Question by ?emily?: My shih tzu has very dry skin on her back & butt, it looks like dandruff, what can I do to remedy this problem?
I JUST took her to the vet on Monday for an ear infection and they did a full check up and nothing was wrong with her.

Today I was brushing her and noticed that she still has dandruff flakes that come up when I brush her (had noticed this previously but I figured it was because it had been cold the week prior to noticing and we had the heat on).

She isn’t itchy, and she seems fine, but I don’t think it can be good that shes so flaky like this. She only gets it on her back (top part of her body) and her butt (right by the tail).

* We live in South Florida so I don’t think it’s a humidity problem.
* She eats EVO brand grain free dog food reduced fat. (my vet mentioned switching to just generic iams salmon and rice or iams potato and lamb – is that a good idea?)
* She is brushed once a week and bathed usually twice a month.
* She goes to the groomers every 2-3 months.
* She does apparently have a beef allergy, but she doesn’t eat anything beef related anymore.

Would getting a humidifier for our bedroom help?

Please don’t say take her to the vet, we were JUST there. It’s not a parasite or mange issue. It’s totally a topical problem and I’m wondering if there is a supplement or something I could be giving her to get rid of the dandruff, maybe even wash her in head and shoulders ? lol. Any help is appreciated!!!!
Oh I forgot to mention, when I bathe her I use SPA products. The shampoo and conditioner are both for dry skin and hydration, she always feels SO soft after I use them, but I don’t want to overbathe her bc that would dry her out right?
also forgot to mention her hair is kept in a “puppy cut” not the long flowy show coat – so the dandruff is even more obvious..

Best answer:

Answer by muahh..
use oatmeal shampoo for dogs….you can find them at petcos or petsmart

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Question by Arlene Indoccio: Is there some type of genetic skin issue with shih tzu’s?
I’ve had a shih tzu for three years. I purchased him in tennessee, and since he was a puppy, he has had EXTREMELY itchy skin. He scratches so often that he mats any piece of fur he can reach within twenty minutes of me brushing the previous knots out. I thought it was just him. I took him to the vet, who said it was just grass allergies. He gave me some pills and told me to keep him out of grass. My dog no longer goes outside and I gave him the pills anytime he started itching. He’s still insanely itchy. Now, for Christmas, my daughter got me a new shih tzu puppy. This one was purchased in Ohio. The car ride home from where she was purchased, the puppy started itching immediately. She’s non-stop itchy as well. Not quite as bad as my other shih tzu, but his itching wasn’t this severe as a puppy either. Is there something with shih tzu’s that cause them to be itchy? What could this be? The vet was obviously wrong, and what are the odds of two shih tzu’s from two different states that never came in contact with each other having the same itching problems? Also, it seems it’s mostly on their backs, close to their tails.

Best answer:

Answer by Rottiegirl!
I don’t know that much about Shih-Tzus, but he may be allergic to something in your house, car, or yard. You may want to try and get a second opinion from a vet and maybe even a daily medicine for your dogs. Good Luck, and I hope they stop itching!

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Question by kattiq: Shih Tzu has a nasty skin odor?
Okay so I have a 7 year old shih tzu that really can’t go more than two days without a bath before her skin starts to smell again. Our vet told us she is just allergic to multiple things so her skin will always be irritated. He also said her odor is caused by her saliva from her licking parts of her body–but even if you pet her on her back you still get the smell on your hands. He has given us some medicines to calm down the allergies but for some reason it does not help her skin odor. (This has only been happening since the beginning of the year)
Her skin sometimes has red spots and she is always licking and scratching most of the time in various places. She has a lot of flaky skin on and around her joints of her legs and some on her back.
I have tried bathing her with an oatmeal dog shampoo to see if that would sooth her itchiness and we also have some fungal shampoo but none of it seems to work.
We have however figured out that she is really allergic to chicken so we have removed that completely from her diet.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how we might be able to help her? I feel awful that she has to be in this misery.
Thanks in advance for your help!

Best answer:

Answer by Peggy
I suspect your dog has both a skin infection (with bacteria and possibly yeast) and allergies. Itchy skin is the hallmark of allergies in dogs. Malodorous skin is often a sign of a skin infection. Dogs can be allergic to many things.

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Question by ajt575s: Any suggestions? My shih tzu has allergies?
I have tried everything I can think of. The vet gives her allergy shots and they work, but says she can only have so many a year, and she’s used them up. The medicine he prescribed doesn’t work. Baby benadryl and sudafed don’t work. The vet prescribed a special shampoo, and that’s not working. I’ve also tried various itch sprays and creams, and they don’t work at all. We put some olive oil in her bath and that seemed to help for a while, but now that doesn’t help, either. She scratches herself constantly all day long, leaving raw or bloody patches on her skin. Do you have any suggestions that I haven’t tried?

