Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I posted a while back that my miniature dachshund was losing hair on her neck and chest as well as behind her ears. I wanted to let everyone now what the current status is.

I took her to a veterinary dermatologist who said that it could be post vaccinational ischemic dermatopathy, or basically a bad reaction to her last rabies vaccination. She said she sees that a lot with the Fort Dodge brand of the rabies vaccine and told us to request a different brand from our regular vet.

She prescribed melatonin because it apparently helps dog re-grow hair. She also prescribed Pentoxifylline, which is a medication that is also used in people to increase blood flow. The idea being to increase blood flow to the skin and improve hair growth. Anyway, after a couple of months on the medication her hair is thicker than ever, and you would never know that there had ever been a problem.

The vet also said my dog had ear margin crusting, which is the tips of her ears getting crusty. She said that could be a symptom of the ischemic dermatopathy or it could be ear margin seborrhea. In either case, it is very important to get treated because it can lead to other serious health issues such as chunks of her ears falling off! The treatment for either is the Pentoxifylline. She is doing better, but there is still some crusting. The doctor said she may have to stay on the medicine for the rest of her life, but that the dosage and frequency will probably come down.

Kevin Scott Davis!!!
Thank you so much for answering my questions. I have a couple more...is my imagination or is the melatonin making her sleepy? Is the Pentoxifylline natural/and expensive? Sophie had the bottom of ears crusty, vet said it was food... it is not there now does this come and go? Does the Pentoxifylline come in generic form if a Rx? The reason is our older doxie, Brutus keeps us pretty well aquinted with our credit card. Just having had anal cancer, cyst removed, wart-like polyup removed, not to mentioned the muscle pulled in his neck that had an over night visit at the vet... all of this since Jan 2005. Well thanks for your help. No matter, they are our four legged children. Cheaper than colege(Ithink)

Webmaster,

Pentoxifylline is the generic form of Trental, and it is only available by prescription. It is not very expensive, but it was cheaper to get the prescription filled at a regular human pharmacy than to get it from the vet. The crusty ears on my dog seem to come and go. Her regular vet saw it several times and did not know what it was; the dermatologist diagnosed it. I had noticed it before, but since her regular vet never thought anything of it, neither did I. That is one of several reasons I am getting a new regular vet. He also said the hair loss was normal and that there was nothing I could do about it. If you are worried about it, I would recommend that you specifically ask your vet about the diagnoses I mentioned in my other posting. You might also consider a veterinary dermatologist.

I think the Melatonin made my dog sleepy at first, but it does not seem to be a problem now. How much are you giving her? My vet prescribed 3 mg twice day for my 12 pound dog. Since her hair is completely grown back, I'm going to ask the dermatologist if she can stop taking the Melatonin.

Also, I can really relate to having sudden high vet bills. My doxie decided it would be a good idea to eat a hornet. She had an allergic reaction and broke out in huge hives all over her body literally right before my eyes. I had to take her to the animal emergency clinic, and of course they charge more. When I first took her to the dermatologist for the hair loss, I insisted that she get a thyroid profile even though the vet did not think it was necessary. I almost choked when I got the bill. The total for the visit came to $258.00! The thyroid profile was $150.00 all by itself! I'm not sorry I did it. If I hadn't I would have always had this nagging thought that I had not done all I could to take care of her, and she is definitely worth it.

Kevin