Scabs and missing hair on back?

[oojacoboo]

Hello one again,

For some time now I have been noticing that Duke's hair is not right on this back, around his spine. It appears that they are bumps from a distance, but when you analyze them a little closer they are actually scabs, where the hair is missing. It does appear that the hair is a bit thinner around his back area, which could be a result of this. Are these flea bites? Could it be mange? I told the vet that I was concerned about it and he didn't pay much mind. He gave me something to sponge on him like a bath for a type of mange and fleas. It appears that his skin is kind of dry. It is sort of flaky, not real bad, but a little., especially around the scabs.

Does anyone have any insight based upon this. I really can not afford to take him back to the vet at this time.

As always, thanks.

Jacob and Duke

 

[brwneyesk8]

Hmmm.... could be mange starting up and your vet should not have brushed it off so easily. But it could be something else too. Porter has had a few spots on his rump that have been missing hair since he was younger then 8wks old. Hair just never grew back. Never spread either. The skin where the hair is missing is a darker color then his skin but no one knows what it is. They don't itch, grow or spread....so the vet just measures them at each visit and we monitor them at home. He's almost 3 now.

Do those spots itch him? Are they red? Are they slightly raised? Is there a ring around the edge of the hairless area? I'm thinking perhaps your vet could have done a skin scrape or whatever it is they do to test for mange.
Have they seemed to spread in number or grown in size? Unfortunately I'm not sure what else it could be and I hope you find out!!! Please keep us posted, ok??? I'd like to hear what they turn out to be! Good Luck!

 

[michelle8702]

Has his hair thinned anywhere else?

Just thought I would ask you. Dozer has demodex mange which we are treating with Ivomectin. He lost hair on his face first and thenarted getting a "moth eaten look" on his back around the shoulderblades and a little tiny bit on his rib cage!

When It was just on his face... we were told to try to reat it with a better diet and vitamins to help boost his immune system. For his diet we gave him some raw meat everyday just a bit in his kibble and 2 raw egg's a week. We also gave him a vitamin supplement for his coat. We used brewers yeast formula which dozer thought were treats so now him and my kitty come running when they here they bottle rattle

Also try to give him a selsun blue bath twice a week if you find out it is mange, Because it help to relive itch and the dead mites!

Now this is important.... If the dog has open sores and a lot of red patches you need to take him back to the vet.... A diffrent one too obviously. He could have a thing called Sarcoptic mange and it can be very Bad very quickly from what I have heard... I have never seen it or dealt with it personally myself!

If I were you I would try the selsun blue bath's first and see if he get's any relief from those. If there are scab's on him, He is probably itching so much that he is breaking the skin!

 

[oojacoboo]

well, he isn't itching it at all, they just look like scabs and nothing else as well. Sometimes, there is what seems like a zit, and it can be poped as well, yuck I know! Other than this, they are just scabs. I don't know what it is. The vet thought that it could have been saracoptic mange and gave me a treatment for it, but he said that its the least trouble of all. Or maybe it was called something similar, I don't have that info infront of me. It doesn't seem to be bothering him at all, but it looks bad. I give him brewers yeast as well, but I haven't seen anything much from it. I might try and give him raw meat and eggs to boost his immune system. Does the selsun blue hydrate the skin, it looks as though his skin may be too dry?

If anyone has any other ideas I would be reall grateful.

 

[Jan]

You could try adding some oil to his food. Like olive oil, flax seed oil or salmon oil. Any oil with omega 3 would be beneficial. There are special mixes that are designed especially for dogs.

 

[luvroxy]

Did it ever clear up?

My Grady is exhibiting almost the same thing. Did you ever figure out what it was? My female had red mange as a puppy around her eyes, but never scabs or anything. With Grady it is between his shoulder blades and the hair is thinning and there are some scabs. The skin is also very dry. Please let me know if you ever found anything out. I haven't taken him to the vet yet, I am trying switching his shampoo and also using a conditioner or his skin before I pay the vet to tell me it might be nothing. Let me know.

 

[bkidd]

To Duke's and Grady's mom

My puppy GAGE has had the exact same problem. It started of like Duke's did...with alot of bumps (looked like mosquits bits almost)starting from his neck, shoulder blades, and mainly his spine. He had a few other bumps here and there occasionally. I assumed he was allergic to something in my yard. But when I moniterd his outside time, where he played and such, they still persisted. Finally after taking him to the vet and the skin scrapes showed no sign of mites I felt helpless. I'm still not positive what caused this reaction. But 1 month later a couple of bald spots showed up on his face/leg this time...demodectic mange. Maybe he was allergic to the sheet he sleeps on that I wash frequently or maybe allergic to the mites? My vet coudn't even tell me. He suggested getting some conditioning rinse that you don't wash off. I use DVM HyLyt bath oil after every bath from petsmart. Seems to have helped with his dry skin. We also quit using our propane fireplace which the Dr. said could be drying out his skin. So consider these things and alot of good luck narrowing things down.

 

[Diesel1]

Diesel had the samething when he was about 6 months. The Vet told us it was a staph infection and he gave us pills and special shampoo.

 

[luvroxy]

Thanks

Thank you for the input. I have spoken to my vet today and I will be taking Grady into the vet this weekend I guess. Hopefully it is nothing bad. I am always so paranoid when my puppies get sick or start losing hair in this situation.