Dog Hot Spots

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tabby
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Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2010 3:41 pm
Location: Virginia

Dog Hot Spots

Post by tabby »

One of my dogs developed a “hot spot” on her back over the weekend and it’s amazing how fast it spread. When I first noticed it on Sunday, it was small ... maybe about an inch or so in area and by Monday when I took her to the vet, it had spread to the size of a saucer. It was raw and looked very painful. The vet shaved the area and treated it topically as well as sending her home with an antibiotic and a little bottle of something called “Gentocin” . She was a good patient (better than I would have been) and let him do what needed to be done without the slightest squirm. It is healing well and almost as fast as it spread in the beginning!



Any experience with your own dogs on this condition?



Dog Hot Spots Treatments, Symptoms, Causes

She has extremely thick fur and although she’s brushed regularly apparently it wasn’t enough. I hope this is a one off case and isn’t an indication that she’s particularly susceptible to these things.

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Bryn Mawr
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Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2006 4:54 pm

Dog Hot Spots

Post by Bryn Mawr »

tabby;1389039 wrote: One of my dogs developed a “hot spot” on her back over the weekend and it’s amazing how fast it spread. When I first noticed it on Sunday, it was small ... maybe about an inch or so in area and by Monday when I took her to the vet, it had spread to the size of a saucer. It was raw and looked very painful. The vet shaved the area and treated it topically as well as sending her home with an antibiotic and a little bottle of something called “Gentocin” . She was a good patient (better than I would have been) and let him do what needed to be done without the slightest squirm. It is healing well and almost as fast as it spread in the beginning!



Any experience with your own dogs on this condition?



Dog Hot Spots Treatments, Symptoms, Causes

She has extremely thick fur and although she’s brushed regularly apparently it wasn’t enough. I hope this is a one off case and isn’t an indication that she’s particularly susceptible to these things.




Is it a mite infestation under the skin? If this is the first time she's had it then that's a possibility.

Our Bichon was susceptible and for years the vet put it down to flea bites but it turned out to be an allergy to the colouring in the dried food we were using - have you recently changed her feed?
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valerie
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Joined: Sun Sep 05, 2004 12:00 pm

Dog Hot Spots

Post by valerie »

Hot spots are unfortunately fairly common depending on

conditions. The grooming regularly really IS a help, you

are right on that. High humidity levels are a problem. Bryn has

a good point, as far as feed goes. (I feed grain free)

Our current gsd had them when we adopted her, she came from

really bad conditions though. I cleared them up and she's

never gotten another one.

A good home remedy for them is hydrogen peroxide (once)

or plain white apple cider vinegar. Beware though, depending

on coat color, they can fade the hair. (Will replace just fine, though!)

Not familiar with the Gentocin, is it a topical cream? One thing

the vet gave me for something else is a topical spray called

Vetericyn, that works on dogs, cats, horses, people even. Broad

based and even kills MRSA. You might ask about it in future.
Tamsen's Dogster Page

http://www.dogster.com/?27525



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tabby
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Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2010 3:41 pm
Location: Virginia

Dog Hot Spots

Post by tabby »

I did some additional research into its causes and the general consensus seems to be:

“Anything that initiates an itch-scratch cycle can predispose a dog to developing “hot spots.” In most cases, the exact cause is unknown, although “hot spots” are often caused or exacerbated by self-trauma due to an underlying factor such as fleas, mites, lice, ticks, bacteria, fungi, ear infections, allergies, anal sacculitis or topical irritants. In some cases, a severe essential fatty acid deficiency may be a contributing factor. “Hot spots” typically are exacerbated by licking, biting, rubbing and scratching."

That doesn’t narrow it down too much so I can’t be certain at this point what the exact cause was but I think after this heals completely, I may take her to a groomer and let them bathe & comb her thoroughly. She’s a 2 year old Great Pyrenees and has a very thick and heavy undercoat. I keep her brushed but in retrospect, although my brushing was adequate for cosmetic reasons, I’ve lost a little confidence in whether I can do it thoroughly enough to get the undercoat. One source indicated that the hot spots are most prevalent when they’re shedding and that’s definitely happening now with our warm weather. If they bathe and comb her enough to get all remaining loose undercoat, I feel like I can take it from there. The suggestion of dousing her with the apple cider vinegar or hydrogen peroxide makes sense and that should be easy enough.

The Gentocin is described as “an antibiotic that inhibits bacteria by suppressing protein synthesis and growth. It is used in both dogs and cats to treat or prevent bacterial infections including respiratory infections, wound infections, pneumonia, bloodstream infections, bladder infections and infections of the skin and ear. “ It’s in a little spritzer bottle and is put on her wound twice a day.
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valerie
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Dog Hot Spots

Post by valerie »

Well, Gentocin sounds a lot like the Vetericyn then, it figures.

For fatty acids, you can feed a couple of sardines a day. I buy at sales and I

would guess it costs about $10-15 a month to do that.

A brush that will get at the undercoat is The Furminator. I use one judiciously,

and it works well. Probably should not be used on dogs that are shown.
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http://www.dogster.com/?27525



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tabby
Posts: 2535
Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2010 3:41 pm
Location: Virginia

Dog Hot Spots

Post by tabby »

Thanks for the tips! I found the brush on Amazon but I still want to do a little cost comparison with other sites before getting it from them. It's definitely worth a try. She isn't a show dog so no worries there!
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