My dog has bald spots and licks his paws raw. What's the cause?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

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  Answered By Dr. Massimo Orioles, DVM, Cert AVP, MRCVS

  Veterinarian

  Published on November 4th, 2019

  Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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  Answered By Jessica Keay, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on May 19th, 2017

  Causes of hair loss could include external parasites such as fleas and mange mites, and allergies (we can have allergies to food or things in the environment such as pollen/grass/dust) and sometimes infections of the skin with bacteria or yeast. I would recommend a visit with your vet to have a skin scrape done to be sure we don't have mange mites present that need treatment. I would start a flea preventative such as Advantage (available over the counter) or your vet also has prescription medication for this issue. You can also refer to this article for ideas on how to manage him until your vet is able to examine him: https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-things-you-can-do-at-home-to-keep-your-dog-s-allergies-at-bay-t/

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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  Answered By Ricardo Fernandez, DVM

  Veterinarian, Veterinary Oncology Resident

  Published on July 20th, 2018

  Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is hard to know without being able to examine him. This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. Other possibilities include mange and ringworm and an exam and diagnostics would be needed to know. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

  

  1Pet Parents found this answer helpful