possible hot spots?

[Lukesmom]

my golden ret. has developed a huge red spot that has no hair. We left him alone on saturday all day and we came back to a HUGE softball size area that was red and hairless. He was in " pain" and wanted to continue licking it. We ofcourse stopped him from licking. Sunday it remained the same. I noticed that he was not eating and walking stiff. This morning it is bleeding in a section. I called the vet but they wont see us until this afternoon at 4:15.

i am sure it a summer allergy. Any ideas what I can do? The pet store sells hotspot stuff but I was just not sure what to buy or if I should leave it alone until we see the vet. Should we go to a holistic vet instead?

He is on better barnd of dog food but I might try switching to Invo or the other high end foods because I found a store that carries it locally.

 

[ledoc]

Sounds like a hotspot. There are numerous initiating factors for hotspots, and food is not high on that list. However, boredom is and can often result in the animal paying undue attention to a minor itch or scratch - this leads to self induced trauma to the skin which in turn irritates and away they go.

The really irritating thing about it is that one cannot initially predict when a hotspot will pop up - but with time, if your dog is prone to them, you might detect a pattern that predisposes to hotspots.

Treatment often includes clipping away hair around the hotspot, trying to find the underlying cause (rarely easy) and then something to stop the itch (often a short blast of cortisone) and often some sort of antibiotic cover - depending on the severity of the lesion.

Often just washing the area with soap and water can ease the irritation until treatment can be initiated.

Hope that helps.

Ledoc

 

[Lukesmom]

thanks

Thank you for the reply. It was very helpful.

 

[bubbatd]

Let us know !!! I used to have horrible hot spots with my Goldens back in the days of no flea prevention . Make sure you blow dry your pup well after getting wet . Especially around the ears .

 

[doggiegroomer]

Goldens seem to be prone to hotspots for some reason. It also seems that most of them start chewing as some kind of stress release, kind of like people who bite their nails. You could always try using an E collar (the cones that go around their necks) so that he can't keep chewing on the spot. I have found that normally once you break the chew-lick-bite cycle and the sore starts to heal up, the dog loses interest.

 

[simplymisty]

So what are hot spots? Does the hair always fall out? I have a Golden and haven't experienced this but I'd like to know what to be on the look out for. He's going to be 4 on Christmas day and started having seizures last year.

Please post an update.

 

[doggiegroomer]

Its a sore on the dogs skin caused by constant licking, chewing, biting, etc. Its not like a dripping blood sore, more of a oozing pussy sore. Certain things can make them worse or more likely to appear. Like skin allergies, knots in the coat, parasites, and like I said earlier, boredom. There is always hair loss, since the dog pretty much chews it off. They can pop up in a pretty short amount of time (like overnight), since most dogs that I have seen become almost obsessed with the chewing.
Thats too bad about the seizures, are they bad enough that he needs meds everyday?

 

[simplymisty]

Thanks doggiegroomer!! No hairloss so I'm glad he hasn't had any hot spots.

They're not bad, he doesn't have to be on meds. It actually took me a long time before I found out he was having them because they were happening at night. I have 3 dogs and someone was peeing in my bed - didn't think anything of it other than someone peeing in my bed (not a fun thing to roll in - LOL). One night he starting having them standing up in front of me then fell over. I rushed him to the emergency vet. They had him for hours and wouldn't let me back with him. Couldn't find anything and said that seizures are normal for goldens.

I followed up with my vet and he said that I'm lucky so far because he's having less than 1 per month. I just have to keep an eye on him and track them on my calendar. I just don't normally see them since they happen in the middle of the night so if I roll in pee then I mark it as a seizure on the calendar. The vet then asks ever year when we go in for shots for the list of dates from the prev year (unless of course he has a bad one or they increase).

Thanks!!!!