Hot spots

[BalticUnicorn]

My fluffy baby is being harrassed by hot spots. Shes got them on her back legs and her tail. We have some tick lotion from the vet that isnt effective. Weve cut her shorter and brush her after each walk. We're resorting to a cone at bedtime too. What can we do for her? X

Anyone?

Maybe I am being dim but what is a hot spot? Do you mean and itchy spot like a bite?

Ooh I've just bought some balm for dogs and that says on it that it's good for hot spots. Got it from Fetch.com. It's called Wildwash Healing Paw Balm.

I found apple cider vinegar helpful. Apparently it also has a nice cooling effect. The links below might be useful:

jgmesch.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/dog-hot-spot-treatment-is-challenging.html

www.cuteness.com/article/heal-dogs-apple-cider-vinegar?utm_source=pinterest.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=cnpin

Hotspots are best lightly covered in a soft, comfortable, breathable vest or sleeve. You need the area to dry out and heal and also break the habit.

Have a look at the Suitical recovery vest www.dfordog.co.uk/medical-pet-shirts.html for body hotspots and the MPS back leg sleeve for the back legs (there is also a front leg sleeve) www.dfordog.co.uk/protective-pet-sleeve-back-legs.html

Not sure about the tail. You may have to fashion something for that. Just make sure the material is breathable, so air can get to the sore bits and healing can take place.

My terrier wore the front leg sleeve for a mild hotspot and it was healed in a week. What I love about the Suitical/MPS vests and sleeves is that you can just leave them on your dog 24/7. Cos they are breathable you don't need to keep uncovering the area to let it breath. And no more nasty plastic cone... yay!

If you mean, pyoderma - thing that erupts very, very quickly as a large lump (usually round buttocks/tail) and then becomes a madly irritating septic sore - you need to go to the vet (for the right medication - see below). These can come up within an hour and some sorts of dogs are very susceptible to them in the summer/late summer. You need to be very vigilant to catch them ASAP - you'll learn to spot the signs from your dog's behaviour. My dog had these at least once a year all her life, so, believe me, I know that the ONLY treatment that works shave coat over infected area with a bit of a margin (buy clippers online - cheaper than vet every time). Swab clean with a damp piece of cottonwool soaked in HIBISCRUB (can buy on Amazon). Let that dry and anoint whole area with FUCIDERM (only obtainable from your vet) - apply using a plastic glove or clingfilm over your finger as it is a steroid and you don't want to absorb it yourself. Keep this up regularly until the thing is healed - could take 2-3 weeks. Most importantly, into the cone of shame from the off and don't weaken - if your dog gets access to the sore, they can bite right through their skin, full thickness, in their anxiety to stop it hurting and itching. Quite often they blow up and scab over and then become infected under the scab (this is fairly normal). That scab will come off eventually (your dog will probably grab a moment to remove it) and you can then keep on treating it and it will slowly heal up. You might need to get the vet to treat it the first few times until you get the hang of it (also if you have caught it late and it is proving difficult to sort out).

Our little hairy dog gets them too. Horrible sore, itchy areas.

Our vets advice is successful in clearing them up quickly:

Cut / shave around the area to allow the wound to dry and to stop hair irritating it.

A little Sudocrem.

Human antihistamines (supermarket hayfever tablets). Check respected pet forums experts for dosage.

Good luck.

Just to emphasise, early detection is really important. I missed one once (I was at work) and it was already really oozy and very sore by time I spotted it later that day (dog showed me!) - we had to go to vet as she couldn't bear me going near it. Likewise when we got to vet - they had to anaesthetise her to clean it up. Another vet told me that they can become full thickness sores in a very short time (a few hours) so catch them as early as you can.