# need help with skin issues (PLEASE)



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

i have adopted a dog, just a day or so ago, when i was talking to her previous owner, he said she had mild alergies and in the summer, she needs benyidril (sry) to help with it. However, when we got there, from her middle back down is looseing hair, the backs of her legs and most of her tail are balding or hairless, her skin is dry and peeling and dirt is caked so thick on her, i would not of brought her home, except she has prolly been used as nothing but a breeding dog, and has by no means been properly cared for. I am trying to decide if it is mange, a allergy problem, or if she's just sooo dirty she's looseing her fur. anyone who can help, please do! i feel so sorry for this dog, she is so sweet and so pretty. I want to help, but need to know what i'm up aginst. thanks ahead of time. 


i will try to get out tomorrow and get pics of her auctual problem, if you look at her back fur here, you can kind of see the thinning. the only thing that has me not sold on mange, is her head, feet, and tummy are not affected.


----------



## teasha (Aug 3, 2010)

It still could be mange, as mange takes time to spread. A skin scrapping at the vets should help determine that. In the meantime a nice oatmeal bath or aloe vera bath would make her feel good. Beware though some forms of mange can be contagious. Also if she's itchy benadryl will help until you do see a vet.


----------



## SteelRidgeKennels (Sep 6, 2010)

My Stuka had issues like that...believe it or not I shaved her down...I shave her once a year when the pollen gets bad. I also use Kelp from Nature's Farmacy


----------



## geisthexe (Jan 18, 2007)

Hun I know you want a magic cure from one of us and we can ALL give you advice on what we think it is... But my biggest advice is take the dog to the VET... Pay for the office visit, scraping, & medications.. DO NOT allow them to give her a steriod shot (NOT GOOD) if it is allergies come back here and I will be happy to help you with some advice.. if it is mange then hun listen to the VET on that one so the dog can heal properly. 

I wish you the BEST of LUCK and I am so happy to hear you took her to give her proper care & a loving home. 

YOU ROCK!!!


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

I would go to the vet as well and let them look at it. It does not look like mange it looks like allergies but hard to say for sure. Like deb said after the vet visit it should give you some where to go with her treatment and if it is seasonal or food allergies then we can help.
If it turns out to be mange I have several things you can do at home to treat mange that work great and are way cheaper than doing vet treatments but you need a positive diagnosis first. I use to do rescue and have dealt with mange a lot, it is a pain but you can cure it home really effectively but she needs a scrapping done. That does not look like your typical case of mange but it could be.


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

I agree with Performance it's very hard to Diagnose anything over the internet. Skin problems are nothing to play with they can be very mild and simple to treat. Or they can be more complicated best thing like most have said is to take the dog to a vet to get all the basic work up's done and then once you have a definitive diagnosis you can go from there as far as treatment goes. There are a lot of home treatments that work and are much cheaper but first we have to know what it is that's causing the problems. Good luck please post an update.


----------



## LadyRampage (Apr 11, 2009)

As everyone else has said.. Vet visit first then there are several things you can do at home depending on what the vet says!

Nu-Stock is another GREAT way to grow hair back!! Could be the stress of moving to a new place... How old is she? Either way, and bath would help to see if she has any sores, or other problems that the dirt is hiding!


----------



## FloorCandy (Feb 19, 2009)

Definitely vet first, as she probably needs vet care anyway if she was neglected. Don't let the vet talk you into any Science Diet or Prescription Diet crap. My guess would be that the problems are allergies, fleas, or nutrition. You said she was a breeder, so perhaps she had a litter recently and did not get the proper nutrition? Once you talk to the vet and find out what the cause is, we can try to help you get her in top shape as fast as possible. In the mean time, since it's a holiday weekend, I would say start out by washing with an oatmeal shampoo, check her thoroughly for fleas, and if you find fleas give her a flea bath asap with a mild flea shampoo, and let the vet know. They have a pill from the vet that will kill all the fleas in like 30 mins. You can pick up fish oil pills from the grocery store, they will help with her fur and skin. If you can get her into the vet tomorrow, that would be ideal, but if you have to wait a few days for an appointment, just do the best you can until then.


