We have an itchy dog. And I keep reading more and more posts about itchy Labs. This is our first Lab and my first dog as an adult that I am responsible for. As a child we had numerous dogs (of all shapes and sizes), always two or three at a time with replacements arriving as an older dog passed away. And only once did we experience an itchy dog, and that my mom says was because we all went away and she was anxious -- we came back to a dog with very little hair. A few months after we got back, her hair came back and she lived with a full coat of hair to the end (I must add that we had a friend who was a homeopath who prescribed some drops for her, so who knows if those worked or whether she was no longer anxious). Anyway... the point of my post is this: are dogs these days more itchy than their counterparts in the past? Or is that this forum attracts people who have dogs with problems looking for help. Those of you who have had Labs for many years, is this something you're seeing? I read somewhere that dog medical aids pay out mostly for itch-related problems more than anything else.
Check what household products you use, what you wash the dogs bedding in, scented candles, carpet freshener. All these often cause itchiness in dogs. ...
Yes, agree, all these things can cause irritation and itchiness. But my question was: are Labs more itchy now than in years gone by? I keep seeing so many forum posts about itchy Labs (some very seriously affected) and I was wondering if anyone is seeing a trend that, in recent years, more Labs are itchy than ever before.
There is more asthma in children, more cancer, more a lot of things. Since I used to have an itchy dog I've read about it a fair bit and found many who blame over vaccination and/or gut issues. Vaccination I can see as it's something Done to the dog but how to explain an surge in gut issues? Oban's itchies did seem to be gut related in hind site as now that we've fixed the gut the itchies are gone.
I suppose, if itchiness is heritable (and I understand it is), then the loss of genetic diversity in any pedigree breed closed register means that the answer to 'are Labs these days more prone to itchiness' must be yes. Particularly since there is no DNA test for 'itchiness' as hip/elbow dysplasia etc. (even then it's not clear how much these tests reduce the problem.....).
