Why is my dog's paw dry, puffy, and losing hair? What can I do?

Question

We have an 11-year-old male Labrador with a back left leg skin problem. He lives in a concrete kennel at night and during the day is in a dirt and gravel shaded area. He lives outside all the time. We noticed a foot problem with dry skin, hair loss and puffy. It looks like an ulcer but without any redness or bleeding. We are wondering what kind of treatment can be given to him? Pet's info: Dog | Labrador Retriever | Male | unneutered | 11 years and 3 months old | 65 lbs

Ricardo Fernandez, DVM · Accepted Answer

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! 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. 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 dog's paw dry, puffy, and losing hair? What can I do?

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