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

ok, so thanks to everybody so far, and believe it or not i am not looking for a quick fix, this is the first time i've had to deal with issues like this. I am planning to take her to the vet but it will be a few days untill i can do that, i am looking for some ideas on how to make her comfortable untill i can get her treatment. I believe it's allergies, i today, witnessed her chew a place on her tail untill it was bleeding. I physically had to stop her myself. anyway, i now have given her 3 oatmeal baths, and this is what she looks like after 3...so suggestions? (other than vet, things i can do at home) I was told when we got her this was a seasonal thing, that they give her benydryl and go on, but it just looks so much worse than that, maybe b/c it has not been maniged well, who knows, she's in rough shape, and i wanna do all i can to help, and not hurt anymore. 
I can tell u the stress is not from the move, this was this way when we picked her up. and she is 3


----------



## geisthexe (Jan 18, 2007)

Ok first off most of the Oatmeal Shampoos are really other ingredients READ the LABEL 
I suggest you wash the in DAWN DISH SOAP it helps to clean the dirt, skin and hair fully 
Second What are you feeding the dog? If you are feeding the most common allergy foods you will keep is going. So get a food with NO CORN WHEAT OR SOY. Might also wanna stay away from CHICKEN .. all of it so READ YOUR LABELS - I would rather you start a cooked diet for the dog if you want to let me know I can help you come up with a GREAT diet for an allergy dog. If you remember Sydney I helped her with her dog to no longer have allergy problems thru diet. 

Third Flea medications .. What are you using? If you are ONLY using Frontline (it sterilizes the eggs / kills adult fleas but does not kill larvea) So I suggest you getting a couple of tablets of Comfortis it kills fleas on contact. 

With all of this we can get the dog problem under control..


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

I have seen dogs who are allergic to flea bites loose hair like that in those areas. Have you treated her with flea preventative? There is also something blue dogs are susceptible to called color mutant alopecia. It could be from food allergies, flea allergies, could be mange, it could be hormonal. Please follow up with your vet so you can get to the bottom of this. There are a lot of things it could be once you get her to the vet she will be in a much better state.

PS if it is color mutant alopecia this is when it usually starts to show up between 2-3 and usually starts over the back .... I would use antibacterial shampoo to prevent secondary infection because she is itching and scratching a lot. And keep her on the benedryl until she get's to the vet.

http://www.upei.ca/cidd/Diseases/dermatology/colour dilution alopecia.htm


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

poor baby! What food do you feed? It could very well be a food allergy, see the vet and I would put her on a raw or cooked diet but you should talk to Deb about making a diet she can eat and start there till you see the vet. Benadryl can help and yes you need to watch for skin infections because all the itching can cause things like staff or other infections to develop.


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

so, i havent had her long enough to start flea meds. for my other 2 we use a dip, so i had planed to get a dip for her as well, however was a lil afraid to as broken as her skin is right now. When i was bathing her, i did not see any fleas, and i used the lil comb like ur sapposed to. she seems like she feels better when the scabs are off, but i dont know if i should brush them away or not. 

We feed alpo come n' get it, and Kibbles and bits nothing off those 2 brands. and no special kind ither, just regular old dog food  never had to buy anything else. I have no idea what food her previous owners fed, so cant really help there. 
send me a pm with the diet plans and how to fix them and i will start her on that soon. someone else told me something about a sulfer bath to clean and sanitize her skin and coat, anyone know anything about that?

this is the best place to get good honest info, thanks to everybody. i really really wanna get her lookin good again. i will update as soon as there is change. :clap:


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Well that food is horrible for dogs especially if your having coat issues. You should PM Deb so she can help you with a diet for you dog. I would not suggest a dip at this point if you do not see any fleas or ticks. Take care of the skin issues first, open wounds like she has from itching will allow toxins from the dip to get into her system and she could get sick.


----------



## geisthexe (Jan 18, 2007)

Please do not dip this dog as it is a poison so you can cause more damage on this animal then you have now. Dipping an animal now is highly dangerous so please find out what you are dipping with. 

If you want me to help you I have no problem I just need to know some of the following: 
How much you are willing to spend
How much you realise this will take some of your time to prepare, cook & package. 
How much the female weighs & height 
Do you plan on going back to a kibble with the dog. 

So PM me when you are ready ..


