Ringworm?

I am pretty sure Ruckus has ring worm. we are going to the vet first thing in the morning. EWWW, thats just yucky! I dont have ring worm, but I wouldnt doubt if I was carrying it and spread it to him.
i read that the incubation is 10-12 days long. well, 11 days ago I was grooming a cocker that had 5 or 6 spots on him. I took precautions, but maybe i still came home with the "cooties"

circle circle dot dot now I go my cootie shot.


ring worm + allergies and rashes+ constant cracked paw pads+ zits on his nose.....
we need to talk about this poor guys immune system!

What makes you think it's ringworm? Staph collarettes will sometimes be mistaken for ringworm.

We currently have a few dogs at work that have ringworm. Though we are taking every precaution we can, it is impossible for us to completely prevent spreading it to other dogs. In the last few weeks, though, only about 1/4 of the dogs have gotten it at all, and it is the ones who have compromised immune systems or skin allergies to begin with. So, we're doubling up on the probiotics, giving more healthy kibble and less treats, and focusing on stress reduction. It seems to be going away. *fingers crossed!*

colliewog, i seen about 5 dogs with ringworm at work that we have to use special shampoo for. it just looks like what i am seeing on those dogs. but i know it might not be. i always think the worse.

Great to hear about the ringworm going away. It seems all of the dogs i know who have had ring worm have prior skin issues.

Aw, that's no fun. Poor Ruckus!. Hope that it's nothing too serious. keep us posted!

the vet said she wasnt sure what it was. she said that it doesnt look infectiousness or fungal.
she just gave me some cream to put on it and some tameral-p that cost an arm and a leg.

i am annoyed that no skin scrapping was done!

and that bump on his nose is a skin tag.

How can it be diagnosed with no scraping?
When Leo had ringworm, the vet and I both thought it looked like demodectic mange. Scrapings were negative though, so we cultured and it was positive for ringworm. Without the test, we wouldn't have known.

yeah, no scrapping.

think I should be in the market for another vet?

I'd be seriously considering it and would certainly want to know why they didn't do a scraping.

i assume its because it DIDNT LOOK like fungal or anything infectious.

*rolls eyes*

Did you ask the vet to scrape it while you were there?


We've taken dogs in with suspected ringworm, and the vet has told us that he THINKS that's what it is and wants to save us money so he'd forgo the skin scrape. Instead, he gave us a cream that's antibacterial / antifungal, and would fix it if it was ringworm or a bacterial infection. So far it's always worked.

I actually didnt ask. I was just suprised that she didnt suggest it.
Id imagine that if it didnt improve she would do a skin scrapping.

there are just a few things about her that drive me crazy.
she doesnt return phone calls! I always end up having to call her the next day and she doesnt call me back until that afternoon, so thats like 31 hours waiting on a phone call! And she seems to say "hmm, i am not sure" more times than i would like to hear. and this whole thing with not suggesting a skin scrapping.

*shurgs* I am not a vet. I guess i shouldnt give them such a hard time.

Just keep in mind that you are your dog's advocate while you are at the vet. If you think your dog has ringworm, ask the vet how she would diagnose ringworm and what thought process brought her to the decision she made that day. Ask what it might be if it's not ringworm, and how the meds she gave you is going to help that. Ask what the chances are that the meds will not work, and when to bring your dog back if you don't see improvement.

I ask my vet TONS of questions when I go in.... He's been known to draw me diagrams. I think he kind of likes it because it shows that I'm interested in something that he obviously also thinks is interesting. And it's nice because he now gives me more and more details, and does less "dumbing down" since he knows that I've learned a lot now.

If your vet will not answer your questions or return phone calls or whatever else, maybe you should think about switching. But I would not switch simply because she didn't do a skin scraping in this case.

Considering you've been exposed to several ringworm positive dogs, I would have requested that a fungal culture be done, just to rule it out. All that would be required was plucking a few hairs and doing a dermatophyte culture. I guess if you're getting the treatment anyway, it won't matter but it would be nice to know since you have other pets.

Well some species of ringworm fluoresce under blacklight, so it's possible to diagnose without a scraping, but not very reliable. Only works about half the time, and that may be dependent on location (IE various species of fungi, but I'm no mycologist so I can't say for sure if there's a lot of variation; just speculation).