Dog Community

Itchy and Restless

Posted : 4/9/2006 11:59:45 AM

Hi, Need feedback... Yesterday morning my Tzu started itching like crazy for no apparent reason at all. I noticed that he had hives and gave him Benedryl and bathed him with Episoothe oatmeal shampoo. This provided some temporary relief so I thought that the worst was behind me. Last night, he was a mess. He licked and itched and would not let me put him down for the entire night. He was so uncomfortable. I noticed that his skin was red under his fur and his belly was red also. I kept him cool and gave him a little more benedryl which helped him to rest but he was still jumpy and uncomfortable. This morning he seems better but I still see some patches of redness here and there. He has been sleeping for most of the day with an occasional itch. Seems that whatever it was that was bothering him has made its way out of his system for the most part... his breathing was fine the entire time. He just itched and licked uncontrollabely and flopped from one side to the other all night long. Neither of us slept at all last night and I was so worried about him....

I have seen him get like this one time before when he got a hold of pressed rawhide as a pup but since then, he has been on a raw diet with only organic treats and whole grains. I cannot figure out what would have made him get like this... he ate nothing unusual. can anyone offer me help for immediate relief if something like this happens to him again in the future? I hate to see him so uncomfortable. Has anyone else ever experienced something like this? I am wondering if he possibly got something on his paws and licked them and ingested something from outside. I am totally perplexed.

Thanks,
Joy

cakana

Posted : 4/9/2006 12:17:15 PM

It may be possible that he picked up something from being outside or depending on where you live, it could just be inhalant allergies that are bad right now (in some places). If there was no change to his food, then I would doubt it was food related. It sounds like you handled it perfectly by using the Benadryl and a bath. If it happens again, I would do the exact same thing. If it starts happening all the time or gets worse, I'd visit the vet.

dyan

Posted : 4/9/2006 12:19:19 PM

Your sure he didn't get anything new to eat or play with?
Had he been to the vet and gotten any shots or medications? Perhaps heartworm pill? anything like that?
Had you just cleaned your floors with anything new? Put down carpet fresh powder that they sell? How about outside, fertilizer or weed killer? Could be any of those things.. right now many of us are mentioning the season Spring, when new things are growing and all, could be even that. But at least he seems to be feeling better, and isn't it great that you had Benedryl!!!

joycaseytzu

Posted : 4/9/2006 12:50:16 PM

It was fertilizer! The lawn guy came on Friday and my boy must have gotten it on his paws and licked it. Jeez! What a bad mom I am!! Thanks for making me aware of it. Now, does anyone know how long I should be keeping him off of the grass? It rained all day yesterday and is sunny here today. I will wash his feet and belly again today just to be safe. He is doing much better now.

dyan

Posted : 4/9/2006 4:33:10 PM

I'm sure he will be fine now.
I live in an association development where they do all the fertilizing and pesticides, so every time I see them putting anything on the lawn I go and ask them what exactly it is (in case there is a problem with anything) and how long before I can let my dog on it. They always say a couple of hours. I'm sure it would be safe after a lot of rain also..so you should be fine.

jennie_c_d

Posted : 4/9/2006 5:15:57 PM

Poor guy! I'm so glad he's feeling better. My Emma has the tendency to break out like that, and I always drive myself crazy figuring out what caused it. I'm glad you've got it figured out and he won't have to deal with that particular allergen again.

joycaseytzu

Posted : 4/9/2006 5:28:06 PM

I found out exactly what was in the fertilizer and it should not be harmful to pets. My guy must be extremely sensitive. He is still not right.... I gave him Benedryl at 8:30 this morning and he went most of the day with an itch here and there. Now, at dinner time, he is jumpy, itchy and restless so I just gave him another dose. The benedryl is definately helping him but once it wears off, he is itchy again but no hives have come back. How much longer would you give him benedryl? It seems a bit excessive to me since I have never medicated this dog. do you think that I should take him to the vet? The vet worries me since they will probably want to shoot him up with some kind of steroid. yikes! Any opinions to ease my restless mind that I am doing the right thing??

jennie_c_d

Posted : 4/9/2006 5:40:40 PM

I would just keep giving him benedryll til he calms down. I wouldn't want to have a steroid shot, either (which is what they'll most likely do).

cakana

Posted : 4/9/2006 5:57:42 PM

I agree with Jennie and don't worry about using the Benadryl. It's quite safe. I've been giving it to my allergy lab for many months at a time. You probably know this, but you can give it 3 times a day, if necessary.

joycaseytzu

Posted : 4/9/2006 6:14:59 PM

thanks guys! I did not know that I could give it 3x daily. That is good to know. I have been giving him 1/2 of a 25mg tab 2x daily. I think that I will give him another half if he wakes me up again tonite. Does 1/2 tablet sound right to you for a 13.5lb dog? I could not find my dosage info last night either for him so I kind of winged it but if my memory is correct, it was a 1/2 tab.

cakana

Posted : 4/9/2006 6:37:58 PM

I think 1/2 tab sounds just fine. It sounds like it worked, so that's a good indication. If it were reeealllllyyyy bad or if it were a reaction to an insect bite, I'd go ahead and give a whole tab though.

Pam

Posted : 4/10/2006 3:25:13 PM

To me this is a case of poisoning. I would have given 1 pill of NUX VOMICA homeopathic remedy and still would to get out the poision. There are other remedies for posioning too.

cakana

Posted : 4/10/2006 3:49:41 PM

Pam - wouldn't you think that by the time it's causing a reaction such as itching or such, it's too late to induce vomiting? I would just think that'd make the dog all the more miserable and probably not help with the itchies. Maybe that's because I personally would rather anything than throw up (can't even stand to use the "v" word) [

]

Pam

Posted : 4/10/2006 4:00:23 PM

It doesn't make you throwup/vomit. It helps your body expell the toxins, I guess thru the digestive track. My dogs never even got diaheerra from it. It helped my husband get over food posioning. I always give it after a vaccine. It pulled my cat out of major downhill slide from dying from old age related stuff (his eye shut and pus was coming out). I gave it after my dog ate a plastic toy I thought would block her stomach. It is GREAT and she can give with the bendryl.

cakana

Posted : 4/10/2006 4:23:28 PM

NUX VOMICA

Ohhhhh, well see I just see something like the "v" word and my tummy was jumpy [

]. Sounds like good stuff to have around. Do you buy it at the healthfood store?