Itchy Skin

There are many conditions that can cause itchy skin, or pruritus, in animals. Some of the more common ones are listed below:

1. Allergies such as flea allergic dermatitis, inhalant allergies, food allergies and contact allergies.
2. Parasites such as mites (Sarcopties, Notoedries, and Demodex are the most common ones in this area), fleas, lice, ticks, etc.
3. Fungal infections such as ringworm.
4. Bacterial infections.
5. Immune-mediated diseases such as pemphigus.
6. Psychogenic dermatoses such as acral lick dermatitis (canine lick granuloma) in which a dog licks obsessively at a lower portion of a leg causing a thick plaque, and feline psychogenic alopecia resulting from anxiety or stress.

Many of these conditions can appear clinically similar. An accurate history (duration and course, seasonality, etc.) is important and diagnostic tests such as skin scrapings, fungal cultures, and even skin biopsies may be required. Trial therapies are also commonly utilized to reach a tentative diagnosis. The itchy animal can be a challenging case for veterinarians!