Why is my white poodle's tail and rear discolored with dark spots?

Question

I have a white Standard Poodle. I just noticed that she has dark spots on her tail, near her anus, and a few around her female part. I have to wet her hair down to see it better. When her hair is dry it leaves a discoloration look. She is not in any discomfort nor has she been licking. She has not been scratching, so I don't believe these are from fleas. Also, no fleas came off of her in the bath. I don't see these spots anywhere else on her. What is going on? Do I need to be applying something?

Ricardo Fernandez, DVM · Accepted Answer

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! That color indicates saliva staining so she has been chewing at it. This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her 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 such as mange need to also be considered and a physical examination and basic diagnostics should help sort that out. 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!

Why is my white poodle's tail and rear discolored with dark spots?

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