Best skin products for a dog with Cushing's, bare spots, crusty skin?

I'm so sorry that Polly is dealing with so many problems. That can certainly be a challenge. As I'm sure you know, dogs with Cushing's disease are prone to developing secondary bacterial skin infections. If Polly was just started on the Cephalen (which I am presuming is a cephalosporin antibiotic), I would give it a chance to work and just continue with your current topical therapy. If however, she has been on it for more than a week, I would contact your veterinarian about the possibility of changing oral antibiotics. At that time, you can also discuss other topical antibiotics with your veterinarian. One of the most common used here is topical Chlorhexidene which comes in shampoo, spray and wipe formulations. Good luck to you and Polly! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Sadly the dark pigment may not be reversible. I would have your Vet check Bentley for a yeast infection. Sometimes that can cause dark flakey pigmented skin. Also make sure he isn't hypothyroid. Some dogs have multiple endodrine diseases. You can try Bentley on Omega 3 to help over all skin health. I like Omega Benefits: http://vrshealth.com/canine-products/omegadog/. Also having his Cushings treated and under control will help further skin issues. I hope this helps and I wish you and Bentley the best!

Dogs with Cushings are more likely to develop skin infections, and it is possible that these crusty lesions are from a bacterial or fungal skin infection. Dogs with allergies can develop similar skin issues. I'd recommend making an appointment with your veterinarian to have Bruiser's skin evaluated and discuss what treatments might be recommended: sometimes shampoos or sprays can help and other times oral medications are necessary.

Human products can be used but you’ll need to keep him in a cone so he doesn’t lick the medication. Veterinary products are recommended since they are designed for pets. They have several over the counter medications at PetCo that will be effective to treat his spots. I recommend bathing him first in a medicated shampoo then using a hotspot type medication on the sores. If they aren’t healing or getting worse then please take him in for an exam and treatment. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Soleil.

Hello. If his skin is damaged, then you want to use an antibacterial shampoo until the lesions heal. Anything with Benzoyl Peroxide or Chlorhexidine will work well. You will need to probably bathe him every few days, so alternate with a shampoo that has anti-itch properties such as Pramoxine or 1% hydrocortisone. The key to using any medicated shampoo is to make sure you leave the lather on for 10 minutes before rinsing. Finally, you should use a skin barrier preparation that contains ceramides. Allerderm Spot-on by Virbac & Dermoscent Essential 6 Spot-on are 2 highly rated products. Ueing these products along with diet & appropriate medications should make Mumble much more comfortable. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

One of the things that Cushing's disease affects is the normal metabolism of hair follicles. Normally hair follicles "turn over" or produce hair quickly enough that we don't see areas of hair loss even though dogs (and us) lose hair daily. When a dog has Cushing's disease, the hair follicles are not regrowing hair as quickly as possible. (And often they do not shed the hairs normally.) Cushing's disease also affects their immune system, so it is more likely that dogs will get overgrowth of normal yeast and bacteria that can invade the hair follicles and cause the hair to fall out. So, what I would suspect occurred is that Buttercup had an area of hair where the hair follicles had a yeast or bacterial overgowth that invaded the hair follicles. Instead of shedding normally, those hairs stayed in place and allowed the bacterial/yeast overgrowth to spread until the hairs were mechanically removed with a brush. And since her hair follicles were not regrowing hair normally, the area is now bald. If there is any crusting, itching or redness that develops, I would certainly have your vet examine Buttercup. Otherwise, i would recommend regular bathing and brushing to remove dead undercoat and prevent future skin problems. It will take time, but fur should regrow in that area as long as the skin there is healthy. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and answered your question. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If this is associated with itchiness, this may be due to skin allergies. There are medications such as Apoquel and prednisone which may help to decrease the itch. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!