo could be several things including allergies to fleas, allergies to something in the environment, food allergy or endocrine disease. Each one of these problems is detected and addressed differently and I recommend to discuss with your veterinarian which one to start hunting down first. Parasites are often ruled out with an oral medication like Simparica. Food allergy is best ruled out with a diet trial using a hydrolyzed protein. Endocrine diseases are detected with blood work. Environmental allergies are a little more difficult to detect but a response to therapy or a blood test can give an indication. Once you figure out and address the underlying cause, the lesions should not come back. There are a couple things you can do at home and they can help but they may not address the underlying cause. You can try adding in an omega 3 fatty acid supplement for dogs, this can help improve the skin health. You may also try changing his diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. Also protect the area from trauma by having Halo wear an elizabethan collar at all times. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.