Why Does My Dog Itch, Bite Its Paws or Lick Its Skin?

Don’t worry if your dog is itching a lot – it doesn’t necessarily mean it has fleas. Still, check for fleas and make sure you regularly use a free treatment as a preventative. Generally, if you do both of these things, it’s pretty easy to rule out fleas as the cause of itching. It can be a little harder to figure out other reasons behind the scratching, but often the cause could be due to allergies or dry and sensitive skin.

Allergies

There are two types of common allergies for dogs – environmental and nutritional. If your dog is allergic to something it touches or eats, it can make their skin dry, tough, greasy, inflamed and sore. This can often lead to incessant itching, licking or chewing. Don’t forget that your dog can’t itch its own paws, so if it is constantly biting or licking them, there’s a good chance that they are very uncomfortable. Once you’ve visited the vet to confirm that it is, in fact, an allergy, and have received any necessary medications, you need to provide some much-needed relief to your best friend and their itchy skin.

The Right Dog Shampoo For Itchy Skin Can Help!

Wash your dog thoroughly from head to tail with a calming, gentle shampoo that you can rub right into the skin. We recommend Stella’s Blend No 2 or Charlie’s Blend No 3. Each has its own combination of calming ingredients, including a gentle goat milk formula, anti-inflammatory properties and nourishing oatmeal, to help ease irritations.

If you or your dog is coeliac, we have Hugo’s Blend No 1, which is oatmeal-free. Follow this up with the holy grail of skin-soothing treatments, our Coco’s Blend No 4 Rescue & Relief Spray, specially designed for dogs with problem skin. Be careful not to spray on any wounds or raw skin.

Dry Skin

Just like humans, a dog’s skin can dry out, especially in winter when the humidity is lower and there’s less moisture in the air. It’s pretty easy to recognise when your dog has dry skin – just keep a lookout for tough skin, dandruff, flakes or, in more extreme cases, cracks on your dog’s skin.

Dry skin may be caused by an allergy (see above) or it may just be because your dog’s skin isn’t getting enough moisture. Using a high-quality pet shampoo and conditioner containing goat milk is an excellent way to get that moisture back into your dog’s skin straight away.

Houndztooth – Pet Shampoo & Conditioner Your Dog Will Benefit From 

Many of our Houndztooth products contain goat milk, which is arguably the best skin moisturiser out there. Stella’s Blend No 2 and Charlie’s Blend No 3 also contain oatmeal, which has been used for hundreds of years on itchy and irritated skin.