Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
itchy dog... help!
my one dog has some serious skin issues. she does a lot of licking/chewing on the inside of her hind legs and her feet. when you pet her, there are a lot of places where her skin does that twitching thing and it'll trigger her leg to go. she gets a lot of yeast in her ears. and her skin is pretty dry and flaky.
we've taken trips to the vet in the past. the most recent trip (about 3 weeks ago) we went because her skin was very red and inflamed, basically from her shoulder blades to the base of her tail. she got a steroid shot and things were great for the last few weeks. yesterday I noticed her starting to scratch/chew/lick again and her ears are bothering her. I know the steroid shot would eventually wear off.
both of my dogs were on Innova. about a month ago we switched to Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream Canine formula, hoping that going completely grain-free would help if she indeed has a food allergy. she's an inside dog, so very little outside should contribute to her issue. and I can't think of anything else that would cause the problem.
how long does it typically take to see a change once you modify diet? any other ideas/suggestions? she's 10 years old, we think a husky/shiba inu mix. I feel so bad for her... I can only imagine how annoying it would be to be constantly itchy. 
Re: itchy dog... help!
Do you use any air fresheners/sprays? Like Lysol, glade, air-wick, or febreeze? Sometimes these aggravate the dogs skin and allergies. Usually I'm a big advocate for these to make your house smell better, but not if it makes the pets itchy!
I can't use febreeze, because it makes Dakota sneeze and she scratches for a bit - might be worth looking into. It won't cure the problem and probably isn't a main cause by any means, but might give a little bit of relief.
Hmm... she might have an underlying skin infection. I'd do a scraping and antibiotics to be sure.
But if it is allergies and you are doing a true food test it will take weeks to see results. You'll need to start off with something like one protein and one starch (venison & sweet potato for example) and feed her NOTHING else for 6-8 weeks. No table scraps, no treats, no bones.
Sometimes people claim they see results in 2 weeks but I don't truly believe that.
Honestly, I'd ask your vet for the scraping and an antihistamine. There are some over the counter you can give your dog (benedryl/zyrtec) but check with your vet for dosage. If it keeps up and the antihistamine/antibiotics combo doesn't seem to help I'd ask for a dermatologist recommendation.
A doggie dermatologist can do more in depth testing, maybe suggest a food trial, or something else.
Good luck!
-- Thoughts become things, choose the good ones! --
Our first corgi had horrible skin allergies. You are already feeding good food-yay!
You might also look into a medicated shampoo. We found good luck with a product made my Virbac. It was called Calming Cream and was a scary bright blue color. You had to make them sit with it on for a few minutes, but it really seemed to help.
We tried this route before the full course of steroids, but after she had built up a tollerance to OTC allergy meds, just to give you some perspective.
One other thought this time of year--is it possible road/sidewalk salt is getting on her paws? I know there are kinds with additional chemicals that can hurt their skin. If it is possible, you might try cleaning her paws with a damp washcloth or fragarance free baby wipe when she comes inside.
Hope that helps, I know how frustrating allergies can be!