Reptile & Amphibian Forums

2 days ago I noticed that my 2 yr. old Dauschund has a small patch of skin where the fur is gone and it's red. I catch her licking/biting it every once in a while. I called the vet and they said it sounds like a skin irritation and to put some Neosporin on it. She has an appt. this coming Monday for a check-up and shots and I was hoping it could wait until then. Any idea what this could be and what caused it?

2 days ago I noticed that my 2 yr. old Dauschund has a small patch of skin where the fur is gone and it's red. I catch her licking/biting it every once in a while. I called the vet and they said it sounds like a skin irritation and to put some Neosporin on it. She has an appt. this coming Monday for a check-up and shots and I was hoping it could wait until then. Any idea what this could be and what caused it?

Gee, it's hard to say without looking at it and even then unless you've had a similar problem with your own dog, I don't know that anyone can tell. Could the dog have been bitten by some kind of an insect? It might even be an allergic reaction to something. I'm sure the vet will have some suggestions for you. Let us know when you find out.
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Mary Lou & Katie

>>2 days ago I noticed that my 2 yr. old Dauschund has a small patch of skin where the fur is gone and it's red. I catch her licking/biting it every once in a while. I called the vet and they said it sounds like a skin irritation and to put some Neosporin on it. She has an appt. this coming Monday for a check-up and shots and I was hoping it could wait until then. Any idea what this could be and what caused it?

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ANSWER:

I would not wait until Monday. The longer the irritation continues, the more skin damage and the longer it will take for that fur to grow back. She can get a severe, deep, even systemic infection from licking and biting it. And the licking/biting herself can become a habit. I would interrupt this quickly by getting her to a veterinarian tomorrow.

The article on Self Mutilation at the link below my signature may help you some. It's a free, veterinary education site that doesn't even require you to register. You can also ask a veterinarian a question there, free. But they cannot answer on an emergency schedule, so it does not replace getting your dog check in person by a veterinarian, promptly.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47

I don't know what it might be, but if I were you I'd postpone (or cancel!) the shots. That will do nothing to help, and might very well make it worse. Have your vet test for mites. If it's not mites, try a very high-quality kibble like Innova Evo or Merrick, or a homemade or raw diet. Also try flax or hemp oil in his food and on his skin. Both are great for skin.
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Kadee Sedtal
home of old lady Lucy (boxer/lab/garbage disposal), pretty girl Fancy (beagle), the rats- Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Pachebel, Fillmore, Norbert, and baby Franz, the mice- Vivaldi, Brahms, Schubert, Bartok, Rasputin, Johann, Chaminade, Dorothy, Glenda, and Em, and the *adorable* winter white dwarf hamster- Feather
"I wish I had a dollar for every time I spent a dollar, because then, yahoo! I'd have all my money back." -Jack Handey

Unless Innova Evo has changed their bag's, I would'nt use it. Metal from the bag is getting into the food. Look's like Glitter. They are saying it comes from ripping the bag open..
This is NOT TRUE.
I have a bag & have met up with a few other's also that have bag's with the metal in the food.

No amount of metal is safe.

Here is a copy of the letter that I got from them.

Dear pet lover,

The appearance of “silver flakes” that sometimes appears in our EVO dog food comes from the simple action of opening the EVO bag. The flakes are actually from the silver ink imprinted paper on the outside of the bag which is disturbed by the tearing of the paper during opening.

After thoroughly investigating the situation, you’ll be relieved to know that the ink used for the EVO bags meets the requirement of Toy Safety, CONEG and California’s proposition 455 that limit heavy metal content. Specifically, the total heavy metal content is less than 100ppm for lead, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, and mercury. The aluminum used in the metallizing process is regarded as safe (GRAS) as designated in the Food Additive Amendments to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. This all means that the flakes are free from anything that might be harmful to your pet.

However, this is indeed an unintended phenomenon, and Natura is taking steps to prevent this from occurring in the future. We are currently working with our bag supplier to locate alternate suppliers for packaging paper. In addition, all bags currently being made for EVO no longer have the EZ Open string pull feature which exacerbated the situation. You can expect EVO to be available in new packaging in the very near future.

We hope that this information has adequately addressed any concern you might have.

Please feel free to contact me if you need any additional information or if you have any questions.

Veronica Moreno
Natura Pet Products
800-532-7261