My German Shepherd has atopic dermatitis. What's the best treatment?

It sounds like Tyson likely has an underlying condition that is causing his body to react and thus you are not seeing improvement in the skin. The four main things that will cause persistent skin issues are flea allergy, environmental allergy, food allergy and hypothyroidism. I recommend to start ruling each one out. German Shepherds are notoriously sensitive dogs and you can’t know which one is causing it without checking each one out. I recommend to rule out fleas first with an oral flea prevention like Nexgard or Simparica. Even just a few fleas can cause a big problem. Then food would likely be next. I recommend a specific diet called Ultamino. Environmental allergies are more difficult to rule out and thyroid problems would be uncommon (but not impossible) in a dog Tyson’s age. If your veterinarian is not good with skin conditions, find one who is. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

I am very sorry to hear about your pup's chronic issues. I think the major question we need to ask ourself is, "Why is this happening?" The main reasons for rashes and itching in dogs are flea allergies, food allergies, and atopic dermatitis. We always want to rule out the first two before considering the third, as it is much more difficult to deal with and assess. With that said, you should first make sure that you are using a good flea / tick preventative medication. Given the current skin issues, I would go with something oral or a collar in terms of formulation. If this helps clear things up, great new! In terms of food allergies, this requires a systematic and methodical approach in order to rule out one food type at a time. You will have to pick one protein to feed over the course of 6-8 week periods, and feed ONLY that protein. Any addition of anything else will throw off the food trial and would require it to start all over again. There are many different food out there to try, so food trials can often take a long time before ruling this out as the cause of discomfort. If we are convinced food isn't the cause, significant diagnostics and medical therapies will be required to address atopic dermatitis. Typically, itchy disease processes such as these are better dealt with when in conjunction with an anti itching medication. This can include something like a steroid, antihistamine, or preferably a drug called Apoquel. I understand you can not afford regular vet visits for constant dermatologic work-ups. However, it might really beneficial if you can get her in there just once to have a professional get a look at what is happening. They might be able to guide you in the right direction relatively inexpensively. You can also consider reposting on her with some photos of the lesions to better allow us to help you and your dog. Hope this helps.

Hi there! I'm so sorry to hear about Sarge's itchiness. Let me see if I can help. It is always important to get our pets in to see their veterinarian if they need medical attention, so when you are able to, I'd definitely set up an appointment. In the meantime, you can try to give Sarge some benadryl (diphenhydramine). Since Sarge is so big, I would start out by giving him 75mg up to every 8 hours. If this seems to help, great. If not, you may increase to give him as much as 100mg up to every 8 hours. In addition you may want to try an over the counter moisturizing shampoo, and also try an omega 3 fatty acid supplement in his food. The supplement may take up to 6 weeks to kick in, but at least you've started it! Hopefully this will provide him with some relief until you are able to get him in to see his veterinarian! I hope you find this answer helpful! Best of luck!

Hi. I believe this question was answered yesterday, but maybe not. The antibiotics will not cause kidney or liver damage. Some chronic allergy and skin cases do need off and on antibiotics. Allergies can be very difficult and sometimes never be 100%. We try, but don't always get there. If you are getting frustrated then a veterinary dermatology referral would be indicated

This looks very bad. If this is not clearing up with antibiotics it is probably something more serious like an autoimmune disease or something called German Shepherd pyoderma. I suggest you take Monsieur to a veterinary dermatologist for more comprehensive diagnostics and treatment. https://centredmv.com/en/ce-que-nous-faisons/dermatologie/

Atopic dermatitis is an inflammatory, chronic skin disease associated with allergies. These allergic reactions can be brought on by normally harmless substances like grass, mold spores, house dust mites, and other environmental allergens. A food allergy is not likely the cause. There are two types of testing available in the United States. I do not know what you have available for testing in India but I will go over the types we have. Serologic allergy testing is basically a blood test but it does not always have reliable results. The quality of this kind of testing often depends on the laboratory which analyzes the results. Intradermal testing, whereby small amounts of test allergens are injected in the skin and wheal (a red bump) response is measured, may also used to identify the cause of your pet's allergic reaction and is considered the gold standard for testing. So, if available I suggest you get the intradermal testing done. The treatment will depend on what is causing your pet’s allergic reaction. If the reaction is due to atopy, for example, hyposensitization therapy can be performed. Your veterinarian will give your pet injections of the allergens to which it is sensitive. This decreases itchiness in 60 to 80 percent of dogs, but may approximately take six months to a year to see an improvement. Medicines such as corticosteroids and antihistamines can also be given to control or reduce itching. Cyclosporine is effective in controlling itching associated with long-term skin allergies, while sprays can be used over large body surfaces to control itching with minimal side effects. If you want to feed a raw diet that is up to you but it is not likely to help with atopic dermatitis. I don't recommend a raw diet due to the potential for the dogs to contract diseases like E. coli and salmonella. It is better to cook the diet if you want to do a homemade diet. Hope this helps.

Instead of the neomac i would recommend a medication called Itraconazole that is taken orally for 3-4 weeks, it's more effective for this sort of problem. i would also recommend to treat possible skin mites which are often the primary cause.