My dog scratches, has bleeding sores. Is it a flea allergy?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

Considering the signs you described and the pics, this presentation is likely to be due to an allergy, although skin infections or mites could be responsible for it as well. First, to rule out skin parasites, I would recommend to ask your vet to prescribe a good quality flea treatment and perform some skin tests to rule out infections and mites. If all the tests are negative, allergies can be considered and treated.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are medications that can be used for scratching to reduce the urge to do it such as Apoquel or prednisone. This is only to help temporarily but it is important to address the possible allergy as well. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

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). 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. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Unfortunately she may have an environmental or food allergy involved here. I would recommend taking her to a vet to get the skin looked at. If it is bleeding chances are she needs a good antibiotic and an strong medicated anti-histamine +/- steroid combination to help control the itch. Then comes the fun part, trying to figure out what she has an allergy to? This can be discussed with your vet in detail based on what things have changed in the home (bedding, shampoo's etc) and possibly even starting her on a food trial to rule out food allergies (I like to use Royal canin hypoallergenic hydrolyzed protein or Hill's Z/D for dogs- prescription foods). Only prescription products have been shown to be consistently effective for treating dogs with food allergies. Some dogs even have dust mite allergies of grass allergies (which are proved with skin allergy testing).

Hello, thank you for using PetCoach. About 99/100 times if a dog comes to the vet clinic with something like this they also have fleas. If you don't have him on a good flea prevention then he is likely scratching this location due to fleas. I do think I see some "flea dirt" in the photo. I strongly recommend you get him to the vet for an exam. If he has fleas you need to get a good prescription flea prevention. Also, this type of lesion almost always needs oral antibiotics and some type of oral antiinflammatory to stop the itch cycle for it to heal. As long as he keeps scratching it, it will not heal no matter what you apply topically. If you choose to try and treat it yourself at home, you can use this hot spot spray gel 3- 4 times per day. ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/3-oz-3-fl-oz-hot-spot-antimicr-2877113 ) You will also need to get some dog boots to put on his back feet so if he tries to scratch the area it won't continue to traumatize the skin. ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/search?query=dog%20boots ) If you do this at home for about 5-7 days and there is no improvement or it looks worse at any time then he needs to see the vet. Hope this helps. Best wishes.