what's wrong with my saint bernard?

Question

my dog has scabs all over him ... it's not from flees and it's not from his food. Any ideas? He's always itching and scratching and biting til he bleeds and as it tries to heal a greenish-yellow ooze comes out of the wound. I feel so bad for him and we don't know what's going on!

It's so funny to think that most of you think we HAVEN'T taken him to the vet already. Ofcourse we have! We love our dogs very much and would never let them just be in pain or have something wrong with them. We have a 4th appt on Tuesday to see what else we can do for him. They've already tried to say it was fleas, then they said it was his food, then they said it was his Nuvet wafer he gets every day ... so now we're looking for something else that could be wrong. Just looking for some other ideas on what this could be so I can bring it up to the Vet ... thanks to those who have been polite about this.

No is hair is not falling out at all. I've already put some bacetracin on the larger spots ... It actually started out like flakes coming off him ... almost like scab like dandruff ... large whitish flakes ... now it's thick and black scabs on his back near his rear end, onto his tail, down his thighs, on the back of his head ... I mean we take excellent care of our dogs .. they get tons of exercise and eat very well and groomed properly ... we've really gone all out with both our saint bernard & our newfoundland ... our newfie has no problems at all whatsoever and she gets the same treatments/foods/etc that the st. does. I guess we'll just have to wait for the vet AGAIN ... thanks for all the advice.

Well thank you's to lilbit, dindy, doggies rule, manda panda, cherrydevil119 & trevorborden ... Our dog will be at the vet again this Tues ... in the mean time I'll do my best to keep him from itching and biting, the vet said do bacetracin until we see her again and maybe I can wrap them in guaze to cover them or let it air out?, I won't bathe him either until I know for sure if it's the puppy shampoo ... and as far as allergies go ... I hope the poor thing doesn't have them ... the pup is only 5 months old and weighs 83 lbs already! he's a moose! (our newfie is the same exact age and she weighs 55 lbs) - I just feel so bad for him and I wish there was more I could do for him until Tues. Ok I'm off thanks again to all!

nope ... no one in my house smokes at all ... and we have checked food labels. Because they are such big dogs, they need Large Breed Puppy Food. We don't just give them anything. We actually give them what the breeders gave them and all the other dogs ... our breeders have been doing their jobs for many many years so we've crossed the food thing off our list. Thank you though.

Answer 1

It may be what's reffered to as "hot spots". My lab used to get them all the time. It's like a rash, and like with us, rashes itch and hurt. So because the pup doesn't know any better it'll scratch that itch, usually until it's worse than before.
We were fortunate enough to catch Maggie's spots before they got out of hand. Take your St. Bernard to the vet and they will more than likely give you cream for it if it's what I'm thinking of.
Though he may be without some fur for a while ^^ as they need to cut the hair around the infected areas to get the cream on the skin. ^^
Also ask about food allergies. It could also be that. Dog's and all animals tend to show their allergic reactions differently than us humans. Maggie (when she eats any chicken) gets horribly wax filled ears, and since the hot spots stopped we're thinking it may have been related. Talk to your vet, they're your dog and yours best friend for information.
Good luck and I hope this helps.

Answer 2

Your pup could have some type of mange. Has your vet done a skin scraping to test for mange? Sometimes you can't find anything under the microscope but that doesn't mean it isn't there. If they've already done a skin scrape, they may need to do another. Of course,your other puppy would probably be having the same problems if it were mange. It's possible the newfie pup has a higher immunity to them.
It could also be allergies. Allergies can be regulated by a couple different methods. You can come in to the vet every few months for an injection to help with the inflammation. But there is a limit to the number of injections your dog can get per year (around 3-4 I think) and often the injections only last for a few weeks.
There are oral medications you can give. Sometimes they work well, sometimes not. It may come down to having an allergy test done to find out exactly what your dog is allergic to. You may have to switch to a prescription diet with a hypoallergenic formula.
It could also be a bacterial infection, like yeast.
That's all I can think of for now. Good luck at the vet's.

