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My dog has scabs on its neck, but I don't see any fleas. What's wrong?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Australian Cattle Dog | Female | spayed | 50 lbs

I am finding these scabs on my dogs neck. Never had this problem before and don't see any visible fleas. Any idea on what's going on?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Dr. Elizabeth

Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

Veterinarian

Published on November 19th, 2017

Those are superficial bacterial infections on Barley's neck. There are many different reasons why this can happen. Sometimes its just a random bacterial infection. It could also be related to fleas. If it continues to come back as a chronic issue, then I would suspect allergies or a thyroid condition.
If she only has a few lesions, many times these will heal easily. I would recommend to put her on an oral flea prevention such as Simparica or Comfortis to be sure that fleas are not related. I would also recommend to wash her in a medicated shampoo twice weekly for 2 weeks. If she is very itchy, you can try an over the counter antihistamine.
If Barley is very uncomfortable or if the lesions are getting worse, the veterinarian will have antibiotics and stronger medications to clear up her skin. I hope the s helps and thank you for using Pet Coach!
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