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Dog's tail has flaky scabs, chewing. What home remedies work?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Large (61lb +) | Male | unneutered | 1 year and 10 months old | 90 lbs

My dog Sketch has flaky scabs near the base of his tail. I cannot afford to take him to the vet right now dude to low income, but I am worried he's going to start either losing his hair there or it get worse. I'm not sure what the cause of it is because he is flea free but he keeps chewing at the site and I don't know what to do. I have gotten a whole bunch of anti itch shampoos and hot spots spray and lotion but I don't want to use the wrong combination of it to make it even worse. Any advice?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Rodrigo Roca, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on November 8th, 2018

Hello, I am sorry to hear about Sketch. The symptoms that you are describing sound very similar to a pet that has a flea problem. It might be a small number so you may not see them if you look at the area. The first thing I would do is apply a flea medication to Sketch, if you haven’t already. After using a topical most veterinarians recommend no baths for 2-3 days after so that the product can be fully absorbed. Another possible explanation is that Sketch has a hot spot or another type of skin infection. I would recommend using one of the anti-itch shampoos to bathe Sketch first. Some of the hot spot sprays have ingredients that can be quite irritating. Another important thing to do is prevent Sketch from getting to the area, with an e-collar or possibly an oversized T-shirt. If none of these things help, I would recommend having Sketch seen by a veterinarian so that they can help figure out exactly what is going on. Hope this helps, good luck!

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