My dog has flies after bath. Ear infection or needs another bath?

Fruit flies are attracted to organic matter. It could very well be that Mike is dirty. You can try bathing him to see if it makes a difference. You should also clean up any stool in the area as well as fruit or food scraps if present. To keep numbers of flies down, you can purchase or make your own fruit fly traps. A quick online search will yield easy, inexpensive plans for traps.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It looks like Pickles has a superficial skin infection on his head. I’m not sure what caused the infection but it is likely the flies are attracted to the infection smell. I recommend taking him to a vet for treatment of the infection and to look for the cause. In the meantime, you can wash the area with mild soap and water and be sure to dry it well. I would keep him inside until it’s scabbed over so flies don’t keep coming back. Good luck and kisses to Pickles!

Poor doggie. Visit your local pet store, they sell over the counter fly repellent cream that will keep the flies away. And if there are sores on the ears apply a thin layer of Neosporin after cleaning them with a mild soap and warm water (i.e. Dove).

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Flies are attracted to foul-smelling things, such as feces or other organic material, ie fluid or tissue from a wild animal. If Dottie has flies that bother her, she may just need a good bath using a dog-safe shampoo to remove any material or smells that are attracting flies. If you are concerned about FLEAS, a bath may help, but ultimately Dottie will need either a topical or oral medications to prevent and kill fleas. These should be purchased from your veterinarian (as many over-the-counter flea medications are not effective and may actually be harmful to your dog). I hope this is helpful!

This looks like moist pyoderma which is a focal bacterial skin infection. They can be very mucoid and smell as well as inflamed. Sometimes removing the hair and applying topical antibiotic medication works but other times oral medications are needed for this to clear up.

That looks like a little hot spot or area of infection on his foot. With there being a lot of flies around I worry that they will further irritate the wound. Sometimes flies can even lay eggs in an open wound and then the wound becomes infested with maggots (fly larva). I would recommend cleaning the wound thoroughly and trying to keep your dog inside until it heals (or at least keeping the flies away from him). If the wound does not seem to be healing quickly I would recommend taking him to be checked out by your vet. Sometimes these wounds need to be clipped and flushed clean and Blue may need antibiotics to help it heal.

Chronic ear and skin infections may have an allergic component as stated by your veterinarian. It may be fleas, but the likelihood is reduced with regular flea control. Even then though, in a sensitive dog, one flea bite may be enough to cause a serious allergic reaction. The steroid (Prednidale) and antibiotic (Rilexine) are temporary fixes, treating just the symptoms but not the underlying condition. There are also environmental allergies and food sensitivities that may responsible. The sheer number of potential allergens is what makes diagnosing allergies so frustrating. Discuss allergy testing, hydrolyzed diets and food elimination trials with your veterinarian. A consult with a veterinary dermatologist ma be indicated. You should also discuss antihistamine use, either seasonally or year round, with your veterinarian. Atopica and Apoquel are prescription medications that may help treat allergies and can be dispensed by your vet. Consider adding an essential fatty acid supplement, such as a fish oil, to Irish's diet to promote healthy skin and coat. The EFAs may also help some with the itching and inflammation. DermCaps or EicosaCaps are two recommended products.