My dog scratches, ripping skin. Why isn't vet cream working?

It does look like a skin infection but the origin (bacterial, fungal, yeast) I don't know just by looking at it. If it is bacterial, sometimes oral antibiotics are needed if topical therapy is not working. I don't know what cream you are using as I am not aware of a chlorhexidine cream, or how long you have been using it, so it's hard for me to comment much more on what you are already doing. I personally like these chlorhexidine wipes because they also contain an anti-fungal/anti-yeast component (climabazole) and a component to help repair the skin (phytosphingosine) so it is gentle. ( https://www.allivet.com/p-5393-douxo-chlorhexidine-3-ps-pads-for-dogs-and-cats-30.aspx?SearchTerm=duoxo+Auto ) If she is licking this area, it will never get better. So, if she is licking, you will need to get an E-collar (cone) for her to wear until this is healed. So, if you want to try the medicated pads, I would do that. If there is still not resolution after a few weeks then she should go back to the vet. Skin maladies typically take quite a long time to respond completely to treatment so as long as it's not bothering her too much just continue on for a few more weeks. Treat the affected areas for at least a few days past all resolution of the lesions. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Hello. I am so sorry for your concerns with Brandi. I wish I could just diagnose her skin problems from just a picture, but this is quite impossible. If this has been a chronic issue, my recommendations would be to either get a referral to a veterinary dermatologist who specializes in unusual skin problems, or have your veterinarian biopsy one of these lesions. It is not unusual to have to go this route when you have a frustrating case that just does not want to resolve using conventional therapy. Skin scrapes are good first step, but I think your veterinarian needs to look deeper into Brandi's skin problem. Good luck & thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Charlie Ferreira looks like she may have a chronic bacterial/yeast skin infection +/-mange (from skin mites), likely secondary to chronic inflammation from environmental and/or food allergies. I recommend seeing a new vet perhaps, and starting her on an oral flea/tick preventative such as Simparica, NexGard, or Bravecto that also treats mange and will cover the cause of flea allergy dermatitis if she does have fleas. In addition, she may benefit from a 2 week course of an oral skin antibiotic such as Simplicef, a medicated antibacterial/antifungal shampoo such as Malaseb twice weekly for 1-2 months, and either a daily/year round allergy pill called Apoquel and/or a monthly allergy injection such as Cytopoint. Gradually switching her to an allergy diet such as Hills z/d or Royal Canin Ultamino at the same time or within a week symptoms don’t improve on NexGard, Simplicef, Malaseb and Apoquel will likely give you the best chance of resolving her discomfort and symptoms. Good luck!

Hi there, It would be helpful to know what diagnostics were done with your veterinarian. This could be something like a deep skin infection, an immune mediated skin disease, or a primary nasal problem erupting through the skin. It is difficult to say from this photograph. I suspect she may need to have a biopsy done for definitive diagnosis and to know what treatment is best. She may need more than antihistamine tablets for this to resolve. I hope this helps. Best of luck to you and Coco.

This does look like a severe skin disease. Dogs can develop environmental allergies similar to eczema, but I would expect that he would have responded some to the medications prescribed at least temporarily if this was the case. Buddy could have a parasite, resistant infection, or an autoimmune disease causing these symptoms as well. You may want to recheck with the vet to see if there are any other tests they might recommend - a skin scrape, fungal culture, skin cytology and culture, or biopsy might be the next steps. If Buddy is not on a good flea and tick preventative I'd recommend starting one as well just in case of parasites.

There are a lot of things that could be causing this appearance to the skin, and it may not be easy or cheap to figure it out. I would recommend that you keep working with the vet. Baseline blood work, thyroid hormone, testing for Cushing's disease, skin biopsies, food trials, flea preventatives, etc may be needed.

Oh my. Poor guy. This infection is severe. I would have cultures taken of this skin immediately if the broad spectrum antibiotics that your vet gave aren't working. I would also consider getting biopsies of this thing. The area may need surgical debridement as well, because there is some diseased and necrotic (dead) tissue there that will prevent this from healing well if it isn't removed. I am so sorry your pet has such an aggressive skin condition. This certainly will need further medical management from your vet for sure. With the suggestions above, you should be able to get a better handle on this thing. Best of luck and take care!