My dog has dry, flaky skin on his tail and along his spine. Why?

Question

MY Maltese has a dark flaky dry patch on his tail. Also has dry skin patches alongside his spine... any idea of what is causing this? Pet's info: Dog | Maltese | Male | neutered | 10 years and 4 months old | 17 lbs

Dr. Massimo Orioles, DVM, Cert AVP, MRCVS · Accepted Answer

This is probably due to a severe allergy, although it could also be fleas or mites.   First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment (advocate or advantage), then get him to 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 discovering the cause of the allergy.

My dog has dry, flaky skin on his tail and along his spine. Why?

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