Itching and biting

Question
I have a 6yr old male I adopted last year along with a 5 yr old female he was raised with. He came with a raised red rash that we treated and was fine last Aug. Now in May he has begun itching and biting his legs and rubbing his head til almost bleeding. No raised rash or anything we can see. We use an antibacterial shampoo from the vet and bathe him now 3x a week. He hasnt been better on benadryl or atarax but was 100% better on 1 week of prednisone only to resume the itching and biting 2 days off the prednisone. He has no fleas, uses frontline and interceptor and no new food. Any thoughts? He can be distracted for awhile. We do have a new baby in the house but he seems very attentive to the baby.

Answer
Hi Molly.  The steroids and anti-inflammatory agents in prednisone will relive itchy skin.  Because you write that the itching returned when taken off the prednisone causes me to belive that possibly something other than an allergy is the cause of the itching.  Did you have your vet check for mites?

All animals have mites (yes, even humans), but its not until they become overpopulated and cause symptoms that we become aware of them.  Mites are too tiny to see with the necked eye, and the only way to be sure is to have your vet do a skin scraping and examine the scraping under a microscope.  

Antibacterial soap and ointments are good to use to keep the irritated skin from becoming infected, but will not clear up the mite infestation.  If your vet does diagnose that your pet has mites, then you might be given a prescription dip to wash you dog with.  Most cases of mite overpopulation tend to go away in a few weeks.

Good luck, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have additional questions.  Sincerely, Penny D.