Bloody fleas!!

[doglover33]

Hi, I need some help my dog hes a gsd x, has been scratching for some time now to the point where hes got no hair on his back.
I have frontlined him and my cats(cats are fine,no problem) but my poor dog is still scratching like mad.
I have also changed his food to sensitive pro plus I put cream on his back and also sometimes tea tree and I give him conditioning tablets..but still no luck - hes due to see the vet next week..but the stratching is driving him and me nuts!!. Any ideas??

Really you need to see the vet there are a whole host of things it could be.

Have you actually found any fleas on him? Check the base of his tail for actual jumpers and check his coat for flea poo. If you find small black lumps drop a couple on wet tissue if it turns red yes he has fleas. If not fleas With the scratching it could be dry winter skin causing dandruff, mites or lots of other things. last week I had to rush my boy to the vet and he was scratching, biting himself and he had a few black crusty scabs. Turns out it was a bacterial skin infection, probably picked up from dirty water or wet grass according to our vet. How long has he been scratching to be bald poor boy?

Hi thanks for the reply....I did see a few fleas on him, I don't think it is fleas think they were part of the problem but think it must be something else to as he STILL hasn't stopped scratching and hes started on his legs now.
Im guilty of thinking it would go away with cream and flea drops as I thought it was fleas but think he is getting worse. Hes got the vets next week and hopefully it wont turn out to be anything awful.

If he has couple of fleas then he might have a flea bite allergy. So you've treated the flea problem but It only takes one bite to bring up this allergic reaction. Can you get him a cone collar until you go to the vets just to stop the scratching? That's what I thought my boy had as I couldn't find any actual fleas on him but he was scratching so badly. If it's an infection or an allergy the vet gave mine a shot of steroids to bring down the soreness and ten days antibiotics. We are 5 days in and he is back to his old self. What flea treatment are you using as I used bob martin and my vet told me that doesn't actually work very effectively anymore. Now I've got him on advocate which is much more expensive but she says is much better.

hi, the cone is a good idea but thinking maybe it might stress him out if he cant itch.
I use frontline as I heard the same thing about bob martin its just like water..still wonder why they sell it. I hope its nothing serious and your right it is just a allergic reaction(fingers crossed). His appointment is on Thursday.
He seems a bit calmer today and he seems to ease on the night time cause he will lie next to my bed and I stroke him, till he drops off(mad,i know) feel so sorry for him :-(

Hey hope he's feeling better. My thinking behind the cone collar was its like having chickenpox. The more you scratch the more it itches... Of course mine was biting more than scratching so I don't know if it would work for you. Or maybe some socks so he can still scratch but no nails???

Frontline is an old, slow treatment. If he's developed an allergy to flea bites and it takes 24-48 hrs to kill every flea that jumps on to him you'll not break the cycle. Ask the vet about swapping to either advantage or advocate. Have you treated the environment? >90% of a flea problem is the eggs, larvae and pupae in the environment.
Any skin problem where there has been a flea issue is flea related until rigorous flea treatment proves otherwise, but he may well need steroids and antibiotics to deal with the itch and any secondary infection.