My dog has a dry, scabby patch on her hip, no hair loss. What is it?

Poor Mia! It could be that she injured herself causing this patch of fur missing and the scabs, or she could have been very itchy leading to self trauma. I would keep an eye on it for now since it appears the area is healing. Should the area not heal over the next week or so, you notice her biting or scratching at the area, or if it appears to appears to spread, then I would have Mia seen by a vet.

We commonly see an overgrowth of normal bacteria on the skin cause crusting and scabbing. When this happens around and in the hair follicles, the hair will easily fall out. When a dog has a thick coat, the crusting can spread under the coat and go unnoticed. From your picture, it looks like this area may be over the hip/pelvis. In older dogs, when their bones are more prominent, they will sometimes have areas like that due to lying on harder surfaces. These can become pressure sores, so be sure to keep an eye out for those. I agree that the area does not look irritated, but there is still some brown crusting left, so be sure to monitor the area closely for any spread of the crusting. If the crusting spreads or the skin appears red, be sure to have your vet evaluate the area. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

In your picture it looks like there might be a small skin growth in the center of the ring like skin lesion, so if there is still a raised area I would recommend seeing your veterinarian. Some skin growths are benign and can be monitored while others should be removed. The areas of crusty debris could be from trauma, or potentially an infection secondary to allergies. If these areas do not improve in the next few days or if new skin lesions develop I'd also recommend seeing your vet.

Skin lesions can be caused by bacterial, parasitic or fungal infection, dietary or environmental allergies or sensitivities, immune system disorders, or a combination of the above. I recommend making an appointment to have Opehli seen by your veterinarian to help determine the cause of the lesions you’ve noticed and to make sure they are treated appropriately. The vet will likely want to shave the area and look at a sample from the area under the microscope to determine if there is an infection and to figure out what medication is appropriate for treatment. In the meantime, you can bathe Opehli in hypoallergenic shampoo for dogs to clean the area, and put an e-collar (cone) on Opehli to help reduce the risk of licking/scratching at the area, but this will likely not resolve the lesions. The lesion in the picture looks like it could be a "hot spot" , and will not heal if she is able to lick or scratch at it. See the link below for more information: https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4952981

Thanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. This area can be either a localized demodex infection, a bacterial infection or a fungal infection (ringworm has to be considered). Thyroid disease can also be considered. If the area of hairloss and scabbing does not improve or completely resolve within 1-2 weeks, then I would recommend taking Indy to your local vet to have the skin tested. If it does not improve, then the appropriate medication (depeding on her skin test results) can be prescribed for Indy to help this resolve. Bset of luck with Indy and her skin. Take care.

Hello, sorry to hear about Quincy. It looks like that could be ringworm. If so, it could require treatment with anti-fungals for quite some time. Otherwise, she may need some diagnostics to rule out other causes for this which may include a skin scrape, hair culture, and cytology to look at cells under the microscope to rule out bacteria and yeast infections. In the mean time, you can keep a collar on so that Quincy does not lick at the area or you can use a shirt to cover the area and keep her from licking at it. Hope this helps and best of luck.

I am sorry to hear about Daisy! Due to the size of this lesion and the fact that it isn't improving, I would recommend taking Daisy to the vet for examination of this swelling. I would be concerned that we could have a bacterial infection like an abscess, that this could be a spider bite or other insect bite, or possibly even a mass/tumor. The vet can examine the area and may try to aspirate the swelling (use a small needle to remove any fluid present or collect cells that may help identify the cause of the swelling and the best treatment). Best of luck with Daisy!