0 Pooches: On Itchy Dogs

When we first adopted our pups, and we entered this 'hidden underworld',  we didn't realize that this would also enter us into the allergy and itchy skin discussion club. So many of our fellow pit bull-type dog friends suffer from itchy skin, and it seems to be one of the most questioned and discussed topics among owners.

Luckily for us, our pups' conditions have been minimal.
When I first adopted Miss M, she was always a bit itchy and I never realized how many things could be involved with food allergies. We realized that she doesn't do well with chicken and when we changed her diet it cleared up quite quickly.
Beyond that, we work to keep our pups' skin well-hydrated by incorporating fish oil into their meals and using a humidifier in our home. If we see any hot spots, we've been using virgin coconut oil topically which is a good moisturizer and is not harmful if ingested.

We have had limited experiences, though this is something we get asked about often. One of our dog friends even asked us the following question:

Have you ever done a post on the blog about sore paws and how to treat them? We are trying to help our pup because his paws are quite sore. He has allergies, and the vet likes to give him steroids, and antibiotics for infection. He took the meds in the summer, and I guess they helped some, yet now he has irritated paws. 

After reading on the internet about foot soaks in chamomile tea and Betadine, we are trying that, but we need to do more of it. I spray his feet with a tea tree oil/aloe/chamomile hot spot spray by Vet's Best that we got at Petco, and it helps. We would be grateful for any ideas you have about this.

We are definitely not experts, and we would love to hear your thoughts about helping your itchy pup, and if you do have any advice for sore paws.

Thoughts?

Also:
This was also something new to us too 
Extra winter precautions

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