Chiggers were a bug that we new we would get growing up. As kids in the Midwest playing in the yard was our form of entertainment every summer. We didn't come inside until it was dusk and you could hear someone's mother or father yelling down the street at the top of their lungs for you to come home.

All of our wrestling around in the yards left us with little red bite marks. They always were in a line where your waste band would be, or your sock line. These things would itch as if you had poison ivy. For those not aware of what a chigger is, here is a quick definition:

Chiggers are tiny, six-legged wingless organisms (larvae) that grow up to become a type of mite. Chiggers are found in tall grass and weeds. Their bite causes severe itching. They are also known as a harvest mite or red mite.

I am writing about them because Drover has them. We first noticed them in his crotch area and then in his armpits. So it was off to the vet today, and the solution for Drover is Benadryl 2 x a day, three months of Revolution and an antibiotic because the bites are infected.

Revolution seems to be the only flea and tick topical that also deals with chiggers. That's nice since the dogs are on Trifexis for their flea and heartworm and for their tick protection we are using Petarmor (a generic version of Frontline).  So now we have to wait a couple of weeks before we give him Revolution, it is for heartworm also and he just had his heartworm pill in his Trifexis.

Keep an eye out for itching dogs this summer. Due to the mild weather we had this winter, many nasty bugs along with allergens will be out in force this year.

3DT and an itchy Drover