Answer 3

Maybe this will help, I would think your vet took a culture and looked at it under a microscope As well as taking blood and testing for the type of infection he could have which doesn't have to be a skin rash or infection, it could be an infection internally. a good example of a infection that is not a skin infection would be like shingles, the infection actually is with in the body and finds a weak or thin spot in the skin and comes out there, (the easiest point of travel) so you might want to try this (until your vet researches and comes up with the right antibiotic), is a burn cream with some kind of benzicaine, Novocaine or such just for comfort, alovera right from the plant and rubbed on the site f the wound and maybe even dressed might might give comfort? Some wounds are best to ooze and others are best to be covered I'm not sure with this one but I wouldn't think you want your dog licking and ingesting all the infection as well as getting it all over your best couch or bed. it's a catch 22 thing if you know what I mean the only real way to find out what this is for your vet to come up with the answer. Hope this helps for now. :)

Answer 4

Are there smokers in your home?? If so, it's possible that the pup is detoxing the smoke thru his skin. I'm a mobile groomer and a client of mine has an OLD pekenese who had a similar problem. Could get no relief no matter what. Once they installed air purifiers, the problem almost totally went away. Also, even if you've changed food, never ever ever feed anything with aritificial color or flavor or with corn as an ingredient. Over the past few years, many foods which do NOT contain these have come onto the market - thankfully! Read the labels before you buy anything.

Answer 5

Has he been on antibiotics. They also make anti-histamines for dogs if it's an allergy problem. It could be hot spots, but your vet would have realized that, and would have treated them. If it were fleas, it would probably be on his rear end area. And it would take treating him, your house and yard, along with antibiotics and an anti-inflammatory. And if it were food allergy, they would put you on a food that he's never eaten before. For example, the clinic I work at we use IVD brand...flavors venison and potato, rabbit and potato, duck and green pea, and one with whitefish, that I can never remember. Anyways. It's food that they have never eaten before. They CAN NOT have anything but this food. No treats No tablefood. NOTHING BUT THIS FOOD. That way you can rule out the fact that it is or isn't a food allergy. Talk to your vet, see what other options they can come up with. And if push comes to shove and can't get any resolution, get a second opinion, it can't hurt anything. And also, if you get no resolution, you can always allergy test...it's just that it may be somewhat expensive, depending on your vet and where you live.

Answer 6

Im very sorry about your dog. alot of people jump to conclusions on here before the know the whole situation happens with every question it can be very rude sometimes when you are in a panic not knowing what to do with your furfriend.

I dont know if vets do this or not or even if it can be done but its just a thought. Can they do allergey testing on dogs just like they do with humans ? Maybe then they can pin point what exactly your pet might be allergic to ? If they can and find nothing then you can rule out any it might be allergic to .

Have you switched shampoo's lately ? That might be a problem also I know when I did it with my dog she was digging and biting and tore up her whole back from it.

I hope you find out what is wrong with your pet very soon. Good Luck !!!

Answer 7

he probably has seasonal allergies which is very, VERY common with many dogs and cats this time of year. I actually saw 4 dogs and 1 cat today that had this problem. The vet can give you some meds for this. It will help within 24 hours usually.

Answer 8

I am sure that you are taking excellent care of your puppy. I love ST. Bernards!! Is it the shampoo that you are using? I hear that if you get itchy and flaky puppys they could have sensitive skin. Good luck! I'm sure you will find the answers you are looking for, and the little guy (if you can say that about a St.) will be fine in no time.

Answer 9

Well first he needs to go to the vet right away. He can have a number of things wrong with him. Take him to the vet and get him some relief, poor dog!!!

Answer 10

It sounds like he's a nervous dog with dry skin, and as long as you let him chew on himself, he will get worse.
I have a female lab who chews, and you have to make them stop either by buying a head cone, or just making him stop if you can.
Get him to the vet so he can order him some cortizone.