My cocker spaniel has severe skin issues. Is there hope for him?

Hello, so sorry you are going through this. I cannot make a decision for you on whether or not you should put her to sleep. That is completely up to you. It would be nice to find out what might be causing her symptoms before you jump to the conclusion that there may be no hope. She may have a treatable issue. I suggest you get her to your vet for an exam. Sometimes they can find things on exam that can help you make a decision. Some simple bloodwork may also be very helpful. The vet may be able to dispense some medications to make her feel better. I don't think you should give up until you get some type of diagnosis. In the meantime, for the eyes you can wash them out with this solution: ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/vetericyn-plus-eye-wash-for-dogs ) Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Oh my. Poor guy. This infection is severe. I would have cultures taken of this skin immediately if the broad spectrum antibiotics that your vet gave aren't working. I would also consider getting biopsies of this thing. The area may need surgical debridement as well, because there is some diseased and necrotic (dead) tissue there that will prevent this from healing well if it isn't removed. I am so sorry your pet has such an aggressive skin condition. This certainly will need further medical management from your vet for sure. With the suggestions above, you should be able to get a better handle on this thing. Best of luck and take care!

Hello Kavita! I'm sorry Chinnu isn't feeling very well. I'm sure he's quite uncomfortable with that skin. Unfortunately the medications names you wrote down aren't familiar names to me in the states and I'm not finding any information on them online. I'm wondering if perhaps you mis-typed them. So I can't speak to those particular medications. I can tell you that cocker spaniels are VERY prone to skin issues and allergies that cause skin issues. He could have allergies in addition to parasites. Both issues weaken the natural barrier of the skin and make it easier for yeast and bacteria to start growing. To treat these guys, we have to clear up the yeast and bacteria, and then address the underlying cause (allergies, parasites, or other things like endocrine disorders). So it sounds like you're veterinarian is working on dealing with those initial issues and also the parasites. After that's cleared up, ask to talk about testing or treatment to help lessen the frequency in the future. I hope that helps a bit. Definitely check the drug names and post another question if there is a different spelling we can check out. Good luck! I hope Chinnu is feeling better very soon.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Oral antifungals are available through your veterinarians office and truly work best in a situation of such overgrowth. The e collar is key to preventing licking, so great to hear you are taking such good care of her! New advances are being made in the allergy world for our pups as well. Things like Apoquel and cytopoint (an oral and an injection, respectively) are now available for our pets and have made a WORLD of difference for many of my clients. If you have not discussed this with your veterinarian-it's time! Why're great. For the sore areas-until you can get her in to be seen-you can apply triple antibiotic ointment twice daily to deter further bacterial infections, just make sure she cannot lick any of it off. I hope this information helps! These products may very well be a world of difference for Izzy!

That is odd. I recommend to have Hersey examined again by the veterinarian. Without an exam, it's impossible to know if the bloated belly is related to the skin condition or is something else. Bloated tummies can indicate many things from mild constipation to endocrine disease to fluid in the abdomen (which is bad). He may need an x-ray to figure out what is going on. The skin lesions could also represent a few things. Allergies or autoimmune conditions typically respond to steroids. A minor ski irritation would also respond. I recommend to ask your veterinarian what they think is going on. An endocrine disease could cause skin lesions but they may or may not clear up with steroids. Lastly, a change in gum color could indicate a change in the blood pressure, a change in fluid status in the body or even blood loss (if they are pale). I recommend to have Hershey examined today. The veterinarian may need some diagnostics to figure out what is and is not happening. I hope they figure it out quickly. Please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear Jr is having some skin problems. Based on your description, this sounds like a bacterial skin infection called pyoderma, usually caused by a normal skin resident. Pyoderma is caused by lots of things including external parasites (fleas, ticks, mites), allergies, contact irritants, etc. The best thing to do is have Jr evaluated by your veterinarian. They can evaluate Jr. and then make recommendations for tests if they are needed. Lots of times we can evaluate these kind of problems and just prescribe some treatment. If this problem keeps recurring, then at that point your vet will advise some tests to try to figure out what is causing the problem. Good luck with Jr. I hope he gets better soon.

There is not enough information here for me to properly help you. If a vet, in person, has not been able to help you I don't think us, over the internet without examining the dog or knowing the history, will be able to help you. My recommendation would be to get a second opinion from another vet if your current vet is unable to help you. If he is unresponsive to antibiotic therapy the type of antibiotic may need to be changed or he may need to be on a couple antibiotics at the same time. Not to scare you but cancer is VERY common in Boxers and being that he is older and he is not responding to therapy I would have this a differential diagnosis. I don't know what diagnostic testing has been done (if any) but that is often important. If you don't allow any testing to be done the vet is only doing his/her best to guess what might help. Some things cannot be fixed without testing. Regardless of all that, it sounds like his condition is very serious and that he may be suffering. If nothing can be figured out then you may need to consider humane euthanasia if his quality of life is not good. Of course, you know him best and I am just speculating but you should have that in the back of your mind if treatment is failing to cure him. I am sorry you are going through this. I hope this was helpful. If you have more questions please feel free to ask again. Best wishes.