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My new dog has hot spots from flea allergy. What should I do?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Male | neutered | 9 months and 23 days old | 35 lbs

My dog has a skin irritation and I'm not sure what steps to take. To offer more background, I just adopted Hercules about a week ago and when I adopted him they had told me he was allergic to flea bites and that they had cleared the fleas up at the shelter, after talking my pup home I've noticed that he has many hot spots under his belly and around his genetalia, I have been adding coconut oil to his diet and I bought a special shampoo that is suppose to relieve it but to no avail.

4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on May 8th, 2017

Congrats on your new dog, but I'm sorry Hercules is having problems with his skin! This flea allergy could be caused the rash, and he may need stronger drugs such as steroids to clean up it up. Coconut oil will not help a flea allergy, he needs to see a vet for it. You can try giving him an oatmeal bath and Epsom salt bath tonight to get him some temporary relief, and then have him seen by a vet in the morning.

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Crystal L. Nelson
Veterinary Technician
You'll want to visit your local Veterinarian. It seems as though Hercules has a secondary infection originating with the flea allergy. Antibiotics and time will be best. Congratulations! He's adorable!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA
Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer
Published on July 30th, 2017
Poor Kobey! It's very common to see a skin rash like this due to flea allergies - even though the fleas are gone now, the allergic reaction hasn't gone away. This can take several days or even weeks to resolve on its own, so you may want to take him to your vet tomorrow for an exam. He/she can prescribe a short course of a low-dose steroid such as prednisone that should clear it up very quickly and easily.

In the meantime, you can try bathing him in an aloe and oatmeal dog shampoo if you want to - this should help to soothe his skin and temporarily relieve the itching until you are able to see the vet.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Dr. Elizabeth
Veterinarian
Published on January 5th, 2019
I would be concerned that Hercules is having another skin flare up related to allergies.
I'm not sure what therapies you have tried other than steroids. My advice would be to try to figure out the underlying cause. The 4 main things that will cause persistent skin issues are flea allergies, environmental allergies, food allergies and hypothyroidism. He's a young dog so that makes flea allergy or food allergy most likely. There are many types of food allergies including allergies to the size that the protein. Therefore I always recommend a prescription food called Ultamino as it will diagnose all types of food allergies. I recommend a product called Simparica for fleas. I think talking to your veterinarian about which option is best for Hercules makes sense as they are most familiar with him. I hope this helps to point you in the right direction. Please feel free to post any further questions!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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Dog still has frequent hotspots after bath and diet change. Help!

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My dog has recurring itchy skin rashes from allergies. What helps?

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach! In my experience, I've not seen coconut oil do much to relieve inflammation and allergies. I would instead recommend that you use a shampoo such as Douxo PS calm shampoo and bathe twice weekly. You can find this shampoo easily online. I would also recommend using welactin omega 3 fish oil and essential 6 spot on by dermoscent. Malacetic conditioning spray can also be used and applied to the affected area 2 to 3 times per day until resolved. All of the above recommended products can be found online. If this does not help then I would consider prescription medications such as Apoquel or Cytopoint, both of which are prescription drugs that will need to be prescribed by Sherry's veterinarian.

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My dog has skin allergies. What are these new spots on his belly?

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Dog allergies & hotspots: At-home care for itchy skin infections?

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