Effective Solutions for New Dog Owners: Red, Itchy Skin

Hello everyone, I'm an ordinary beginner pet owner!

Recently, with the humid weather, my Corgi's skin condition seemed to flare up. This might be due to the frequent rain, as well as the fact that I often take it out to play. At home, the dog started scratching its skin, and it wouldn't stop licking its mouth, rubbing against the sofa edges, and the legs of the table to relieve the itching. Initially, when I noticed it in the afternoon, I wasn't too concerned. But by bedtime, I found that the skin around the dog's mouth and armpits was red and slightly swollen.

Since it was late at night and不便以去医院， I quickly treated the dog at home with iodine tincture and erythromycin ointment. However, the next morning, I noticed no significant improvement, and the dog's scratching had become more frequent.

I shared photos of the dog in a pet group, and some members suggested it could be a fungal infection or mange. They advised me to deworm the dog, but others warned that Corgis shouldn't be given ivermectin, as skin diseases caused by mites are not easily treated. I used a Wood's lamp to examine the dog, and the light showed a purple color, ruling out fungal infection.

Ultimately, I took the dog to the vet for a checkup, and it turned out to be allergic dermatitis! Thankfully, I hadn't given it any random medications!

The vet prescribed a medication called Ake to relieve the itching, which worked wonders. After the dog took it, it stopped scratching on the way home. However, the medicine is quite expensive – a single pill costs 35 yuan, and I need to give half a pill daily (since my Corgi is still young, the dosage is smaller). I was only given one and a half pills, which would only last for three days.

On the fourth day, I noticed the dog was still scratching in the middle of the night. So, following a friend's recommendation, I bought a product called Newmore (chlorphenamine maleate tablets) for 68 yuan per box, containing 12 pills. I can give half a pill to one pill each time, and it also works very well for itching. Although the dog won't finish the whole box, as anyone who has owned a Corgi knows, their skin diseases have a high recurrence rate, so having it on standby is very useful~

For topical treatment: I apply iodine tincture to the swollen areas for disinfection every day, along with Fu'ant (zinc oxide ointment) to prevent infection. By the second day, the redness had significantly decreased, and I didn't even need to shave the dog.

ps: During the treatment, it's necessary to put an Elizabethan collar on the dog. While it can't prevent it from licking its mouth, it does help to stop it from licking the skin around the armpits.

By the seventh day, the dog's skin had mostly returned to normal, with just a hint of pink around the mouth, but it wouldn't lick anymore. The vet said that Corgi allergic dermatitis is prone to recurrence, so I plan to take it for an allergen screening at the vet's office later. I'll also try to keep it away from allergens as much as possible in the future.