Hot Spots on dogs - HELP!

[transparant]

No matter what I try - my Golden Retreiver's hotspots will NOT go away. We have tried antibiotic from the vet. Tea Tree oil, washing them with peroxide, you name it. The one's that he has will eventually go away - but a few days later...another one will pop up somewhere else.

What the heck causes them and how do I get rid of them?!?! HELP!

 

[Lanshark]

Our old golden Max used to get them all of the time. He would get one. We'd go to the vet. Give him the antibiotics. Put the cream on as when it was almost healed he'd break it open again by scratching it. A few years before he died he had a very bad one on his face. We finally had to put an e-collar on him and leave it on him for a few weeks until he was fully healed.

Our 5 year old golden, Jake, does not get them the way Max did but did but does get some skin irratations.

The vet said it could be from anything. A bug bite that they scratch at could turn into a hot spot. A food allergy could turn into skin irratations.

We finally switched Max to a Lamb and Rice food to rule out food allergies being a cause of his skin irratation. I do believe it did help. We also made sure to keep him on frontline to control fleas.

I just think goldens are prone to skin problems.

 

[transparant]

Lanshark - Is lamb and rice the best for skin allergies?

I don't think it's flees - I've been checking him over with a fine tooth comb like crazy.

I do know that Golden's are prone to them...I wonder about shaving him, whether or not that would help.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

One of our Boxers gets them under her ear whenever we're at our apartment in NYC. Don't know what causes them, but luckily, we throw on a head cone and it dries up in a couple days. The first time she got one, we took her to the vet want she gave us all kinds of meds. Since then, we only use the cone (preventing her from scratching the affected area) and it just goes away. Good luck...they are such a mess!!

 

[WonderfulDreamer2]

Lanshark - Is lamb and rice the best for skin allergies?

I don't think it's flees - I've been checking him over with a fine tooth comb like crazy.

I do know that Golden's are prone to them...I wonder about shaving him, whether or not that would help.

Transparant...check with your vet. They started using Lamb and Rice for dogs with skin allergies but all the dog food producers jumped on the bandwagon and put it on the shelves and my vet said that now some are developing an allergy to that. But food allergies will cause them. We had a Cocker with that problem and thats what we did (after months of trying everythig) was change the food.
Good luck.

 

[kaylajr]

Our Lab used to get them on his back hip area

we started giving him a egg mixed in his food a few times a week
and after about 2 weeks they were gone
and now he only gets an egg about once a week and they
have not come back

and no I have no idea why it worked

 

[janette]

Usually it's from them licking the area that itches that causes the hot spot to get bad. Our older Bichon gets them, no medications worked very well and she'd get sick because they'd get infected. I found an inflatable collar at the Pet store and we've just kept in on her. She still gets a few areas she scratches but she can't bite at herself and hasn't had another hot spot.

 

[FayeW]

I had a dog who had allergies to either something in his environment. I used to take him to the vet about every 6-8 weeks for a shot of corisone steroid(Depo Mederol), and it prevented the hot spots. (I worked for the vet at the time, so it was relatively inexpensive for me).

After we moved to a different house, he only needed one more shot about 2 weeks later, and then never again. We never found out what he was allergic to!

 

[Aimeedyan]

It's likely caused by an allergy; you have to figure out what he's allergic to and stop or treat that.

Could be environmental, just like us, or a food allergy. Environmental allergies are much more common than food allergies though food allergies are easier to treat

Environmental allergies can be treated with Benadryl. They also can do allergy testing to pinpoint the problem. Has your vet not explored the cause behind these at all? If they haven't, and have instead just been treating the individual sore, I would find a new vet. I'm so so so so so happy with a holistic vet that explores the entire dog and not just the one problem.

If it's food, you have to figure out what the dog is allergic to foodwise. Putting them on a lamb and rice food doesn't do any good if they are allergic to rice. Common allergents are protein sources and corn, though some can be allergic to soy, rice, etc. You have to do an elimination diet just like with a human and see if you can find the problem. You have to learn to read a dog food label and ensure that the dog isn't getting that ingredient in ANYTHING they eat. Some food makers are very sneaky in labeling - don't believe them when the bag just says "lamb and rice" - read the label. Many still use other protein sources. You have to stick to a few ingredients only for 8 weeks minimum, it takes that long usually to see a difference. No treats or anything that have any ingredient other than what is in the food.

Treating both environmental and food allergies is often cheaper than testing to get a clear answer. Meaning, it's cheaper to try giving BEnadryl for a few weeks and changing to a special food for 2 months instead of doing all the testing.

Your poor dog shouldn't have to suffer =( Those steroid shots are really bad news, esp longterm, and there are other better ways to treat allergies longterm. I hope you can find the cause and help him!

 

[magicmato]

My boxer/lab mix has seasonal allergies. Our vet gave us allergy meds we give him when he starts to turn pink, otherwise he gets these oozing sores that creep all over his body. It is rather gross. It comes on in late summer and stops by winter. We only give him the meds when he starts to get bright pink on his underside and scratches and stop when his skin color returns to normal.

 

[Lanshark]

Transparent

Our vet told us that it may not be allergies but when dogs develop allergies it is usually to beef products. We could have tried chicken but he said that Lamb and Rice is the best for allergies. As I said, I believe it did help. As it was explained to me the hot spot develops when the dog has some type of skin irratation then an infection develops. After they start scratching it it breaks open.

We keep Jake shaved down all of the time. He doesn't have the issues Max did but I don't know if that has to do with shaving or not. If the groomer shaves him as close as she can he usually develops some skin irratation. We've learned to have her take it up a couple of notches and he doesn't seem bothered. It definitely helps with the vacuuming.

 

[milwaukee1]

Our Golden retriever has allergies also.He licks in between his toes real bad and he gets it on his abdomen. Our vet first thought it was food allergies, but he would still get the foot problem. So he thinks he might be allergic to the grass or whatever might be in the grass since he only has broblems with those areas. In the begining they put him on fish and potato food. Uekanuba(sp?) makes it but you can only get it through vets. It only has the one protien and the one carb. But even on the special food, they can develop an alergy to that so you might have to keep swithching every couple of years. They have venison and potato, duck and potato, Etc. But he said food allergies and other allergies go hand in hand sometimes and that fish oil is good for any type of allergy so we keep him on that food. He is much better on it than off. Now we are also stanting to treat with the topical spray and he is doing alot better, I think it is a combination. We didnt send him tohave him tested because if these methods work then threr is really no need. Only if the problem doesnt go away and you dont know what it is. I was told that benadryl only works in 10% of dogs, but its worth it to give it a try.