My dog's tail tip is sore and losing hair. What could it be?

A bald spot could be caused by allergies, skin infection, mites, ringworm, etc. You could bath him with a medicated dog shampoo and see if that helps. If not, have your vet examine him to determine the cause. He may need an antibiotic, anti-histamine, corticosteroid, or other medications to help treat the problem. You could also add Free Form Snip Tips to his diet and see if that helps to keep his skin and coat healthy.

That lesion on Lily could be several things including fleas, allergies, skin mites, bacterial infection, ringworm (which humans can get) or endocrine disease. There are a couple things you can do at home and they can help but they may not address the underlying cause. You can try adding in an omega 3 fatty acid supplement for dogs, this can help improve the skin health. You may also try changing her diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. You can wash the lesion once a day (not her whole body, just the lesion). Also protect the area from trauma by having your pup wear an elizabethan collar at all times. If the lesion is not improving within a week or if it is getting worse, have her examined by the veterinarian. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. The hair is expected to grow back when the allergies and infections resolve. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

This can be from an injury, scratching from fleas or an allergy, or may be due to her being hypothyroid. Low thyroid levels can cause dogs to have a rat tail look. I would check her for fleas, see if she’s scratching or rubbing the area due to allergies and consider getting a thyroid panel done to see if she is hypothyroid. If her thyroid level is low which is common in older dogs, then there is a daily supplement that will get the levels back to normal and the fur should fill in on the tail. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Daisy.

Teddy looks like he may have an infection in the skin. Pets can get infections for many reasons including fleas, allergies, ringworm (which humans can get) or endocrine disease. I recommend to have Teddy examined by the veterinarian. Teddy will like get medications and possible a medicated shampoo. You also need to protect the area from licking or chewing by having him wear an elizabethan collar at all times. I hope this helps.

The most common cause of hair loss around the tail is from flea allergies so I would definitely check her thoroughly for fleas. Other possibly causes are anal gland problems, seasonal allergies, ringworm, mites, infections. She should be examined by a vet to determine the cause and appropriate treatment.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach, and thank you for the pictures! The lower back/base of the tail is a classic area for a flea infestation. Fleas make dogs incredibly itchy, causing them to bite or scratch at the area, and cause hair loss. This area can get very sensitive and painful to dogs. I recommend bringing Nala to your veterinarian at their next available appointment to have her examined. Your vet can do a test to check for fleas, and can perform a skin scrape to see if there are any other external parasites such as mites or lice, or a secondary bacterial infection, that may be contributing to her itching. Nala should be on a consistent flea and tick preventative that can be purchased from your veterinarian. We do NOT recommend using flea and tick products that can be purchased from a food or pet store, as these are not safe or effective for use in dogs. There are no effective "natural" or holistic flea and tick preventatives, either. I hope this is helpful - best of luck with Nala!