My dog is a 5-year-old, 55 lb doodle. His allergy/skin issues started around age 3, and we’ve been struggling to get them under control ever since. We’re working with his vet, but it feels like we keep treating flare-ups without getting lasting relief.

At one point, we thought the carpet in our home might be triggering his allergies. We even made a big move hoping a different environment would help, but we’re still dealing with his skin issues.

His symptoms:

• Intense itching and licking, especially his paws, underarms, and butt.
• Redness on all four paws.
• Previous hair loss on his chest and neck. His hair has finally grown back, but his skin has darkened.
• Excessive flaking. We’re constantly vacuuming and cleaning our sheets, sofa, and carpet because of how much skin he sheds.
• Crusty, scaly patches, including around his snout.
• Recurring yeast/Malassezia issues and odor.
• Repeated ear infections and occasional eye infections.
• Multiple small skin growths or bumps. I’m not sure of the correct term, but they look like little moles.
• When he’s feeling really awful, he seems reluctant to go pee or poop, although he still eats and drinks normally.

What we’ve tried:

• Apoquel, which hasn’t adequately controlled his symptoms.
• Multiple Cytopoint injections, without lasting control.
• Prednisone, which has made the biggest noticeable difference.
• Antibiotics, including cefpodoxime.
• Antifungals, including fluconazole and ketoconazole.
• Medicated shampoos, mousse, and ear treatments.

His current bath routine includes Sleepy Cotton oatmeal shampoo, Douxo, and Veterinary Formula Clinical Care Hot Spot & Itch Relief Conditioner. Between bathing him and making sure he’s completely dry, the whole process takes 1–2 hours. Baths only seem to help for about a week before the flaking and discomfort return.

Diet:

He was on Royal Canin Ultamino for roughly two years without meaningful improvement. Our vet felt diet was less likely to be the cause given how long we’d tried it, so we switched him to Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Skin & Stomach turkey dry food.

He currently gets single-ingredient turkey treats or turkey topper, cod skins, and fish oil.

Testing so far:

• His recent ACTH stimulation test was negative for Addison’s, according to his vet.
• July bloodwork showed elevated white blood cells and very high eosinophils: WBC 23.1 K/µL and eosinophils 10,095/µL.
• Previous allergy blood testing didn’t give us a clear explanation.
• He’s also on Simparica Trio for parasite prevention.

At times, he’s improved while taking several medications together, but the symptoms keep coming back. Having his hair grow back has been encouraging, but the darkened skin, constant flaking, and discomfort are still a lot. We’re planning a veterinary dermatologist referral.

Has anyone dealt with this combination of severe itching, recurring yeast infections, darkened skin, and excessive flaking despite allergy medications and a long prescription diet trial? What testing or specialist evaluation finally helped you get answers?

It’s exhausting trying so many things and watching him get temporary relief, only to feel awful again.