My dog bit her leg raw from fleas. What can I put on her skin?

Those spots on Lucy 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 her diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. Also protect the area from trauma by having your pup wear an elizabethan collar at all times. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Ouch, poor Rose! Some dogs are allergic to fleas and can become intensely itchy, which can then lead to the development of a bacterial skin infection, which only amplifies the itch cycle. You did the right thing by starting Rose on flea prevention (K9 Advantix II is my favorite OTC topical), but a flea collar is unnecessary. Be sure to continue using topical flea prevention monthly to prevent flea eggs from hatching to larvae and reproducing. With the redness on Rose's skin, it is highly suspicious that she has developed a skin infection, which requires antibiotics for resolution. There aren't any over the counter medications available to to help with her itching or skin infection, so Rose will need to go to the vet. The vet will be able to prescribe the best medication (likely antibiotics and anti-itch medications) for Rose to remedy this issue. I hope that she feels better soon!

Those spots on Lily could be several things including allergies, skin mites, flea bites or a bacterial infection. 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 with soap once a day and rinse well (don't wash her whole body, just those spots). You can also give an anti-histamine (call your veterinarian for selection and dosing instructions). Protect the areas from licking or scratching and she may need to wear an Elizabethan collar at all times. If the lesions don't start looking better within about a week or if they get worse, have her examined by the veterinarian who may prescribe medications. Best of luck and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any licking/scratching. Hope this answer was helpful, but 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.

I hate to hear that Sam is so miserable! Definitely for the fleas I would recommend an oral flea product such as Simparica or Comfortis. These are the top products on the market and will kill any fleas that land on Sam within 3-4 hours. Topical products take 12 - 24 hours. You will need to use a good flea prevention on him and any other pets in the house for a solid 6 months. To help his skin to feel better, give him a cool water bath daily. You can also give him an over the counter antihistamine. If you have an elizabethan collar for him, you can also apply a small amount of cortisone cream. The collar will keep Sam from licking. You need to rub it in well and make sure he cannot lick it. You might also call the clinic daily and check to see if they have any cancelations. You might be able to get Sam in earlier. I hope this helps!

I recommend you get him checked by your vet - it is likely the damaged skin has become infected and very painful, hence the biting and snapping towards the area. It is likely he will need antibacterial and antifungal washes and possibly antiinflammatory medication to allow the skin to heal. An omega fatty acid supplement and rigorous flea prevention (including household flea spray to kill the eggs and larvae) are also recommended

Unfortunately she may have an environmental or food allergy involved here. I would recommend taking her to a vet to get the skin looked at. If it is bleeding chances are she needs a good antibiotic and an strong medicated anti-histamine +/- steroid combination to help control the itch. Then comes the fun part, trying to figure out what she has an allergy to? This can be discussed with your vet in detail based on what things have changed in the home (bedding, shampoo's etc) and possibly even starting her on a food trial to rule out food allergies (I like to use Royal canin hypoallergenic hydrolyzed protein or Hill's Z/D for dogs- prescription foods). Only prescription products have been shown to be consistently effective for treating dogs with food allergies. Some dogs even have dust mite allergies of grass allergies (which are proved with skin allergy testing).