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

i would never dip her in the shape she is in, i was just sayin, that i didnt see any, not even one on her, and no ticks, so i dont think at this point that is an issue. anyway, as i said, she is extremely underweight, i mean she prolly weighs every bit of 70lbs, and i bet healthy she would need to weigh atleast 90. she is a very large dog,as is, i can only imagine what she would be healthy. she was a breeding machine, and thats the only way i know to explain it. i mean, i know if i had well, i did, have a big pretty dog like this, IF i bred her, i would work her out so she lost mot of her teets, i mean i would want to show her off minus the boobs hangin to the ground, and it's just i dano, you can tell she was just forgotten till she came into heat, makes me soo very angry. but way off the point. I will try the things that have been suggeted, will change diet, and so on, and later this week we will be going to the vet to figure out exactly whats up.


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

pitmommy2010 said:


> i would never dip her in the shape she is in, i was just sayin, that i didnt see any, not even one on her, and no ticks, so i dont think at this point that is an issue. anyway, as i said, she is extremely underweight, i mean she prolly weighs every bit of 70lbs, and i bet healthy she would need to weigh atleast 90. she is a very large dog,as is, i can only imagine what she would be healthy. she was a breeding machine, and thats the only way i know to explain it. i mean, i know if i had well, i did, have a big pretty dog like this, IF i bred her, i would work her out so she lost mot of her teets, i mean i would want to show her off minus the boobs hangin to the ground, and it's just i dano, you can tell she was just forgotten till she came into heat, makes me soo very angry. but way off the point. I will try the things that have been suggeted, will change diet, and so on, and later this week we will be going to the vet to figure out exactly whats up.


You said she was a breeding machine do you know when her last litter was? A lot of times after giving birth to puppies a Bitch will loose hair and shed her coat I have seen them loose ton's of hair in handfuls and have lots of bald spots the hair does grow back after a few months it's usually hormonal. So if she recently just had a litter this might have something to do with the hair loss. Although I don't know if she would be itching like that .. Please don't breed her again her body has been through enough spay her that is the best thing for her considering what she has already been through and it's the right thing to do. Please let us know what the vet says we are all here to help you in any way we can.


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

You dog does not look that skinny to put that much weight on her maybe 5 lbs but not 20lbs. You do not want a fat dog, you should be able to see a hint of ribs or more depending if they are just a pet or a working dog. Most ppl think fat dogs are normal but really I think it is rare to see a dog in shape these days.

Please change her food and follow up with the vet you can also start her on benadryl to help with the itching till you get to the vet. Good luck and let us know what the vet says.


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

they said her last litter was 10 months ago, but that she has not been in heat since, i dont see how thats possible, i know some dogs only have one a year, so i guess that cloud be the case. I have no intentions of breeding her, if i had, and had been looking for a dog for that reason, would not of brought this one home, lol...anyway, she seems better today, after all the baths and benydryl. , still patchy fur but like the dandruf looking scaly stuff looks better. havent seen her itch alot ither. we have her currently in a pen on concrete, hopeing that getting her off the ground will help. i would have her in the house, but i have a small baby and the stuff coming off her is pretty nasty. she will come in once she is cleaned up. we have a vet visit scheduled for friday, so will update as usual


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

pitmommy2010 said:


> they said her last litter was 10 months ago, but that she has not been in heat since, i dont see how thats possible, i know some dogs only have one a year, so i guess that cloud be the case. I have no intentions of breeding her, if i had, and had been looking for a dog for that reason, would not of brought this one home, lol...anyway, she seems better today, after all the baths and benydryl. , still patchy fur but like the dandruf looking scaly stuff looks better. havent seen her itch alot ither. we have her currently in a pen on concrete, hopeing that getting her off the ground will help. i would have her in the house, but i have a small baby and the stuff coming off her is pretty nasty. she will come in once she is cleaned up. we have a vet visit scheduled for friday, so will update as usual


Good I am glad your not going to breed her! And good job on taking such good care of her and getting her all cleaned up. I am happy she will be going to the vet Friday hopefully she will get some relief soon. Can't wait to find out what it is that's been causing the problem. Keep us posted


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

good job and can't wait to see what the vet says so you can start getting her on the right path. Also did you change the food? that is going to play a huge part in all this.


----------



## geisthexe (Jan 18, 2007)

performanceknls said:


> good job and can't wait to see what the vet says so you can start getting her on the right path. Also did you change the food? that is going to play a huge part in all this.