Also–she’s on a special prescription dog food because she has kidney disease also, so I can’t change her diet very much.

Best answer:

Answer by mrs.jacob black
go back to the vet and tell them whats going on anad they should do something about it

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Question by Cassie: How do I help my 6 Year old Shih Tzu with very dry flaky skin, changing food?
We’ve taken him to the vet and were given a Special Shampoo…it helps for about a day then he begins scratching again. His skin becomes pink, raw, and smells. However, there isn’t any oozing or puss anywhere on him. He also has problems with “gunk” in his eyes and ears. I’ve tried researching and seen other people realized there dogs have food allergies. He is usually fed Kibbles and Bits or some other brand from Wal-mart. I’m very interested in changing Bandit’s food. Where can I get quality food and what should I use? There aren’t any pet supply stores here but there is a Rural King…

*We also have an 8 year old Female Shih Tzu who does not have these symptoms.

Best answer:

Answer by Pack Leader-RIP Joey, sorry MPGS
There are so many dog and cat foods on the market right now and most people are totally oblivious to healthy and unhealthy dog and cat food. I used to be, but after looking into dog and cat food and researching it I have completely changed my ways when it comes to dog and cat food. All of the food in Wal Mart and most foods from other stores such as Petsmart are unhealthy garbage. Why? Because they either carry:

“Artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives,” all of these can cause cancer and several other health problems. Cancer is the #1 killer of cats and dogs.

“By-products,” they are the junk in meat that are not approved for humans to eat. Road kill, cancerous, dead, and dying animals are allowed as well.

“Fillers,” are corn, wheat, and soy products that virtually don’t have any nutrition in them. They pass right through. Which also makes your dog have to eat more food to feel full.

Surely good dog and cat foods such as Science diet, Eukanuba, Iams, Pedigree, and Purina don’t have any of those and are great to feed my dogs and cats right? Wrong. These foods have most if not all of these terrible things.

Here are the first ten ingredients of three of the so called best foods, which make up most of what your dogs and cats eat and are the most important. The capitol words are the main
Things that are wrong with them.

Purina adult complete nutrition- WHOLE GRAIN CORN, POULTY BY-PRODUCT MEAL, ANIMAL FAT preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), CORN GLUTEN MEAL, MEAT AND BONE MEAL, brewers rice, soybean meal, barley, whole grain wheat, animal digest… (There is nothing good in that list at all)

Eukanuba-Chicken, CHICKEN BY-PRODUCTS MEAL, CORN MEAL, GROUND WHOLE GRAIN SORGUM, Ground Whole Grain Barley, Fish Meal (source of fish oil), Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Brewers Rice, Natural Chicken Flavor, Dried Beet Pulp (sugar removed)… (Most of what you see are either fillers or by-products)

Science Diet- GROUND WHOLE GRAIN CORN, CHICKEN BY-PRODUCT MEAL, Soybean Meal, ANIMAL FAT (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Soybean Oil, Chicken Liver Flavor, Flaxseed, Iodized Salt, vitamins (L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Vitamin E Supplement, … (first ingredient is a filler followed by by-products and more fillers)

Here is a list of both cat and dog well known foods and treats to stay away from-Fancy Feast, Alpo, Friskies,Mighty Dog, Dog Chow, Cat Chow, Puppy Chow, Kitten Chow, Beneful, Purina One, Purina ProPlan, DeliCat, HiPro, Kit’n’Kaboodle, Tender Vittles, Purina Veterinary Diets, MeowMix, Gravy Train, Kibbles ’n Bits, Wagwells, 9Lives, Cycle, Skippy, Nature’s Recipe, Milk Bone, Pup-Peroni, Snausages, Pounce, Pedigree, Waltham’s, Cesar, Sheba, Temptations, Goodlife Recipe, Sensible Choice, Excel, Hills Prescription Diets, Nature’s Best, Diamond, Ol’Roy, Iams, Nutro, Royal Canin.

Here are some foods that I recommend- Innova, California Natural, Evo, Blue Buffalo, Taste of the wild, Wellness, Merrick Before grains, Chicken soup for the cat lovers soul, Health Wise, Karma, Orijen. Plus there are many more great foods not listed. You have to look at the ingredients list of any food that you feed your dog. If it have any of the things listed as bad then immediately put it down.

To show what a good healthy dog food looks like, here is the ingredient list of Taste of the Wild High Prairie- Bison, venison, lamb meal, chicken meal, egg product, sweet potatoes, peas, potatoes, canola oil, roasted bison, roasted venison, natural flavor, tomato pomace, ocean fish meal, choline chloride, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Saccharomyces cerevesiae fermentation solubles, dried Aspergillus oryzae fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

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