Brewer’s Yeast Flea Combs
Some people feed their pets brewerâs yeast in the hopes that the smell will ward off fleas. But there is no science to support this. One âgreenâ strategy that does work: the flea comb. Flea combs are completely nontoxic and offer a way to remove fleas from pets that canât take medication.
Can Black Spots On Dogs Skin Be A Sign Of Cancer
A black spot on a dogs skin can be an indication of skin cancer called dermal malignant melanoma.
The black spots associated with this condition appear like dark pigmentation and raised mass on dogs skin, particularly on parts where the hair is thin. These parts include the face, areas around the genitals, and the dogs belly.
Causes of this involve genetics, too much sun exposure, chemical exposure, and hormonal abnormalities.
Dermal malignant melanoma has the potential to grow and metastasize in other parts of the body.
That said, its recommended to immediately call your vet if you notice any bumps on your dogs body that resembles a melanoma.
Rashes And Hives Can Cause Dog Hair Loss
Insect bites and stings, plants, chemicals, shampoos, and medications can cause rashes. They can also cause hives on the dog’s body and then lead to alopecia in dogs.
These can also include allergic rashes, which are separate from allergies. Allergic rashes and hives typically appear within hours.
Sometimes minutes of exposure, while other symptoms may arise, include listlessness, fever, and vomiting.
The allergic rash or hive-site in dogs often goes bald, causing the hair to fall out.
Allergic rashes and hives require further treatment than simply removal of the allergens. This is often a reaction requiring immediate treatment from the vet to prevent a more substantial, full-body condition.
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Dog Hair Loss: 5 Reasons Why It Happens And What To Do
It is not uncommon for a dog to suffer from alopecia, dog hair loss. Or hair thinning and loss. This condition is separate from the natural act of shedding fur.
Shedding is when dogs naturally lose their old or damaged hair, with the amount and frequency depending on health and breed.
Alopecia in dogs, or hair loss, is a common disorder that causes partial or complete dog hair loss.
It can affect your pet’s skin and its endocrine system, lymphatic system, and immune system. Alopecia can affect dogs of all ages, breeds, and gender.
For the most part, dog hair loss will be very noticeable to owners, showing up in different patterns and shapes.
It can be sporadic or symmetrical hair loss or maybe shown as bald circles. Both can be accompanied by crusting and inflammation of the dog’s skin.
In sporadic cases, the dog may have scaling of the skin too.
Are Crusty Scabs More Likely To Appear In Specific Breeds/ages/sizes
While crusty scabs can appear on any dog, there are some breeds/ages and sizes that will find it harder to recover from crusty scabs. Crusty scabs have all kinds of causes, so they cant be attributed to a specific type of dog, but if you have a pet that has long floppy ears, excess skin, or extra weight, you may find that their scabs take longer to heal. Likewise, an older dog may find it harder to recover from crusty scabs because theyre less hydrated and have coarser skin from old age.
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Why Is My Dog Getting Black Spots On Her Belly
There are several reasons why your dog is getting black spots on the belly. Primary hyperpigmentation is one cause. Its a harmless skin condition only affecting the Dachshund breed.
Other causes of black spots on your dogs belly are yeast infections and melanoma. If youre concerned about your dog possibly having these health issues, its best to consult with your vet.
Signs Of Skin Diseases In Dogs
In addition to all of that scratching and licking, dogs with a skin issue may also paw or chew at the affected area. Other signs can include:
- Swelling or lumps
The signs may vary depending on the type of disease or infection thats causing the problem. Different skin issues can also have similar symptoms, which is why its so important to visit your veterinarian to get an accurate diagnosis and make sure your dog gets the right kind of care.
By the way, if youre ever in need of a veterinarian, you can use our Vet Finder. Remember, you can use any licensed veterinarian in the US or Canada with our plans, and this online search tool can help you locate one in your area. Its especially useful if something happens to your dog while youre traveling or if you need a specialist, like a dermatologist, and arent sure where to start.
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Black Spots On Dogs Skin Wrap Up
A new black spot on your dogs skin can be concerning. By monitoring any changes to your dogs skin and coat on a regular basis, you can catch irregular changes to the skin earlier. This makes it easier to prevent and treat serious conditions. While skin spots can just be a normal part of your dogs body, its always best to consult your veterinarian if you have questions or notice any odd changes.
Safe Ways To Remove Ticks
Skip gasoline, nail polish, petroleum jelly, alcohol, or a hot match. These methods can force infected fluids back into the bite. Instead:
- Use gloves or tissue to cover your hands.
- Grasp the tick with tweezers from the side, by its head, close to the skin.
- Pull straight up. Don’t twist.
- Don’t squeeze the bloated belly.
Wash the bite area and your hands. Mouth parts that remain rarely cause serious problems. Questions? Call your vet.
