Why is my 5-month-old dog losing tail hair? Is she underweight?

Hi, I'm Dr. Johnson. I think I just answered a question about Aysha! The tail tip doesn't worry me, a lot of dogs get the hairless area. My own dog has it. The other picture of the moth eaten appearance to her fur is not normal. A lot of skin conditions looks the same unfortunately. The hair loss could be form a skin infection (bacteria or yeast), from demodex (a non contagious mite) or ring worm. Also I know we were discussing her being over weight and a low thyroid. A low thyroid can predispose dogs to skin infections. Also food allergies can also. I think you have a few reasons to see your Vet now! Good luck!

This can be due to a skin infection or allergies. You can check him for fleas to make sure this does not need to be addressed first. You can also get a medicated shampoo to bathe him in weekly to help clean the hair and hair follicle. Adding an omega 3 fatty acid and fish oil supplement to the diet can help with shedding Your vet can check the skin for an underlying infection or a low thyroid as these will need medication to clear

It is difficulty to say without seeing it; however in general hair loss on the tail can be caused by ringworm, alopecia X, Cushing's disease, or even allergies. For further info on what the cause could be, you could opt to do some skin testing (i.e. impression, biopsy) +/- bloodwork to look for underlying causes. I hope that this helps and best of luck determining the cause for Mishk's hair loss. Take care.

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Weight loss can be a sign of intestinal worms, organ dysfunction or disease (pancreatic insufficiency, liver shunts, kidney disease, liver inflammation/infection, etc.), food allergies or poor diet, and many other conditions. Hair loss can be due to parasites (mange, fleas, etc.), hypothyroidism, allergies (food or environment), immune diseases, etc. Given that Kalu is 2 years old, I would start by getting him dewormed and also get a product that treats for fleas, ticks and mange. See if his problems resolve. If they do not, then see your vet about testing. Best of luck with Kalu!

Hi and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If the hair thinning seems to be on the tail and the rest of his body and he is not itching, licking, or scratching the hair loss, then it may be due to an underlying endocrine disease such as Cushing's disease, diabetes, or hypothyroidism (low thyroid hormone). I would recommend Hugo see his veterinarian soon for this. Your veterinarian will do a physical exam and may recommend blood work to check for any underlying health conditions such as the ones mentioned above among others to help determine a cause so he can get treated most appropriately. I hope this helps and thanks again for posting!

I would not say it is common to have hair loss on the a tail like that. I would have Kayla examined by a vet. Common causes of hair loss include demodex mites, ringworm, infection, allergies, and fleas. The vet will do an examination and probably a skin scraping to diagnose mites. Once a diagnosis is made, an appropriate treatment can be selected.

With the weight loss as well as the skin condition I would recommend a blood test to rule out internal diseases such as liver disease as well as a skin scrape and possible biopsy in order to fully investigate the underlying cause and to guide the most appropriate treatment