 Along
with the fun of summer, for many dogs there is a somewhat
unpleasant side effect of the romps in the grass and ocean. the
hot spot! Hot spots are areas of fur that become very inflamed
after an allergic trigger. The pet may have been bit or stung by
a bug, had matted wet fur or had contact with an allergic
trigger.
Within just hours, the area can become acutely worse as the
itch triggers the dog to lick and chew. Hot spots usually occur
on just a single spot and can range greatly in severity.
Diagnosis is relatively simple as they all tend to look very
similar. They may also have an odor due to secondary bacterial
infections. Treatment can be varied as the severity can vary
significantly in each dog. I like to compare it to those of us
that get poison ivy like I used to get as a kid. You are
miserable for a few days thinking the itch will never go away but
then finally it does.
Some people are able to cope with the itch and a few lesions,
others may need steroids like prednisone to help them from
itching too much! We try to match the treatment to the patient
and their severity of signs. |
