My dog has a weird mark on his skin. Is it a bite? Should I see a vet?

I am suspicious that this could be a lesion caused by either demodex mite or ringworm. I would highly encourage you to have a follow up appointment with your veterinarian. A skin scrape can be done to look for mites, they may consider a trial anti mite therapy in addition to an a topical anti fungal medication. If it still won’t heal then my next step would be a skin biopsy for more information on what the underlying problem is. Best of luck and I hope she improves soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Hello and thank you for your question. From the pictiures and your description of the lesion, I am more concerned for ringworm. Ringworm is a skin parasite that is transferable between animals and people and usually manifests as a distinct ‘target’ or ‘bullseye’ skin lesion. To address your concern for Lyme disease (a tick borne blood disease), in dogs, the signs typically include lethargy and lameness. There may be an associated skin lesion due to a tick bite, however that lesion with out the tick usually goes undetected. Lyme disease can easily be detected by a simple blood test preformed by your veterinarian. While not an emergency, Lewis should definitely see his veterinarian as soon as possible for diagnostics and treatment. Until Lewis can be seen by his veterinarian, I strongly advise that you or anyone else in the house hold not touch the lesion and continue to exercise proper hygiene. If you or anyone in the household has a similar lesion, they should be seen by their physician. Hopefully this information helps. Best of luck!

It’s hard to say from the photo. That could be an area where a tick bit Winston. It could also be some sort of puncture wound, spider bite or potentially a ringworm lesion. From the photo, the area looks swollen. Because of this I recommend to have him examined by the veterinarian with in the next 24 hours. A swollen tick bite or puncture wound could indicate the onset of an infection. There could also be a tick head or foreign object trapped in the skin. Ringworm generally does not swell but a deeper infection could. Make sure Winston does not lick the area and have him wear an Elizabethan collar. I hope this helps and best of luck. Please feel free to post any additional questions.

This presentation could be due to a trauma or localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria). It does not specifically look like a tic bite. A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any licking/scratching. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Hello, thank you for your question about Buddy. Based on the photos that you have attached I think that it is very possible that this lesion could be a bug/spider bite. It is also possible that Buddy was exposed to something irritating to his skin. If he is not bothered at the area and it does not seem very painful I would recommend continuing to monitor him. If the lesion progresses or he develops any additional symptoms I would have Buddy evaluated by your veterinarian. Hope this helps, good luck!

Thank you for sending the pictures! From what I can see, it looks like this lesion is only affecting the outermost skin layers, with the underlying tissue layers remaining intact. It's certainly possible that this lesion is from a traumatic injury, like the rubber bullet you'd mentioned, but it's equally possible that this is an infectious condition, like mange or ringworm. Since there is a good bit of skin damage that's bloody, it stands to reason that this type of lesion could become infected rather quickly, particularly if Crimson is licking at it at all. Even though we're now several days past the initial injury, I still recommend taking Crimson to her vet for an in person exam to thoroughly assess this lesion. Your vet may need to do some diagnostic testing to rule out infectious issues. Depending on their exam findings, your vet may need to prescribe oral antibiotics and/or anti-inflammatory medications to aid in the healing process. Until your vet visit, be sure to prevent Crimson from licking at this lesion at all by putting an e-collar (cone) on her. I hope that she's on the mend soon!

Most often when we see a lesion like this on the skin it is the result of an insect bite, in particular a biting fly such as a black fly. If your dog is acting normally then I would just monitor the area. If the lesion grows in size, becomes raised or oozes a discharge, or your dog develops many more lesions, becomes lethargic or very itchy a vet exam is recommended.