My dog's pyoderma is spreading and getting worse on antibiotics. What to do?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Misty! I think the pimples are part of her skin infection. I worry that the bacterial infection may be resistant to the antibiotic she is on since she is forming new areas while on the antibiotic. I recommend calling your Vet to tell them the porgression and see if they want to change the antibiotic or recheck her. I hope this helps and I wish Misty the best!

In most cases these skin infections, called bacterial pyoderma, are allergy-related. The antibiotics will help, but as you've experienced the skin problems will come back if the primary allergic disease isn't controlled. The hydroxyzine Becher took was an antihistamine, and that may have helped control the itchiness, however it sounds to me that he needs something a bit stronger to control the allergies and thus the skin infections. Talk to your vet about using Apoquel or Atopica on him; these are great drugs with minimal side effects that really help allergic dogs.

It is difficult for me to give you much advice without having more information but I will try my best. His skin may be getting worse due to an idiosyncratic drug reaction. The antibiotics may not be agreeing with him. A change to a different class of antibiotic may be all that is needed. The antibiotic he was prescribed may not be the correct one for this particular bacterial infection (if it is a bacterial infection). A culture and sensitivity of the crusty lesions on the head may need to be done in order to find out what bacteria are there and what antibiotic will be most effective. This may be a fungal skin infection (or yeast) and not a bacterial infection) hence why the antibiotic is not working. Antibiotics do not treat fungus or yeast. In young dogs I would be worried that this is a secondary infection of the skin from mange mites. It can be seen in older dogs as well but it is much more common in youngsters. So, I would have your vet do a skin scraping to check for mites. This could be an autoimmune disorder (like pemphigus). A biopsy of the affected area would be needed for diagnosis. That is all I can come up with right off the top of my head. I hope this helps to give you some things to bring up with your vet. Best wishes!

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Thanks for the pictures. It appears as though Sparky may have a bacterial skin infection, or puppy pyoderma. A lot of times puppy pyoderma resolves on it's own. If it gets worse than this I would recommend taking Sparky to the Vet to be evaluated and prescribed oral antibiotics. You can try a medicated shampoo: bath every 2-3 days and allow the lather to sit on the affected skin for 10 mins before rinsing. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=27306 I hope this helps and I wish Sparky the best!

Poor Buster! I'm sorry to hear that he's having so many problems. At this point, since he is on his third round of antibiotics without improvement, it sounds like he definitely needs some additional testing to help diagnose the problem. I would recommend a bacterial culture and sensitivity of the pus or discharge, as well as a punch biopsy of the skin to check for autoimmune diseases like lupus or pemphigus foliaceus. Depending on what else has been tried, other options might include a trial course of steroids or other immunosuppressive medication like Atopica or Apoquel, or a diet trial with a prescription hypoallergenic food. You can request referral to a veterinary dermatologist or get a second opinion from another vet locally if you feel that this is needed.

I would agree that it appears their is an infection on the skin, but I could not say for sure if this is a Staph infection. These are somewhat common to the skin, but without a culture of the affected region we are truly just taking a best guess. If the condition seemed to resolve and is now coming back, the course of antibiotics that was utilized may have been successful but too short. Recommencing the antibiotics should be discussed with the veterinarian. I would also see about getting her on medication for the itchiness, as well as fitting her with a collar to prevent any self-mutilation. Another possibility is that we are simply dealing with a superficial puppy pyoderma. This is a fancy way of saying simply puppy skin irritation. Many times these can be annoying but will eventually resolve on their own as the dog gets older. Since you are seeing erupting lesions, I tend to lean more towards a true, treatable infectious process. Lastly, I would definitely stop using hydrogen peroxide. Although it may have antiseptic properties, this can actually delay healing in some cases. If you want to scrub the area, I would use something like dilute betadine or chlorhexidine solution. Hope this helps!

I'm sorry to hear Abe is having skin issues. I would be concerned by the progression of his skin that he may have something more going on in addition to the bacterial infection, such as allergies, a skin parasites (mites or fleas) or a fungal infection. I would recommend he be re-evaluated to determine if something more is going on and additional treatment is needed. Good luck!