Why is my dog biting his hair out and has red bumps under chin?

With the description you provided it sounds like Zeus may have a skin infection. A skin infection can be caused by a few different things. Zeus may have allergies. I would recommend bringing him to your veterinarian to have them evaluate Zeus. He most likely will need antibiotics and potentially a shampoo. If your veterinarian suspects allergies they can discuss different medication options for him. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I'm sorry to hear Zeus is having skin issues. It does appear from the pictures that he has open sores on the top of his head. There are a variety of causes for this, such as trauma, infection (bacterial or fungal), an immune disease or a type of skin cancer. I would recommend Zeus be evaluated by his regular veterinarian to determine the underlying cause for his skin lesions, and start any treatment (antibiotics, anti-itch medication, anti-inflammatory) that he may need to resolve it. Good luck!

From the pictures, it could be that Zeus has a rash from a contact allergy, or this could be hives. Try giving him an oatmeal bath tonight to see if that helps with it. If it does not help with this skin problem or it gets worse, I would have him seen by a vet as soon as possible. The vet can diagnose what is causing it, and can prescribe the appropriate treatment for it. Best of luck, I hope this helps!

This is probably caused by an allergic reaction. first of all make sure you de-flea Zeus regularly every month with a high quality spot on (ex. Advantage) as fleas are by far the most common reason for these reactions. If the fleas are not the problem, it could be an allergic reaction to food or an environmental factor. this is more complicated to treat and will sometimes require medications such as Steroids, anti histamines or Apoquel in order to stop the allergy.

This is probably 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 (advocate or advantage), 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). 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.

Chronic skin problems could be several things including allergies to fleas, allergies to something in the environment, food allergy or endocrine disease. Each one of these problems is detected and addressed differently and I recommend to discuss with your veterinarian which one to start hunting down first. Parasites are often ruled out with an oral medication like Simparica. Food allergy is best ruled out with a diet trial using a hydrolyzed protein. Endocrine diseases are detected with blood work. Environmental allergies are a little more difficult to detect but a response to therapy or a blood test can give an indication. Once you figure out and address the underlying cause, the lesions should not come back. There are a couple things you can do at home and they can help but they may not address the underlying cause. You can try adding in an omega 3 fatty acid supplement for dogs, this can help improve the skin health. You may also try changing his diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. Also protect the area from trauma by having Simba wear an elizabethan collar at all times to prevent licking if needed. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Both of those spots look like there could be an underlying issue going on, and if Zeus has had previous skin problems before it could be related. If the current medication he is on isn't working, you may want to have your vet take a sample of the areas for testing to find out what they are exactly. Keeping Zeus from licking and chewing at the area with the use of an Elizabethan (cone) collar can also help reduce irritation and secondary infection, helping it clear up faster.