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How Vets Diagnose Alopecia In Dogs
A thorough physical exam by your veterinarian is the single most important step in diagnosing the cause or causes of alopecia. It is seldom a quick fix when it comes to skin disorders in dogs. Your vet will take multiple factors into consideration before determining what diagnostics are appropriate in your dogs case .
Unfortunately, there is no simple recipe to fix alopecia in dogs. Figuring out the cause is essential to choosing treatment options. Also, many causes of alopecia are ongoing conditions that will need periodic medications or other treatments. Understanding this before you even make the vet appointment will go a long way in saving you from frustration if symptoms return in the future.
When seeing your veterinarian, be prepared to answer thorough questions about your dogs history, including:
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Number of pets in the home
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Degree of pruritus
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Parasite medications
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Prior health issues or blood work abnormalities
Once your vet has these answers, they can examine your pet and determine possible causes. Your vet will check closely for any evidence of fleas or flea dirt , ticks, or saliva-stained areas such as the feet, tail base, and flanks.
They will also note any unusual odors. Yeasty feet smell like Fritos, and ears have unique smells depending on yeast or bacteria. Your dogs skin may have a waxy or greasy feel, which will help decide what topical therapies to use.
What Are The Most Common Causes Of Skin Issues
Causes of skin problems can be divided up into six groups: allergies, infections, parasites, illness, poor care, and side effects. PetMD also offers a great pictorial guide of these issues so you can follow along .
Allergies: Allergies are one of the most commonly seen causes of itching and redness in dogs and they are on the rise . They can be caused by environmental allergens, such as pollens, dust, and chemicals, as well as food allergens to ingredients such as wheat, corn, soy, and certain proteins. Environmental allergies often show up as full-body symptoms with itching, redness and hair loss covering the entire body. Your dog may also cough or sneeze, or even have a runny nose. Food based allergies may present with both itching and scratching as well as digestive problems such as vomiting or diarrhea.
Infections: Infections are the next cause of skin problems in dogs, and can be caused by bacteria, yeast or fungi. They can be a primary cause of your dogs issues, or may be secondary to another cause as a result of excessive scratching and chewing at the irritation. Bacterial infections often create swellings and redness that ooze discolored discharge, while yeast infections may have an additional corn chip smell to them. Fungal infections, such as ringworm, may show up as strange growths or discolorations on the skin that slowly spread out and grow.
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Can Vitamin Deficiency Cause Hair Loss In Dogs
Yes, some vitamin deficiencies can cause your dog to develop hair loss. A zinc deficiency, for example, can lead to hair loss.
It can also cause cracking and skin thickening on footpads and joints. It can also lead to skin ulcers.
If your dog’s skin condition is due to vitamin deficiencies, the good news is that this is easy to fix.
With the proper diagnosis, you can change your dog’s diet and have his fur back to normal in no time.
What Causes Yeast Infection Of The Ear
A dogâs ear canal plunges downward and then towards the head . That gives yeast a favorable environment in which to grow. If your dog swims or is bathed frequently, trapped water or debris in the ear canal can lead to yeast infections. Allergens like pollens, mold, dust, feathers, cigarette smoke, cleaning products, and certain foods can also lead to ear infections in a dog.
A dog’s outer ear extends from the outside of the earlobe to the ear drum. An infection in this part of the ear is called otitis externa. An infection in the middle ear — otitis media – typically develops in association with an outer ear infection. Then once the middle ear is infected, the infection can spread to the inner ear, where it will affect the dog’s sense of balance and position. An inner ear infection can also cause deafness. Catching and treating an infection early, while it’s still in the outer ear, will help prevent more serious middle and inner ear infections.
Yeast infections can also show up elsewhere on your dogâs skin. When one does, it causes the skin to become scabby, reddened, or crusty. with a foul odor.
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Diagnosing Black Skin Disease
There are no particular tests that can be performed to diagnosealopecia X. This is the reason why several tests will be performed.
After a thorough examination of the dog, the vet may perform someblood tests, a chemistry panel to determine if the thyroid gland has anormal activity, tests for Cushing’s disease as well as skin sample todetect any possible bacterial or fungal skin infections.
Dog Skin Turning Black On Belly Itching Hair Loss
Dog skin turning black is also referred to as hyperpigmentation. It results from skin cells depositing more melanin than usual. While not a disease in itself, the darkening of the skin in dogs can point towards some health or skin condition. In most cases, hyperpigmentation will result from a problem the dog has had and is, therefore, a secondary symptom. It is, therefore, only a cosmetic concern as opposed to a health concern. Below we discuss its causes of dog skin turning black, why it may be accompanied by itching and hair loss on the belly as well as recovery and interventions to help fade the black coloration.
