Canine Skin Rashes

Owning a dog comes with many responsibilities, including feeding and grooming. At some point as a dog owner, you may have to deal with your pet having a skin rash or other disorder. A good indicator of your dog having a skin rash is the condition (look and feel) of its skin or coat.

  1. Causes

    • Dog skin rashes can be caused by a number of things including an allergic reaction, bacterial infections, skin parasites like fleas or mites, seborrhea also known as dandruff, and fungal infections like ringworm.

    Symptoms

    • If your dog is scratching, biting or consistently licking one set area on its skin, this is a good indication that a skin rash may be present. Other symptoms of skin rash include pimples, red spots and/or crusty patches on the skin.

    Types

    • There are several types of skin rashes that affect canines. One common type is ringworm, which is caused by a fungus that can exist in your dog's living quarters for up to a year and a half. Another type of skin rash is a yeast infection. Sometimes causing an unpleasant odor, a yeast infection is marked by red, scaly skin and will often cause your dog to scratch excessively.

    Treatment

    • There are several ways to treat skin rashes on your dog. You can begin by giving your dog more-frequent baths. If the dog's skin appears to be dry, you should use a shampoo that contains sulfur. For a dog with oily skin, use a shampoo that includes ingredients that function as a degreaser for the skin like selenium sulfide. Another way to treat skin rashes in your pet is to change its diet by reducing corn, wheat and soy intake. Changing your dog's diet can make a huge difference in healing its skin rash. In addition to bathing it more frequently and changing its diet, medicating your dog with an over-the counter treatment can help, or your vet can also prescribe medications and make other recommendations to treat your pet.

    Prevention

    • There are many things you can do to prevent skin rashes in your dog including grooming your dog daily, monitoring your dog's dietary intake and keeping your yard and/or home free of ticks, mites, fleas and other rash-causing elements.