I sent her a diet but have not heard back from her to see if she is going to create it or not .. I sure hope so and I am happy also to see she is going to the vet. So we shall see :roll:


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

hay,
i am planning to go to the store tonite and make up the recipe. my vet suggested trying hot spot treatment till i could get her there on friday. we are alternating between oatmeal and aloe baths, and i cant tell you how much better she looks just since i have gotten all the grime off. so, as soon as i can find out what the issue is, she will be on the mend. cant say thanks enough tho, i needed this advice to get her started on her way to healing. she truly deserves better, she's a great dog, but then i'm sure everyone on here feels there dog is the best there is. I can tell she's thankful too, she wont leave my side, and i love that (need it) about these dogs, loyalty to me is there best quality.


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

just a quick update on blue, 
they did the skin scrape, and there was multiple issues, she dose have alergies, and they are doing blood work to find out what to, she also has beginnigs of Demodectic mange, so they gave her a sulfer bath for that, and told us to change her diet to chicken and rice, ,(already doing it) put her on benydryl and cefelexin for the itching, and said to continue oatmeal and aloe baths and we have a follow up tuesday for blood work. 
pretty much everything i already knew!!
thanks for ur help!!


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

well, it's been around 2 weeks, and i am happy to say, that she is so much better. most of the hair is already coming back, the baldest spot now is her tail. she has gained 7lbs, and is alot more active and playful, and will be back to great health in no time. she is still on the meds, and the chicken and rice diet, and is doing so well, we will be leaving her on this diet for a while. thanks again for all the help and support!


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

Great News! Glad everything worked out for you !!! He looks MUCH better


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

lol thanks alot, but SHE is a girl


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

Opps! I hate when that happens LOL .. I went looking for this thread too just to check up on her. I was out of town so I didn't catch your update glad she is feeling better


----------



## pitmommy2010 (Jul 29, 2010)

Sadie said:


> Opps! I hate when that happens LOL .. I went looking for this thread too just to check up on her. I was out of town so I didn't catch your update glad she is feeling better


it's alright...i appreciate you checking in..i was wondering where everybody went...but, no, it's almost like she's a different dog, so much more active and happy, my little "runt" in that pic there as i call her has had such a help in bringing her personality out...she's one and might weight 45lbs, lol, and Blue is almost 4, so there's quite a difference there, and she plays just as much and hard as the pup dose. 
The allergy report came back, and while there were other things on it the top 2 were latex and corn... we found out about the latex a few days late, i had bought her this collar to wear outside that was coated in green latex...broke her out, the hair fell off and she itched it...so when i called to make her another appointment, b/c it looked infected, they informed us of that, so anyway...her tail is still pretty rough, but, she chews it, vet says we just have to try to break her from it..

but again, we will be having her spayed soon, as soon as she is clear from the mange issue, and other than that, all is well. I cant thank you guys enough for the advice, i think getting on it sooner than i could get her into the vet, helped alot, cuz as i said in a earlier post, when they told us what was wrong, we had already done most of it, we just had to treat the mange. i would not of had that info had it not been for this Forum!! :rofl:


----------



## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

pitmommy2010 said:


> it's alright...i appreciate you checking in..i was wondering where everybody went...but, no, it's almost like she's a different dog, so much more active and happy, my little "runt" in that pic there as i call her has had such a help in bringing her personality out...she's one and might weight 45lbs, lol, and Blue is almost 4, so there's quite a difference there, and she plays just as much and hard as the pup dose.
> The allergy report came back, and while there were other things on it the top 2 were latex and corn... we found out about the latex a few days late, i had bought her this collar to wear outside that was coated in green latex...broke her out, the hair fell off and she itched it...so when i called to make her another appointment, b/c it looked infected, they informed us of that, so anyway...her tail is still pretty rough, but, she chews it, vet says we just have to try to break her from it..
> 
> but again, we will be having her spayed soon, as soon as she is clear from the mange issue, and other than that, all is well. I cant thank you guys enough for the advice, i think getting on it sooner than i could get her into the vet, helped alot, cuz as i said in a earlier post, when they told us what was wrong, we had already done most of it, we just had to treat the mange. i would not of had that info had it not been for this Forum!! :rofl:


That's fantastic now Blue can go on to live a normal happy life thanks to you! He just looks so much better I am glad he has a friend to play with and keep him company. Glad we could help


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

Good to hear she is doing good and on the mend, try to get her on a grain free food soon and get off the chicken and rice. That is a short term diet and you do not want her to get any nutritional issues from not having a balanced diet. Try Taste of the Wild the Duck or salmon that should help with her coat. she looks great and keep us updated!!


----------

