My dog has hair loss and pink skin on his leg. What should I do?

I'm sorry to hear of your issues with Jaxx. There are many potential causes for hair loss in dogs including allergies, fleas, mange and hormonal imbalances. Based on the pictures provided, it appears that Jaxx's skin has been inflammed for a while. The skin appears thickened and red. I think this is most likely due to allergies. He may also have a secondary bacterial or yeast infection. A soothing oatmeal bath may help with his discomfort. You can also try an antihistamine such as benadryl. A common dose for this is 1mg per pound of body weight. For example, a 25 pound dog would receive 25mg. If this does not help, I would recommend having him seen by a veterinarian. In some cases, steroids, antibiotics or medicated shampoos may need to be prescribed to resolve this issue.

Hi, and thanks for your question. This could be due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Hello, and thanks for your question about Jack. If Jack has focal lesions where he's getting hair loss and red spots, this is often a sign of a skin infection. This can often occur secondary to allergies or fleas. Jack should be seen by your vet, as he may require a course of oral antibiotics to treat his skin. Hope this helps!

From the photos here it looks like these are patches of hair loss. We can have hair loss at points of pressure if a dog likes to lay on hard surfaces, but we also worry about things like ringworm (a fungal infection), skin mites, and bacterial infection causing patches of hair loss. I would recommend bringing your dog in to the vet to examine the area. They may recommend a fungal culture if ringworm is suspected or a cytology of the skin to check for bacteria or a skin scrape to check for mites.

Hi. Thanks for the photos. There are a few common things that can cause the dark coloring, hair loss, and even itching. The most common can be allergies. Others would be deep infection, parasitic, low thyroid, and hormonal imbalances. With the photos here and the severity, I am highly suspicious of severe allergies or low thyroid level. I would make an appointment with your veterinarian when you are able and they will do a full exam. They will do some skin testing, bloodwork that will include thyroid levels, and whatever medication may be needed depending on the probable cause after an exam. Good luck

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. The cause of the hair loss could be allergies or skin mites as well. I would make sure the veterinarian scrapes the skin to check for parasites of the skin. This may also need an oral antibiotic in addition to topical therapy to see if it will respond. You can also try a different shampoo such as Douxo PS Chlorhexidine combination shampoo and bathe twice weekly. If there is no improvement and your vet is unable to resolve this, I would recommend a second opinion with a veterinary dermatologist if possible. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

There is a good chance that this is just a hot spot and allergies. Mange usually starts with hair loss on the feet or around the eyes, but not always. It could also be secondary to fleas. I would try some Benadryl twice a day (see link below) and also a cone collar to prevent him from chewing. If you can get in touch with the owner, I would talk to them about this and see if they want you to take him to the vet. The vet may be able to get him on a stronger allergy medicine, determine the cause and start antibiotics if needed. I hope this helps! https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/benadryl/#!