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What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Skin Problems
Most skin issues have similar signs and symptoms, making them hard to distinguish at times. This includes dermatitis, or inflammation of the skin, and pruritis, or itching. Dermatitis often presents as a red rash, raised bump, swelling or even blister-like appearance on the skin. Pruritis will manifest as excessive itching at these spots, leading to an increase in dermatitis signs.
Hair loss and poor coat quality can also be a sign of a skin problem, and may be in response to inflammation and itching, or its own problem. For more information about coat health in general, check out our post here.
A Note On Dogs And Poison Ivy
Interestingly enough, dogs arent sensitive to the oil found in poison ivy that can cause a reaction in humans. However, this allergenic oil can be carried on your dogs coat and passed to you or other members of your family and cause an itchy and painful rash.
For this reason, its important to clean the oil off of your dogs coat if he or she has been near the leaves of the poison ivy plant. Be careful not to expose your skin to the oil. Wash your dog carefully wearing gloves and a long sleeve shirt. Dispose of or wash everything thoroughly when youre done.
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Is Your Dog Losing Hair Skin Turning Black Gus’s Story
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We want to show you a real dog with a real problem that so many dogs experience. Meet Gus, son of Angela. Gus had been diagnosed with a thyroid problem and was losing his hair, and his skin was turning black. This picture below shows how widespread this disease had become.
Many dogs with this problem are diagnosed with “bilateral Alopecia” or Alopecia X. You can read more about this on our website, but basically this is a medical term that describes the obvious symptom of hair loss. It says nothing about what is causing it. When you take your dog to the vet and say “he’s losing his hair”, the vet might respond by telling you “It’s Alopecia”, which is exactly what you just said to him but in a different language.
There are so many possible contributors to this problem, but what ultimately happens is that, regardless of why the dog’s immune system was diminished, something nasty gets under the skin and causes this specific problem, and very often it’s simply the common yeast that lives on all dogs. If it gets under the skin, this is what can happen… and there is only one way to get rid of it and get the hair back.
Here’s Angela’s story: Ok DERMagic….we are loving your products!!!! Gus is doing so much better!!! He has a thyroid problem and was losing his hair! His skin was turning black too! :
Puppy love and licks to all! – Adelia
Black Skin Disease In Dogs
Black skin disease in canines is also known as alopecia X andcauses hair loss and strongly pigmented skin, or black skin, as thename suggests. Male dogs and certain dog breeds are more exposed toblack skin disease, but it may affect dogs of any age, breed or sex.The disease can affect the dog to such an extent that he needsmedication, but in some cases the condition will go away on its own.
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When To See The Vet
Although most skin problems are not emergencies, it is important to get an accurate diagnosis so the condition can be treated. See your veterinarian if your dog is scratching or licking excessively, or if you notice any changes in your pet’s coat or skin, including scaling, redness, discoloration, or bald patches. Once the cause is identified, most skin problems respond well to treatment.
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How To Treat Alopecia In Dogs
Treatment for a dog losing hair depends on what is causing the alopecia.
If alopecia is due to mites, the first step in treatment is eradicating the mites. If your dogs hair loss is due to ringworm, then antifungals are required. If the cause is inflamed hair follicles and auto-immune skin disorders, anti-inflammatories, vitamins, and/or special shampoos may be prescribed.
Other treatments may include hormones, spay/neuter surgeries, retinoids, or melatonin. It all depends on what is causing the hair loss.
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Dog Losing Hair In Patches And Scabs
The look of a dog losing hair in patches and scabs usually hurts the owner more than the pet.
A bald spot on a dog may be nothing, or it can point out a problem.
Mange is a skin disorder reasoned by small parasites called mites. The indicators are severe itching, red skin, sores, and hair loss.
A dogs ears face and legs are most usually exaggerated.
Demodectic mange can cause bald spots, scabbing, and sores, but it is not infectious to animals or people.
Here we will discuss some of the causes and remedies, the importance of diagnosis, and some ways to prevent your a dog losing hair in patches and scabs.
Laurens Labrador Moose Needed Luxating Patella Surgery
Lauren Longo spent a lot of time researching insurance and is so glad she went with Bow Wow Meow. She has two dogs, including Moose, who is a therapy dog, and looking after his health is very important to the family. Lauren wants to give a big thanks to Bow Wow Meow for helping them to give Moose the operations he has needed, including for when he swallowed a sock, and for Luxating Patella surgery, where they were reimbursed $2,929 out of the total of $3,600 for the surgery.
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Are Skin Treatments Safe
If you use them correctly, yes. The Environmental Protection Agency says that using them wrong is a major cause of negative reactions. Common mistakes include treating a cat with a product meant for dogs, or using a large dog dose on a small dog. Check with your vet if you aren’t sure which dose is right for your pet.