My dog has red, inflamed skin, hair loss, and ticks. What to do?

Question

Dante has had some skin irritation around his nose for a few months now. I thought it was dirt at first. the skin is red, inflamed and flaky and he's lost some hair. Red and sore looking now inside the nostrils, around the eyes and his penis looks inflamed now. He doesn't scratch these areas, but does scratch his sides. We have ticks here (he has a few) and limited vet services. Jane. Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Male | unneutered | 40 lbs

Ricardo Fernandez, DVM · Accepted Answer

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. 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!

My dog has red, inflamed skin, hair loss, and ticks. What to do?

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