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My 10-month-old lab/Aussie Shepherd developed an angry rash in his groin area -- small, red pimple-like blisters that would pop and scab over. The vet gave me antibiotics to give him twice a day, which he took well and they cleared it up completely within about two weeks. He still licks/bites the area around his groin, though, and he's licked the hair around his privates completely off. I catch him licking his groin at least a few times each day.
On top of that, he scratches/bites himself a lot -- scratching the area on his ears, and biting the area where his tail meets his back. The vet gave me some antibacterial shampoo to scrub him with, a lot -- twice the first two weeks, once/week for two more weeks. I thought this sounded like lots of bathing for a dog; I thought dogs were supposed to get bathed once every eight weeks or less. He's starting to hate when I turn on the shower each morning!
My vet is on vacation and I plan on bringing this up to him when he returns, but I wanted to ask here, in case anyone has had experience with something similar. I'm wondering if another food switch might be in order, but my vet doesn't seem to have too many opinions on food. My dog is also a fearful dog with human strangers; is it possible that this is a nervous habit?
I'm feeding him Nature's Variety Prairie kibble only. He also gets a handful of treats through the day, when I'm training him -- usually Zuke's bites, Mother Hubbard P-Nuttier biscuits, or freeze-dried chicken. I also give him a small piece of liverwurst stuffed in the Kong when I leave for work each day.
On top of that, he scratches/bites himself a lot -- scratching the area on his ears, and biting the area where his tail meets his back. The vet gave me some antibacterial shampoo to scrub him with, a lot -- twice the first two weeks, once/week for two more weeks. I thought this sounded like lots of bathing for a dog; I thought dogs were supposed to get bathed once every eight weeks or less. He's starting to hate when I turn on the shower each morning!
My vet is on vacation and I plan on bringing this up to him when he returns, but I wanted to ask here, in case anyone has had experience with something similar. I'm wondering if another food switch might be in order, but my vet doesn't seem to have too many opinions on food. My dog is also a fearful dog with human strangers; is it possible that this is a nervous habit?
I'm feeding him Nature's Variety Prairie kibble only. He also gets a handful of treats through the day, when I'm training him -- usually Zuke's bites, Mother Hubbard P-Nuttier biscuits, or freeze-dried chicken. I also give him a small piece of liverwurst stuffed in the Kong when I leave for work each day.