Skip to content

Scratching and Bare Skin

Basenji Health Issues & Questions
  • Medjai always scratches all the time. I don't give him any treatments for fleas or ticks, but I don't think he has any parasites, he just scratches a lot. My question regarding this is How would I know if he had a parasite causeing him to scratch?

    I have also realized that all four of his knees/elbows have lost of layers of dead skin and when I help with the flaking skin, he ends up having small bald patches and I wasn't sure if it's just part of him becoming an adult or if there is some other reason.

    Any Ideas?

  • Itchy, flaky skin is not normal. What are you feeding Medjai?

  • Right now, I just ran out of Royal Canin, so he's on Iams.

  • @etzbseder:

    Medjai always scratches all the time. I don't give him any treatments for fleas or ticks, but I don't think he has any parasites, he just scratches a lot. My question regarding this is How would I know if he had a parasite causeing him to scratch?

    I have also realized that all four of his knees/elbows have lost of layers of dead skin and when I help with the flaking skin, he ends up having small bald patches and I wasn't sure if it's just part of him becoming an adult or if there is some other reason.

    Any Ideas?

    You should take Medjai to the vet. They can take a do a scraping to determine if he has mites. Your description sounds exactly what Duke had last year - on his elbow, knees and ears and he scratched alot. It was a mange mite. If not treated, dogs can lose all their fur. They gave him a shot, Ivermectin. Is Medjai on heart worm prevention?

  • Yes I agree that you should take your B to the vet. It can also be severe allergies which my B had.

  • if you see baldness on pressure points on the legs and arms it is probably from sitting on a floor vs. a padded bed. When we adopted our rescue, she had lots of bald spots from her cage.

    You may also want to switch to a non soap dog shampoo to help with the skin.

    I have also found that fish oil on the food can help with flakey skin as well.

    A vet can steer you in the right direction.

  • A visit to the vet will be worthwhile. Skin problems can be difficult to resolve. My two actually have a dermatologist now that my vet referred me to to try to figure out why their skin isn't clearing up after two months of treatment. My regular vet did skin scrapings to check for things like mites (which they don't have). Mine are getting more skin scrapings next week to be cultured to see what exact bacteria is there and check for something like ringworm.

Suggested Topics

  • Dry skin and fur

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    13
    0 Votes
    13 Posts
    3k Views
    ZandeZ
    @prasadvaze The body odour would suggest to me there is something being ingested that his body doesn't approve of. I would change his diet to something grain free to start with and I would also talk to a vet who is experienced with Basenjis. Not just any vet. Find one who knows our breed and is prepared to research your problem relative to Basenjis
  • Flakey skin…

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    19
    0 Votes
    19 Posts
    8k Views
    M
    Hi All, Thought i'd give you a little update! My lil lady had her food changed from Eukanuba medium pup to Royal Canin Mini (she's a very small basenji and doubt she'll get bigger than 10k when fully grown so thought this one best) I also bought her a Pet Head shampoo 'Royal Treatment' with oatmeal and aloe. She loves her new food and never leaves a crumb now, has a bath once every two weeks (instead of every week) and has a treat of sardines or yogurt every couple of days. Her skin is much better, little flaking and her coat looks much better now. Thank you guys for all the advice!
  • Scratching and moisturizer

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    1k Views
    renaultf1R
    I use vitamin E oil as a topical when the kidz skin is truly itchy. It is super in the cold conditions. In fact, when using it on the kidz, my hands were immediately improved - so it was a win win.
  • Dry Skin?

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    33
    0 Votes
    33 Posts
    12k Views
    tanzaT
    @FortheLoveofStella: Stella has very short hair, and she is flaky a lot (in more ways than one!!) Do you need a prescription for the omega3 or fish oil? Or can you just the human equivalent at cvs? Human equivalent is fine to use
  • Pink skin

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    11
    0 Votes
    11 Posts
    5k Views
    MantisM
    watch your basenji at the vet. Caesar gets nervous and blushes. Belly, ears, nose turns pink.
  • Dry Skin!

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    2k Views
    jessi76J
    you could use olive oil, also fish oil works very well, and flaxseed oil is yet another. there are other supplements you could add for a better coat too, minerals and vitamins. I'm fond of sea meal - contains minerals, vitamins, amino acids, and flaxseed meal. you should find out if it's truly just dry skin though. sometimes it can be cleared up w/ just a change in food.