Hello I am new to this group. I've had three German Shephards without
any skin problems, but my new 5 month Maltese puppy is so itchy she
practically spends the whole day scratching, or nibbling on areas of
her body. The first sympton I noticed was that the tips of her ears
were stiff and gradually became cracked and scabby as she scratched her
ears more and more. Now she is so itchy to the point that she chews
off fur on her legs, stomache,tail,etc... I took her to a vet but he
just told me to bath her everyday with a shampoo he prescribed. I've
done this for almost a month now and the skin on her body improved a
little, but the ears are still cracked and scabby. Do any pet owners
here have experience with this kind of skin disease? Is there a name
for it and are there any medication or shots she's suppose to take.
The vet's diagnosis was that my puppy just has sensitive
skin.....Please help! Thank you all so much. Her ears look almost
disfigured!

Anxious

"blueboy77" wrote in message
oups.com...
my new 5 month Maltese puppy is so itchy she
practically spends the whole day scratching, or nibbling on areas of
her body. The first sympton I noticed was that the tips of her ears
were stiff and gradually became cracked and scabby as she scratched her
ears more and more. Now she is so itchy to the point that she chews
off fur on her legs, stomache,tail,etc I took her to a vet but he
just told me to bath her everyday with a shampoo he prescribed.

..........Find a vet who is a little more interested in nailing down a
diagnosis. Mites often hit the ears. Your dog needs a series of skin
scrapings, plus a fungal culture wouldn't hurt. No dog should be bathed
every day. You're stripping all the oil off the coat, making it drier and
drier.

.......Hope you can find a good vet. Skin things are annoying and sometimes
take a little work to nail down. Ask your new vet about Benedryl, which can
give your poor pup some relief until the problem is fixed.

buglady
take out the dog before replying