My adopted pitbull has dry skin & hair loss. Can I bathe him with staples?

Congratulations on your new addition! He is handsome. Expect him to be a bit shy for a few days as he adjusts to his new home and surroundings. You can try a pheromone product, such as the Adaptil collar or DAP plug in diffuser, to ease his transition. You can add some warm water or a teaspoon of canned food to get him to eat. If you haven't already, start him on a regular feeding schedule. Dogs thrive on routine. prepare his meal and leave it down for 20-30 minutes before picking it up whether he has eaten or not. repeat this at the next mealtime. Do not feed him between meals except for training rewards. Also, do not switch foods trying to find something he will eat. This can create or reinforce a finicky eater. He can be bathed every 6-8 weeks. Use a pet approved shampoo and conditioner. Spot cleaning between baths can be done using pet wipes or plain, unscented baby wipes. An essential fatty acid supplement, such as fish oil capsules, can be used to promote healthy skin and coat. Brands include DermCaps or EicosaCaps.

Those spots on Kona could be several things including dry skin, allergies, skin mites, bacterial infection or ringworm (which humans can get). 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 her diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. You can wash the lesions once a day (not her whole body, just the lesions). Also protect the area from trauma by having your pup wear an elizabethan collar at all times. If the lesions do not start improving within a week or if they are getting worse, have her examined by the veterinarian. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

This dog needs oral antibiotics and steroids to treat the skin at this point. You need to take her to the vet. This treatment (antibiotics/steroids) is only treating these symptoms though, not the underlying cause. I suspect allergies are the underlying problem but it could also be mange. Both are VERY common in this breed. The scratching, hair loss and infection are secondary conditions. Allergy testing is needed to find out what she is allergic to and a skin scraping to check for mange mites is warranted. Most clients say "I went to the vet and got no answers" but they also declined all testing the vet recommended. Vets don't have crystal ball so they need to do testing to find out what the problem is. Please get her to the vet so her skin can be treated appropriately to get her feeling better and then after the treatment is done get her allergy tested. They can't be tested while on medication. You can try this home allergy test kit as a cursory screening and then go over the results with your vet to get a treatment plan in place but honestly, skin patch testing is a better diagnostic tool. ( https://www.chewy.com/dna-my-dog-test-my-pet-dog-allergy/dp/205062 )

Hi. Skin problems can be difficult to diagnose and difficult to resolve. Your breed of dog tends to have allergies but as a puppy he may be a bit young for this. He could be having a reaction to something in his environment, have dry skin, or may have a parasite on the skin called Demodex. This parasite can cause fur loss in different areas and is more common in puppies as well as your breed of dog. You did not mention the exact medication that he is on so I cannot comment on that however I would recommend to add a high quality soothing and hydrating shampoo. Virbac has high quality shampoos that many veterinarians use and now it can be purchased on amazon! I particularly like the episoothe shampoo and resicort

The red spots and scabbing that you describe could be indicative of either a bacterial or yeast skin infection, or mites/mange. If the prescription shampoo hasn't helped in the past 3 weeks, you should give your vet a call so they can reassess the skin. They may need to do skin scrapes to microscopically check for mites or skin impression smears to microscopically check for bacteria or yeast. Based upon those results, Achilles may need oral antibiotics or another appropriate medication.

Ouch, poor Leonidas! If the hair and skin are still having issues, you may want to look into other causes such as allergies, which are very common in pitties Daily allergy meds from your vet, a change in diet to a grain-free or allergen friendly food, and wiping down the skin/coat when coming in from outside can all help reduce allergies. If there isn't an underlying problem such as an infection or allergy, then looking to a supplement such as fish oil or vitamin E may also help the skin and coat. Making sure Leonidas isn't licking and chewing the area (as it can lead to a secondary infection) can also help try to clear it up.

Dry skin does not generally progress to hair loss and shedding. I would be more concerned that Kane is dealing with an infection in his skin. Demodex mites and ringworm (which humans can get) both can have this appearance. I would recommend to take him into the vet to have an exam and a skin scrape to test for mites. Both of these conditions respond well to treatment. I hope this helps and please post again with any further questions!