If your dog is suffering from a rash on the skin, follow these tips.
Can you tell if your dog is suffering from a rash ? Dogs can have many diseases that may accidentally go unnoticed by their owners.
Some of these have to do with the skin. With the amount of hair these animals have, noticing any abnormalities is not easy at all. Even the treatments that will need to be applied will involve quite a complicated job. If your dog is suffering from a rash on the skin, follow these tips.
The most common skin diseases in dogs
An abnormal skin condition is not always caused by just one agent. There are several regions that can lead your four-legged friend to have a rash. Let’s see the 5 most common skin conditions that can affect dogs:
Mange
This disease is caused by a parasite that enters the animal’s skin and reproduces in it .
In this way, in a short time the animal will have hundreds, indeed thousands, of parasites that walk through its skin and create an unbearable itch.
By scratching, the animal could get very hurt, favoring the appearance of rashes on the skin. These signs of mange will cause a lot of pain.
Mushrooms
If your dog has a rash, it may have been caused by a fungal infection .
This could cause inflammation and peeling. It is a contagious disease, like the previous mange, so if you have other pets at home, you should keep them away from already sick animals.
Food allergy
As with people, food allergies can also trigger a rash. This will cause the dog to scratch relentlessly, inflicting even more damage.
In addition, one way to easily recognize if it is a food allergy is to see if in addition to the itching and obsessive scratching you notice an excess of watery eyes and a runny nose.
Dermatitis
Although this disease is caused by an allergy which can be of any type . It is one of the most common skin diseases in dogs.
This causes a great itch in the animal, which will do everything to scratch, even injure itself.
The most normal thing is the appearance of open and bleeding lesions , due to the violence with which the poor dog scratches himself.
Park grass, dust inside the house, mite attack or humidity can cause it to appear.
Gangrenous pyoderma
The pyoderma is caused by bacteria and forms a sort of pus volcano in areas close to hair follicles.
As a general rule, these bacteria seek out moist, oily areas, so it is common to find them near the anal area, in the nose, in the vulva or near the lips.
What to do if the dog has a rash?
If your dog has a rash, the first thing you should do is go to the vet .
The specialist will perform relevant analyzes to know what type of rash it is and what was the cause that originated this problem.
The doctor will provide the pet with appropriate treatment with antihistamines or other medications, depending on the condition.
However, there are some things you can do at home to help your pet. Let’s see them together in this summary guide:
- Prevent the dog from getting hurt . The itching caused by a rash could cause the animal to scratch obsessively, even causing deep wounds. To avoid this, you can make him wear socks that will limit the penetration of the nails. Remember to tie them well, otherwise they could come off easily.
- Apply creams . Ask your vet to prescribe an ointment that relieves the itch. Wear it often to make the animal feel better.
- Wet cloths . Dampen a few cloths in cold water, they will relieve your dog’s pain in the event of a rash. Place them gently on the animal’s skin and do not press too hard, so as not to injure it.
- Take him out for a walk . Sometimes the itch seems more intense when you are bored. Thinking about it too much may cause your dog to scratch more. Then take him for a walk and play with him. This will distract him and, for a while, he will forget about the itch.
If your dog has a rash on his skin, as you have seen before, the first intervention is to run to the vet .
Never postpone the medical consultation, in these cases, and avoid medicating the animal yourself. These are delicate pathologies, which can have very serious consequences.
